By Zane Markosian
In November of 2024, the 1,847 members-strong Ironworkers Local 11 regained its autonomy. The International Association of Bridge, Structural, Ornamental and Reinforcing Ironworkers ended its trusteeship of the North Jersey local following a slew of legal proceedings. Some investigations remain ongoing while the union looks ahead to leadership elections in 2026.
The NLRB Case
In 2020, Local 11 members filed four separate charges with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). These charges were consolidated into one case focusing on improper practices in the union’s operation of its hiring hall. This investigation uncovered evidence that the leadership of the union operated in an improper and “arbitrary” manner, but was primarily focused on the treatment of “travelers,” iron workers who belong to another local. The trusteeship was imposed by the International in July, 2022.
The NLRB proceeding concluded after an informal settlement agreement was reached in August of 2021 by the charging parties, the Local, and the NLRB. Per the terms of the agreement, the union committed to ensure non-arbitrary job referrals, and to treat travelers the same way it treats members with respect to job placement.
Case Brought by the New Jersey Attorney General’s Division on Civil Rights
Following the resolution of the NLRB matter, in August of 2021, the NJ AG’s Division of Civil Rights opened an investigation into the local. This investigation was in response to allegations that the union had created and maintained a racist and sexist environment – beyond what had been specifically addressed in the NLRB case. This matter is currently ongoing in the Essex County Superior Court.
The NJ AG case implicated the former business manager of the local, Raymond Woodall. Along with other union officials, he was removed in 2022.
Case Brought by the United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey
Approximately two years later, in June of 2024, the United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey filed a separate suit against Woodall. He was charged with one count of tax fraud and one count of wire fraud. The US Attorney pointed to an elaborate scheme to defraud the union in pursuit of personal financial gain. Woodall pleaded guilty in October of 2024. He was officially charged in January of this year.
Within Local 11, the position of Business Manager is the lead executive officer who oversees all aspects of daily operations for the union in addition to supervising salaried personnel. Woodall served in this role from 2008 to 2022 and he was also a member of the union’s Executive Board.
NJ AG’s Findings Re: Local 11 Hiring Practices
One of the charging parties from the NLRB consolidated case, Kesha Green, chose to pursue further action – specifically in regards to broader issues of discrimination. She filed a complaint with the Division on Civil Rights (DCR) within the NJ AG’s Office. She alleged to the DCR that the union leadership had previously acted inappropriately towards members and had created and maintained a discriminatory environment.
The DCR verified Green’s complaints and, in August of 2022, issued a finding of probable cause. Upon investigating further, the DCR filed a civil complaint in June of 2024. Their charging documents include examples of improper conduct shared by a woman who left the union in 2017, referred to as “J.G.” She reported that around 2015 she was called various racial slurs, repeatedly spanked inappropriately, and – on more than one occasion – was locked in a bathroom for hours.
When J.G. raised concerns to Woodall about this behavior, she was screamed at and was assigned only one-day jobs in retaliation. Ultimately J.G. contacted the office of a State Senator, seeking guidance about this issue. She was subsequently called into Woodall’s office once again. This time she was scolded for complaining to the Senator.
In addition to playing a direct role in some of this harassment, the complaint filed by DCR alleges that Woodall played a large role in allowing this type of behavior to take place within the workplace broadly. As Business Manager, he supervised all salaried staff at the union while discriminatory behavior proliferated. A Business Agent in the Bloomfield union hall kept a nude female mannequin in his office closet for years. Woodall was aware of this but allowed the mannequin to remain in place.
J.G. added that Woodall routinely sent pornographic images with homophobic text to ironworkers, and that he regularly used racist and sexist slurs directed towards Black members and women.
The DCR argues that the practices described by Green are part of a “broad pattern of discrimination, in violation of the [state’s] ‘Law Against Discrimination.’” Beyond the sexist and racist conduct, the state also alleges that the union, under direction of Woodall, maintained a hiring system intended to be racially exclusionary.
Local 11 operates an employment referral system often known, as “the job book,” from its Bloomfield union hall. Ironworkers enter their names on a list in order to be assigned work as it becomes available. Notably, the union maintains exclusivity arrangements with four prominent employer associations in the region (including the New Jersey Steel Association, and the Rigging Contractors of New Jersey). As a condition of these arrangements, Local 11 is the sole source of referrals for projects run by these employers. These contractors may only hire ironworkers through Local 11’s processes.
The official policy of the union was that jobs should be distributed to members in the order that their names were entered in the physical referral book. Instead, Black members were routinely skipped over. The complaint filed by the NJ AG’s office in civil court states that when Black members were eventually offered work, they were typically given “inferior” jobs, and that these assignments were often shorter in duration.
It’s clear that this was not a case of small oversights or occasional clerical errors. According to the civil complaint, Black workers were passed over at a rate more than three times higher than that of non-Black workers. The leadership of Local 11 perpetuated this discriminatory system and made no attempt to rectify it.
According to the NJ AG’s office, there were 54 distinct occasions in 14 months spanning 2018 and 2019 in which the union improperly passed over Black members. During this period, Black ironworkers collectively lost out on close to a year’s worth of work.
As a result of the settlement agreement reached in the NLRB proceeding, the union’s updated job book rules state that workers seeking referrals are to be categorized into four distinct “priority groups.” Applicants should be registered in the highest possible priority group that applies to them. This system gives preference based on factors such as tenure, status as journeyman or apprentice, and recent time spent working. It specifically outlines provisions for travelers, and for ironworkers who are not members but who have previously been employed under Local 11 collective bargaining agreements. The system of priority groups, as written, does not allow for any special treatment or deterrence based on race.
The US Attorney’s Case Against Former Business Manager Raymond Woodall
In addition to this matter, The US Attorney for the District of New Jersey brought separate charges against Woodall in June of 2024. The Federal case alleges that he engaged in a scheme to enrich himself and close friends at the expense of the membership. Documents filed by the US Attorney describe improper uses of union funds. In exchange for funneling business to certain companies, Woodall received $600,000 in improper compensation. The New York District Office of Labor Management Standards conducted this investigation, before handing off its findings to the US Attorney’s office to press charges.
Local 11 maintains a “Market Recovery Account” (MRA) as part of the union’s treasury. This account is funded through specific special dues collected from membership, and its stated purpose is as a tool to protect union labor’s market share. This account has been used to subsidize union contractors’ bids, allowing them to compete on certain projects – and to subsidize wages paid by contractors, in order to maintain union wages and benefit standards.
Beyond using these expenses to directly support union contractors, it’s also typical practice to use this money in order to purchase advertising space promoting the work of Local 11. The Federal case brought against Woodall makes clear that he had the sole ability to sign checks drawn on this account and to disburse funds. The US Attorney emphasizes that Woodall had a fiduciary responsibility to spend this money in ways which he genuinely believed would be in the best interest of members. Instead, Woodall took advantage of these transactions and exploited them for his own benefit.
The US Attorney points to $3,604,500 that Woodall funneled to an unnamed company, ostensibly for advertising services. This company (referred to as company 1 in court documents) sold a variety of advertising space, but the amount Woodall spent with them was far beyond the market rate for the services the union received. The US Attorney’s investigation found that Woodall knew he was conducting business in a way that was not in the best interest of the membership – that instead, these payments were part of a scheme for personal gain. The unnamed company 1 returned approximately 20 percent of the payments to Woodall in vouchers, gift cards, tickets, and other forms of compensation. He shared these amongst close friends and family.
The scheme in pursuit of kickbacks from the advertising firm makes up the government’s wire fraud charge against Woodall. On top of that, Woodall was found guilty on one charge of falsifying tax returns. The US Attorney found that Woodall failed to report $211,585 in other income, in violation of tax law. These omissions occurred between the years 2018 and 2022. His sentencing is scheduled for June of 2025.
The Lifting of the Trusteeship Brings New Opportunities
Following the move by the International to bring Local 11 under trusteeship in 2022, Steve Sweeney took over control of the Local. At the time he was the First Vice President of the International. Sweeney previously held office as a New Jersey State Senator. He represented a South Jersey district from 2002 to January of 2022. Sweeney is currently running for Governor in New Jersey’s Democratic Primary.
The trusteeship ended in November of 2024, and elections are scheduled for June of 2026. This will be the first time since Woodall’s ouster that North Jersey ironworkers will be able to directly vote for their leadership, and it will be a real opportunity for members to reform the local.
The rest of this story and more will be available in the next edition of Union Democracy Review which you can subscribe to here.
