[WANTED No messy manual work for Jacky Presser…]

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WANTED No messy manual work for Jacky Presser, unlike his members A major contender now jockeying for the top job in the Teamsters is 16th Vice President Jackie Presser.

Presser is presently spending much of his time lining up his support and his local associates are bragging that they will soon be moving from Cleveland to the milder climate of Washington D.C.

Jackie has inherited his positions, his wealth, and his power from his father, William Presser. Groomed for his posts from the start, Jackie doesn't have an old school record of violence like his Dad or Roy Williams.

But his record shows he'll be continuing the family tradition.

Businessman

William Presser began as an employer, a businessman. He began in dry cleaning and later set up a juke box management association in Cleveland.

Then he organised a unionnot to protect employees, but to keep competitors out of his juke box business. The union became Teamsters Local 410 in 1951. If any other company tried to compete with Presser's business, his union would put the muscle on them.

Presser's operation made a big impact... on the employers. Detroit employers asked him to set up a similar racket for them and paid him $5,000 cash.

He expanded to Youngstown, Ohio and set up Joseph Blumetti as head of Local 377 to handle the racket there. Blumetti . suffered a federal: conviction, but Presser got him a job later as "collections manager" for the Central States Pension Fund. After Youngstown, it was Cincinnati and then Buffalo.

When Presser moved up, he turned Local 410 over to his associate John Nardi. Nardi worked closely with the Pressers in Joint Council 41 until he was killed in a fight for control of the Cleveland mob. He was blown up by 16 sticks of dynamite in the Joint Council parking lot in May, 1977.

Big businessman

William Presser began as an employer and grew to be a big businessman. In 1972, for example, he acquired $100,000 worth of stock in Bally Manufacturing the leading - slot machine maker. Eighteen months later Presser, a trustee of the Central States Pension Fund, voted to loan Bally a whopping $12 million at a bargain interest rate.

Presser had his scrapes with the law, too. In 1953 he and John Nardi were convicted of restraint of trade.

in 1954 an employer testified that he had paid Presser $650 per month for labor peace. Presser served time for destroying union records.

'Ill-health'

In 1971 he pleaded guilty to shaking down employers for labor peace, but didn't go to jail this time because of "ill health"

But Presser's biggest business was our union. First he hired his relatives. Today, he and his son and other relatives' are among the highest paid union officials in the world. In 1976 Presser held seven paid Teamster jobs and got $145,541 for them.

Salaries were never enough for him though-at one point he borrowed - $24,117 from 1 the Teamsters Credit Union and used four autos that belonged to the union as collateral!

Presser also pioneered the Teamster practice of "severance funds". His local, Joint Council and Ohio Conference severance funds are reportedly well into six figures.

Unlimited expenses Further, Presser has, according to the Joint Council 41 bylaws, the right to travel anywhere, any time with his wife at the expense of the members' dues. His expenses can include all travel, lodging, entertainment, and miscellaneous expenses!

Until 1976 Presser was a trustee of the Pension Fund. Under Fitzsimmons he was reputed to be 'the man" to see about pension fund loads. Of the $400-700 million. that is reportedly missing • from the Fund, it is anybody's guess how much ended up in the Presser family.

Presser may have gotten a little impatient with all these ways of making profit from our union and taken to stealing directly from the treasury. In 1971 he was indicted for embezzling union funds, but Fitz. simmons reportedly contacted President Nixon to have the government weaken his case and let Presser off.

In 1969-70 it was William Presser who helped Fitzsimmons win control from the imprisoned Jimmy Hoffa. And now that Fitzsimmons is on the way out, he has in mind winning control for his own son Jackie Presser.

Surprise

Jackie Presser was brought into the family "business" first in the Hotel and Restaurant Workers. Then in 1966, Jackie was given a surprise by his dada brand new local.

Local 507 was chartered and Jackie Presser became its secretary-treasurer. Its membership was drawn from various other locals and since then most Teamster organising in Cieveland has been directed into 507.

In 1976 local 507 absorbed three other locals-Local 555, Local 545, and Local 752, an "independent" local under Presser's assistant Andy Suckart. Suckart has been convicted of hijacking a truckload of nickel.

Local 507 now has over Hatter DIAZNION 9,000 members:

Meanwhile, Jackie Presser 'has rapidly inherited his father's power and positions. After the 1976 IBT Convention, William Presser resigned as an International VP to have Jackie step in. He did the same as a Pension Trustee.

Six salaries

Jackie is still an International VP, but he had to resign his pension post under Labor Dept. pressure. He has become the head of the Teamsters' propaganda machine and its retiree program. His six Teamster salaries paid him $192,629 in 1976.

Jackie Presser is an unúsual Teamster in that he is a millionaire. Not only does he hold six IBT positions but more importantly than our dues money is the wealth he accumulates through his businesses.

Dominating the Ohio Conference of Teamsters comes in handy for Mr. Presser's enterprises.

Presser owns 202.5 shares of the Cleveland Commercial Truck Trailer and Auto Repair Co. This small outfit has managed to get three-quarters of a million dollars in business from Teamster employers over the past five years.

Presser's little truck repair shop has gotten some $100,000 of business in five years from subsidiaries of Leaseway Transportation, a Cleveland based corporation that is the fourth largest trucking company in the US.

Presser finds no conflict of interest in this set-up apparently. In fact, he is a business partner with Robert Moss, a Leaseway Vice President, in a liquor company.

Jackie Presser is also in the restaurant business, or rather his wife Carmen Presser is, through ownership of the Dining Towers Inc. and the Forge Restaurant. Again, Presser finds no conflict of interest here although until last year he was the principal officer of the Hotel and Restaurant Workers Local 10!

Family tradition

Another curious thing is that Teamsters Local 507, controlled by Presser, has given over $10,000 in business to the Forge Restaurant over the past five years. Another partner in the restaurant is Anthony Hughes, the recording secretary of Local 507. No conflict of interest here, it's all in the family tradition. FIT