Former Union Officer Pleads Guilty to Embezzlement

BOSTON – The former Secretary-Treasurer of UNITE HERE Local 26 pleaded guilty today in federal court in Boston to embezzling over $100,000 from the organization.

Henry Clay Green Sr., 60, of Boston, pleaded guilty to one count of embezzlement from a labor union. U.S. District Court Chief Judge Patti B. Saris scheduled sentencing for March 13, 2018.

From May 19, 2011 to July 14, 2016, Green was Secretary-Treasurer of UNITE HERE Local 26, a labor union representing the hospitality industries in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. In that capacity, Green exercised control over various aspects of Local 26’s financial operations and used his position to embezzle $171,455 from the organization for his own use. When confronted by union officials, Green confessed.  

The charging statute provides for a sentence of no greater than five years in prison, three years of supervised release, a fine of $250,000, or twice the gross gain/loss, whichever is greater, and restitution. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Acting United States Attorney William D. Weinreb; Michael Mikulka, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations, Labor Racketeering and Fraud; Carol S. Hamilton, Acting Director of the U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration, Boston Regional Office; and Jonathan Russo, District Director of the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Labor Management Standards, Boston District Office, made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorney Laura J. Kaplan of Weinreb’s Organized Crime and Gang Unit is prosecuting the case.