Union Corruption Update
Since 1997, NLPC has become a high-profile and credible source for information about America’s labor unions through our publication Union Corruption Update.
The newsletter has been referenced in many other media outlets including the New York Times, Chicago Tribune and National Journal.
Last Tuesday's elections on most fronts represented a major setback for advocates of limited government. Yet it did produce its successes, most significantly, in Michigan. Voters in that state, by an unofficial 58 to 42 percent margin, 
It is being suggested that 
Now that the election season is coming to an end, we may get a clearer picture in the near future as to just how "healthy" the auto industry really is. Another car company has just filed for bankruptcy as 
On October 18, Kelley Dull, former president of American Federation of Government Employees Local 2904 and AFGE District Council 171, was sentenced in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri to six months in prison and three years of supervised probation for wire fraud in the amount of $32,118.66. He also was ordered to pay full restitution and a $100 special assessment. Dull pled guilty in February. Local 2904 is based in Kansas City, Mo.; District Council 171 is based in Cleveland, Ohio. The guilty plea and sentencing follow an investigation by the U.S. Labor Department's Office of Labor-Management Standards.
On October 16, John McNamee Jr., president of International Alliance of Theatrical State Employees Local 829, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York to embezzling $150,000 from the New York City-based union. He had been indicted in February for making about $240,000 in unauthorized charges on union credit cards and concealing the thefts by filing false financial reports to the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL). The local represents exhibition workers at New York-area sports and entertainment events. This criminal case is separate from 
Melissa King is going to spend six years in prison. For union members, that can't be long enough. Their anger is understandable. King, formerly benefits consultant for Laborers International Union of North America Local 147, aka "the Sandhogs," 
On October 10, Richard Ikerd, former secretary-treasurer of American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 2568, pleaded guilty in the Third Judicial Circuit Court of Wayne County, Michigan to one count of embezzlement in an amount of between $1,000 and $20,000 from the Melvindale, Mich. union. He had been charged in July. Sentencing is scheduled for January. The actions follow a probe by the Labor Department's Office of Labor-Management Standards.
As a union crook, Rebecca Mercer thought big - bigger, at least, than initially had been suspected. On October 3, Mercer, former treasurer of National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) Chapter 284, 
Coming hot on the heels of speculation that some Jeep production may be moved to China comes a 
On October 3, Andrew Irwin, former business manager-financial secretary of International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 72, was sentenced in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas to 10 months of incarceration and three years of supervised release for embezzling funds from the Waco-based union. He also was ordered to pay $27,321.63 in restitution, a $500 fine and a $100 special assessment. Irwin was charged in May with embezzling $47,096 and pleaded guilty in June. The actions follow a probe by the U.S. Labor Department's Office of Labor-Management Standards.
On October 3, Joya Mills, former financial secretary of United Auto Workers Local 2500, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan to one count of failure to maintain records of the Detroit union. The guilty plea follows an investigation by the U.S. Labor Department's Office of Labor-Management Standards.
On October 2, Victor Rovani III, former business representative for United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners Local 454, was sentenced in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania to three years of probation, including one year of home confinement, for embezzling funds from the Philadelphia union in the amount of $8,322. He also was ordered to pay a $3,000 fine to be paid in $100 monthly installments and a special assessment of $300. Rovani previously had paid restitution. He pled guilty in April. The actions follow an investigation by the U.S. Labor Department's Office of Labor-Management Standards.
On October 1, Ronald Witt, former business manager of International Union of Operating Engineers Local 450, was sentenced in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas to one year and a day in prison, and three years of supervised release, for embezzlement from the Houston union. He also was ordered to pay $198,333.10 in restitution and a $100 special assessment. Witt, along with his wife, Anita, had been arrested and indicted in July 2011 for stealing more than $150,000 from the local's general and job training funds. He pleaded guilty this January. The actions follow a joint probe by the Labor Department's Office of Labor-Management Standards and Employee Benefits Security Administration.
On September 27, Graciela Jiminez, secretary-treasurer of Local 2263 of the American Federation of Government Employees, was sentenced in U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico to three years of probation and ordered to pay $7,919 in restitution plus a $25 assessment for embezzling funds from the Albuquerque-based union. Jimenez pled guilty in June. The guilty plea and sentencing follow a probe by the U.S. Labor Department's Office of Labor-Management Standards.
It's known formally as ‘Proposal 2' and informally as the ‘Protect Our Jobs Amendment,' or POJA. However phrased, it describes a Michigan voter initiative this November that would trigger a union power grab that is unprecedented in any state. The measure seeks to amend the state constitution to grant government employee unions the authority, with few exceptions, to invalidate existing and future laws that "abridge, impair or limit" collective bargaining rights. Organized labor effectively would obtain pocket veto authority, via the courts, over elected state and local representatives. 
As the presidential election nears we continue to hear about what a great job the Obama Administration did "saving" General Motors. The claims are that millions of jobs were saved and Mitt Romney wanted to let Detroit go bankrupt. A review of the facts reveals that the auto bailout process that cost taxpayers billions of dollars is hardly anything to brag about.
