Federal Court Sentences Former Labor Union President After U.S. Department of Labor Investigation Finds Embezzlement of Union Assets

RALEIGH, NC – The U.S. District Court Eastern District of North Carolina, in Raleigh, North Carolina, has sentenced former union president Keith Alan Ludlum to 14 months in prison and ordered him to pay $213,201 in restitution after a U.S. Department of Labor Office of Labor-Management Standards’ (OLMS) investigation.

OLMS investigators found the former United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW), Local 1208 president embezzled $213,201 in unauthorized union debit card purchases and unauthorized check payments to family, friends and other union members. Ludlum was president from January 2012 through March 2015.

“Safeguarding financial integrity and combating financial malfeasance in labor unions is a very high priority for the U.S. Department of Labor. Ludlum betrayed the trust of the union membership who rightfully expected him, as a union official, to protect and safeguard their union’s funds and assets,” said Office of Labor-Management Standards District Director Craig Neel in Nashville, Tennessee. “This sentencing sends a clear message that the Office of Labor-Management Standards and the U.S. Attorney’s Office will fully investigate and seek justice when anyone attempts to use their union position for personal financial gain at the expense of union members.”

Assistant U.S. Attorney Toby Lathan prosecuted the case. UFCW, Local 1208 encompasses North and South Carolina and has about 3,600 members.

OLMS administers and enforces provisions of the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959 (LMRDA). The LMRDA promotes union democracy and financial integrity in private sector labor unions, and transparency for labor unions and their officials, employers and others. OLMS also administers provisions of the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978 and the Foreign Service Act of 1980, which extend comparable protections to federal sector labor unions.

The mission of the Department of Labor is to foster, promote and develop the welfare of the wage earners, job seekers and retirees of the United States; improve working conditions; advance opportunities for profitable employment; and assure work-related benefits and rights.