On March 30 the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America scheduled hearings at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in downtown Albany to look into the management of union pension, annuity and health funds by the Empire State Regional Council.
Upstate union members may have been "discriminated against" in allocating losses from the Madoff investments, wrote Douglas J. McCarron, general president of the UBC, in a 10-page letter to Patrick B. Morin, executive secretary-treasurer of the Empire State Regional Council.
In one case, the loss of a $6.4 million investment with Madoff made by the Empire Welfare Fund was allocated entirely to the former participants in the Upstate Health Fund, even though it had been folded into the Empire Fund and dissolved two years earlier, McCarron wrote.
Upstate members saw their fund accounts dwindle; in one case, a member's health account was wiped out, and he had to pay a monthly premium of $1,060 to keep his health insurance, McCarron wrote.
A trustee from the former upstate funds may have been illegally barred from board meetings when Madoff issues were being discussed. Madoff had admitted operating a massive Ponzi scheme that cost investors billions of dollars and is now in prison.
And while the Empire Council had agreed to provide information about the allocation of Madoff losses, McCarron wrote, much of it hadn't yet been provided.
Union members' concerns about the health of their retirement and other funds were first described in a story March 15, 2009, in the Times Union.
At that time, several members, including Charles Lezette and Rich Dorrough, said that Empire Council officials weren't sharing much information about the Madoff losses. They told them that their annuity fund was "temporarily on hold and we can't touch it," Dorrough recalled at the time.
What I find amazing is that Spencer even has a job. The blatant failure of the Council system is the lack of oversight by the International.
ReplyDeleteMcCarron created these cesspools of corruption, put all our money under the control of morons or crooks and left Spencer to watch them. Wow. What a great concept.
While under Frank Spencer’s direct supervision two councils have now gone directly into the crappers. Both the Empire Council and NYCDCC are infested with corrupt elements that have been arrested, indicted and accused of defrauding the membership and financial irregularities. In both cases the result has been that the rank and file have been raped, robbed, fleeced, abused and hung out to dry. In the case of the NYCDCC we now have the US Attorneys Office up your ass. Will this turn out to be a good thing. Have a look how the Legal system has failed the membership for the last ten years. Take a ,look how the EBSA,DOL,NLRB and the Judicial system has turned its back on the rank and file and REFUSED to do its job while these crooks and thieves have destroyed the UBC. They stood by and did nothing.
So I have to ask again. How does Spencer who is directly responsible for these criminals being able to stay entrenched in the UBC still have a job. Why have the US Attorneys Office not filed charges against Spencer and McCarron when it is blatantly obvious they supported this corruption and kept Forde and the rest of his cronies in office for the last ten years. Why did Spencer do nothing while common criminals have lost $160 million plus of the rank and file futures at the Empire Council. Why did Spencer do nothing while John Fuchs and Jack Simmons fleeced the membership for their own personal gain and persecuted anyone who fought back? Why was Patrick Morin allowed to continue their criminal enterprise unchecked? How did someone like Olivieri become so entrenched in the Empire Council and the NYCDCC funds? How did he become the Chairman of the Empire Council Funds? Is this what the law calls an inside job? Why have McCarron and Spencer done nothing?
Do you think the members of the Empire Council affiliated locals are cheering because Spencer and Glenn have moved in on the Empire Council? All they have done is tossed out a few rats and put themselves in charge of the money bags. The only single reason they have done anything at the Empire Council is because the US Attorney in NY is up their ass and they are trying to portray themselves as the white knights come to save the rank and file and slay the evil Forde trolls. You don’t think the Feds have overlapping investigations between the Empire and NYC Council. You don’t think the feds have received letters and requests to come investigate the corruption at the Empire Council. Spencer and McCarron are not at the Empire Council because they give a rat’s ass about the membership. They are there because they have to act to keep up the BS white Knight image with the US Attorneys Office. They are there because they can now put their dirty little paws on a whole new cash cow. They have designated a few sacrificial lambs for show but you will see them move money around and fire accountants just as they did with Local 157 and just as they would be doing in the NYCDCC if the feds were not so involved.
ReplyDeleteThey put the Empire Council in supervision on April 27, 2010 but just told everyone yesterday. Local Officers have lied and denied the supervision had even happened. Members who are suffering with no health care and Annuity and HRA accounts cleaned out are still suffering and the International has done nothing. We have a Syracuse member who has a very sick wife and has been cashing in cans to make the outrageous monthly payments he must pay to these rats for health care after they wiped out his accounts. They have told him ten different stories over the last two weeks about restoring his accounts and not to worry about paying that monthly premium. They told him, as they were told, that there were to be meetings today in Hawthorne and the members would have information about the reallocation of funds and the International would be taking action. Salaried Council employees and Delegates who lived more than 75 miles from Hawthorne were given mileage, a days pay, dinner and a hotel room for their troubles. Do you know what they did at these mandatory meetings? Nothing. Not a god damn thing. Nobody was fired. No decisions on allocations. No relief for distressed members. They announced that Frankie was freezing all the accounts and everybody was sent home. After the rank and file counting the days until today’s meetings, after the rank and file were promised a glimmer of hope, after our Brother with the illness in his family finally getting to take a breath, after the rank and file waited for their officers to bring back some kind of news they got NOTHING. Do you know what our Brother with the very ill wife got. He was told that he now had to come up with the May payment for his health care or risk losing his insurance. After refusing to take the payment two weeks ago, after telling him not to worry and after waving a glimmer of hope today the International and Frank Spencer did what they have done all long in response to our brothers and sisters distress. ABSOLUTELY NOTHING. So you tell me how Frank Spencer still has a job. Tell me how we should cheer the arrival at the Empire Council of the phony white Knights. Tell me how we should cheer the arrival of the very people who have ignored the pleas of the rank and file and who have created and supported the Environment of corruption and greed that is the Council system
I find amazing is that Spencer even has a job. The blatant failure of the Council system is the lack of oversight by the International.
ReplyDeleteMcCarron created these cesspools of corruption, put all our money under the control of morons or crooks and left Spencer to watch them. Wow. What a great concept.
While under Frank Spencer’s direct supervision two councils have now gone directly into the crappers.
Both the Empire Council and NYCDCC are infested with corrupt elements that have been arrested, indicted and accused of defrauding the membership and financial irregularities.
In both cases the result has been that the rank and file have been raped, robbed, fleeced, abused and hung out to dry.
In the case of the NYCDCC we now have the US Attorneys Office up your ass.
Will this turn out to be a good thing. Have a look how the Legal system has failed the membership for the last ten years.
Take a look how the EBSA,DOL,NLRB and the Judicial system has turned its back on the rank and file and REFUSED to do its job while these crooks and thieves have destroyed the UBC.
They stood by and did nothing.
So I have to ask again. How does Spencer who is directly responsible for these criminals being able to stay entrenched in the UBC still have a job.
Why have the US Attorneys Office not filed charges against Spencer and McCarron when it is blatantly obvious they supported this corruption and kept Forde and the rest of his cronies in office for the last ten years.
Why did Spencer do nothing while common criminals have lost $160 million plus of the rank and file futures at the Empire Council.
Why did Spencer do nothing while John Fuchs and Jack Simmons fleeced the membership for their own personal gain and persecuted anyone who fought back?
Why was Patrick Morin allowed to continue their criminal enterprise unchecked?
How did someone like Olivieri become so entrenched in the Empire Council and the NYCDCC funds?
How did he become the Chairman of the Empire Council Funds?
Is this what the law calls an inside job?
Why have McCarron and Spencer done nothing?
Do you think the members of the Empire Council affiliated locals are cheering because Spencer and Glenn have moved in on the Empire Council?
ReplyDeleteAll they have done is tossed out a few rats and put themselves in charge of the money bags.
The only single reason they have done anything at the Empire Council is because the US Attorney in NY is up their ass and they are trying to portray themselves as the white knights come to save the rank and file and slay the evil Forde trolls.
You don’t think the Feds have overlapping investigations between the Empire and NYC Council.
You don’t think the feds have received letters and requests to come investigate the corruption at the Empire Council.
Spencer and McCarron are not at the Empire Council because they give a rat’s ass about the membership.
They are there because they have to act to keep up the BS white Knight image with the US Attorneys Office.
They are there because they can now put their dirty little paws on a whole new cash cow.
They have designated a few sacrificial lambs for show but you will see them move money around and fire accountants just as they did with Local 157 and just as they would be doing in the NYCDCC if the feds were not so involved.
They put the Empire Council in supervision on April 27, 2010 but just told everyone yesterday.
Local Officers have lied and denied the supervision had even happened.
Members who are suffering with no health care and Annuity and HRA accounts cleaned out are still suffering and the International has done nothing.
We have a Syracuse member who has a very sick wife and has been cashing in cans to make the outrageous monthly payments he must pay to these rats for health care after they wiped out his accounts.
They have told him ten different stories over the last two weeks about restoring his accounts and not to worry about paying that monthly premium. They told him, as they were told, that there were to be meetings today in Hawthorne and the members would have information about the reallocation of funds and the International would be taking action.
Salaried Council employees and Delegates who lived more than 75 miles from Hawthorne were given mileage, a days pay, dinner and a hotel room for their troubles.
Do you know what they did at these mandatory meetings?
Nothing. Not a god damn thing. Nobody was fired. No decisions on allocations. No relief for distressed members.
They announced that Frankie was freezing all the accounts and everybody was sent home.
After the rank and file counting the days until today’s meetings, after the rank and file were promised a glimmer of hope, after our Brother with the illness in his family finally getting to take a breath, after the rank and file waited for their officers to bring back some kind of news they got NOTHING.
Do you know what our Brother with the very ill wife got. He was told that he now had to come up with the May payment for his health care or risk losing his insurance. After refusing to take the payment two weeks ago, after telling him not to worry and after waving a glimmer of hope today the International and Frank Spencer did what they have done all long in response to our brothers and sisters distress. ABSOLUTELY NOTHING.
So you tell me how Frank Spencer still has a job. Tell me how we should cheer the arrival at the Empire Council of the phony white Knights. Tell me how we should cheer the arrival of the very people who have ignored the pleas of the rank and file and who have created and supported the Environment of corruption and greed that is the Council system.