U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Labor-Management Standards Announces 16 indictments, 5 convictions for Union Embezzlement in October

Source: U.S. Department of Labor (DOL)

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Labor-Management Standards (OLMS) announced its criminal enforcement data for October 2007. OLMS obtained 16 indictments and five convictions during the first month of fiscal year 2008, and court-ordered restitution in October amounted to $63,499. These indictments and convictions primarily involve union officers and employees who have embezzled union funds.

“OLMS begins this new fiscal year with renewed vigilance on behalf of rank-and-file union members,” said Deputy Assistant Secretary for Labor-Management Standards Don Todd. “Our efforts have resulted in convictions of individuals found guilty of wrongdoing against unions, and we are proud of our results in protecting America’s union members. Since fiscal year 2001, OLMS investigations have yielded a total of 856 indictments with 806 convictions and court-ordered restitution of more than $102 million.”

OLMS is the federal law enforcement agency responsible for administering most provisions of the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959 (LMRDA).  The agency’s criminal enforcement program includes investigations of embezzlement from labor organizations, extortionate picketing, deprivation of union members’ rights by force or violence, and fraud in union officer elections. The agency’s civil program collects and publicly discloses unions’ annual financial reports, conducts compliance audits of labor unions and seeks civil remedies for violations of officer election procedures.

OLMS’s public disclosure Web page at www.unionreports.gov contains union annual financial reports and additional forms required to be filed under the LMRDA.  Other information, including synopses of OLMS enforcement actions, is available on OLMS’s home page at www.olms.dol.gov.