Jimmy Hoffa - a Stain in the History of Unionism in the US - Case Study Example

OUTLINE Jimmy Hoffa: A Stain in the History of Unionism in the US I. Introduction a. What is genuine unionism and what should it struggle for b. Who was Jimmy Hoffa and how did he mar the image of unionism in the country c. Hoffa’s disappearance as a result of his illegal and anti-worker dealings II. Jimmy Hoffa’s Background a. His early life and his entry into unionism b. Membership in the Teamsters Local 299 c. Rise to Power III. Control of the IBT and Illegal Dealings a. How Hoffa rose to the IBT leadership b. Focus: Defend against other Unions, Clinching contracts c. Illegal Dealings d. Links with the Mob e. Investigation and Imprisonment f. Cases IV. Release from Prison and Attempt to Regain Power a. Nixon commutation and conditions b. Immediate actions take after release c. Disappearance V. Conclusion Jimmy Hoffa: A Stain in the History of Unionism in the US Introduction Unionism is a powerful weapon of the workers that could be used to pursue just and legitimate demands. In a system where big businesses are dominant in all spheres in society, the workers do not have any other means of making their voices heard but only through their organized strength. The unions are not just avenues where they could express aspirations and tactical demands in a democratic society. These are also tools which they could use to forge the broadest unity among the working class and to reform society when necessary. In the history of the United States, it could not be denied that unionism plays an integral part in the development of the country’s economic and political policies. However, while the objectives of unionism may be noble, it is unfortunate that there are certain individuals who have only managed to stain its otherwise brilliant history. Instead of making the unions powerful tools for promoting the workers’ agenda, they have instead misused these to acquire wealth and undue influence on politics. When discussing about the abuses committed by the unions because of corrupt leaders, one name is sure to be mentioned: Jimmy Hoffa. James Riddle Hoffa is a name that has actually become synonymous to corrupt practices of union leaders in the US. Under his leadership, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters might have indeed become one of the most powerful unions in the country but it was also the most maligned and feared. Hoffa held control over the Teamster’s leadership as though it was his fiefdom. While the genuine or left-leaning unions would honorably address their leaders with the egalitarian term ‘comrade’, Hoffa was called ‘boss’ by his subordinates in the IBT. Such address would easily remind one of the Mafia, which is only right because he was indeed known to have connections and dealings with the shady characters of the Mob. Hoffa’s character and his brand of leadership had succeeded in giving unionism a bad reputation, a fact that the national media had highlighted. An editorial of Life, a leading magazine then, branded him as the nation’s public enemy number one, expressing that “there is not enough room in this land of ours for both Jimmy Hoffa and a free labor movement worthy of the name” (Editorial 34). Hoffa’s disappearance in 1975 was widely believed to have been a result of his dealings with the Mafia. Jimmy Hoffa and His Entry to Unionism Jimmy Hoffa was born into a working class family in Brazil, Indiana. His father was a coal miner who died while he was only seven years-old. Shortly after his father’s death, the family relocated to Detroit. It was in this city with a growing industrial sector Hoffa grew and matured. It was also in this city that he officially became a member of the working class for the first time. Realizing that he needs to earn more in order to help in paying for the family’s expenses, he stopped going to school in order to work fulltime. Being under-educated, he could not qualify for jobs other than those that are manual, with pay that was quite low by the standards of the time. He got a job as a stock boy in Frank & Cedar’s, a department store in Detroit, where he worked for 10 hours and six days a week for a weekly paycheck of only $12 (Sloane 6). It was while working for the said department store also that Hoffa also had his first education about the conditions of the workers by being one of them. However, the economy at that time was fine and the conditions in the workplace encouraged a harmonious relationship between the workers and the management. It was when the Great Depression occurred that the condition of labor in Frank & Cedar’s became bad. It was also at this time that Hoffa became active in unionizing the workers. Due to the economic crisis, the department store laid off workers and Hoffa was one those who were affected. After being retrenched, Hoffa found work at the Kroger’s warehouse. Confronted with several policies that were deemed as to oppressive for the workers and as well as wages that were too low according contemporary standards, he and a several other employees began to organize a union. In fact, he was instrumental in the establishment of a union in the warehouse that he was working in. Upon the establishment of the union, he became one of its key officers. Hoffa also led his first labor strike in the said company. It was basically a work stoppage that would seriously affect the storage of perishable items. Management was at a loss, which is why, “on the condition that the strikers go back to work, it agreed to meet with the leaders the next morning, and, following several days of negotiations, Hoffa and his colleagues had a union contract” (Sloane 8). Aside from the recognition of the union, the workers also won an increase in their wages. This event forged Hoffa’s reputation as an effective union organizer, leader, and tactician. After being fired from Kroger’s for insubordination, Hoffa found a job as a fulltime organizer for the International Brotherhood of Teamsters in Detroit. This was to be his first major step in his ascent to power in the very influential and powerful union. The leaders of the Teamsters found it impossible not to accept him as he had already established a reputation for being an organizer and a tactician in the Kroger’s. It must be pointed out though that it was not Hoffa who first brought corrupt practices to the union when he eventually became its president. Even before he joined it, the Teamsters were already reputed to be very different from the militant unions that led successful strikes in the east coast of the country in the first two decades of the 1900s. It was a union that was very much involved in racketeering and instead of inherently opposed to the capitalists; it colluded with the workers at the expense of the workers (Sloane 11). It was this kind of union that welcomed Hoffa to its fold. Hoffa, however, never did anything to fix the problems within the Teamsters. Instead, he made these worse when he finally took over the central leadership. Control over the IBT and Illegal Dealings When he became a fulltime organizer for the Teamsters, Hoffa began to prove himself as the union’s most aggressive organizer and campaigner. He contributed greatly to the growth of the IBT, establishing chapters in line industries that were previously shunning the union. Aside from being an organizer, Hoffa was also in the thick of the strikes conducted by various local chapters under the IBT. He was most known for leading wildcat or quickie strikes in workplaces where the conflict between the management and the union has worsened. He was also one of the foremost promoters of secondary boycotts or sympathy strikes waged by workers who are not directly part of an ongoing industrial conflict. The Teamsters leadership eventually saw the potential of Hoffa as key officer of the union. His loyalty to the Teamsters was further proven when he was one of the most dedicated defenders of the Teamster’s control over the works from the raids conducted by other unions from the 1930s to the 1940s. As a result of all these, he became president of Local 299 by the end of 1946. This signaled the faster ascent of Hoffa in the leadership of the IBT. By 1952, Hoffa was only one step away from the presidency, when he became the vice-president of the Teamsters. His becoming vice-president was not, however, because of the workers support for him, notwithstanding his reputation. It was basically a result of political intramurals between the powerful figures in the union. Contrary to the nature of a genuinely democratic union, Daniel Tobin who had been president of the IBT since 1907 picked Dave Beck to be his successor. Certain sections of the IBT membership disapproved of this and they aimed to install another leader instead of Beck. Tobin entertained the idea of holding on to the leadership if Beck is not going to be president after all due to the opposition among the members. To gain Beck’s favor, Hoffa utilized his skills and his reputation to maneuver. He gathered support from the different regions for Beck. When Beck finally took over the presidency, he became greatly indebted to Hoffa (Sloane 39). He appointed Hoffa as vice-president. This was a condition that Hoffa took advantage of to further entrench himself in the IBT leadership. Hoffa took over the presidency of the Teamsters in 1957 through a National Convention. At this time, Beck could not maintain his hold on the top leadership position as he had been indicted. Beck was soon convicted for fraud and was imprisoned (Moldea 70). With the Hoffa at the helm, the Teamsters further expanded its base. However, this also brought in more allegations of racketeering and other illegal activities attributed to the top officials of the union. Hoffa himself had been subjected to surveillance and investigations by the FBI, especially under the watch of Attorney General Robert Kennedy, after evidences of shady dealings and connections with the Mob were discovered. This was during the administration of President John F. Kennedy. Attorney General Kennedy had “made the ‘Get Hoffa’ campaign a top priority of his administration” (Sifakis 222). The campaign did result into the indictment of Hoffa but the charges that sent him to prison were not because of crimes that could be directly connected to the activities of organized crime groups. In 1962, he was tried for extorting huge sums from a company that employ Teamster members. Knowing that he would be convicted, he attempted bribing a member of the jury but this was discovered, thus adding another case filed against him. After his appeals were junked by the higher courts, Hoffa was imprisoned in 1967. The crime that finally had him incarcerated though was not against the government or the business sector. He was convicted of misappropriating $1.7 million of the union’s pension funds. This was money resulting from the labor of the workers that he was supposed to serve. This was not surprising though, since “top Teamster officials did play fast and loose with the unions big pension funds” (Licthenstein 145). At this point, Hoffa had already been exposed as a self-serving individual and a racketeer who managed to pursue illegal activities in the guise of being a labor leader. However, subsequent events proved that the network of support that he had also included prominent politicians. He was actually representing the third pillar in the triumvirate of corrupt politicians, the Mafia, and decadent union leaders. Release from Prison and Attempt to Regain Power President Richard Nixon released Hoffa five years earlier than the 13-year sentence decided by the court. This was seen to be an effort by the president to win support from the conservative unions. The release happened in 1971, the year before the next presidential elections. This was made with an informal condition that “Hoffa should avoid involvement in union politics, ensuring (Frank) Fitzsimmons, who had become a friend to the administration and an important labor contact, remained the Teamsters’ president” (Mason 136). Hoffa, however, violated this condition. Immediately after he was released, he began to take steps in order to regain his position in the Teamsters. Since he was restricted from doing so, he went to the courts to question the legality of the conditions set by Nixon for the commutation of his sentence. However, the court decided that the Nixon, being the president, had the prerogative to impose such conditions. Nevertheless, Hoffa’s actions clearly showed that he was interested in re-establishing his dominance on the Teamsters and on American labor. This threatened not only Fitzsimmons control of the union but also the support arrangement agreed by him and the Nixon administration. Because of this, Nixon instructed John Ehrlichman, who was Assistant to the President for Domestic Affairs, to keep Hoffa out (Bowles 133). It was not only the Nixon administration that was interested in keeping Nixon out of the Teamsters’ leadership. The Mafia was also known to have expressed opposition to his return to power. They were “particularly cozy with Fitzsimmons, finding him easier to manipulate than the strong-willed Hoffa” (Sifakis 222). Apparently, Hoffa had conflicts with the Mob, the White House, and even the leadership of the IBT. His disappearance and possible murder in 1975 could only be attributed to such conflicts. A Legacy of Corruption and Fake Unionism In all the years that Jimmy Hoffa held on to key positions in the Teamsters, it is clear that he never really served the interests of the worker and the general membership of the union. According to the principles of genuine unionism, a union leader should always uphold the interests of the majority of its members. He should be uncompromising in his stand for the workers’ rights to just wages and salaries and to job security. He should secure the funds of the union, disposing it only for purposes agreed upon by the general membership. He should live a life that is worth emulating by the members, one that is free from scandal and from links to criminal groups. It is obvious that Hoffa failed in all these. It must be emphasized though that Hoffa is just the most prominent figure in business unionism; the kind that views the union as an organization that is used to “haggle with management while cooperating with it to ensure that workers stay at the job and work productively” (Friedman 32). Jimmy Hoffa may be gone but if union members are not mindful of their rights and responsibilities and if they are not aware of the dynamics of genuine unionism, they may allow the emergence of new leaders who may emulate his brand of union management. Works Cited Bowles, Nigel. Nixon’s Business: Authority and Power in Presidential Politics. College Station, TX: Texas A & M University Press, 2005. Editorial. “Another Kind of Public Enemy.” Life, 9 September 1957. Chicago, IL: Time Inc. Friedman, Samuel. Teamster Rank and File: Power, Bureaucracy, and Rebellion at Work and in a Union. New York, NY: Columbia University Press, 1982. Lichtenstein, Nelson. State of the Union: A Century of American Labor. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2002. Mason, Robert. Richard Nixon and the Quest for a New Majority. Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press, 2004. Moldea, Dan. The Hoffa Wars: Teamsters, Rebels, Politicians and the Mob, First Edition. New York, NY: Paddington Press, 1978. Sloane, Arthur. Hoffa. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 1991. Read More