Dennis M. Walsh - The Review Officer

Information Requests

All local union presidents and, as necessary, business managers, are hereby instructed

1. to provide this office with electronic copies of all minutes of the executive board and regular monthly meetings of their respective local unions within one week of said meetings being held;

2. to provide to this office by September 13, 2010, via disk or USB drive, the minutes of their executive board and regular monthly meetings held from January 1, 2006, to the present;

3. to provide this office with electronic copies of the Form LM-2 filed with the Department of Labor by their local union each year from 2005 to the present.

Fiduciary Obligations

All local union executive boards are reminded of each officer’s strict fiduciary obligations pursuant to 29 U.S.C. § 501, which should be read and understood by each officer.

Guidance

In reviewing local union expenditures which have been noticed on a timely basis (see ¶ 5.b of the Stipulation and Order, requiring prior notice), this office will presume the validity of expenditures which (i) are reasonable in amount; (ii) clearly benefit the organization and its members; (iii) have been disclosed and fully explained to the members at a regular meeting of the local union, with the amount and purpose of the expenditure having been expressly stated; and (iv) have been duly authorized in accordance with the Constitution of the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America, the bylaws of the local union and the strictures of 29 U.S.C. §501.

Member Concerns or Questions

Any member who has a question about local union expenditures or wishes to express a comment or concern about such expenditures may contact me on a confidential basis at dmwfw@verizon.net or dwfitzwalsh@optonline.net.

(John's note: Because Richards comment exceeded the comment post length, I have re-posted it below so you can clearly read it.)

Richard Dorrough said...

Mr. Walsh,

First I would like wish you the best of luck in your new position as RO and hope you work long and hard to remove the corruption and the corrupt from the NYC Carpenters. I would like to ask a question.

I am a member of Carpenters Local 370 in Albany. Our Local is affiliated with the Empire Regional Council. Just like the NYC Locals, and despite the false information provided by the US Attorneys Office, we are NOT members of the Council.

In the US Attorneys office zeal to give you control of all NY Locals they erroneously declared all the NY Locals and NYC Carpenters to be members of the New York City district Council.

In Section 1D of Definitions in the Proposed Appointment of the Review Officer, the US Attorneys declares Members of the NYC District Council to be "Any person who is a member of any Union or labor organization that constitutes part of the District Council.” Sorry but that is not the case and they had no right to declare it. God forbid you should have any pesky NY Locals exerting their democratic right to be individual entities with individual rights outside the realm of the NYC Council that you now control. It might cause some of those pesky legal issues Haight referred to.

I can provide you with multiple statements from McCarron saying we are affiliated with but not members of the council. I am sure you understand the significance of not being “members of” This is the same scam the International has been running on us in order to force Council control down our throats when it suits their purpose. Now it seems the US Attorney has done McCarrons dirty work for him. While the US Attorneys office can write it all they want we are NOT NOW nor have we EVER been members of the councils. While the NYC Council is in supervision the Locals are NOT.

We are experiencing the same situation. The Empire Council is in supervision but the Locals are not because we are NOT members of the Council. If the US Attorneys Office statement was anything other than babble that would not be possible, Both Spencer and Our Local President have stated for the record that the Council and not the Locals is in supervision.

When McCarron wanted to have it his way in Harrington – vs -  Chao he declares “we are not members of” but we are affiliated with the councils. When McCarron wanted his name removed as a defendant in Gustave Link-v- David Rhodes et al. He declared for the record. “The Union has adopted a three tier structure: the international union, various intermediate bodies and local unions. Though they are affiliated by a constitution these organizations are such separate entities that they can and do sue each other and THEIR AGENTS HAVE NO BINDING AUTHORITY OUTSIDE THEIR OWN UNION ENTITY."

If the Council has no legal binding authority over the Locals it sure puts a damper on your power since you were specifically declared in power of the New York City District Council.

So who is McCarron lying to? The Judge in California Federal Court? You and the US Attorneys office?

We know the real victims are the rank and file membership who have had their rights, paychecks and health and pension futures destroyed by the NYC District Council who it seems has "NO BINDING AUTHORITY OUTSIDE THEIR OWN UNION ENTITY."

Now this and other examples will bring us to how McCarron, Spencer and Benjamin Glenn have conspired and worked in collusion with admitted criminals such as Forde and his cronies to keep them in power. They conspired, supported and worked in collusion with them so they could rob and steal from the Rank and File for the last 2 decades.

How is that possible you say?

How many times have Spencer and McCarron told you they have the right to control the locals through the council?

How many times have they told you the rank and file were members of the Council and they had the legal right to stomp on the member’s rights and force them to do as they are told?

How many times has the DOL ignored the Pleas of the rank and file for help and deferred to McCarron and Spencer because the DOL says they were qualifying experts?

How many times has the DOL REFUSED to help the rank and file because they declared Mike Forde, Greany or one of the other recently admitted thieves and crooks the qualifying expert they deferred to?

And now by making false and erroneous statements you and the US Attorneys Office want to further that cause when you have no "Legal Binding Authority" to do so based on the Locals TRUE limited relationship with the councils. You think you can wave a magic wand and make all the rank and file members of the District Council just because they are a member of a local in NYC and just because, when it suits their purpose, Spencer and McCarron say so.

For weeks, months and years the rank and file have pleaded for help. When they turned to Spencer and McCarron they refused to answer or respond. When they did respond they stalled and promised to answer at a later date and never did. When we called for clarification to blatant and obvious violations of the UBC Constitution they conspired with their attorney Brian Quinn, of Decarlo, Smeckle and Smeckle. Quinn refused to answer or gave a clarification that suited the issue at the time and always supported the position of the Council or the local criminal who was running a scam.

I spoke with Quinn to seek a clarification on time limits for Pro Tem appointees. Instead of giving me an answer he asked "What did your local say" I replied it was the Local Officer running the scam? He then asked what the Council had said. I replied the Council refused to answer. I informed him that he was the designated attorney at the UBC for clarification determinations and the responsibility was his. He refused to answer and has never done so. He told me I needed to do whatever my local Officer told me.

This is the same BS run around we get when ever we turn to McCarron,Spencer or Glenn for help or support. When Forde tried to seat permanent Officers at Local 157 after the Trusteeship debacle Spencer and the UBC refused to answer the multitude of members demands for help, constitutional clarification or aid.

One of the highlights was Spencers written reply that Brian Quin was working on it and would have an answer shortly. They never to this day have responded. If you check the DOL complaint files you will find clarification from the UBC and their legal team that gives 3 different answers for the same question depending on what agenda they were pursuing.

The right to collect a pension and continue to hold office is a rather interesting example.

McCarron and Spencer have used these tactics to keep now admitted criminals Greany and Forde in office for 2 decades. Despite repeated cries for help from the membership and documentation accusing Forde and the rest of criminal activity, McCarron and Spencer never investigated any of them. Instead they went out of their way to cover up the allegations and to do everything in their power to keep these and other criminals in power.

How many of McCarron and Spencers hand picked appointees had been fired or retired in the last year. Can we safely say just about all of them. Spencer recently referred to peeling layers of a bad onion. The fact is nobody is this unlucky. The fact is he is peeling the Onion he and Mccarron planted and they are still at it.

The NYC District Council is not the only NY Council in supervision. This is the second council under Spencer and Benjamin Glenns direct control in Trusteeship due to alleged corruption and financial irregularities. The truth is that should the US Attorneys Office find the Time we can only hope they are headed for the Empire Council next.

One of the last hold outs, indicted Joseph Oliviveri was not just a trustee for the NYC Council fund but he was also the Chairman of the Empire Council Health, Annuity and Pension Funds. After the exposure he resigned and put his Pal Dale Stuhlmiller in as Chairman of the Funds. Mr Stuhlmiller is also a Board member of the First Trade Union Bank which is 48% owned and funded by the Empire Council Pension Fund. It seems the First Trade Union Bank was put in 3 year supervision for under funding and making risky construction loans which a large number have defaulted.

How did Mr. Olivieri get to be Chairman of the Funds with his alleged connections right under Frank Spencer’s and Douglas McCarrons nose.

Do you expect us to believe that this much corruption in multiple councils could exist and Frank Spencer and Douglas McCarron did not know about it.

Spencer and McCarons support and blatant actions to keep Forde and the rest in Office for 2 decades speaks for itself.

Now for the question. What deal has your Office made with Spencer and Mccarron to not investigate them or indict them.

If we are only carpenters and their culpability and collusion with Forde and his cronies is so blatantly obvious to us how can you and the US Attorneys office ignore it and not prosecute them unless you made a deal.

They have conspired to abuse their Offices as UBC District Reps. McCarron has conspired to abuse his office and power as UBC President to order others to cover up for Forde and his cronies as well as the corruption at the Empire Council.

They have not stopped. Glenn and Spencer are up to their old tricks at the Empire Council as we speak. Violations of the Fund Documents, Violation of DOL laws, targeting members for termination who gave testimony at  the corruption hearings and filing false statements with the DOL .

Frank is over planting Onions at the Empire Council which the US Attorneys Office will have to peel 10 years from now. Officers of the Empire Council accused of Conspiring with EST Morin still have their jobs and two accused of conspiring to defraud the members were promoted. Glenn and the UBC are running their constitution clarification scam to prevent an election in Local 370 that might result in their hand picked Crony Douglas Balcklock from losing the vote.

As you can see Mr. Walsh this is business as usual for Spencer, Glenn and McCarron. The evidence is overwhelming. The rank and File have been calling out for years if not 2 decades. The paper trail exists. The proof is under your nose so why are you not looking at it.

How many more victims of Spencer and Mccarron will there be until they are stopped. What deal have you made for no opposition by Spencer and Mccarron to your RO Office and all its conditions.

We call on you to investigate and prosecute both Spencer and McCarron.

We ask that you get a court order in place preventing any association of McCarron and Spencer with the UBC or any trade Union for life.

Sorry to rock your boat Mr. Walsh but there are just to many criminals in the NYC District Council and the Empire Council for them not to have had help and support from the UBC ,McCarron, Spencer, Glenn and their attorneys Decarlo,Smeckle and Smeckle.

We cannot allow you to take just the sacrificial lambs like Forde and his pals while you let the true root of the corruption walk away and be free to continue their enterprise in the UBC and still have their fingers in the NYC District Councils pie.
 
The rank and file have been screaming for 2 decades for help. We have gone to ERISA and the EBSA only to be turned away because the Unions Lawyers are ex EBSA investigators such as Gary Thayer.

The Legal Advisory Council for ERISA is a Union lawyer named Robert Archer appointed by Chao. For 3 years the EBSA had an ongoing investigation into the Empire Funds and did nothing.

Madoff robbed the Empire Fund while the EBSA was watching. I know. How is that possible you say. You turn to the NLRB Region 3 Office for help. You wonder why they are treating you as the enemy and refuse to do anything.

It Turns out the Unions lawyers worked in that Office as legal Council for 13 years. You do win your case but only after taking it to Washington on appeal.

You turn to the DOL who you have to force to do their job and despite having 3 different lies on file from the UBC, they tell you that you lose because they must take the UBCs word over yours. 

Now it seems Mr. Walsh that you are finally getting it right. We are watching the criminals drop like fly’s but why did it take 20 years.

One has to wonder how long you be allowed to continue. Are we to be expected to turn our backs while you let McCarron and Spencer walk away and continue their corruption elsewhere while still bleeding the NYC Carpenters for whatever they can.

Are they to walk away in return for this token of progress and promise of future results.

After 20 years of corruption and the rank and file being robbed and fleeced I think the members have suffered way too much to let McCarron and Spencer to walk away.

We in the UBC NY York area have watched our democratic rights and finances destroyed. We have members who have watched their entire Pension and Annuity Future destroyed by McCarron and Spencer supported criminals. McCarron, Spencer and Glenn, not to mention the bit players, have conspired with these criminals to destroy the members they are sworn too protect. They must not be allowed to walk away and continue destroying the future of the UBC rank and file.