Chicago Union News

(POSTED: 8/20/09) Teamsters Local 714 -- long the domain of the powerful Hogan family, and a repeated target of anti-corruption investigators -- soon will cease to exist in its current form.

Between 3,000 and 4,000 private-sector workers represented by the Berwyn-based group are being "re-distributed" to 10 other Chicago-area Teamster units: locals 705, 710, 727, 731, 743, 777, 781, 786, 301 and 330, a labor official told ChicagoUnionNews.

The remaining public-sector employees -- about 7,000 jail guards, suburban cops and others -- will be part of a reconstituted (and possibly renumbered) Local 714 focusing solely on government workers.

The move -- recommended by Chicago's top Teamster, John Coli, and other members of the executive board, and authorized by the top Teamster in the country, James P. Hoffa -- is an outgrowth of last year's "trusteeship" of Local 714.

Here's the chronology:

A court-sanctioned watchdog known as the Independent Review Board investigated Local 714 and found the union was not enforcing contracts with some employers. What's more, Hogan relatives and friends often got the best Teamster jobs on movie sets over more senior people, the review board found.

Other rule violations were uncovered by investigators, who recommended that Hoffa take the reins of Local 714, bouncing top official (and Hoffa ally) Robert A. Hogan.

Hoffa acted last year -- but not before Coli's Local 727 assumed control of Local 714's high-profile movie and trade show division, which includes dock workers at the McCormick Place convention hall and drivers on film sets.

Under pressure, Hogan ultimately resigned -- while accusing Hoffa of back-stabbing him, and predicting that the rest of Local 714 eventually would be parceled out to other Teamster chapters in a politically motivated power grab.

Mr. Hoffa’s spokeswoman dismissed the assertion at the time, saying Hoffa is "committed to restoring the local and making it work for its members again."

But now Local 714 indeed is being splintered.

Brian Rainville, a spokesman for the Coli-run consortium of Chicago-area Teamster units known as Joint Council 25, insisted that politics was not the motivation.

"Local 714 was an amalgam of . . . 10 or 12 completely different industries in the private sector," Rainville said, mentioning steel processing centers, warehouses and a janitorial firm. "It doesn't make sense to have a multi-personality local like this."

Grouping industries together helps "build some bargaining power . . . that's ultimately the reason why, despite anybody else's fantasies about politics," he said.

Hogan, the third generation of his family to run Local 714, could not be reached for comment. He continues to work at McCormick Place, but no longer holds elected union office.

By ChicagoUnionNews
Contact: info@chicagounionnews.com

Should postal employees be worried?

(POSTED: 8/12/09) With U.S. Postal Service leaders thinking about closing, consolidating and downsizing dozens of facilities in the Chicago area, should the workforce -- much of which is unionized -- start worrying about layoffs?

The head of one of the biggest postal unions -- Jimmie Canada of National Association of Letter Carriers Branch 11 -- doesn't think so. He's heard nothing along those lines, and his contract has a "no-layoff clause" covering most -- though not all -- of his folks.

So he's "cautiously optimistic" it won't come to forced job cuts.

But, just the same, he plans to broach the subject with management in an upcoming meeting, probably next week.

"We have our monthly labor-management meetings and I'm quite sure that will be a topic," Canada said.

He added: "I don't want to spook anybody. . . . We just have to see what they have in store."

A spokesman for the postal service in Chicago said there's "not a high probability" of layoffs, also mentioning the contract provision.

That's not to say personnel wouldn't get shifted around, said the spokesman, Mark Reynolds.

But, he added, as of now this is all hypothetical because "there's been no final decision on the consolidation."

By ChicagoUnionNews
Contact: info@chicagounionnews.com

A deeper look at Local 726 -- and it isn't pretty

(POSTED: 8/7/09) Take a peek inside the investigative reports on Teamsters Local 726 leaders -- who were stripped of their posts recently amid allegations of financial mismanagement -- and there's pretty stunning material.

Some Local 726 officials sound plain clueless at times, which is disturbing given the fact they were responsible for thousands of livelihoods and millions of dollars belonging to members.

The local has a somewhat high profile because it represents much of the taxpayer-funded blue-collar workforce in Chicago proper, and it just suffered sizable layoffs in Mayor Daley's budget cuts.

The reins of the group were seized Monday by orders of International Brotherhood of Teamsters chief James P. Hoffa, who acted at the urging of a quasi-governmental watchdog, the Independent Review Board.

It was the review board that investigated Local 726 and produced the reports, which were provided to ChicagoUnionNews. Among other things, the documents contain:

--A bizarre take on who's running the pension fund.
Some Local 726 officers have second gigs as "trustees" overseeing the Local 726 pension fund.
For instance, Local 726 secretary-treasurer Tom Clair and Local 726 officer Michael Marcatante also serve as trustees for the group's pension fund.
They identified the third pension fund trustee as Local 726 president John Falzone.
But Falzone told review board investigators "that he was not a Trustee of the Pension Fund and stated that he believed that the Pension Fund did not have Trustees."
Yet he "signed a Certificate of Corporate Resolution as a Fund Trustee in 2005," and his name was on an IRS form as a "trustee or custodian" of the fund.
This is important because the three now are accused of violating the federal pension law known as ERISA by transferring $125,000 from the pension fund to the coffers of their local to cover a debt.
And they allegedly did this "without any terms for repayment," and "there were no documents, such as promissory notes, memorializing the loans."

--Further strangeness on what the pension fund trustees do.
In questioning from review board investigators, Clair "testified that he did not have any duties as a Trustee of the Pension Fund."
And Clair "further admitted that he was unfamiliar with ERISA and had never discussed his duties under ERISA with anyone."

--Disclosures that the IRS fined Local 726.
Last fall, the group "paid a $1,192.00 fine to the IRS for failure to meet minimum funding standards for the Pension Fund in 2007."

--An unfortunate aside about Clair's daughter.
Last summer, Clair's daughter, who worked for Local 726 as an "administrative staff member," was fired because officials discovered that she allegedly "embezzled" money from the group.

--A contention that Local 726 leaders provided bum information to their members.
"As a public service local, Local 726 was not required to file Forms LM-2 [with the U.S. Labor Department.] . . . [The] limited financial information reported to the members under the Bylaws appears to have been inaccurate and incomplete."

--A history lesson.
Local 726 was taken over by its parent organization previously, in 1993, amid accusations that four officers "traveled to St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands at Local 726 expense. This trip, which cost the Local over $11,000, was for the personal benefit of these officers and was of no benefit to the Local 726 membership."
In 1994, three top officers who went on the get-away agreed to permanently resign from Local 726 and the Teamsters.

As for the just-ousted Local 726 officers, Clair said there's "a different point of view" than what's being portrayed by the review board.

"There were a lot of disgruntled employees, . . . and that's where this started."

He emphasized that another side to this story will come out during upcoming hearings.

The other officers either could not be reached for comment, or did not return calls.

Their case has been referred to federal authorities, but it's unclear whether this will become a criminal case or stay a union matter.

For what it's worth, the review board doesn't portray Clair or the others as blatantly out for themselves. In otherwords, it doesn't appear anybody was pocketing cash -- or taking trips to the Virgin Islands.

It's also worth noting, they were elected to their jobs by union members.

By ChicagoUnionNews
Contact: info@chicagounionnews.com

Hoffa hammers another Chicago-area Teamsters unit

(POSTED 8/3/09) The reins of Teamsters Local 726 -- which represents numerous blue-collar workers with Chicago city government -- were seized Monday by the group's parent union, which stripped leaders of their posts amid allegations of financial mismanagement.

James P. Hoffa, general president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, implemented what's called an "emergency trusteeship" for Local 726, a Des Plaines-based group of roughly 4,500 active members.

Secretary-treasurer Tom Clair and other elected officers were booted, and an outsider was appointed to get a handle on the local's financial affairs.

This is the third Chicago-area Teamsters local to get "trusteed" by Hoffa over the last year or so. The other two -- locals 714 and 744 -- still are controlled by monitors. (In the case of 714 and 726, Hoffa acted after being prompted by a quasi-governmental union watchdog, the Independent Review Board, which unearthed many of the alleged violations.)

The move against Local 726 should not impact municipal services, said Brian Rainville, a spokesman for Teamsters Joint Council 25, a consortium of 22 Chicago-area Teamsters locals.

"It will not impact the members' workdays at all," he said.

Local 726 represents public works employees in Chicago and other communities and agencies, including the Illinois State Toll Highway Authority.

Clair, who could not immediately be reached for comment, and select other officers are accused of:

--Violating federal law by transferring $125,000 from their pension fund to the local's coffers to cover a delinquency notice from a second pension-related organization, Central States.

--Suspending contributions to the pension fund, because of cash flow problems, without following the proper procedures.

--Waiving membership dues for certain people without following guidelines.

--Misleading the Hoffa administration about belt-tightening measures -- including pay cuts for union officers -- that they promised to enact to ease a roughly $230,000 deficit.

In a letter to Local 726 members, Hoffa said the emergency trusteeship was necessary "to correct financial corruption or malpractice," and he wrote that the group was being run "in a manner that's inconsistent with established policies and practices, which jeopardizes the interests" of the union and its people.

The trusteeship likely will last for months and ultimately could yield a new officer election.

Local 726 was in the news in July when the Daley administration laid off 141 members. The cuts came after the group refused to agree to furloughs and other concessions to help the mayor plug a multi-million-dollar budget shortfall.

Local 726 has a rough-and-tumble reputation that's perhaps well-deserved.

Several reputed organized crime figures have been members in recent years, including a key figure in the city's Hired Truck scandal -- the late mob bookie Nick "The Stick" LoCoco.

A report from a now-defunct Teamsters anti-corruption squad also suggests there was "bribe solicitation -- extending through at least February 2004 -- by Local 726 Teamster supervisors of rank-and-file Local 726 members in exchange for full-time City of Chicago jobs and lucrative overtime jobs."

By ChicagoUnionNews

Contact: tips@chicagounionnews.com

Local developer among bidders on new Navy Pier wheel

A Chicago company that manages the John Hancock Center is among the bidders vying to build and operate a huge new Ferris wheel at Navy Pier, ChicagoUnionNews has learned.

Golub & Company, a Chicago real estate and development firm, teamed up with London Eye operator Merlin Entertainments Group in a bid submitted this spring to McPier, the government agency running the popular downtown tourist spot.

That's according to Merlin executive Sally Ann Wilkinson, who said via email: "Merlin Entertainments has indeed submitted detailed proposals for this project, and has teamed with a local developer -- Golub -- on this [and is] working with a number of local architects and designers. We are now awaiting a response from [McPier] and do not therefore feel it appropriate to comment any further at this point."

A Golub spokeswoman said, "We are unfortunately not able to comment at this time about our involvement. We're at a confidential point."

Another well-known Chicago company -- Walsh Construction -- appears to be part of a rival bid.

A source familiar with the process said Walsh is partnering with another entertainment venture. But Walsh officials wouldn't return phone calls and McPier officials would only confirm that representatives from the company attended a pre-bid site visit.

In all, there were four bid packages submitted earlier this year, according to McPier. Agency staff members who report to McPier CEO Juan Ochoa -- a former fundraiser for ex-Gov. Rod Blagojevich -- are reviewing them and ultimately will recommend one to the board for approval. Board members are appointed by the mayor or the governor.

McPier officials refused to release particulars, denying an Illinois Freedom of Information Act request for copies of the bid proposals. A spokeswoman said, "We don't comment on . . . a pending procurement."

The existing Ferris wheel at Navy Pier opened in the mid-1990s and is roughly 150 feet tall. It operates year-round, with 40 open-air containers that each can hold six people. Rides are about seven and a half minutes, at $6 a pop.

McPier leaders want something bigger, splashier and more customer friendly.

They want the new wheel to be at least 300 feet tall, with enclosed gondolas that have heat and air conditioning -- and perhaps other amenities.

But that doesn't necessarily mean the old wheel will be ripped down. That's "to be determined," the McPier spokeswoman said.

The new wheel could carry a higher ticket price, and revenues will be shared with McPier, which also operates the McCormick Place convention center.

Golub and Walsh each have ties to Mayor Daley. The Walsh and Daley clans have a friendship dating to at least the mayor's late father. Meanwhile, Golub executives have contributed generously to Daley's campaign fund, with Eugene Golub contributing $50,000 in 2006 alone, state records show.

By ChicagoUnionNews
Email contact: info@chicagounionnews.com

Pushing tin and fighting fatigue

The National Air Traffic Controllers Association has griped for years that workers at its busiest Chicago-area flight centers suffer from serious levels of fatigue and stress -- brought on by staff shortages and increasingly complex workloads.

The Federal Aviation Administration -- the government agency that regulates the nation's airspace -- long has downplayed such complaints, often attributing them to union posturing.

But a new report by the U.S. Department of Transportation's inspector general found there was reason to be concerned about fatigue at several local air traffic control centers: the tower at O'Hare International Airport; a facility in Elgin that handles regional flights; and an Aurora complex that deals with planes across the Midwest.

The authors wrote: "We identified a number of factors at Chicago O’Hare, Chicago TRACON [the Elgin facility], and Chicago ARTCC [the Aurora center] that could create potential fatigue conditions for controllers. These factors include minimal hours between shifts and counter rotational shifts with progressively earlier start times; scheduled overtime; and on-the-job training (OJT), which requires a high level of concentration and focus."

The report, requested by U.S. Sen. Richard Durbin (D-Ill.), also noted that the FAA doesn't do enough to see whether fatigue plays a role in "operational errors."

"Fatigue can have serious safety implications and has been identified by the NTSB [National Transportation Safety Board] as a potential contributing factor in several operational errors (where controllers fail to maintain required distances between aircraft)," the report indicated. "Yet, FAA does not consistently address human factors issues, such as fatigue and situational awareness, during either the preliminary or final operational error investigation process."

The bottomline is the traveling public is at risk when controllers are hazy or tired.

By ChicagoUnionNews

Illinois, unions taking hit from Caterpillar

Caterpillar Inc. is shifting a good chunk of its heavy equipment-making operations away from Illinois to non-union locations with cheaper wages.

So says a recent article in Crain’s Chicago Business that predicts the impact on certain Illinois communities will be “devastating.”

Caterpillar is based in Peoria and has a huge presence in Illinois, with many employees represented by the United Auto Workers.

Click here to read the story, (although web site registration might be required.)

Tight times for indie union

There was a time when Amalgamated Workers Union Local 711 was doing OK in terms of membership and finances.

Targeting smaller manufacturers, the Franklin Park group included 800 members in 2000, according to U.S. Department of Labor records.

Not bad for a relatively obscure “independent” union (whose headquarters is pictured here) in a region with a withering manufacturing base.

Fast forward a few years.

In 2004, there were 535 members. And the latest federal report — from 2008 — shows 280 members.

Local 711’s secretary-treasurer, former Laborers Union boss John Matassa Jr., said in a recent interview that these days there are “probably a couple hundred.”

And he’s worried about further plant closings and job cuts.

Matassa noted one of the companies with a Local 711 contract provides material to General Motors which, of course, recently entered bankruptcy proceedings.

Will the union survive?

“You know, sure there’s concern about that, everybody’s hoping the economy picks up and we can go out and get more people,” Matassa said, adding, “We’re solvent, we have money in the bank, we’re not broke.”

But the troubles with Local 711 have taken their toll on Matassa’s own salary.

After getting thrown out from the Laborers Union amid allegations of organized crime ties, Matassa came to Local 711 and soon was making six figures.

In fact, in 2005 he pulled in nearly $117,000, records show.

But as membership plummeted, so did his pay.

“There’s no money there, you can’t take money you don’t have,” Matassa explained.

So his union salary dropped to a little over $86,000 in 2006, to roughly $67,000 in 2007 and to about $44,000 in 2008, federal records show.

“Things are bad, and that’s all you can do, keep trying,” he said.

By ChicagoUnionNews

The late Jay Bennett's union ties

Musician Jay Bennett, who recently died, was best known as one of the creative forces behind the rock band Wilco.

The Chicago-area native also was a member of the American Federation of Musicians, according to his family.

Which local he was affiliated with wasn't immediately clear. Neither the Chicago Federation of Musicians nor the Downstate Urbana chapter had him on their rolls, officials said.

In any event, his death highlighted health insurance troubles facing many artists, as detailed in an article in TimeOut Chicago.

Bennett was 45 when he died late May in Urbana.

By ChicagoUnionNews

Welcome to ChicagoUnionNews.com Welcome to ChicagoUnionNews, a just-launched free online publication providing news and commentary about — and of importance to — Chicago-area unions and their members.

So why are we here, and why now?

Pretty simple, really.

There are hundreds of thousands of union members in the Chicago region — from pipefitters to police, teachers to truckers — yet mainstream press coverage of organized labor is pretty haphazard.

And what better time to start up a site like this. Given the sorry state of the economy — and the pro-union bent of many leaders on the national political stage — the labor movement is at an historic juncture.

This publication aims to consolidate stories being reported in other media outlets — and offer original content that’s timely, relevant and interesting.

The goal: make ChicagoUnionNews a one-stop shop for anyone wanting to know what’s going on here with the labor movement.

You don’t have to worry about an agenda. ChicagoUnionNews is independent, not affiliated with any union, political or business group. We accept advertising but won’t let that influence editorial decisions.

Our main care is you, the reader.

By the way, we’d like to hear from you — your thoughts on the site (which is a work in progress) and on the issues churning out there.

For general inquiries, please email info@ChicagoUnionNews.com.
To send a letter to the editor for possible publication on the web site, please email info@ChicagoUnionNews.com and clearly mark the correspondence “Letter to the Editor.”

To provide a confidential news tip or send along a press release, please use tips@ChicagoUnionNews.com.

To reach a live person on the telephone, you may try (773) 706-3207.

We appreciate your readership as we move forward. We will strive to provide a quality product for you.

—Robert Herguth, editor-in-chief

Privacy policy Personal information about readers obtained by ChicagoUnionNews — including names and email addresses — will not be sold or otherwise disseminated to outside groups such as advertisers.

Content on this web site does not necessarily reflect the views of Niche Chicago News Corp., ChicagoUnionNews or their officers.

Corrections We strive for accuracy, but if you believe something is incorrect on the site, please alert us as soon as possible and, if needed, we will make a correction or clarification. The best way to notify us is by emailing tips@ChicagoUnionNews.com or calling (773) 706-3207.

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