AFL-CIO / CARPENTERS (UBC)
Carpenters Union Bolt AFL-CIO
In a sharp slap in the face to AFL-CIO bosses John
J. Sweeney and Richard L. Trumka
the United Bhd. of Carpenters pulled out of the federation on Mar. 29.
A continued affiliation with AFL-CIO not only was a distraction for UBC,
said UBC boss Douglas J. McCarron, but an impediment.
McCarron said UBC needs flexibility to work with both parties, he said,
noting that "a lot of our members are Republicans."
McCarron had been threatening to break away for more than two years. He has told AFL-CIO leaders and his members that Sweeney is wasting carpenters' dues money on a bureaucracy of hundreds of officials that AFL-CIO has hired since Sweeney and Trumka took over in 1995. In a strong letter to Sweeney, McCarron wrote: "After five years I have seen nothing to indicate the AFL-CIO is seriously considering changes that would cure [Sweeney's inability to make fundamental changes], nor do I see any realistic chance that an investment of more time or resources by the UBC will alter those facts. And for that reason [UBC] has voted unanimously to end our affiliation with the AFL-CIO."
UBC's departure is a financial blow to the scandal-scared AFL-CIO. While its dues amount to just $3 million a year in AFL-CIO's $100 million-plus annual budget, the AFL-CIO spends every penny of it. Reportedly, Sweeney and Trumka have even drawn down the federation's reserves in recent years. On Mar. 27, Sweeney and Trumka pled with UBC's executive board in a last-ditch effort to halt a breakup vote. But they failed to change any minds and the eight-member board. [BusinessWeek.com 3/29/01; BNA 3/30/01]
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