As the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor Pensions (HELP) prepares to deliberate over President Obama’s nominees to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), inquiring minds want to know: Who is Richard Griffin?
The White House would have us all believe that Griffin, along with Sharon Block – both of whom became Board Members when the President made so-called “recess” appointments – are simply government bureaucrats doing their jobs. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit found that the appointments were unconstitutional, yet both Griffin and Block are ignoring the judicial decision and remain on the Board.
Griffin, the former general counsel to the International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) has served in a leadership role in a union that has been overrun by organized crime. According to Fox News, “The rap sheet for members of the International Union of Operating Engineers reads like something out of ‘Goodfellas.’ Embezzlement. Wire fraud. Bribery. That’s just scratching the surface of crimes committed by the IUOE ranks.”
And Griffin has additional problems which call into question his character and suitability to serve on the NLRB. Earlier this year, the Washington Free Beacon reported, “According to the lawsuit filed by 10 members of Los Angeles-based IUOE Local 501, which represents workers in Southern California and Southern Nevada, Griffin participated in a conspiracy to manipulate the operation of Local 501 ‘through a pattern of racketeering activity.’ Griffin was served with the complaint and a court summons relating to the lawsuit at his Washington, D.C., home on Dec. 4, according to documents filed in court.”
A lawyer who represented a union with connections to the mob? A defendant in a racketeering and embezzlement case dealing with a cover up? This is who has been re-nominated to referee disputes between unions and businesses in the private sector? At taxpayer expense?
To better illustrate the issue, below is a list of the convicted mob bosses and foot soldiers that infiltrated the union Griffin represented. On May 16th, when the HELP Committee considers the nomination of Griffin, hopefully someone will ask: Why would the American people want you sitting on the NLRB?
Andrew Merola (IUOE Member – pled guilty in 2010 for wire fraud and not showing up at job)
Jamie DeRoss (IUOE member – pled guilty in 2003 for extortion)
James Roemer (IUOE Treasurer – pled guilty in 2003 for fraud)
Joel “Joe Waverly” Cacace (acting Columbo family boss – conspired with union members to get a paid no-show job for his son in 2003)
Kenneth Campbell (IUOE Business Mgr, Int’l VP – pled guilty in 2008 for embezzlement conspiracy)
Louis Moscatiello (High ranking Genovese crime family figure – pled guilty in 2004 to controlling three labor unions for organized crime)
Martin Taccetta (Boss of the Jersey Crew faction of the Lucchese crime family – charged with extortion and labor racketeering)
This entry was posted in Big Labor Bailout, Big Labor Bosses, Congress, Politics, Unions and tagged andrew merola, Barack Obama, Education, Fox News, goodfellas, health, HELP Committee, International Union of Operating Engineers, IUOE, james roemer, jamie deross, joel cacace, kenneth campbell, labor pensions, louis moscatiello, mafia, martin taccetta, mob, mobs, National Labor Relations Board, NLRB, organized crime, President Obama, Richard Griffin, Senate, Sharon Block, southern california, southern nevada, U.S. Senate, Unions, Washington Free Beacon. Bookmark the permalink.