L.A. Local 848 Members Say No to Big Wheels
March 3, 2010: For many years, Jim Santangelo ruled Los Angeles Local 848 with an iron hand. Now the members realize their local belongs to them and it's paying off.
Last weekend, a packed union hall shouted a big NO vote to a motion to approve spending $59,000 on a new GMC Yukon for Eric Tate, the local secretary-treasurer.
Tate was appointed to the position last October as the chosen successor to Santangelo, who was driven out of office in disgrace after TDU broke the story that the joint council quietly paid $500,000 to settle a sexual harassment suit involving his conduct.
Tate may want to continue the tradition of having Local 848 put union officials first, but members seem to have another idea.
Members report that Tate looked shocked when the vote was so lopsided against paying union funds for such an expensive ride. He mumbled something about having to get a bike instead. Maybe a member will bring him a bike to the next meeting. But what he really needs is a sense of union priorities.
The Local 848 bylaws [Section 14] require membership approval for expenditures over $10,000.
( categories: Featured News | Local Union Reform )
at our first meeting of the year for local 848 in L.A. i asked our union leaders regarding an expenditure of about 51000 for furniture. my question was "why the membership was not asked to approve the expenditure that was over $10000?" after getting three different reasons they came up with that it was not an expenditure but an estimate of the value of all the furniture that is owned by local 848 that was given by a C.P.A. hired to do just that. now at the next meeting we are asked to approve the expenditure of $59000 for a YUKON XL for our newly "APPIONTED" not ELECTED secretary treasurer. i was, aswell as 99% of the members present astonished at the motion. not only were they asking to spend all that money, but it was for a USED YUKON XL!!!! the gull and audacity to ask the members to approve this expenditure at a time when we are all cutting back, being asked to pay more for health insurance, and some of our brothers and sisters are being layed-off at Unified, Ralphs, Vons. and while some contracts are due this year, some of the employers are threatning to replace drivers with leased NON-UNION drivers, I STRONGLY BELIEVE THAT THE $59000 CAN BE SPENT BETTER ON FIGHTING FOR OUR DISPLACED BROTHERS AND THE FIGHTS THAT NEED TO BE FOUGHT AND WON THIS YEAR!! NO YUKON!!!!!