Copyright 1994 U.P.I.
 
United Press International
September 8, 1994, Thursday, BC cycle
SECTION: Domestic News

LENGTH: 221 words

HEADLINE: Feds crack down on mob-run union

DATELINE: NEW YORK, Sept. 8

BODY:
The federal government filed a civil racketeering lawsuit Thursday against the Mason Tenders union, seeking to wrest control away from organized crime which they charge has been controlling the union for decades. The suit follows a five-year investigation by the FBI into the Mason Tenders District Council of Greater New York and its $270 million employee benefit funds. The suit seeks to have the defendants return millions of dollars they allegedly stole from the funds. It also seeks to permanently put in place independent monitors to oversee union elections to make sure they are free of mob influence. ''The suit is a critical part of the government's sustained effort to eradicate La Cosa Nostra's corruption of construction unions in the New York City area,'' said U.S. Attorney Mary Jo White. The suit was filed under the Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations statute and charges that the union has been systematically taken over by mobsters in the last 20 years, with illegal labor payoffs, real estate fraud and employee benefit fund kickbacks becoming common practice. The Mason Tenders is a labor union representing workers in New York City who perform a variety of jobs, including bricklaying, masonry and asbestos removal. Union officials were not immediately available for comment.