Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) pleaded guilty on Monday to charges it conspired with company executives to make unlawful, lavish gifts to United Auto Workers (UAW) leaders and undermined workers’ confidence in collective bargaining.
The automaker said in January it reached an agreement with U.S. prosecutors to plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to breach the Labor Management Relations Act and pay a $30 million fine.
U.S. District Judge Paul Borman said at a court hearing he accepted the automaker’s guilty plea and set a June 21 sentencing date.
Fiat Chrysler also agreed to three years of probation and oversight by an independent compliance monitor to make sure it adheres to federal labor laws.
The Justice Department said Fiat Chrysler conspired to make over $3.5 million in illegal payments to then-UAW officers from 2009 to 2016.
In December, the UAW agreed to independent oversight to resolve the corruption investigation, which ensnared two former UAW presidents.
Federal prosecutors in Detroit charged 15 former UAW officials as part of its probe, and former presidents Gary Jones and Dennis Williams both pleaded guilty to embezzling union funds. Williams is set to be sentenced on April 16.
Several UAW officers, including the two past UAW presidents, confessed to embezzling millions of dollars in total for personal benefit, using funds to buy expensive liquor and cigars and to pay for golf outings and related equipment, and expensive stay in hotel.
The investigation led General Motors (GM) to take legal action against Fiat Chrysler last year, accusing company executives of bribing UAW officials to secure labor agreements that put GM at a disadvantage. Fiat Chrysler called it “meritless”.
Judge Paul Borman in July dismissed GM’s lawsuit.
On Thursday, a federal appeals court is set to hear GM’s effort to revive the lawsuit. In January, GM said Fiat Chrysler had finally admitted that “after years of denials – that it engaged in a longstanding pattern of corruption”.
