The word of Bill Dugan proved more believable than that of his accusers – at least to most members of International Union of Operating Engineers Local 150. Dugan on August 25 was re-elected to his eighth term as president and business manager of the suburban Chicago local in the face of allegations from about 125 members that he’d been accepting monthly kickbacks of $100 each. Receiving 61 percent of the vote, Dugan denied wrongdoing, insisting that a lawsuit filed earlier this year by dissenters against him was politically motivated. Still, the lawsuit remains in force, which suggests that the dissenters, led by challenger Joe Ward, might have a point or two. The 22,000-member Local 150, based in Countryside, Ill., represents operators of cranes, backhoes, bulldozers and other equipment in Illinois, Indiana and Iowa. (Chicago Tribune, 8/28/07).
Former Secretary-Treasurer in Nebraska Pleads Guilty
On August 9, Thomas Saltzman, former secretary-treasurer of United Transportation Union Local 418, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court for the District of Nebraska, to one count of embezzling union funds in the amount of $32,010. Saltzman had been indicted in February on one count of embezzlement. The local represents Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway employees across the Missouri River in Sioux City, Iowa. The guilty plea follows an investigation by the U.S. Labor Department’s Office of Labor-Management Standards. (OLMS, 8/28/07).
Michigan Local President Sentenced for False Record-Keeping
On August 15, Claudia R. Thompson, former president of Local 513 of the Paper, Allied-Industrial, Chemical and Energy Workers International Union, was sentenced to one year of probation, ordered to pay $26,201.68 in restitution, and ordered to attend a substance-abuse program. She had pleaded guilty in May to one count of willfully making false entries in financial records to conceal her embezzlement of union funds in the same amount. PACE merged with the United Steelworkers of America in 2005. (OLMS, 8/18/07).
Kentucky Local President Charged with Embezzlement
On August 16, Terry Howell, former president of Local 8-505 of the United Steelworkers of America, was charged in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky with embezzling $13,210.86 in union funds. (OLMS, 8/28/07).
Treasurer in Texas Pleads Guilty to Theft, Records Destruction
On August 15, James Douglas, former secretary-treasurer of Glass Molders & Plastics Local 220, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas to charges that he concealed, withheld and destroyed records to cover up his embezzlement of $12,857 in union funds. He had been charged with an information count in July. (8/28/07).
Alabama Secretary-Treasurer Indicted for Embezzlement
On August 15, Bridgett C. Hooks, former secretary-treasurer of American Postal Workers Union Local 332, based in Dothan, Ala., was indicted in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Alabama on one count of embezzling union funds in the amount of $10,820.17. (OLMS, 8/28/07).
Missouri Secretary-Treasurer Sentenced for Embezzlement
On August 7, David Hlavacek, former secretary-treasurer of American Postal Workers Local 7065 and the Missouri State Postal Workers Union, was sentenced in federal court to three years probation and ordered to make restitution in the amount of $4,783. He had pleaded guilty to embezzlement back in January. The local is located in Ashland, in the central part of Missouri, south of Columbia. (OLMS, 8/28/07).
Ex-Secretary in Nebraska Pleads Guilty to False Record-Keeping
On August 9, Connie Scarrow, formerly secretary-treasurer of American Federation of Government Employees Local 3749, pled guilty in federal court to one felony count of knowingly making a false entry on a Labor Department union financial reporting form to conceal her misappropriation of funds. The local is based in Kenesaw, Nebraska. (8/28/07).