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Union Facts

Laborers, Local 32

Officials Sentenced

Office of Labor-Management Enforcement

The Office of Labor-Management Standards (OLMS) conducts both civil and criminal investigations of alleged violations of the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act (LMRDA) and related laws.

These investigations by OLMS District Offices involve issues such as embezzlements of union funds, union officer elections, the filing of required reports by unions and others with OLMS, and the imposition of trusteeships over subordinate unions by a parent body. These investigations may result in legal enforcement actions.

DateDescription
April 1st, 2013On April 1, 2013, Grace Rathke, former office manager for Laborers Local 32 in Rockford, Illinois, was sentenced to 17 months of incarceration, three years of probation, and was ordered to pay full restitution of $204,836. In January 2013, Rathke pled guilty to embezzling union funds. The investigation found that between November 2004 and March 2009, Rathke stole money that the union members paid in cash and falsified records to conceal the theft. This investigation was conducted jointly with the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General.