A condition of working for one of Illinois' most politically powerful unions was giving the boss $100 a month, according to union members seeking to fire that boss by defeating him in an upcoming election. Six members of Local 150 of the International Union of Operating Engineers filed a lawsuit in federal court Wednesday alleging what they described as a salary kickback scheme. But U.S. District Judge John Grady ruled the suit could not yet proceed, after being told the union this month hired former Assistant U.S. Atty. James Streicker to conduct an internal probe of the same issues.
See "Union members' lawsuit says boss took kickbacks", Hal Dardick, Chicago Tribune, January 17, 2007