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Fiat Chrysler pleads guilty to paying off Detroit union officials

DETROIT — Fiat Chrysler pleaded guilty to conspiracy Monday, admitting that it paid off leaders of the United Auto Workers to try to win concessions in negotiations covering thousands of factory workers. FCA's conviction follows a series of guilty pleas from UAW officials who were showered with more than $3.5 million in cash and items of value from a jointly run training center over an eight-year period. FCA stands for Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, which now is part of Stellantis, a company created by the merger of Fiat Chrysler and PSA Peugeot. “FCA violated federal labor law and undermined the collective bargaining process and the faith of the UAWÂ’s membership in their leaders,” said acting U.S. Attorney Saima Mohsin. The head of FCA labor relations, Al Iacobelli, executed the scheme with five UAW officials and a spouse, especially General Holiefield, who was a union vice president. He eliminated a $262,000 home mortgage in 2014 with training center money. Union officials used credit cards for spending sprees. “Your honor, we plead guilty,” FCA general counsel Chris Pardi told U.S. District Judge Paul Borman. Iacobelli was sentenced to 5 1/2 years in prison in 2018, but the sentence was recently reduced by 18 months due to his cooperation. Holiefield died in 2015; his wife pleaded guilty to a tax crime three years later. Holiefield's successor, Norwood Jewell, was sentenced to 15 months in prison. His plea deal listed $60,000 in meals and golf paid with training center credit cards. FCA will pay a $30 million fine to the government. An independent monitor will be appointed to oversee the end of the training center as well as handle other tasks. The government's investigation became public in 2017, but agents soon were uncovering other corruption at the UAW. Union dues were used to pay for golf, booze and vacation villas in California, and contractors were giving kickbacks for union business. Eleven officials have been convicted, including former presidents Gary Jones and Dennis Williams. They are awaiting their sentences in Detroit federal court. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Earnings/Financials Government/Legal UAW/Unions Chrysler Fiat

Automakers want to stop the EPA's fuel economy rules change, and why that's a shortsighted move

With a Trump Administration looming, the EPA moved quickly after the election to propose finalizing future fuel economy rules last week. The auto industry doesn't like that (surprise), and has started making moves to stop the EPA. Ford CEO Mark Fields said he wanted to lobby Trump to lower the standards, and now the Auto Alliance, a manufacturer group, is saying it will join the fight against cleaner cars. The Alliance represents 12 automakers: BMW, Fiat Chrysler, Ford, GM, Jaguar Land Rover, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz, Mitsubishi, Porsche, Toyota, VW, and Volvo. Gloria Bergquist, a spokesperson for the Alliance, told Automotive News that the "EPA's sudden and controversial move to propose auto regulations eight months early - even after Congress warned agencies about taking such steps while political appointees were packing their bags - calls out for congressional action to pause this rulemaking until a thoughtful policy review can occur." The EPA was going to consider public comments through April 2017, but then said it would move the deadline to the end of December. That means that it can finalize the rules before President Obama leaves office. The director of public affairs for the Consumer Federation of America, Jack Gillis, said on a conference call with reporters last week when the EPA originally announced its decision that it is unlikely that President Trump will be able to roll back these changes. Gillis also said on the same call that any attempt by the automakers to prevent these changes would be history repeating itself. "These are the same companies that fought airbags, and now promoting the fact that every car has multiple airbags," he said. "These are the same companies that fought the crash-test program, and now are promoting the crash-test ratings published by the government. So, it's clear that they're misperceiving the needs of the American consumer." There are more reasons the Allliance's pushback is flawed. Carol Lee Rawn, the transportation program director for Ceres, said on that call that the automotive industry is a global one, and many automakers are moving to global platforms to help them meet strict fuel economy rules around the world.

Ford Mustang was almost 'Imported from Detroit'

The Ford Mustang achieved iconic status nearly the moment the sheet came off at the 1964 World's Fair. And if Henry Ford II wasn't getting divorced around that time, the pony car might have been called the Torino and been marketed as 'Imported from Detroit,' according to Automotive News. We'll explain. During research for the new book Once in a Great City: A Detroit Story, author David Maraniss found an interesting connection between Chrysler's (now FCA US) slogan and the Ford Mustang. Before the pony car even had a name, the Blue Oval's advertising agency had the idea to market it as a "brand new import ... from Detroit," according to Automotive News. The vehicle would be sold as "inspired by Italy's great road cars, but straight from Detroit." The name Torino was suggested, as well. However, the real world interfered in making the Mustang Detroit's first import. According to the author, Henry Ford II was getting a divorce, and his future wife was Italian. It was therefore thought to be a bad idea to sell the future pony car as being from Italy. Things clearly changed by the time the Torino hit the streets years later. Related Video: