UCATT: Another unlawful election.
Construction Union guilty of ballot rigging again!
The construction workers union UCATT has again suffered
another humiliation, when the Government watchdog, the Certification Office,
ruled that their 2011 General Secretary elections was illegal, this is the
second election declared illegal in recent years. This recent setback comes only days after
UCATT were ordered to pay an ex-employee £390,000 plus tax and national
insurance after an expensive legal battle with the former union official David
Short who claimed unfair dismissal and disability discrimination.
The recent certification officers ruling was released on
Monday 9 July 2012 and held that the union had acted illegally against its own
rules when they barred Michael Dooley from being a candidate in the 2011
General Secretary election. This election was called after Dooley challenged
the 2009 General Secretary election in which he was a candidate, that election
was declared illegal in March 2010.
Michael Dooley was a popular full time union official in
London who was dismissed from his job for fraud in January 2010, following his
legal challenge to the 2009 election. An Employment Tribunal found he was
unfairly dismissed. He was later expelled from the union for swearing in front
of comedian and ex trade unionist Ricky Tomlinson’s image on a banner.
His dismissal was the reason given by UCATT to stop him
from standing in the election; the election went ahead with the two favoured
candidates ex General Secretary Alan Ritchie who received more nominations than
all three candidates and Michael Dooley the favourite to win being disbarred.
Alan Ritchie was disbarred because he was subject to an
investigation into financial misappropriation when he was General Secretary;
Ritchie denied the charge but subsequently resigned from the union and his job.
Dooley said ” UCATT has been found guilty of ballot
rigging, it is my belief that there is still financial mismanagement to be
accounted for and I would have exposed that had I been elected as General
Secretary” Unions are not gravy trains and should be accountable and act in
accordance with the law”
UCATT claim to have 120,000 members and contribute to the Labour Party
and the TUC on the members who affiliate, however Dooley believes that the real
number could be less than 50,000 paying members and the rest are there to
justify the existence of a large number of well-paid officials and the
contributions to the Labour Party.For full background Google:
Construction Enquirer UCATT
shttp://www.constructionenquirer.com/2012/06/29/former-ucatt-official-wins-390000-payout-from-union/
&
http://www.certoffice.org/ Dooley v UCATT
Contact Michael Dooley on Tel: 07960032101
Or by email michael-dooley@hotmail.co.uk
UCATT Press Office Barckley
Sumner mobile; 07802329235: 020 7622
2442
This reactionary Certification Officer (CO) decision is a licence for any union to rig an election then expel any candidate who complains to the CO - even if the CO later rules the election rigged he will not then order a rerun and they get away with it!
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