SERVICE EMPLOYEES (SEIU)
New York's King Benova Dethroned
The union world is abuzz with the amazing news that a dissident lawsuit
has ousted one of America's highest paid union bosses. AFL-CIO boss John
J. Sweeney's successor, Gus Benova was paid well over $400,000 a year to
run the Service Employee Int'l Union Local 32B-32J. On Feb. 1, Benova ended
his 18 year reign that began when Sweeney was elected to head SEIU in 1981.
Benova has been dogged by allegations of a lavish lifestyle, authoritarian
rule and possible mob ties, but his resignation came as part of a civil
suit settlement brought by dissidents Carlos Guzman and Dominick Bentivgna.
[N.Y. Times, N.Y. Post 2/2/99]
Top SEIU boss Andrew L. Stern -- who himself has corruption questions stemming from his role in the Teamsters money-laundering scandal -- imposed an indefinite trusteeship over the local. On Feb. 8, SEIU opened Benova's union-funded SoHo penthouse to the media. The palatially high-tech palace "had enough marble to empty a quarry" and was dominated by lavish rosewood furnishings and a stainless-steel kitchen. [N.Y. Times, N.Y. Post 2/9/99]
Additionally, Benova "received" a $1.5 million golden parachute upon retirement. But N.Y. Attorney General Eliot Spitzer said Feb. 4 that his office will investigate the severance package. He called the payoff an "outrageous use of union funds" and "could be a significant abuse of union dues." [Daily News 2/4/99, BNA 2/5/99]
In addition to the unions and organizations covered in this Union Corruption Update,readers can look forward to news and information on other corrupt and abusive unions in future editions.
All back issues of the Union Corruption Update can be viewed at NLPC's website (www.nlpc.org). Also available is a union by union index of all Union Corruption Update articles.
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Union Corruption Update is part of NLPC's Organized Labor Accountability Project which is investigating and exposing corruption and extremism in the Teamsters, LIUNA, AFL-CIO and many other union organizations. NLPC is a nonpartisan, nonprofit foundation promoting ethics and accountability in government through research, education and legal action.
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