UAW, US Attorney reach deal to reform union after scandal
FILE - In this June 17, 2020, file photo, United Auto Workers Vice President Joe Ashton addresses the autoworker's convention in Detroit. Ashton, a former United Auto Workers vice president who took a $250,000 kickback on a watch contract was sentenced Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2020, to 2 1/2 years in prison, the latest punishment in what the government calls "systemic" corruption at the highest ranks of the union.[AP Photo/Carlos Osorio, File]
The United Auto Workers and the U.S. attorney’s office in Detroit say they have reached a settlement to reform the union in the wake of a wide-ranging bribery and embezzlement scandal.
Terms of the deal will be announced at a Monday afternoon news conference in Detroit.
Former United Auto Workers President Gary Jones charged with corruption
The union has been in the throes of the scandal for years as the government probed corruption in its upper ranks. The investigation has led to 11 convictions, including that of two former presidents. Many of the officials were accused of conspiring with others to cover up the use of union cash for boozy meals, premium cigars, golf and lodging in Palm Springs, California.
Details of the civil settlement weren’t available. But it is likely to include an independent monitor to watch the 400,000-member union’s finances and a possible change in the way union leaders are elected.