When Hoffa-Hall’s top lieutenant in the West Rome Aloise was charged with racketeering, they used members’ dues money to cover up the corruption, obstruct investigators and crack down on members’ right to vote. Now, the results of the International Union election may hang in the balance.

When Teamster members in the West cast the ballots that will be counted today, they were denied the right to vote on Western Region Vice Presidents who were kept off the ballot.

Hoffa-Hall made sure that running mate Rome Aloise got on the ballot in the West unchallenged—and they have shielded him from facing any hearing on the 122 pages of corruption charges that Aloise was hit with in February.

Hoffa-Hall’s obstruction of corruption investigators and crack down on members’ right to a fair and informed vote wasn’t just a dirty campaign tactic. They paid for it with your union dues.

Corruption Cover-Up

Independent corruption investigators sent Hoffa a 122-page report in February, recommending the International Union hold a hearing on corruption charges against Rome Aloise. 

That hearing has still never been held—and we know why.

The same corruption trail leads straight to Hoffa and his inner circle—and court-supervised corruption investigators were already widening their probe before International Union candidates were even nominated.

The Independent Investigations Officer ordered the IBT to turn over emails and documents concerning illegal gifts and payoffs from employers, embezzlement, and the role of top Hoffa administration officials in rigging the bidding process for business with Teamster benefit funds to award lucrative contracts to a broker that took Hoffa and others on golf junkets to Europe. 

Among those named in the investigation were Hoffa, his Executive Assistant Willie Smith, his top political advisor Richard Leebove, IBT Political Director Nicole Brener-Schmitz, Benefits Director John Slatery, Hoffa’s son and others.

Obstructing Investigators

Beginning in March, Hoffa-Hall stonewalled corruption investigators. 

The Independent Investigations Officer has issued a 42-page report, charging Ken Hall with obstruction and detailing how the Hoffa-Hall administration withheld and destroyed thousands of emails and documents requested by corruption investigators. 

Hoffa-Hall’s obstruction of corruption investigators was run out of IBT headquarters and paid for with members’ dues. They hired Viet Dinh, a top-dollar litigator, to stonewall corruption investigators and accuse them of trying to interfere in the Teamster election. 

Hoffa has an entire legal department at his disposal, but when it comes to covering up corruption during an election year, he spares no expense—especially when members are footing the bill.

Impact on the Teamster Election

The Hoffa-Hall corruption cover-up kept vital information from every Teamster voter. But nowhere was the election process more sullied than in the West.

Hoffa-Hall shielded Aloise from any hearing on the charges against him. Another Hoffa-Hall running mate Rick Middleton was caught using union and employer resources to rig the vote in the Convention Delegate race in Local 572 in Southern California. 

A rerun was ordered but, out of money and out of time off, the rank-and-file opposition candidates were narrowly defeated by a campaign run by Hoffa political operative and corruption probe target Richard Leebove. 

Hoffa-Hall rallied around Aloise at the Convention. Delegates were told the charges were phony. Teamsters United candidates in the West were kept off the ballot by a handful of votes. 

What’s Next?

The obstruction charges will be settled in federal court. The U.S. Attorney for the Southern District will face off against the IBT’s attorneys to enforce an order that the International Union turn over the documents.

Hoffa-Hall successfully used union resources to cover up corruption, keep opposition candidates off the ballot, and deny members a fair and informed vote in the election. 

Despite these massive violations, the Fred Zuckerman Teamsters United slate is winning the election as the vote count heads to the West and Canada. 

Let’s hope those results stand as the vote count heads to the West, ground-zero for the corruption cover-up.