Roy Williams: Kansas City climber

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opposition. In 1962 Williams as President of Local 41 in and Hayes were indicted for 1954, he decided not to hold conspiring to embezzle union another election until December tunds. Roy got off, but Hayes 1960, almost 7 years later, on Teams. protest against murder of striker by scab lorry driver "rewarded" is what Presser is.

The only problem for the membership is, if Presser lives like business executive, thinks like a business executive; and IS a business executive, then how can he represent us against the business executives that employ us?

Since Jackie Presser aspires to represent ail 2.3 million Teamsters, we should look at how this business man represents his Ohio brothers and sisters.

Many Local 507 members fear their own union BA more than they do their boss. These BAs include Jack Nardi, son of the murdered gangster . John Nardi, as well as a couple of heavies who are drawn, not from the ranks of Local 507, but are rewarded for service in other Cleveland locals, More BAS could be hired, except that Presser and Harold Friedman, the top officers, draw a quarter of a million dollars a year between them just from the local treasúry in salaries alone!

Nowhere to be found In 1977 in Local 507 hun= dreds of cab drivers saw the Yellow Cab Co. eliminate their jobs and replace them with "leasors" and steal their pensions to boot.

Presser stood by with his pal cab owner Arthur McBride, even though he lost hundreds of members. When TDU members and other cab drivers organised a strike and later a suit to get drivers their pensions, Presser was nowhere to be found. "driver leasing*, past year a Also in the past year sweetheart arrangement was brought in at Fisher Fazio, Ohio's largest grocery warehouse.

While the drivers are not represented by Presser's own Local 507, hundreds of inside workers are. And as head of the Joint Council, no major deal is concluded by Teamster officials without his approval:

Some 50 drivers are on the street in this deal and awaiting a hearing since the NLRB has brought charges against the employer.

So there you have the picture of Jackie Presser, who has followed the family tradition of using our union and our pension fund as a personal business.

And this is the man whom the Wall Street Journal reports has the inside track to head our entire union, with the dictatorial powers of the General President.

Like Frank Fitzsimmons. Roy Williams was a creation of Jimmy Hoffa.

in 1954 Hoffa, then head of the Central Conference, made Williams temporary head of Kansas City Joint Council 56 while Orville Ring, President of Local 541 and JC head, was on sick leave.

Rather than returning, Ring quit his posts and Williams became top dog. Hoffa could be very persuasive.

Williams' cronies in running the Kansas City Teamsters were Floyd Hayes, who stepped aside ryu nayes, wild setputu aslut as President of Local 41 so Williams could take over; Ernie Anderson, who succeeded Ring as head of Local 541; and Stanley * Clevenger, Hayes' bodyguard.

With the rise of this quartet to union power in Kansas City, there began a wave of terror to stifle any opposition. * Emmett Eslinger, a former President of Local 541, was found with his head crushed and throat slit, Some members had been urging him to oppose Anderson, JObs * Hayes and Clevenger were indicted for beating up Glenn Saunders, a union dissident, right in the union hall. * Jack Henderson, who had openly protested that members were unable to speak at Local 41 meetings, was shotgunned through an open window of his home on April 13, 1959. * Don Enloe, son of O.B. Enloe, a former Local 41 President, decided to challenge Williams' man, Cecil Bennett, for Sec. -Treas. of Local 41. He was beaten by two men shortly before the election. * At the Bennett victory party, Tomas Hutson, who had tried to challenge Williams' vice-presidential candidate but who was disqualified, was beaten up outside the union hall.

Embezzlement

only used against dissident got four years in jail.

LucKrs New

But these methods were not power.

Hayes decided to turn states evidence to get a reduced sentence. That meant testifying against Roy Williams. On June 11th, 1964, while leaving bowling alley with his wife, Floyd Hayes was shotgunned to death. His wife was wounded. The killers were never caught.

Stop at nothing

Roy Williams' record for democracy in the union is told in these stories of his various opponents-a history of union mertuers beaten, manmhaar hantar hlandind broken, even blown away.

A source close to the government's investigation of Kansas Williams, "He is a ruthless man racketeering said of who'll stop at nothing".

When Williams isn't blowing his opponents away, he's bending the rules to keep in Elected for a five-year term the grounds that the bylaws Stones HEAvinech» In 1957 Williams returned Hoffa's favor of "giving him Kansas City" when he chaired the credentials committee of the IBT Convention that year. He "gave" Hoffa the Presidency of the IBT.

Senate investigators found that according to the union's own records, 56.2% of the delegates were selected illegally, and the legality of another 39% was questionable. Only 4.8% of the people who elected Hoffa were legitimately there.

In 1962 Roy Williams was indicted for conspiring to embezzle union funds. The scheme involved billing various service stations, restaurants, contractors etc. for work supposedly done for the union.

The work was either never done, or done for officials personally, not for the union. Williams was not convicted because the main witness against him was a convicted thief whose credibility was not believed.

In 1972 Roy Williams was indicted for embezzling $16,148 in union funds. The indictment was the work of a US Justice Dept. Strike Force, but Judge John W. Oliver declared the strike force had no power to operate in Missouri and threw the indictment out.

Positions

Roy Williams holds the following IBT positions: International Vice-President, International General Organiser, Chairman of the Freight Division, Chairman of the Central Conference, Chairman of the Central Conference Grievance Panel, head of the MissouriKansas Conference, President of Joint Council 56 and President of Local 41. His salaries totalled $168,000 in 1976.

It was Williams who. had major responsibility for the negotiation of the National Master Freight Agreement and the Central States UPS agreement in 1976. And it is Williams who picks the committees and gives the go-ahead on the phoney changes of operations, appeals of "relief" from the contract, and changes. in work rules.

It was Carl Yaeger, Williams' Special Assistant, who bargained away Interstate Systems road dispatch rules last year.

It was Williams and Roy Lane who sold out the Schneider drivers and forced them on percentage.

The number of companies who get these substandard month employer contribution to a fund which would entitle members to up to $2500 in legal services each year.

In reality, of the $4, $1 was to go to organised crime figures would: the go in kickbacks and around une country and $1 finder's fees to various union officials who promoted the program. This would involve big money, since it was projected that premiums would total some $100 million-leaving: $50 million 'to the syndicate and hungry union officials.

Williams letter was never sent, as word of the scam leaked out to law enforcement officials. The Internal Revenue Service has launched a criminal investigation of Williams in relation to this attempted fraud.

Never convicted

Roy Williams has never been convicted, but that doesn't mean he hasn't been a crook, His record in his positions reads something like this: * His opponents in the local and Joint Council beaten and bumped off. * Between $400 and $700 million missing from the Central States Pension Fund. # Thousands of dollars of dues money spent of officials' personal cars and homes.

Negotiation of freight and UPS agreements where membership lost real wages and conditions declined. * Thousands of dollars accepted from employers for special deals and "contract relief"

For Roy Williams to become IBT General President would simply be to continue the status quo. It would be the same old deal-a rotten one for IBT members!

Fitzsimmons

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