Former labor leader Andy Stern Tuesday has rejected as false news reports that the FBI and Labor Department are investigating him in connection with corruption at his former employer, the Service Employees International Union.
Two organized labor officials met with federal agents this summer to answer questions about Stern’s 2006 book contract, according to The Associated Press and LA Times. They also talked about his role in approving money to pay a former SEIU leader in California who allegedly performed no work, the news outlets said. The SEIU is the largest union of healthcare workers, including nursing home workers.
Stern, who resigned as president of the SEIU in April, said reports of an investigation are “simply false.” A spokeswoman for the SEIU said there was not anything improper about how the union paid Alejandro Stephens or the book deal. The SEIU and its locals bought thousands of copies of the book, “A Country That Works.” Earlier in September, Stephens was sentenced in federal court to jail and home confinement after pleading guilty to stealing $52,000 from a voter outreach program.
