Lesson of the day: Never, ever use company money to pay off union insiders:
According to the [WSJ] report, Coughlin last year asked a Wal-Mart employee to approve about $2,000 in expense payments without receipts. The employee said Coughlin briefly mentioned the money had been used for an unspecified "union project."Use your own personal funds!Coughlin told several Wal-Mart employees that the money was actually being used for anti-union activities, including paying union staffers to tell him of pro-union workers in stores, the newspaper said, citing people familiar with the matter.
If Coughlin did pay union staffers for information, it would represent a criminal offense under U.S. federal law.
UPDATE: Tom Coughlin swings back:
But lawyers for Thomas M. Coughlin, in rebutting what the company has called a "disagreement" over expense reimbursements, will argue that although he periodically paid people to keep tabs on organizing activity in Wal-Mart stores, none of the recipients were members of a union, the source said.Steven Greenhouse reports that the union folks want Wal-Mart's full cooperation, but some even doubt the existence of moles:Coughlin "believes he was doing what was in the company's interest" by collecting information on union activity, said the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity. In countering the company, his lawyers will contend "he was not stealing" but reimbursing himself for work-related expenses, the source said.
Ms. Williams said a company investigation had found no evidence supporting accusations of money being funneled to illegal anti-union activities. Instead, she said, the money was misappropriated for the personal benefit of specific individuals.Greg Denier, a union spokesman, said the union did not know of any officials who had accepted payoffs from Mr. Coughlin to inform on pro-union employees. He said he would be shocked if any staffers had accepted such payments.
Federal law prohibits companies or their managers from paying money to union officials to help derail organizing drives. The food and commercial workers have sought to unionize dozens of Wal-Mart stores, but have failed to organize any workers except for those in the meat department of one store in Jacksonville, Tex.
Posted by Kevin on April, 9 2005 at 12:54 PM
