Documents Show Lavish Spending on Wages and Benefits for Longshoremen’s Union Officials • New Jersey Monitor

The three day one Dock workers strike which threatened to grind the American economy to a halt, was a dramatic victory for 45,000 East Coast longshoremen who now face a 60% pay rise by 2030.

The tentative dealThe agreement between ocean shippers and the International Longshoremen’s Association raises the top wage for workers at the New York-New Jersey docks and more than 30 other ports from Maine to Texas to $45 an hour next year. At that rate, longshoremen working a 40-hour week would earn up to $93,600 per year.

But even with this significant increase, the wages of rank-and-file union members will fall far short of the compensation of a cadre of International Longshoremen’s Association executives, who earn hundreds of thousands a year while enjoying lavish travel and entertainment benefits that include tickets to the New York Yankees, Limousine service and New York Athletic Club memberships.

In 2023 alone, thirty top executives at the union assigned to its North Bergen headquarters — including 25 vice presidents with annual salaries of $554,000 each — received more than $9 million in salaries and other compensation, it says U.S. Department of Labor Reports reviewed by New Jersey Monitor.

The reports indicate that several senior union officials are paid to hold multiple leadership positions simultaneously, including high-paying “emeriti” positions for previous service with local unions. Many family members of senior executives have found a place on the ILA’s payroll, which was funded by $38 million in union dues and other fees last year. Last year, the union even hired a former member who was serving prison time after a federal fraud conviction.

ILA President Harold J. Daggett, a friend and political ally of New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, received compensation of more than $855,261 for his leadership duties last year. The Federal records show As president emeritus of ILA Local 1804-1, Daggett received an additional $194,155.

Daggett’s son Dennis received $785,877 last year for his dual leadership roles as president of Local 1804-1 and executive vice president of the ILA. Another Daggett son, John Daggett, was paid $642,631 for two leadership positions, vice president of the ILA Atlantic Coast District and vice president of Local 1804-1.

Daggett’s daughter, Lisa Daggett Bess, earned $210,383 as the union’s “director of political affairs.”

Union critics and law enforcement officials who have tracked illegal racketeering at the docks for decades say the staggering salaries and expenses reflect the growing power of a single family over a major American union. They point out that the ILA reached new heights of swagger and political influence during Harold Daggett’s thirteen-year tenure as union president.

They point out that Daggett has long been one of the highest-paid union leaders in the country. His pay exceeds that of colleagues like United Auto Workers’ Shawn Fain, who earns about $200,000, and Sean O’Brien, head of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, who reportedly earned a salary of $250,352 last year.

“The union money is simply a piggy bank for Harold and his family,” said Walter Arsenault, a former prosecutor who prosecuted crime on the docks for 15 years as head of the now-defunct New York Harbor Waterfront Commission.

The 70-year-old two-state agency went out of business last year after New Jersey withdrew, arguing it had lost its usefulness and that its aggressive policing was hurting business.

“The fact is that there is little control over the activities of the union and its leaders,” Arsenault said. “Harold Daggett threatens to close the ports and comes back a few days later with a 60% raise. With that kind of power, paying union members don’t care how much he pays himself or his family. They think he’s the greatest.”

Daggett declined an interview. However, an ILA attorney defended the union leader’s salary, pointing out that Daggett’s compensation was voted on and approved by ILA members and reflected his “remarkable” performance in securing concessions for workers and improving overall union finances.

“When Harold took over as ILA president in 2011, the union was facing significant financial difficulties,” attorney Michael Critchley said in a written statement to the New Jersey Monitor. “Under his leadership, the ILA has not only recovered but thrived, and its finances are stronger than ever thanks to his keen business acumen.”

According to Critchley, during Daggett’s tenure, the union’s net assets increased 307%, adjusted for inflation, while his salary increases were only about 1% per year.

“The ILA has flourished under his leadership,” he said.