AFL-CIO Votes to Let Teamsters Reaffiliate : Action Could Have Major Impact on Movement as U.S. Looks at Union’s Reputed Crime Ties

In a historic move that could have a major impact on the American labor movement, the AFL-CIO Executive Council voted unanimously Saturday to take the Teamsters Union back into the labor federation, 30 years after expelling it on corruption charges.

The move comes amid reports that the Justice Department is planning to file an unprecedented lawsuit to take over the 1.7-million-member Teamsters on the grounds that the union is dominated by organized crime.

AFL-CIO President Lane Kirkland, who lobbied in favor of the reaffiliation, said he is pleased with the council’s action, which will take effect Nov. 1. Kirkland said he thinks the reaffiliation will “strengthen” the entire labor movement.

Teamsters’ Presser ‘Elated

“I believe in a unified trade union movement,” Kirkland said at a news conference at the Fontainbleau Hilton Hotel here. “And I will do everything I can to bind up the scattered leaves of this movement.”

Jackie Presser, president of the Teamsters, issued a statement saying he is “elated” at the development. “We belong together and we will work together for all workers of America to ensure a continuing high standard of living and a better quality of life as we prepare for the 21st Century.”

Charles Craypo, professor of labor economics at the University of Notre Dame, said AFL-CIO unions could be helped in organizing, political action, financial resources and strike support by the link with the Teamsters. He said the AFL-CIO might receive some negative publicity as result of the move. But noting the Teamsters’ pending legal problems and the large loss of members suffered by AFL-CIO unions in recent years, he said: “On both sides they need each other more than they have in the past.”

Kirkland and a host of union presidents, gathered here for the AFL-CIO’s biennial convention, said the addition of the Teamsters to the 12.7-million-member federation would put an end to years of organizing warfare between the Teamsters and affiliates of the AFL-CIO. They defended the move while acknowledging that the unsavory reputation the Teamsters have acquired over the last 35 years may cause problems for the federation.

Four of the last five presidents of the Teamsters have been indicted on federal charges and three of them were sentenced to federal prison. Presser, the union’s current president, is scheduled to go on trial in federal court in Cleveland in February on payroll-padding charges.

Knowledgeable sources said that Owen Bieber, president of the United Auto Workers, and Gerald F. McEntee, president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, expressed serious reservations about readmitting the Teamsters after learning of the plan Thursday. Neither man, however, voted against the move.

‘Raiding’ by Teamsters

“A number of people had concerns,” McEntee said Saturday after the council meeting. He said the questions focused primarily on the issues of Teamsters’ “raiding” of work sites represented by one of the AFL-CIO’s 89 unions. “There were some concerns about image,” McEntee added, but said his concerns were alleviated during a lengthy discussion at Saturday’s meeting.

He acknowledged it is likely that some adverse publicity will ensue. But he said that concern was overridden by a “more serious institutional question--union solidarity. That’s most important in terms of giving workers unity.”

The Auto Workers’ Bieber refused to comment on the recombination.

Albert Shanker, president of the American Federation of Teachers, said he favored the move, although he expected some tough questions about it from his members.

One longtime adviser to unions, speaking on the condition that he not be identified, said he is disturbed by the alliance.

Expelled in 1957

“The Teamsters are clearly a corruptly led organization,” he asserted. “To that extent, not much has changed since 1957,” when the union was expelled from the AFL-CIO for refusing to sign an ethical practices code. The code was drawn up in the wake of labor racketeering hearings chaired by the late Sen. John L. McClellan (D-Ark.), which focused on the Teamsters and its then-President Dave Beck. Beck later was sent to prison for accepting a Cadillac purchased with union funds.

Another veteran union public relations consultant expressed dismay at the move, saying the federation should have demanded more from the Teamsters than a mere agreement to abide by the AFL-CIO constitution. “You have to try to put a good face on it, but it’s not an easy task,” said the man, who also spoke on condition that he not be identified.

However, numerous union presidents gathered here expressed support for Saturday’s vote by the Executive Council.

Morton Bahr, president of the Communications Workers of America, said the Teamsters represent “more than a million good, decent Americans. As we deal with union bashing, this will strengthen the American labor movement.” He added: “Allegations of corruption should be dealt with by law enforcement, not by the trade union movement.”

“I’m definitely in favor,” said William Bywater, president of the International Union of Electronic Workers. “I see this helping us organizationally, in politics and in collective bargaining,” he added.

William Wynn, president of the 1-million-member United Food and Commercial Workers Union and a key player in negotiations that led to Saturday’s agreement, was even more effusive in his praise of the agreement. “I think it’s the greatest thing that’s happened to the AFL-CIO,” Wynn said, adding that he saw no disadvantages.

A Chance Meeting

The Teamsters have periodically considered rejoining the AFL-CIO since 1979. According to several knowledgeable sources, the latest move began as a result of a chance meeting of Presser and Edward Hanley, president of the Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees Union, at a Washington restaurant on Oct. 14. Presser said he was interested in a reaffiliation and Hanley, a longtime friend of the Teamsters, expressed enthusiasm.

The next day, Hanley met with two other Teamsters allies--Wynn and Robert Georgine, president of the AFL-CIO building and construction trades division--to map a plan, sources said. The three men then had further discussions with Presser, then a meeting with Kirkland, who said he was receptive, and then another with Presser.

Four days later, in Orlando, Presser obtained the approval of the Teamsters’ executive board to seek reaffiliation. A letter requesting the move was drafted by Teamsters’ lawyers and brought here by Hanley, leading to Saturday’s action.

Took Place Rapidly

The whole process took place rapidly, leaving little time for opposition to develop. McEntee said he first learned of the proposal when he was in Hawaii and was called by an aide. He said he went there to help his union ward off an attempt by the Teamsters to “raid” a group of correctional officers represented by the AFSCME.

Some observers here and in Washington characterized the reaffiliation as a smart move by the Teamsters in their effort to fight an effort by the Justice Department to take over the union and place it in a federal trusteeship.

In August, the AFL-CIO Executive Council passed a resolution critical of any such trusteeship, saying that “government supervision is synonymous with the destruction of free trade unions, not with their salvation.”

The move against a Justice Department takeover picked up steam at a Teamsters rally in September in Cincinnati, when numerous labor leaders and four presidential candidates condemned the idea.

On Saturday, federal law enforcement sources said the fact that the Teamsters are back in the AFL-CIO could create problems for those officials who are pushing for the trusteeship suit to be filed, but other law enforcement officials indicated that they would not be deterred.

One knowledgeable federal source said Saturday’s action could create “serious problems about an approach that was already under question because of its sweep and scope.” One Justice Department source said the political opposition to a proposed trusteeship--particularly from two presidential candidates, Rep. Jack Kemp (R-N.Y.) and Sen. Paul Simon (D-Ill.)--had stunned many officials in the department.

However, another high-ranking Justice Department official said his “gut first reaction” was “let’s not let law enforcement judgment get skewed by developments in political land.”

Asked Saturday if the AFL-CIO would be providing a protective umbrella to the Teamsters, Kirkland said it would not. “We’re giving them no cover, no insulation from the common duty to follow the law.”

Queried about allegations of widespread corruption in the Teamsters, Kirkland responded: “If they (law enforcement officials) can prove it, those found guilty will be removed from office.” He denounced the idea of “collective guilt” for the entire union.

Kirkland stressed that under the federal Landrum-Griffin Act, a union official convicted of any of “a long list of federal crimes” is stripped of office. “That’s a higher, more vigorous standard than applies to any other institution in American life,” he said. “We have no complaint about it. . . . We expect higher standards of our people than in the human community at large, and certainly higher than the business community.”

Kirkland said the Executive Council had passed a resolution Saturday recommending that the AFL-CIO constitution be amended to permit additions to the council beyond its current size of 35. This would pave the way for Presser to gain a seat on the council. He also said Presser has been invited to address the convention here Thursday. Presser has accepted, sources said.

At his news conference, Kirkland said he hoped several other unaffiliated unions would join the AFL-CIO, and cited in particular the United Mine Workers.