A former union leader who was named to head the Ohio School Facilities Commission gave unions "undue access and accommodations," according to a report issued Thursday morning by the Ohio inspector general.
The inspector general's investigation found that executive director Richard C. Murray, appointed by Gov. Ted Strickland in September 2009, failed to "separate his past loyalties and duties from those of the OSFC director" and did not give equal treatment to non-union organizations.
The report said Murray abused his authority by encouraging union workers to "snoop" on non-union workers. "Not only was Murray inappropriately making plain his preference for union construction, he literally mobilized union labor against non-union contractors. These two factions compete for OSFC work and sometimes work side-by-side on projects. Promoting discord and taking sides demonstrated exceedingly poor judgment on Murray's part," the report said.
Murray also accompanied union representatives when they pressured school officials to adopt Project Labor Agreements, or PLAs, the report said.
