Posts tagged fraud
Hochul admin caves on rollout of pro-union NY home care overhaul as whistleblower describes chaos: ‘S–t show’
March 25, 2025 // Hochul handpicked Public Partnerships LLC as a new middleman to consolidate payroll services from hundreds of firms, a move supported by an influential health care union that could gain thousands of new members through unionizing aides under the program. But a whistleblower said PPL has been inundated with phone calls and struggling to meet the demand to try to hit the deadline. “It’s unimaginable. We’ve gone from the frying pan to the fire,” the PPL employee said. Hundreds of callers are on hold by 8 a.m. when workers sign on for the day, and hundreds are still waiting on hold by the end of the business day, the worker said — meaning consumers and caregivers have to call back and try again the next day.
MARYLAND: Gov. Wes Moore, lawmakers stand with unionized state and federal employees
March 25, 2025 // The bill passed out of the House chamber with an amendment to provide an additional $1.5 million to Attorney General Anthony Brown, a Democrat, to sue the Trump administration on behalf of terminated federal employees. It has yet to move in the Senate chamber.
Former NIH union leader indicted on federal wire fraud charges in Maryland
March 24, 2025 // Goodwin, of Bowie, had criticized the labor practices of Trump’s first administration before she resigned her job and stepped down as the union’s president in 2019. She was quoted in a 2018 news release from the union’s national headquarters as saying the Trump administration “feels it’s above the law” and accusing it of union busting by walking back on certain agreements made during contract negotiations.
CONNECTICUT: OPM employee allegedly defrauded Medicaid of $1.8M while on the job
March 6, 2025 // A former Office of Policy and Management employee allegedly defrauded Medicaid of roughly $1.8 million while simultaneously earning more than $90,000 per year as a labor relations specialist, according to a U.S. Justice Department’s case against Suhail Aponte and a review of state payroll records. Aponte worked as a labor relations and public information specialist for Hartford Public Schools before being hired by the Office of Policy and Management (OPM) in May of 2022, nearly one year after forming Minds Cornerstone, LLC, a business that purported to offer services for children with autism.
IBEW Local 98 fined $25,000 for Dougherty lobbying
February 24, 2025 // Prosecutors alleged Henon, who worked as the union’s political director while also serving on City Council, was essentially on retainer to the union leader, using his council position to help Dougherty attack rivals in other unions and pressure large companies to hire union electricians. In November 2021, they were convicted on the majority of counts they faced. The jury found both men guilty of conspiracy and honest services fraud and Henon guilty of bribery.
HUD is bracing as DOGE seeks to cut waste, fraud. Union leaders have a suggestion
February 12, 2025 // Last year, AFGE Council 222 filed a complaint with HUD's Inspector General and members of Congress. It said the app made it impossible for HUD to inspect nearly all of its five million housing units across the country every five years, as required by law. There hasn't been much response so far. But Gaines hopes that will change now that DOGE has asked for a review of all contracts.
20 Wonderful Nurseries Farmworkers Seek to Join Federal Challenge to Biased Pro-Union Boss California Agricultural Labor Law
February 6, 2025 // “UFW union officials deceived us just so they could gain power in our workplace,” Chavez and Gutierrez commented after filing charges. “Instead of just letting us vote in secret on whether we want a union, they went around lying and threatening to get cards and now are cracking down on anyone who speaks out against the union.”
Elon Musk’s Doge accused of ‘illegal’ job posting by federal workers’ union
January 29, 2025 // Government vacancy announcements are typically required to include key information around pay, security requirements, qualifications, and the number of available roles, according to the office of personnel management. The Doge page does not contain such details. It includes a brief paragraph explaining that it is looking to hire “world-class talent to work long hours identifying/eliminating waste, fraud, and abuse”, and a form to submit personal details. A checkbox indicates the roles are based in Washington DC, and available only to US citizens.
Former president, VP of Duval teachers union indicted, accused of stealing more than $2M from union
January 21, 2025 // Teresa Brady, 69, and Ruby George, 81, face maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and must forfeit at least $2.5 million worth of fraudulent funds
Ex-leaders of Jacksonville teachers union plead innocent in fraud case; March trial possible
January 21, 2025 // The women were accused in the indictment of each selling back to the union more than $1.2 million worth of vacation time "they had not accrued and did not earn” between 2013 and 2022 as well as signing bonus checks for each other that weren’t shown to the 6,500-member union’s board.