Posts tagged theft
The Port Strike Is a Reminder That Unions Have Too Much Power
October 18, 2024 // Union bosses can only behave this way because they have monopoly power over labor supply in certain industries. A 62% wage increase would cripple any normal business. Big Labor’s monopoly power, buttressed by an executive branch that greases the skids for union interests at every turn, allows union bosses to extract exorbitant benefits from port employers. This arrangement has benefited Daggett handsomely, given that his more than $1 million annual salary has afforded him a yacht, luxury cars, and multiple mansions.
Two former presidents among 7 Boilermakers union employees indicted for embezzlement
August 28, 2024 // “As alleged in the indictment, these defendants, including two former presidents of the Boilermakers Union, enriched themselves by spending millions of dollars in union funds for their own benefit, including for salary and benefits for no-show jobs, tuition, rent, luxury international travel, meals, vacation payouts, and unauthorized loans,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.
Former Alton police officer accused of stealing funds from police union
July 31, 2024 // According to a release from the AG, Jeremiah Dressler, 41, of Brighton, Ill., has been charged with theft, felony theft by deception, and wire fraud. Dressler turned himself in on Friday at the Madison County Sheriff’s Office after a warrant was issued for his arrest. He set to reappear in court on August 9.
Philadelphia labor union powerbroker gets 6 years for bribery and theft
July 18, 2024 // Dougherty was a longtime power broker in Democratic politics, steering tens of millions in union campaign contributions to candidates for office, including his brother, who was elected to the state's high court in 2015. Federal prosecutors said Dougherty also used the union’s money to buy groceries, restaurant meals, tickets to concerts and sporting events, and other personal items. He paid contractors with union funds for work on his house, his relatives' houses and a neighborhood bar he owned, and arranged for friends and family members to be on the union payroll, according to the indictment. A co-defendant in last year's trial, former union president Brian Burrows, was sentenced last month to four years in prison. Dougherty also was convicted of bribing Philadelphia council member Bobby Henon. Prosecutors said Dougherty gave Henon a no-show union job.
Former Scranton Police Officer And Police Union President Sentenced To Imprisonment For Federal Program Fraud In Connection With Overtime Patrol Shifts At Scranton Area Housing Complexes
June 7, 2024 // The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that Paul Helring, age 48, a former Scranton police officer and the former elected police union president, was sentenced on June 4, 2024, by United States District Court Judge Robert D. Mariani to 6 months’ imprisonment and a 2-year term of supervised release for the offense of Theft Concerning Programs Receiving Federal Funds. According to the United States Attorney’s Office, from approximately March 2021 to May 2022, while serving as the coordinator of Scranton Police Department’s extra duty overtime program, Helring knowingly obtained by fraud over $5,000.00 in compensation that was paid to him for certain extra duty patrol shifts at local, Scranton-area, lower-income housing complexes that Helring claimed to work but did not in fact work. In all, the investigation found a total of 526 hours that Helring claimed to work patrolling the complexes but that he did not actually work. At his sentencing, Helring was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $17,831.40 and to pay a fine of $5000.00. He was also ordered to complete 100 hours of community service as a condition of his supervised release.
Pennsylvania Officials Charge Two in Scheme to Divert Union Funds
May 15, 2024 // Woods, 39, who held a position as an executive officer within District 1199C of the National Union of Hospital and Healthcare Employees, is accused of approving union payments to Hardy’s unlicensed construction company under false pretenses. According to the investigation conducted by the Office of Attorney General and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the duo misled the union’s executive board with fabricated bids from other companies to inflate the price paid for bar renovations at the union’s premises. Subsequently, a significant portion of these payments were funneled to Hardy’s political consulting firm, purportedly to support political activities ahead of the 2019 Democratic Primary election. The grand jury’s investigation led to recommendations for charges against both men, including participation in corrupt organizations, theft, and forgery. Hardy, 51, alongside Woods, faces accusations of circumventing Pennsylvania campaign finance laws and federal union reporting regulations.
Legal documents say union funneled $1.8M into lost trust fund
April 2, 2024 // New legal documents filed recently in an ongoing union corruption case in Pennsylvania say officials funneled $1.8 million into a trust fund that’s yet to be recovered and then destroyed evidence of its existence. The lawsuit, filed in 2020 by The Fairness Center on behalf of three workers at a state prison in Huntingdon, accused the treasurer of the local chapter of the Pennsylvania State Corrections Officers Association of misappropriating $20,000 between 2009 and 2018. The three workers – Cory Yedlosky, William Weyant, and Chris Taylor – even shared their concerns with union executive board members in Harrisburg but were ignored, according to court documents.
3 former Local 98 employees sentenced after pleading guilty to stealing union assets
February 23, 2024 // PHILADELPHIA - The fate of three former Local 98 employees' futures was set by a U.S. District Court judge this week after they previously pleaded guilty to stealing union funds for their personal use. United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced Michael Neill, 57, Marita Crawford, 54, and Niko Rodriguez, 32, all former employees of Local 98 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (Local 98) were sentenced this week by United States District Court Judge Jeffrey Schmehl.
Democrat Party’s Embrace of Union Tactics Emboldens Corruption
February 9, 2024 // The Biden administration’s green-lighting of Big Labor’s thuggish tactics has only served to exacerbate union corruption. In 2023, the Office of Labor Management Standards (OLMS) conducted 155 criminal investigations into union activity, handing down 39 indictments and 57 convictions. Union crimes the OLMS prosecuted include petty theft, embezzlement, racketeering, and falsifying records.
Opinion: UAW won’t keep their promises, doesn’t hold to Tennessee values
January 22, 2024 // If VW employees were to join the union, most of their dues wouldn't even stay in Tennessee. Dues would go to union leaders living lavish lifestyles that are out of touch with the workers they claim to represent and also to support largely extreme Democratic policies which are out of touch with Tennessee values. Even though Tennessee is a right-to-work state, once unionized, all their workers would be forced to fall under the UAW contract, even if they don't join. While UAW contracts have income floors, they also have ceilings that cap how much workers can earn. Workers can say goodbye to any pay-for-performance structure which benefits employees that produce strong results.