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“A guy on a freight job has one priority – keeping his boss off his back,” Stier said. “So when it comes time to elect union leadership, he’s going to vote for the guy he thinks can help him with that. It doesn’t matter to him if that guy is corrupt.”
Barbara Harvey, a prominent Detroit labor lawyer and AUD board member, took a more optimistic view of the worker’s role in forming more honest, democratic unions.
“There is no substitute for the power of the rank-and-file to win elections and root out corruption,” said Harvey. “A peaceful revolution marked by idealism within the Teamsters is underway. IBT goons no longer go out and shoot their political adversaries, or break their legs. That’s progress.” [10/23/06]
