UPDATE: Correction...as of this evening, 87 advertisers have ditched their sponsorship of Glenn Beck's show. Here's the list of advertisers who have NOT boycotted Beck's histrionics and hate-mongering--and sponsored his show tonight. In the order they appeared (hat tip to Media Matters):

Since he called President Obama "a racist" who harbors a "deep-seated hatred for white people" in July 2009, Glenn Beck has yet to accept responsibility for his actions or apologize. In the wake of Beck's refusal to do the right thing, hundreds of thousands of Americans angered and offended by his indefensible comments have stepped in to do just that: hold Glenn Beck accountable.

More than 285,000 people have called on the Fox News program's sponsors to pull their support from Beck's show. And 81 advertisers have discontinued their commercials from airing during Beck's show.

Beck's racially divisive rhetoric, and falsehoods peddled as truth, have no place on a network that positions itself as a source of news. Journalistic integrity may not be at a high point in America right now, but Fox News really lowers the bar across the board. Scaring the American public with baseless conspiracy theories and outlandish accusations towards our President and other public figures and organizations that stand up for working people is unacceptable.

Companies that have NOT stepped away from Beck and Fox News, via Media Matters:

Help keep these major advertisers from returning to the Fox News show. Hold Fox News and Glenn Beck accountable for Beck's race baiting and fear-mongering rhetoric.

Click here for the full list of the companies that have disassociated from Beck.

RIght now, SPT-SEIU members and leaders are holding a sit-in in Pedro Pierluisi's office, the Resident Commissioner of Puerto Rico. Pierluisi is the sole representative in Congress of the 4 million American citizens who reside in Puerto Rico.

Members of SPT-SEIU took charge of the Resident Commissioner's office in San Juan earlier this morning, demanding that Pierluisi, as a Democrat, reject the Republican policies of Governor Luis Fortuño. "Pierluisi misrepresents himself in Washington as member of the Democratic Party, while advocating in Puerto Rico for every Republican, anti-worker measure ever taken on the Island," said Israel Marrero, vice president of SPT-SEIU and an active leader of Obama's campaign.

The Fortuño administration is gambling right now. They're betting that the ARRA funds will make up for any economic losses the 25,000+ lay-offs of public employees may cause. But that's not what the $2.9 BILLION in funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act were intended to do. These funds were intended to help the Island create jobs--not make up for the economic fallout that could result from laying off over 10% of the Island's workforce. Yet according to federal reporting, Puerto Rico has created only 126 jobs.

SPT-SEIU is holding today's sit-in to demand that the Resident Commissioner sign a letter publicly repudiating his support for Article 3 of Law 7, the legislation which made viable the dismissal of over 25,000 public employees.

After months of hearings, hundreds of town halls, and more than 60 years of debate, we're closer than ever before in our nation's history of making health care reform a reality. With a historic victory in the U.S. House at our backs, we head into the Senate--where we could face an uphill battle against insurance industry interests.

In a Washington Post op-ed today, SEIU President Andy Stern speaks on how far our Senate leaders should go to achieve their top health care priorities, and finding a balance between pragmatic compromise vs. selling out.

Just as when unions negotiate their contracts, there comes a time when members must make a choice and vote. It's game time, our Senators can no longer hide, threaten, or negotiate their own individual bill. No one gets a free pass for denying the American public a fair up-or-down vote on this bill. The American people have long memories, and come next November, no one will forget who attempted to derail reform. Our elected leaders will be held accountable for the choices that they make.

We stand at this historic moment because of decades of hard work. Unfortunately for the millions in this country suffering under an insurance system that costs too much and covers too few, politics and grandstanding are at risk of taking over. The American people elected a team of 60 Senators to push for bold solutions. They will be judged for what they deliver. If at the end of the day Americans can't afford health care or if the standard of care declines, every single Democratic Senator will pay the price.

Read the entire op-ed at the Washington Post. And while you're here...we'd love to know your thoughts on the subject. If it comes down to the wire, how much compromise do you think our Senate leaders should be willing to make to change the status quo and get health reform passed?

Right-wing opponents of healthcare and climate change reform continue to engage in Astroturfing (aka fake grassroots activism). To put it simply, these groups are like wolves in sheep's' clothing. They do their best to appear, act and smell like community groups...except they're not.

They're corporate front groups funded primarily, if not entirely, by corporate interests, political interests and/or PR firms who stand to either gain or lose a great deal of money and market share based on the legislation in question. Astroturf activism by right-wing front groups is particularly egregious because it masks the true motivations of the powerful interests with the most dollar signs at stake in these debates. Our friends over at Media Matters are looking to put a stop to this.

They have a new database that tracks the financial and political ties of conservative think tanks, nonprofit activist groups, and foundations for the public to see: ConservativeTransparency.org. The new database compiled and organized nearly 1,000 Internal Revenue Service filings to be provide the public-at-large with information on hundreds of "AstroTurf" organizations such as...

• The U.S. Chamber of Commerce - leads the way in opposition against federal reforms of....pretty much any kind that help working people. The Chamber is lobbying against consumer protections, limits on bank bonuses, financial reform legislation, legislation to lessen global warming and reform to healthcare and labor law.
• FreedomWorks Inc. - one of the *star* organizations behind the efforts to disrupt town hall meetings.
• The Heritage Foundation - a think tank that promotes ultra conservative policies and has repeated lobbied against increases in the minimum wage as well as health insurance reform.
• Conservatives for Patients' Rights - A $20 million operation that's running a national campaign against a public plan to kill progressive health care reform.
• Americans for Prosperity Foundation - helped organize tea party protests, opposes health care reform behind Patients United Now. Also sponsor of the Joe the Plumber tour and world-class climate change deniers.

See ConservativeTransparency.org for a wealth of information on the money behind the movement.

The economic crisis in Puerto Rico is fast racing towards a depression-era level. The unemployment level is already at 17 percent, and Governor Fortuño's recent pink-slipping of 17,000 government workers to take effect Nov. 6 will only make things worse. If not stopped, Puerto Rico's unemployment rate could easily reach that of New Orleans post-hurricane Katrina.

Gov. Fortuño said the job cuts, expected to save $386 million, are necessary because the government faces a $3.2 billion deficit this year. These numbers are certainly nothing to sniff at---but I can't help but wonder about the money Puerto Rico has received from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Thanks to these funds, other states in crisis have already generated thousands of new jobs in green sectors, sustainable energy, information technology, and infrastructure. But according to federal reporting, Puerto Rico has created only 126 jobs after receiving $2.9 BILLION in ARRA funds. Even with my rudimentary accounting knowledge, I'm pretty sure these numbers don't add up.

In a Huffington Post piece today, SEIU Healthcare Chair Dennis Rivera warns that "what started as a march in protest to the impending firings of public sector workers has turned into a movement to hold Governor Fortuño accountable for solving [Puerto Rico's] financial nightmare."

Failing to suppress turnout, the Governor's administration did its best to minimize the event, officially stating that 15,000 people turned out while the media estimates were 150,000 and organizers estimated closer to 300,000. Governor Fortuño and his administration are clearly aware that it's one thing to have a problem contained at home; it's quite another thing to become a problem in the eyes of Congress and the Obama administration.

While President Obama's vision for the U.S. economy is anchored in creating good jobs, affordable healthcare, and increasing accountability in the private sector, Governor Fortuño is clinging desperately to George Bush's failed economic agenda. This agenda protected the private sector and the very wealthy at all costs, decreased government accountability, and basically stacked the deck against the poor and middle class. And here we are one recession, an American Recovery Investment Act and a TARP Act later working our way out of it.

If Governor Fortuño and Puerto Rico's Resident Commissioner, Congressman Pierluisi can keep the problem quarantined within Puerto Rico, they too will get a free pass on accountability for their lack of a clear plan to revive the U.S. territory's plummeting economy. They will continue to apply "survival of the fittest" economics to Puerto Rico with no need to account for how America's multi-billion dollar funding to the island is invested.

Read the full piece at Huffington Post here. More on SEIU's blog about today's follow-up actions by Todo Puerto Rico Por Puerto Rico.

The massive outcry from immigration and human rights activists, media insiders, advertisers and online activists about Lou Dobb's sensational and prejudiced immigration reporting has broken through! This week, the New York Times reported that CNN anchor Lou Dobbs is considering moving his 7:00 p.m. "Lou Dobbs Tonight" nightly show to the FOX news network.

While a Lou Dobbs move is not confirmed, there is no question that CNN is hearing the growing uproar for Dobb's hateful and biased reporting. And CNN is getting anxious. Most recently, CNN wobbled on its commitment to air a Drop Dobbs ad--which they finally deciding against airing late this week.

Despite gaining traction, our struggle to wipe CNN clean of the hate and misinformation espoused nightly by Dobbs is not over! If you haven't yet, sign the petition to drop Dobbs. And then take one more step and sign the letter urging companies to stop advertising during Lou Dobbs' programming.

Since launching, the Drop Dobbs and Basta Dobbs campaigns have gotten hundreds of thousands of supporters to sign online petitions urging CNN to take Lou Dobbs off the air.

Check out the Drop Dobbs TV ad CNN refuses to air:

Learn more at DropDobbs.com.

On Monday, the SEC slapped Bank of America with a $33 million fine for misleading investors on plans to award multi-billion dollar bonuses to Merrill Lynch executives during BofA's purchase of the failed bank. In case people are keeping track...this fine is less than one percent of the $3.6 billion in bonuses paid out. SEC officials say this is the largest penalty ever imposed for a failure to disclose relevant information in connection with shareholder votes.

Bank of America has agreed to settle, without admitting to the charges. The bank also has yet to pay back $45 billion in bailout funds of taxpayer money. "This is further proof that bank executives will do anything to pay themselves bonuses and stick it to taxpayers, shareholders and workers," said SEIU's Stephen Lerner in USA Today .

Wouldn't it be nice if all of us could solve our problems the BofA-way?

As part of their "Morris on Campus,™ Life According to an Upperclassman™" campaign to "educate and empower students to take control of their finances," Bank of America sponsored a survey last summer that found 38 percent of surveyed college-aged students reporting they could use help in managing their money. Four in ten (42 percent) students reported to overdrawing their checking account.

The irony here is almost too much to bear...Bank of America knows a thing or two about spending money they don't have. It's suffice to say that these students (like BofA's promotions poster child Morris) would probably be thrilled to be granted the same pardons as BofA. Imagine what that scenario would look like if we all lived under the same skewed logic BofA decision makers seem to be adhering to..."I owed thousands and thousands in student loans but walked away after earning my college diploma owing just 1 percent!" The same goes for the millions of people who owe money to their credit card companies. Or their health insurance companies.

Christmas come early? News reports today suggest that this latest failure by Bank of America could be setting the stage for CEO Ken Lewis's departure. In spite of all the hurt they've heaped onto our economy, there's really been no holding banks accountable for their shortsighted practices and failing to live up to their responsibilities to taxpayers who bailed them out in the first place. Kicking Ken Lewis to the curb would be a good start.

Unfair financial products--like "exploding" mortgages with skyrocketing interest rates, and credit cards with incomprehensible and unfair terms and fees --are a big part of what caused the economic meltdown. And thanks to Wall Street's greed, millions of Americans have lost their homes, their jobs, and their retirement savings.

Thankfully, there's a proposal in Congress for a strong, new agency - one that's accountable to the public, and not to the big banks - that will put in place some common-sense rules to protect consumers and balance the financial playing field.

Creating a strong Consumer Financial Protection Agency is the next step toward stopping the dangerous and deceptive products and practices that got us into this mess. In the same way that we keep stores from selling exploding toasters, this agency will have the power to keep lenders from offering "exploding" loans.

Congress has already held a first hearing on the new agency, and it is on the agenda now. It is also already on Wall Street's agenda to stop it. Can you call your member of Congress right now and ask them to support the new consumer financial protection agency?

Wall Street and the Big Banks are already gearing up to stop this bill--promising to spend hundreds of millions of dollars doing it. They've even gone so far as to start a campaign said to protect against "populist overreaction." And this after they took billions of dollars of our money in bailouts.

We have to make sure our representatives hear from us, and not just the big banks' lobbyists.

Click here to place a free phone call to Congress.

To learn more about these reforms, watch President Obama's weekly address about the need for strong consumer protections:

Yesterday SEIU launched an online campaign asking senators to stand with working people, not greedy CEOs, on the Employee Free Choice Act.  The Huffington Post wrote of our campaign:

One of the nation's largest unions is making a significant ad purchase targeting four Democrats and one Republican Senator on the Employee Free Choice Act.

Targeting Democratic Senators Mark Pryor and Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas, Jim Webb of Virginia, and Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, as well as Republican David Vitter of Louisiana, the message is at once effective and sharp: To oppose the labor-backed legislation would be to side with the institutions that create the current economic malaise.

In addition to putting out the four web videos, the SEIU is also launching email campaigns targeting the five senators, with much the same message and aim.
The email campaign mirrored the below message sent to our Arkansas activists; you can see all the ads below.

Senators Blanche Lincoln and Mark Pryor, stand with Arkansas' working people, not greedy CEOs

Arkansas

Louisiana

Pennsylvania

Virginia

Big Banks liquidating your workplace like Hartmarx suit makers in Chicago? Now there's a place to turn to for resources to fight back.

Yesterday, SEIU launched "Keep America Working" -- a toll-free hotline and website to support small business owners and workers facing job loss because of frozen credit and liquidation at the hands of bailed-out banks. The new website is www.keepworkinghotline.org and the hotline number is 877-286-1Job (it will be open Monday-Friday, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. EDT).

Up until now, there has been no system in place to hold banks accountable for their lending practices, despite the fact that they have received more than $410 billion in taxpayer bailout funds in an effort to restore lending and get the economy moving. The Keep America Working hotline and website will help shed light on the shortsighted practices of big banks who have failed to live up to their responsibilities to taxpayers and are now pushing for company and worker liquidation. SEIU is also working with Rep. Hare and Rep. Schakowsky in getting support from their colleagues to draft a letter to Treasury Secretary Geithner to enlist his help to protect jobs in our communities and hold banks accountable who received TARP for actions that undercut a meaningful economic recovery.

Some of the banks who act as prime lenders to companies that are currently liquidating jobs include--no surprise here-- Bank of America and Wells Fargo. If you're a business owner or employee that's affected by big banks like these putting the squeeze on your company, visit www.keepworkinghotline.org and let us know.

You need help - and you're certainly not getting it from the banks. So call the hotline at 1-877-286-1JOB or visit www.KeepWorkingHotline.org

Yesterday's federal government stress test results confirmed what concerned shareholders, taxpayers and bank employees have been saying all along--that Bank of America is failing taxpayers and our economy. In a statement, SEIU Secretary-Treasurer Anna Burger said this:

Bank of America is a sinking ship that needs more than just a change in captain to address fundamentally unsustainable and irresponsible business practices that are bad for consumers, bad for employees and dangerous for our larger economy.

Bank of America has already received $45 billion in TARP funds and now taxpayers could be on the hook for $33.9 billion, plus another $150 billion in guarantees to bailout the bank for its own bad behavior. Instead of cleaning house and finding substantive means to reform a business model that was already in the red, Bank of America gobbled up other financial institutions and continued to payout $5.2 million in bonuses. This is not smart economics.

The decision by the House yesterday (which the White House announced support for today) to vote for an independent commission to investigate the causes of the financial crisis is a significant win for the cause of accountability and reform on Wall Street and in the banking industry. However, as an institution at the frontlines of the financial structure that is about to bailed out by American taxpayers for a second time, it is time for Bank of America to do what's right and take responsibility for the damage it has caused.

We've already sent a letter to new Bank of America CEO Dr. Walter Massey, outlining the key principles of reform the bank needs to tackle, while engaging with taxpayers and Bank of America employees in solutions that will restore public confidence in the bank, ensure workers have a voice to protect consumers, and create an economy that works for everyone again. "After failing our economy, it is time taxpayers have a greater say in banking reform and for Bank of America to be a partner instead of a toxic asset as we work to create real solutions to the banking crisis," says Burger.

Next steps for Bank of America: http://action.seiu.org/page/s/masseyletter

"You knew what the banks were doing, and yet were touting it for months and months. The entire network was." -- Jon Stewart

In an interview last week with CNBC's Jim Cramer, The Daily Show's Jon Stewart cut through the bull and did what few others in the traditional media were willing to do: expose CNBC's strategy of climbing in bed with the CEOs who created this financial crisis, instead of asking tough questions and reporting the truth.



Cramer is not the broadcast news station's only offender by far: reporter Erin Burnett is a repeat offender of relentlessly spouting Wall Street talking points on Meet the Press. Adam Green describes NBC's "Erin Burnett Problem" at the Huffington Post, giving this recent example of her 'reporting' from last week:

This morning, on Morning Joe, for no apparent reason, [Erin] blurted out, "I'm going to throw this out there, it's just a question..." and then went on a long rant about "the whole question about unemployment benefits themselves." As in, should they even exist?

After all, she pointed out, they don't have them in China (the epitome of a pro-worker country). She asked, "Does that encourage people in places like China to go get jobs more quickly rather than waiting to exhaust their unemployment benefits?"

You can't even make this kind of stuff up.

Responsible journalism that holds Wall Street accountable has been sorely lacking from this once-credible broadcast news giant, who in recent months has seemed to be doing PR for Wall Street--instead of investigating and debunking lies to report the behind-the-scenes facts the public needs to know.

From the "Fix CNBC" website:

You've been so obsessed with getting "access" to failed CEOs that you willfully passed on misinformation to the public for years, helping to get us into the economic crisis we face today. You screwed up badly.

Don't apologize - fix it!

CNBC should publicly declare that its new overriding mission will be responsible journalism that holds Wall Street accountable. As a down payment, we ask you to hire some new economic voices - people who have a track record of being right about the economic crisis and holding Wall Street executives' feet to the fire.

The momentum to pressure CNBC to hold Wall Street accountable has been building at a rapid rate. Since launching yesterday at 12:15 p.m., the open letter at www.FixCNBC.com has gathered over 17,000 signatures from leading progressives and economists demanding that the network publicly change its mission to focus more on Wall Street accountability.

Americans need CNBC to do strong, watchdog journalism--don't you agree? Click here to sign the "Fix CNBC" open letter.

"This is your money. You have a right to know where it's going and how it's being spent. Learn what steps we're taking to ensure you can track our progress every step of the way."

Keeping in line with his campaign's theme of accountability and transparency, the Obama administration has put up a new website to help people track how the economic stimulus money is spent: http://www.Recovery.gov/

"With a recovery package of this size comes a responsibility to assure every taxpayer that we are being careful with the money they work so hard to earn. And that's why I'm assigning a team of managers to ensure that the precious dollars we've invested are being spent wisely and well," President Obama said before signing the $787 billion stimulus bill into law today at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. (Read Obama and Biden's remarks at the signing of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act here)

Speaking of accountability and transparency....Media Matters has compiled a comprehensive look at the mainstream media coverage the economic recovery bill was given from the time of its conception to the present day. Some of the numerous myths and falsehoods that repeatedly popped up in the media's coverage of the recovery package include:

* Failing to feature economists during recovery debate
A study of Sunday talk shows and cable news programs from January 25 through February 8 found that economists made up only 25 guest appearances out of 460 - only 5 percent - during the 139 ½ hours of programming in which the recovery package was discussed.

* Misrepresenting 1930s unemployment figures to incorrectly claim New Deal programs did not work
Documented journalists continuing the effort among conservative media of attacking the New Deal and President Roosevelt in an attempt to discredit Obama's stimulus plan include Washington Post's George Will and syndicated columnist Mona Charen.

* Propagating Health IT falsehood spearheaded by Rush Limbaugh
SEIU also worked to debunk Rush's scare tactics and clear the air about the benefits of health IT, from the viewpoint of caregivers. See "Limbaugh doesn't get IT" and "Caregivers Defend Health IT."

* Falsely claiming that undocumented immigrants without Social Security numbers could be eligible for tax credits
The Drudge Report and AP, guilty as charged.

Still think the media covered the economic bill fairly? That's because you haven't watched this video yet:

Sit-in at Chicago plan, now in its 5th day, has become symbol for a frustrated nation

It's the kind of story that has become all too familiar to working Americans - and the kind of story that we've been reading all too often in the news lately.

Scores of workers were laid-off with little notice from a Chicago factory last week, when the factory closed down abruptly after Bank of America canceled the company's financing.

Bank of America's last-minute decision to close Republic down had resulted in the company shutting its doors without providing its workers the 60 days' notice required by law. And the workers hadn't been paid for their accrued vacation or sick time, either.

However, these workers, who are members of Local 1110 of the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America, didn't follow management's example and go quietly into the night to face the prospect of a cold winter without a job.

They decided instead to take a stand, staging a "peaceful occupation" of the Republic Windows and Doors plant in what is now day five of an around-the-clock sit-in, as some 200 workers take turns occupying the plant in eight-hour shifts.

The workers of Republic Windows were not the only people in the community trying to fathom how a bank that had just accepted $25 billion in taxpayer bailout money--money that was intended to get their credit flowing again--could not even manage to extend enough credit to the plant to meet its legal obligations to its workers. Leading political figures in the Chicago area and beyond have turned out to support the sit-in -- including the former South Side community organizer and state senator who is now our president-elect.

"When it comes to the situation here in Chicago with the workers who are asking for their benefits and payments they have earned, I think they are absolutely right," President-elect Barack Obama said to the Chicago Sun-Times during a news conference Sunday. "...These companies need to follow through on those commitments. [And] I think it is important for us to make sure that, moving forward, any economic plan we put in place helps businesses to meet payroll so we are not seeing these kinds of circumstances again."

At a press conference yesterday at Chicago's city hall, a contingent of 15 Chicago aldermen, workers from Republic Windows and Doors, leaders of the Chicago Federation of Labor Leaders, UE, SEIU and Rev. Jesse Jackson announced an official ordinance to end to any involvement by the city of Chicago with Bank of America.

"It's not only unfair to the workers, but also Bank of America is thumbing its nose at Congress by taking federal recovery funds while refusing to extend credit to a small manufacturing company with a long history of profitability," said Tom Balanoff, president of SEIU Illinois Council. "Bank of America's withdrawal of credit also contradicts and undercuts President-elect Barack Obama's plan to stimulate the depressed economy by investing in weatherization of existing homes and buildings and in other infrastructure and energy-saving construction," Balanoff added.

Want to lend your support for the workers at Republic Windows and Doors? Ways to take action now and hold Bank of America accountable, via Change to Win:

* Send a message of support to the sit-down strikers: the Republic workers' union has set up an online form you can use to let them know that you support their struggle.

* Send a message to Bank of America: Jobs with Justice, the national worker rights coalition, has set up an online form you can use to write to Bank of America to demand they keep Republic open or pay the workers at Republic what they're owed.

* Contribute to the strike fund: the workers at Republic aren't collecting paychecks, and they and their families still need to eat and keep a roof over their heads. You can help by making a secure online contribution to the strike fund via PayPal.

The Wall Street Journal published an extensive interview with SEIU President Andy Stern this weekend --

---

Let's 'Share the Wealth'

America's most powerful union boss says Europe offers a good economic model.

The Wall Street Journal
OPINION: THE WEEKEND INTERVIEW WITH ANDY STERN
By Matthew Kaminski

"We just won an election. It's no secret." By "we," Andy Stern means "American workers." He also means Big Labor. Speaking on behalf of the fastest growing trade group in America, the Service Employees International Union -- and as one of labor's most powerful figures today -- Mr. Stern sets this simple bar for the Obama presidency: "I expect nothing less than what he said he was going to do, and we should hold him accountable."

From his perspective -- atop SEIU's Washington headquarters, which offers an enviable view of the National Cathedral -- the first part is straightforward: "Massive investment" in a stimulus for the economy, the car industry, deficit-ridden states and infrastructure. Then universal health care, an issue on which the SEIU boss helped push the Democratic consensus leftward, and "tax cuts for the middle class" (and hikes for the upper bracketed). At the end of his list, Mr. Stern puts something particularly dear to unions: Quick adoption of the Employee Free Choice Act, commonly known as "card check," which would end secret ballots in union elections.

The bit about accountability is no idle warning. Organized labor put up some $450 million to get Democrats elected. The SEIU accounted for $85 million of that, making Mr. Stern's union the single biggest contributor to either party in this election cycle. And just in case, the SEIU set aside an additional $10 million fund to get people unelected if need be. "We would like to make sure people appreciate that we take them at their word and when they don't live up to their word there should be consequences," he says.

>> Read the rest of the Wall Street Journal's weekend interview with Andy Stern.

Local 6434 President Also Ordered to Pay Full Restitution in Connection to Charges of Self-Dealing and Misappropriation of Member Dues

WASHINGTON, DC-- Service Employees International Union President Andy Stern today permanently banned Local 6434 President Tyrone Freeman from holding membership, a staff position or office in the Union following evidence that the Los Angeles leader misused member funds. After reviewing outside hearing officer and former California Supreme Court Justice Joseph Grodin's report finding that Freeman had engaged in a pattern of financial malpractice and self-dealing in violation of the SEIU Constitution and local bylaws, Stern also ordered Freeman to make full restitution to the members of Local 6434--a sum of more than $1.1 million.

"Today's decision sends a clear message across our Union," said SEIU President Andy Stern. "We are all accountable. Our members do some of the toughest jobs anywhere, and we will not tolerate any actions violating their trust or putting their interests at risk. On a personal note, I agree with Justice Grodin that it is tragic and unconscionable that a young leader with such great potential would violate not only the Constitution of the International Union, but the trust of his members."

In his decision, Stern ordered Freeman to return all misappropriated funds and to permanently relinquish all positions he currently holds in Local 6434, including the presidency and his membership.

The lifetime membership ban is the most severe penalty the Union can impose.

SEIU will continue to cooperate fully in ongoing Federal and state investigations of the Local. In light of these ongoing outside investigations, SEIU will permit Freeman the opportunity to appeal to the International Executive Board for a modification of the penalties if he is exonerated or other circumstances arise that would warrant a less severe penalty. This exception neither affects the finality of today's ruling nor the Union's need to implement the full terms of this penalty immediately.

SEIU assumed trusteeship over Local 6434 on August 22 in response to reports that Freeman improperly benefited from transactions involving member funds. The Union appointed John Ronches to serve as Trustee with full oversight of all Local affairs. California Attorney General John Van de Kamp, a nationally recognized legal expert and former federal prosecutor, assisted the trustee in the International's investigation of the Local and the filing of charges against Freeman.

In September, SEIU filed seven separate charges against Freeman involving improper payments to a company owned by Freeman's wife, improper expenses relating to his 2006 wedding, the misuse of non-profit funds to benefit Freeman and his family members, the improper expenditure of union funds on a private cigar club membership, and violations of procedural and democratic safeguards.

Last month, Justice Grodin held a two-day hearing to take testimony and review evidence in the case.

"No matter if you voted for President-elect Barack Obama or Sen. John McCain, if you are a union member, small-business owner or retiree, we share one community. We need to play our part to help our elected leaders fulfill their campaign promises," writes SEIU Healthcare and Local 1199NW member Charlotte Anibas in a Seattle Times letter to the editor. "It's time to seize this moment and create the change that working families need."

Read the full letter.