As we look forward to a Thanksgiving spread of meats and delicious desserts, another buffet of bad behavior is also on the table:
- SEIU staffers waged a two-week strike against the SEIU outside of three local offices in California. The workers allege a bevy of unfair labor practices including intimidation, assault, refusal to bargain, and misclassification of staff. In addition, the workers allege inadequate health insurance and other benefits.
- A security guard accused the SEIU of seizing money from his paycheck after he objected to union membership on the grounds of religion. National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys are defending the guard’s position through Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which they say protects workers from religious discrimination, including forced union payments in the workplace.
- The so-called “Velvet Hammer,” ex-Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan, received over $10 million in campaign funds from labor unions over two decades. This month, he pleaded not guilty to nearly two dozen charges of bribery and assorted methods of corruption. Federal prosecutors laid out the case that Madigan, along with co-defendant Michael McClain, siphoned $2.85 million while running a criminal enterprise and granting legislative input to corporations.
- The UAW has been hit with federal charges after a Ford Louisville Assembly Plant employee, Shiphrah Green, claimed that the union unlawfully seized dues from her paycheck despite her resignation from the labor organization. Attorneys point toward Kentucky’s status as a Right to Work state to make their case.
- An ex-police union president has been convicted of fraud and racketeering after federal prosecutors uncovered evidence that Dana Pullman accepted kickbacks and retainer payments in Massachusetts. Pullman also embezzled union funds for luxury travel and restaurants. He could face 20 years in prison.
