SONNY HALL & 30 PIECES OF SILVER
There is a fine line between corruption & incompetence. Recent lawsuits
have begun to shed light on what had been otherwise gossip in the TWU
community. Preliminary evidence suggest our Intl president, Sonny Hall,
purposely neglected the membership to further the fortunes of corporate
accounts & advance his own aspirations. Sonny Hall has undoubtedly
lowered the bar for future generations of Union leaders.
THE PYRAMID SCHEME
It's only natural for Union members to expect better benefits than those
workers without a bargaining agent. Following the runaway group term
life premiums at American Airlines, Sonny Hall instructed the Union's
insurance broker to shop for a substitute. The unseemly relationship
between Sonny Hall & the broker compromised the Union's fiduciary
responsibilities. The broker, Future Planning Associates (FPA), which
employed Hall's son, works for the insurance companies. The insurance
companies pay handsome commissions to the broker for closing deals. It's
foolhardy to expect them to set aside profits for the charitable
prospect of bettering workers. This is why an independent actuary is
retained by the Union to act on behalf of members.
FPA endorsed the Transamerica group life plan. The TWU independent
actuary agreed with FPA. However, it's murky to what the actuary really
examined. Furthermore, Sonny Hall never consulted with the actuary
before making the decision on Transamerica, nor did he even read the
policy. TWU VP John Orlando was the Air Transport Division point man on
the topic, & he didn't know the function of an independent actuary.
Therefore, from the onset, the TWU allowed conflicting business
interests to guide the membership's insurance plan.
The TWU trumpeted the Transamerica plan with such claims as "no
increases due to age," "any eventual increase would be minimal," & the
"policy is good forever until you die." FPA managed all facets of
communication, including meeting with members & mailings. Untold was
that Transamerica could terminate the policy after 3 years. In 9/98,
Transamerica advised it would indeed do this. The TWU agreed to another
FPA negotiated policy with Transamerica. All the grandiose promises of
the TWU came to an abrupt end. The new premiums would skyrocket while
coverage decreased with age. For example, a 75-year old would now pay
64% more in premiums for 38% less coverage.
Sonny Hall betrayed our trust while John Orlando served as a faithful
yes man to the Intl president's business dealings. All the critical
decisions of the insurance policy (negotiating, implementing, &
communicating) were made by a biased firm roused by its own profits. The
internal Union mechanisms to protect representation were deliberately
shut off to bolster the bottom line of FPA. There are ulterior to a
Union leader who doesn't read an insurance policy negotiated for his
membership, nor reviews it with an independent actuary. When Hall rammed
through the Transamerica plan, it surely wasn't out of concern for the
membership.
ANOTHER INSURANCE SCAM
In 2001, Roger Toussaint & his revolutionaries defeated Sonny Hall's
puppet regime at Local 100, the TWU's largest workgroup. They were
handed a mandate to investigate the Local's poor financial health
despite millions of dollars of dues from 36,000 members. Digging through
decades of archives, Toussaint's people unearthed a pathetic insurance
scam designed to rob retirees.
The Local 100 Retiree Association has long provided accidental death &
dismemberment insurance, as well as a policy for lost wages. This is
suspicious since retirees don't collect wages, nor are they likely to
lose a limb in their golden years. Yet, the bulk of dues from the
retiree association was allocated to buy this insurance. The fortunate
insurer in this scheme was JJ Weiser & Co, who went laughing to the bank
with 92% of the premiums, while only disbursing a paltry 8% to retirees.
A reputable policy would pay out at least 65% to the insured.
Not only did this occur under the stewardship of Sonny Hall, but in 1991
JJ Weiser & Co donated $1,000 to Hall's reelection campaign. Hall looks
quite sanctimonious vilifying the corrupting influence of money in our
nation's capitol when he walks around with a tin cup. Here we see the
essential Sonny Hall in action. It's self-indulgence run amok. As TWU
retirees are being fleeced, the Hall campaign accepts contributions from
the culprit.
The Toussaint administration has since reorganized the retiree
association & dismissed JJ Weiser as the insurer. They are now
attempting to recover damages from JJ Weiser in court.
ASLEEP AT THE WHEEL
Another scandal discovered by the new administration of Local 100 was
the sale of their building in 1985. Real estate tycoon, Stephen Ross,
initially agreed to buy the building in 1981 for $13.5 million. After 4
years of delays Ross bought the building for the same price, despite a
real estate boom in NYC.
6 weeks after the sale, Ross resold the property to ABC television for
more than double the purchase price. It was careless of the Local 100
leadership, which Hall was 1st VP, not to take advantage of economic
conditions. Unions have an executive board specifically to oversee the
expenditures & receipts of the treasury. However, Local 100 was being
defrauded by its advisors, & it went largely unheeded by the executive
board. The Union's own real estate broker, after receiving $240,000 in
commissions from the TWU, went to work for Ross during the resale of the
building to ABC, collecting a 2nd commission. Moreover, the single law
firm had ties to both the TWU's broker & Ross. Also, the Union's own
lawyer received an eye-popping $100,000 payment from the broker. An
obvious conflict of interest, if not an outright kickback to look the
other way. This lawyer contends that the Local leadership accepted his
relationship with the brokerage.
Basically, everybody made money so the membership wouldn't. During this
period Sonny Hall was 1st VP of Local 100 & heir apparent of the TWU
reigns. Although democratically elected by the transit workers, he
didn't serve them. The TWU has a permissive structure that rewards
obedience. This compels leaders aspiring for higher office to serve the
bureaucracy. Leaders become rubber stamps, while dissent is the poison
pill to their political futures. Consequently, fiduciary oversight is
lost in the orgy of TWU politics. If it were not for an energized
transit membership handing Roger Toussaint a clear mandate, Local 100
wouldn't be in court suing to recover $15.5 million owed them from the
real estate debacle.
VICTIMS OF APATHY
Sonny Hall has deliberately neglected his fiduciary responsibility, &
still he sits atop the TWU hierarchy. I have no doubt Hall entered the
service of Unionism with noble endeavors. However, he was corrupted by
all the trappings of temptation. Without democratic safeguards selfless
sacrifice has ceded to self-indulgence, self-enrichment, & self-service.
After years of nonperformance from our bargaining agent, we suffer from
the disease of apathy. This is how Sonny Hall is reelected every 4 years
at TWU conventions. Although Local 100 has become a caldron of dissent,
Hall enjoys unbridle support from the Air Transport Division. In the
last convention, Local 501 was the sole ATD Local to oppose Hall. This
assured his election & another 4 years of fiduciary lapses. Our apathy
is counterproductive. It allows the delegates to succumb to their
inhibitions & chase their political fortunes. This is the type of
malaise capitalized by Sonny Hall for an election victory.
In many ways, we're paying the price of apathy.
G Santos
Member-in-Good Standing
Air Transport Local 562
There is a fine line between corruption & incompetence. Recent lawsuits
have begun to shed light on what had been otherwise gossip in the TWU
community. Preliminary evidence suggest our Intl president, Sonny Hall,
purposely neglected the membership to further the fortunes of corporate
accounts & advance his own aspirations. Sonny Hall has undoubtedly
lowered the bar for future generations of Union leaders.
THE PYRAMID SCHEME
It's only natural for Union members to expect better benefits than those
workers without a bargaining agent. Following the runaway group term
life premiums at American Airlines, Sonny Hall instructed the Union's
insurance broker to shop for a substitute. The unseemly relationship
between Sonny Hall & the broker compromised the Union's fiduciary
responsibilities. The broker, Future Planning Associates (FPA), which
employed Hall's son, works for the insurance companies. The insurance
companies pay handsome commissions to the broker for closing deals. It's
foolhardy to expect them to set aside profits for the charitable
prospect of bettering workers. This is why an independent actuary is
retained by the Union to act on behalf of members.
FPA endorsed the Transamerica group life plan. The TWU independent
actuary agreed with FPA. However, it's murky to what the actuary really
examined. Furthermore, Sonny Hall never consulted with the actuary
before making the decision on Transamerica, nor did he even read the
policy. TWU VP John Orlando was the Air Transport Division point man on
the topic, & he didn't know the function of an independent actuary.
Therefore, from the onset, the TWU allowed conflicting business
interests to guide the membership's insurance plan.
The TWU trumpeted the Transamerica plan with such claims as "no
increases due to age," "any eventual increase would be minimal," & the
"policy is good forever until you die." FPA managed all facets of
communication, including meeting with members & mailings. Untold was
that Transamerica could terminate the policy after 3 years. In 9/98,
Transamerica advised it would indeed do this. The TWU agreed to another
FPA negotiated policy with Transamerica. All the grandiose promises of
the TWU came to an abrupt end. The new premiums would skyrocket while
coverage decreased with age. For example, a 75-year old would now pay
64% more in premiums for 38% less coverage.
Sonny Hall betrayed our trust while John Orlando served as a faithful
yes man to the Intl president's business dealings. All the critical
decisions of the insurance policy (negotiating, implementing, &
communicating) were made by a biased firm roused by its own profits. The
internal Union mechanisms to protect representation were deliberately
shut off to bolster the bottom line of FPA. There are ulterior to a
Union leader who doesn't read an insurance policy negotiated for his
membership, nor reviews it with an independent actuary. When Hall rammed
through the Transamerica plan, it surely wasn't out of concern for the
membership.
ANOTHER INSURANCE SCAM
In 2001, Roger Toussaint & his revolutionaries defeated Sonny Hall's
puppet regime at Local 100, the TWU's largest workgroup. They were
handed a mandate to investigate the Local's poor financial health
despite millions of dollars of dues from 36,000 members. Digging through
decades of archives, Toussaint's people unearthed a pathetic insurance
scam designed to rob retirees.
The Local 100 Retiree Association has long provided accidental death &
dismemberment insurance, as well as a policy for lost wages. This is
suspicious since retirees don't collect wages, nor are they likely to
lose a limb in their golden years. Yet, the bulk of dues from the
retiree association was allocated to buy this insurance. The fortunate
insurer in this scheme was JJ Weiser & Co, who went laughing to the bank
with 92% of the premiums, while only disbursing a paltry 8% to retirees.
A reputable policy would pay out at least 65% to the insured.
Not only did this occur under the stewardship of Sonny Hall, but in 1991
JJ Weiser & Co donated $1,000 to Hall's reelection campaign. Hall looks
quite sanctimonious vilifying the corrupting influence of money in our
nation's capitol when he walks around with a tin cup. Here we see the
essential Sonny Hall in action. It's self-indulgence run amok. As TWU
retirees are being fleeced, the Hall campaign accepts contributions from
the culprit.
The Toussaint administration has since reorganized the retiree
association & dismissed JJ Weiser as the insurer. They are now
attempting to recover damages from JJ Weiser in court.
ASLEEP AT THE WHEEL
Another scandal discovered by the new administration of Local 100 was
the sale of their building in 1985. Real estate tycoon, Stephen Ross,
initially agreed to buy the building in 1981 for $13.5 million. After 4
years of delays Ross bought the building for the same price, despite a
real estate boom in NYC.
6 weeks after the sale, Ross resold the property to ABC television for
more than double the purchase price. It was careless of the Local 100
leadership, which Hall was 1st VP, not to take advantage of economic
conditions. Unions have an executive board specifically to oversee the
expenditures & receipts of the treasury. However, Local 100 was being
defrauded by its advisors, & it went largely unheeded by the executive
board. The Union's own real estate broker, after receiving $240,000 in
commissions from the TWU, went to work for Ross during the resale of the
building to ABC, collecting a 2nd commission. Moreover, the single law
firm had ties to both the TWU's broker & Ross. Also, the Union's own
lawyer received an eye-popping $100,000 payment from the broker. An
obvious conflict of interest, if not an outright kickback to look the
other way. This lawyer contends that the Local leadership accepted his
relationship with the brokerage.
Basically, everybody made money so the membership wouldn't. During this
period Sonny Hall was 1st VP of Local 100 & heir apparent of the TWU
reigns. Although democratically elected by the transit workers, he
didn't serve them. The TWU has a permissive structure that rewards
obedience. This compels leaders aspiring for higher office to serve the
bureaucracy. Leaders become rubber stamps, while dissent is the poison
pill to their political futures. Consequently, fiduciary oversight is
lost in the orgy of TWU politics. If it were not for an energized
transit membership handing Roger Toussaint a clear mandate, Local 100
wouldn't be in court suing to recover $15.5 million owed them from the
real estate debacle.
VICTIMS OF APATHY
Sonny Hall has deliberately neglected his fiduciary responsibility, &
still he sits atop the TWU hierarchy. I have no doubt Hall entered the
service of Unionism with noble endeavors. However, he was corrupted by
all the trappings of temptation. Without democratic safeguards selfless
sacrifice has ceded to self-indulgence, self-enrichment, & self-service.
After years of nonperformance from our bargaining agent, we suffer from
the disease of apathy. This is how Sonny Hall is reelected every 4 years
at TWU conventions. Although Local 100 has become a caldron of dissent,
Hall enjoys unbridle support from the Air Transport Division. In the
last convention, Local 501 was the sole ATD Local to oppose Hall. This
assured his election & another 4 years of fiduciary lapses. Our apathy
is counterproductive. It allows the delegates to succumb to their
inhibitions & chase their political fortunes. This is the type of
malaise capitalized by Sonny Hall for an election victory.
In many ways, we're paying the price of apathy.
G Santos
Member-in-Good Standing
Air Transport Local 562
