The most charged official in Teamster history is now banned for life. It’s time for a new era of Teamster integrity and pride.
After five years of serious charges and two trials leading to guilty findings, former International Vice President Rome Aloise, Hoffa’s main man in the West, was finally banned for life from the Teamsters Union by Judge Barbara Jones on December 10.
That ugly chapter of corruption is closed. Can we open a chapter of Teamster pride and integrity?
Our IBT Constitution provides for two permanent anti-corruption officers: the Independent Investigations Officer (IIO), to investigate corruption and bring charges when necessary, and the Independent Review Officer (IRO) to serve as a judge of corruption charges.
Even more important than these posts is the attitude that Teamster officers and members adopt toward corruption.
Too many officers have looked the other way when Teamster leaders got caught in corruption schemes, or even worse, they have made heroes of Aloise and other corrupt officials.
Corruption hurts the members and our union, not the officers who get caught.
We have a new IBT leadership and a new opportunity to change our union’s culture.
A union that was once known for mob ties can be known for leaders who stand for integrity; but it will take a commitment from leadership at all levels. And it will take members holding leaders accountable.
Teamsters for a Democratic Union has fought corruption since our inception, because we know a strong union needs to be a clean and democratic union.
Corruption undermines union power. It opens the door to concessions and employer payoffs. It alienates members and the public. Scandals are used against our union in organizing drives.
The leaders of the Hoffa administration and the Vairma Slate defended Aloise all the way, even after he was found guilty of taking valuable employer gifts during bargaining, signing a sham contract with his investment broker pal, using union influence to pressure employers to hire his relatives, and illegally using union resources in a union election.
As for Aloise, in December he issued lengthy statements on the Northern Cal Joint Council 7 and Bay Area Local 853 websites, bragging about his career and announcing his retirement. Those websites do not have one word about his being banned for life.
Effective January 31, 2022, any Teamster who associates, speaks or communicates with Aloise about union affairs is subject to corruption charges by the IIO for that associa-tion.
TDU Takes on the Mob
When TDU was founded in 1976, the Teamsters Union was con-trolled by organized crime. Teamster officials organized goon squads to try to intimidate working Teamsters. They spread lies to try to dis-credit the Teamster reform movement. It didn’t work. TDU grew.
Winning the Right to Vote
In 1989, the federal government tried to put our entire union under government trusteeship for racketeering. TDU members launched a campaign: No Mob Control, No Government Control, Right to Vote—and we won. TDU won the right for members to elect our International Union officers.
Fighting Corruption
TDU takes on Teamster officials who abuse members’ trust by using our union to advance themselves, not the membership. We oppose excessive salaries for Teamster officials, which waste millions we could be spending to win strong contracts and organize new members.