Labor Dept Plans Increasing Scrutiny of Union Finances (pol. retaliation?)

[DeepModem Mom]

NY Times:
Labor Dept. Plans Increasing Scrutiny of Union Finances
By STEVEN GREENHOUSE

Published: April 17, 2005


WASHINGTON, April 14 - The Bush administration is rapidly expanding audits of the nation's labor unions, citing a need to ferret out and deter corruption. But union leaders assert that those increased efforts are nothing more than crude political retaliation.

Pointing to embezzlement of hundreds of thousands of dollars by the presidents of the ironworkers union and Washington's teachers union, Labor Department officials say the number of audits fell too far in the 1990's and needs to be restored to previous levels.

They note that the number of national unions and locals that were audited fell to 206 in 2000, from 1,080 in 1991. By contrast, the department did more than 500 audits last year and hopes to do even more this year. To bolster its drive further, it expects to add 48 full-time workers to its union-auditing unit this year, a 14 percent increase, despite cuts in other areas....

***

Labor leaders see the new effort as retaliation for their nearly unanimous support for Senator John Kerry in the 2004 presidential election. Vast support for Mr. Kerry came from the A.F.L.-C.I.O., which has been informed by the department that it will be one of the first national labor organizations audited as part of the expanded efforts.

"It is obvious," said John J. Sweeney, the federation's president, "that the Department of Labor's assignment of 48 new staff to audit unions, starting with the A.F.L.-C.I.O., is pure political payback for the labor movement's opposition to the president's antiworker policies."...


http://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/17/politics/17labor.html

[stevebreeze]

1. I'm sure it's just another happy coincidence, like the same tactic @ NAACP

[proud patriot]

2. GRRRRRRRRRR

:grr:

[lenidog]

3. It could be retaliation but you know its not as if the idea of Union

money being stolen is an unheard of thing.

[Richard Steele]

5. No, unions are certainly not perfect angels and 'above suspicion'...

...But the "hundreds of thousands" mentioned is POCKET CHANGE compared to the many BILLION$ being stolen elsewhere.

The Preznint's friend Kenny-boy Lay, the ongoing Halliburton corruption and theft...
Hey, howzabout appointing 48 agents to track down the 9 billion which just plain DISAPPEARED in Iraq?

This is BS. These people are thugs, and don't even care who knows it.

[halobeam]

4. This Administration is so transparent at this point

I don't care how many people used to give them the benefit of the doubt at the polls, there's less doubt EVERYDAY now, with every move these idiots make. They are going to bury themselves.. the more power they have, the crazier they get and people are catching on. Too many folks are suffering and by the time 2006 comes around, they'll be lucky to only lose a few seats. Forget 2008, I really believe this. No one is unaffected anymore. There are wealthy people..good people who are feeling guilty too. Things change, and when you are at your lowest, it's a damn comfort, that they do.

[Erika]

6. Leave Halliburton alone and go after unions

Just another step in his globalist plan to eliminate the middle class.

[pacifictiger]

7. hard to know if this is

legitimate or not. The union upper eschelon has a lot to answer for past criminal behaviour and manipulation.
But then, my theory is that the mafia element has gone white collar (more money there these days) and the unions are now beginning to truly represent the worker interests. So it may very well be strong arm tactics.

[Erika]

8. So what's your point?

Are unions good or bad?

[pacifictiger]

13. they have elements of both

just like any large organization, the good deeds of the many are counteracted by the evil of a few.

[Robert Oak]

9. how convenient

I believe the AFL-CIO...
the Dept. of Labor was turned into another oxymoron...

should be Dept. of crushing labor for multinational corporations.

The AFL-CIO fought very hard and long against the changes in overtime...
specifically against the Dept. of Labor.

[deacon]

10. It's become the Anti-Labor Dept., not to long ago they were helping

employers get around overtime pay.

[stevebreeze]

11. Actually I do believe unions should be more transparent..as should corps

both are tool used to leverage power, and should not be imparted with the same privileges as human beings.

[Ernesto]

12. "Unions are a detriment to the economy"

That is just one of chimp's profound campaign statements.