The DOL is notorious for letting union thugs off the hook, but with the uproar about ENRON and Global Crossing and WorldCom, they might make an example of the next union leech they convict.
Let's hope so.
Labor Department Sues Plumbers’ Pension Trust
I had to share this news! This long awaited decision by the Department of Labor will brighten the night of quite a few members of the United Association. Time will tell if anything comes of it, but the D.O.L. is finally pursuing the atrocious wrong-doings of these officials who badly misused the members money which was set aside for their retirement. There have been so many who have given so much of their time and efforts in bringing this issue to this point. I would like to thank all of them for their commitment! 
WASHINGTON, D.C.-The U.S. Department of Labor today sued trustees of the Plumbers and Pipefitters National Pension Fund to remove them as plan trustees and restore losses in connection with the imprudent management of the plan's investment in the Diplomat Resort and Country Club in Florida.
'This case is about the trustees' failure to prudently manage and invest their members' pension funds through its involvement in the Diplomat Resort project,' said Ann Combs, Assistant Secretary for the Department of Labor's Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration. 'Pension trustees purchased and developed the property without the slightest due diligence to determine the financial viability of the project. The Department of Labor even had to require independent management of the project to bring it to proper completion, but the damage had already been done by the trustees' mismanagement.'
Named as defendants are pension plan trustees Martin J. Maddaloni, Thomas Patchell, Patrick Perno, Charles H. Carlson and James A. House.
The suit, filed in federal district court in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., alleges that the trustees violated the federal Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) by imprudently proceeding with the Diplomat project without any feasibility studies, market analyses, market-tested construction budgets, construction schedules, economic models, financing arrangements or other information with which to make an informed decision. The suit also alleges that the trustees failed to maintain adequate financial controls over construction costs and paid excessive fees to service providers on the project.
At a September 1997 board meeting, the pension plan trustees voted to buy the Diplomat property on behalf of the Plumbers' pension plan from Union Labor Life Insurance Company (ULLICO). At that time, the property was abandoned and in a state of disrepair. The United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipefitting Industry of the United States and Canada, the pension plan sponsor, purchased the property with the intention of subsequently selling it to the pension plan.
The sale of the real estate from the union to the pension plan was prohibited under ERISA because of the relationship between the union and its pension plan, absent an exemption from the Department of Labor. In their exemption application, the trustees failed to disclose that the anticipated development would require the further investment of hundreds of millions of dollars of the plan's assets. The exemption approved by the department covered only the terms of the $40 million sale of the property from the union to the pension plan, not the prudence of the property's subsequent redevelopment using union pension funds. The plan invested more than $800 million in the Diplomat project.
Under the lawsuit, the department is seeking a court order to require the defendants to reimburse the plan for losses, remove the trustees from their positions with the plan and permanently bar them from serving as a fiduciary or service provider for any employee benefit plan governed by ERISA.
web page
(Chao v. Maddaloni) Civil Action No. 02-61289CIV
There are five trustees who according to the lawsuit will have to reimburse around $760,000,000. I don't see either one of these guys coughing up $150,000,000. Two of the trustees are the U.A. president and the secretary treasurer. The members needed the D.O.L. to step up and do their job two years ago before the $800,000,000 of the member's pension monies was mis-used. It's a little late but maybe like you said, perhaps they will use this lawsuit to make an example out of these corrupt officials.
So the Trustees should have done due diligence, market analyses, feasibility studies, huh? Those sure sound like prudent things to do before investing a big wad of somebody else's money.
I'm happy to see the DOL is proceeding on this.
I wonder how long and hard union members on this side of the border will have to rattle the regulatory agencies' cages to get the same level of service?
Way to go UA members.
And let us not forget that good ol' Marty is still on the hook for the Ullico scandal.
It would warm my UA heart to see this guy and his "yes men" nailed.
quote:
And let us not forget that good ol' Marty is still on the hook for the Ullico scandal.
It would warm my UA heart to see this guy and his "yes men" nailed.
Amen! And what is so extraordinary about this is the fact Marty initiated the buying of the Diplomat property from Ullico of which he was a board member who took advantage of inside info in order to make a profit on his stock investment! It's amazing to see how the spider weaves his web. Truly amazing! 
If Marty is found guilty of the charges the Labour Board has brought against him and the "Three Amigos" will he be able to retain his position as General President or will he just not be a trustee anymore?
This guy recently turfed out one of our members because he was a party to the litigation that was responsible for chucking out sec 199.
He had been charged under sec 199 for handing out election campaign material!
When the UA couldn't expel him for 199, they decided to expel him for violating his oath, sec 157.
Maddaloni knows full well that you can't expel a member under sec. 157. He was party to a 1982 Judgement by Justice Bouck of the Supreme Court of British Columbia who said that you could not expel a member under this sec or any sec of the Constitution that has neither a charging or a penalty section.
If the man can violate Court decisions so readily what else is he capable of?
JB, I haven't heard anything mentioned concerning MM's presidency. As far as I know he will remain in the driver's seat, that is unless a combination of the Diplomat and Ullico transgressions becomes more than he can bear! I remember hearing about MM using sec. 157 to expell a member. I believe I heard it through AUD. I wasn't aware of the judgement by Justice Bouck. Has he carried his case to the courts for re-instatement or is he working on a plan to fight this injustice? As far as what MM is capable of, I think you probably already know! This is why all must stay linked together else you find yourself alone in the woods with the pack of wolves. He already has stated, along with Patchell, how he feels about these websites. It's hunting season and if we don't pack together, we will be stalked one at a time! Just food for thought!
The member has been really ill. He had open heart surgery and was only just getting over it when the Bastards decided to get rid of him.
He has spoken to a lawyer but as he has been disabled he hasn't the wherewithall to hire one. That's the big problem here. The union has all the money in the union coffers to fight the Victim who has been responsible no less than anyone else for those funds. We really need some legislation in this country to help victimized rank and file union members to fend for themselves. Right now the man who is in control of the purse strings always wins whether he is right or wrong and that is criminal as far as I'm concerned.
Yes there was another member who was chucked under 157 and it was on the AUD site and I believe on the Union Corruption site as well.
Aud is aware of our situation here and has offered to speak to the Ontario Labout Minister about the implementation of a LMRDA Act. He has shown some interest but other than telling us that he has people looking into it, the Minister isn't moving very quickly. (nothing new there)
Standing together is a good thing but we have to have the tools to clean up our own messes in the Labour movement.
Go see your MPP. They still think that dirty union politics only exists in the US!