President Barack Obama’s most recent recess appointee to the National Labor Relations Board is the former general counsel to the International Union of Operating Engineers, a union with a near-Hollywood past of corruption and organized crime, according to Fox News.
Richard Griffin was general counsel for the 400,000 member IUOE prior to being recess appointed, without any congressional scrutiny, and sworn in on January 9. Griffin will serve until December 2013, twice the typical NLRB term due to the timing of his appointment at the beginning of a congressional session.
IUOE is tied to a number of criminals and mobsters, among them:
- Andrew Merola, a ranking member of the Gambino crime family, who admitted to 9 separate acts of racketeering in connection with a no-show job with the union.
- Joel Waverly Cacace Sr., acting boss of the Colombo crime family, who is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence. He conspired with members of the union to secure a no-show job for his son.
Reports about the IUOE detail further cases of embezzlement, wire fraud, racketeering, extortion, workplace sabotage and bribery. More than 60 members of the union have been arrested under these charges in the last decade.