Trust violators in the labor movement: A study of union embezzlements

Union embezzlements, considered by many as one of the most serious breaches of trust, have not been seriously examined. My study sheds light on this topic by studying violations of the federal statute which prohibits union embezzlements, 29 U.S.C. 501 §(c). During the period October 1, 1993 to September 30, 1995, 104 individuals were convicted of violating this statute due to their collective victimization of 98 unions. Some findings were: loses tended to be under $25,000; victim unions were small in financial and membership size; unions lack basic financial controls; and offenders were usually male, acted alone, and tended to be part-time officers. I was an investigator with the United States Department of Labor, Office of Labor Management Standards for more than eight years (1/89 to 6/97). The information in this article is the result of my independent research and does not represent the findings, view, or opinions of any agency of the United States government.