Posted on 06/29/2006 9:48:40 PM PDT by bd476
Edited on 06/29/2006 10:06:00 PM PDT by Admin Moderator. [history]
KCAL 9 Breaking News just announced that Ralph's Grocery Store has pleaded guilty to illegal hiring of thousands of strike workers with phony identifications during the strike...
More...
Update:
The Mercury News
Associated Press
Ralphs to plead guilty for hiring workers during 2003 strike
June 29, 2006
LOS ANGELES - The Ralphs supermarket chain said Thursday it intends to plead guilty to charges that it illegally hired hundreds of workers under fake names during the 2003 grocery strike and lockout in Southern California.
In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Ralphs owner Kroger Co. said the chain "expects to enter into an agreement that will include a plea of guilty to some of the charges" in a 53-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury in December.
A company attorney had pleaded not guilty to all the charges in January and a trial date was set for August 15.
< Snip >
It wasn't immediately known when the grocery chain will enter the expected pleas. The filing also didn't specify the amount Ralphs was willing to pay as a result of a settlement.
Prosecutors have said that the company could pay as much as $200 million, including payment for back wages, if convicted of all counts, plus restitution to Ralphs workers and their union.
The indictment accused Ralphs of engaging in a "company-wide course of criminal conduct involving the hiring of locked-out employees under false names, Social Security numbers and documentation."
Federal prosecutors said the grocery chain issued thousands of paychecks to falsely identified employees and allowed the workers to cash the checks at its stores.
Among the charges are false representation of a Social Security number, identity fraud, money laundering conspiracy, concealment of money laundering and obstruction of justice.
In hopes of hiding the practice from the workers' union, the company sent the locked-out employees to staff markets far from the outlets at which they regularly worked, according to the indictment. Some workers falsified job history and wore name tags bearing their bogus names, prosecutors said..."
Ralphs to plead guilty for hiring workers during 2003 strike...
Excerpt. Read more at: Mercury News
Ralph's claimed that they couldn't get enough workers to cover the positions of the strike workers.
The Union claimed that Ralph's had begun "hiring" strikeworkers, prior to the Company openly refusing to meet the Union's demands.
During the strike, the strike workers were fairly open about being current Ralph's employees from "other" areas.
During the strike, I had to be back East and happened to shop at a Kroger's store back there. One of that Kroger's managers said that he had just flown back home after working in a Los Angeles Ralph's store during the ongoing strike. He said that Kroger made him return to his home store because the Kroger local union was gearing up for a new contract and Kroger was determined not to give in to the union on anything.
Among other things, he also hired Jesse Jackson's mistress.
Judicial Watch Cries Foul Over Clinton Hire
Newsmax.com ^ | April 13, 2002 | Newsmax.com
Posted on 04/13/2002 11:34:00 AM PDT by HoustonKevin
(snip)
"Burkle has a long, sordid history with the Clinton fundraising machine," a JW press release issued Friday contended.
"He attended a trade mission to South Africa with the late Ron Brown in 1993..... Burkle also participated in an illegal Clinton White House coffee fundraiser and 'participated' in Clinton’s sleepover fundraising program run mainly out of the Lincoln Bedroom. Like Denise Rich, Burkle is a major donor to the Clinton Library, having donated in the neighborhood of $5 million to $10 million."
The California state pension fund, known as CalPERS, decided earlier this year to invest up to $560 million with Burkle's funds, Judicial Watch says.
CalPERS is the nation’s largest public pension fund, with assets totaling $147 billion. It provides retirement and health benefits to more than 1.2 million state and local public employees and their families.
Klayman and Fitton contend that by hiring Clinton, Burkle may be in violation of his fiduciary responsibility to California retirees because of Yucaipa's association with CalPERS.
I remember the picket lines continued during the October 2003 wildfires. The picketers would deliberately trip the automatic doors to ensure smoke-filled air would enter the store. However, I will say for those who crossed the picket line and worked, the stores never seemed as well stocked and orderly as during that period. Well, at least once the fire threat was over and deliveries could be made.
I also recall there were a few incidents of violence by these striking workers, though not at my immediately effected markets. I made sure my elderly mother had an escort so she could shop in peace although she probably would've decked anyone who tried to intimidate her.
You're welcome. Burkle has become one of our favorite subjects here on California threads.
Where he goes, crime and corruption usually follow.
If there were any undocumented workers from outside our country's borders, they might have been used as box clerks or were on the cleaning crews.
The cashier positions, meat cutters, produce and even stock crews need to be trained and in some cases require some experience before handling money, food or interacting with the public.
Thanks Calcowgirl.
Looks like Burkle's goal has always been to take the loot and scoot.
Didn't Burkle start out as a bag boy or stock clerk or such? His dad was in the grocery business , I think.
Yep.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/05/02/BUGE2IIPO11.DTL
Burkle also reportedly sought a pardon from Clinton in 2000 for a close friend, former junk bond king Michael Milken. The effort failed.
Burkle was raised in Claremont, a quiet town in suburban San Bernardino County. His father was an executive at the Stater Bros. supermarket chain and Burkle, armed with nothing more than a high school diploma, started at the stores as a bag boy, said Frank Quintero, Burkle's political adviser and the son of a Glendale City Council member.
Burkle worked his way up through the ranks until, as a senior executive, he tried to lead a leveraged buyout of the chain. He failed and was fired in 1986.
But, Quintero said, he won the support of the group that had offered financing for the attempted buyout, including Warren Buffet's Berkshire Hathaway, and other financiers in the company's circle. Burkle eventually became a close friend and affiliate of Milken and with his help assembled a California supermarket empire.
Not exactly. Vons employees were "on strike." Ralphs and Albertsons "locked out" their employees.
Technically, employees of Vons were free to cross the union's picket lines and continue working at Vons (or elsewhere). But, employees of Ralphs and Albertsons were not supposed to be allowed to enter their jobsites.
I meant unionized workers, not "employees," because store managers weren't on strike.
agooga wrote: "Lemme get this straight-- Ralphs hired back the striking workers by giving them false names and SS#'s?"
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
HelenY wrote: "Not exactly. Vons employees were "on strike." Ralphs and Albertsons "locked out" their employees.
Technically, employees of Vons were free to cross the union's picket lines and continue working at Vons (or elsewhere). But, employees of Ralphs and Albertsons were not supposed to be allowed to enter their jobsites."
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
HelenY, according to the article, Ralph's has been charged with and is pleading guilty to some of the following:
"...false representation of a Social Security number, identity fraud, money laundering conspiracy, concealment of money laundering and obstruction of justice.
... Federal prosecutors said the grocery chain issued thousands of paychecks to falsely identified employees and allowed the workers to cash the checks at its stores.
...Among the charges are false representation of a Social Security number, identity fraud, money laundering conspiracy, concealment of money laundering and obstruction of justice.
...In hopes of hiding the practice from the workers' union, the company sent the locked-out employees to staff markets far from the outlets at which they regularly worked, according to the indictment. Some workers falsified job history and wore name tags bearing their bogus names, prosecutors said..."
Ralphs was not hiring their striking workers, which would have been legal had they really been on strike. Rather, Ralphs was hiring their locked out workers (under false names and SSN's), which the Unions ensure is a big no-no.
heleny wrote: "I guess my point wasn't clear: Ralphs employees were not striking or on strike.
Ralphs was not hiring their striking workers, which would have been legal had they really been on strike. Rather, Ralphs was hiring their locked out workers (under false names and SSN's), which the Unions ensure is a big no-no."
Thanks Helen. You're right, Ralph's workers were locked out and not on strike.
If this is true, then Ralphs is stupid beyond belief.
Falsifying social security numbers with people who already worked there?
Whoever made these decisions should be sent to visit Zarqawi's replacement in Iraq for a little head adjustment.
Incredibly stupid.
Bump and thanks!
xzins wrote: "If this is true, then Ralphs is stupid beyond belief.
Falsifying social security numbers with people who already worked there?
Whoever made these decisions should be sent to visit Zarqawi's replacement in Iraq for a little head adjustment.
Incredibly stupid."
They probably thought that they wouldn't get caught.
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