Latest UAW probe reveals not all is harmony among UAW leadership--with Marick Masters
[This article was originally published in Crains Detroit. The article can be found in it's original iteration here]
Accusations made public by an investigation into UAW President Shawn Fain illustrate emerging friction between the union and the federal watchdog tasked with its oversight, as well as deepening divisions within Fain's leadership team.
A July 8 court filing by UAW monitor Neil Barofsky revealed new evidence of infighting among the union's executive board. Vice President Rich Boyer, who Fain dismissed as head of the Stellantis department in June over alleged "dereliction of duty," is appealing his demotion and expressed intent to file an ethical practices complaint against his boss with the union's public review board.
Boyer contends that Fain sought benefits for his fiancee and her sister, according to the filing, and says he has provided Barofsky's office with evidence to back his claims.
Secretary-Treasurer Margaret Mock also has accused Fain of retaliation, saying he stripped her of key assignments in February because she refused to approve improper expenditures.
Reform caucus
Boyer goes on to say Fain asked him to demote one staff member and fire another. He argues that his dismissal doesn't fall under Fain's presidential authority and that Fain improperly prevented Boyer from having his case heard by the executive board, an action he also is appealing. The rift between Fain, Mock and Boyer is particularly notable in that they ran for office in 2022 as part of the same reform caucus promising to turn the page on the union's scandal-plagued recent past.
"It suggests a level of friction and distrust," Marick Masters, a labor expert at Wayne State University in Detroit, told Automotive News. "Even if they settle things legally and ethically … there are still going to be some very hard feelings left. I think they have a serious problem institutionally going forward."
The court filing reveals that in addition to feuding with fellow union leaders, Fain is at odds with Barofsky.
The monitor, appointed in 2020 to oversee the union as a condition of its settlement with the federal government to resolve a yearslong corruption probe, has asked a court to order the union to properly fulfill Barofsky's requests for information.
He says the union is failing to provide requested documents in a timely manner because it believes it can first review and redact emails, texts and other communications. A union lawyer, in a July 3 filing, argued that the monitor's request "amounts to a takeover of the UAW's computer and email systems."
‘Independent oversight'
Barofsky argued that his office cannot do its job if the union continues to insist on its interpretation that it can withhold some documents. "This is not the independent oversight contemplated by the consent decree," his office wrote.
The tension comes after the UAW's outside counsel accused Barofsky of "a surprising lack of integrity" after he shared concerns about the union's position on the Israel-Hamas war, according to emails obtained by The Detroit News.
Barofsky allegedly called Fain for a conversation "strictly on a personal level" in which he shared "concerns about the union's position on the crisis in Gaza," the newspaper reported, and he later forwarded a letter to the executive board from the Anti-Defamation League expressing concerns over a UAW local's statement in support of a ceasefire.
Masters said the UAW's pushback against Barofsky could harm its effort to repair the union's public image.
"I think they are playing with fire," he said. "I don't have doubts it's a Herculean task to comply with the request … but it is in their interest to work out an arrangement and put this behind them. It just adds to the appearance of wrongdoing."
