The Hired Truck Program was a scandal-plagued program in the city of Chicago that involved hiring private trucks to do city work. It was overhauled in 2004 (and phased out beginning in 2005) after an investigation by the Chicago Sun-Times revealed that some participating companies were being paid for doing little or no work , had mob connections , or were tied to city employees. Truck owners also paid bribes in order to get into the program.
28-461: The Hired Truck Program officially came to an end Monday, September 18, 2006. At the end of the work day on Friday, September 15, 2006, the final eight Hired Trucks were laid off permanently. The Sun-Times investigation began when a reporter, Tim Novak, spotted a red truck parked on the city block where he resides. This single red dump truck bore a sign saying it was leased to the city of Chicago's Hired Truck Program. The reporter eventually staked out
56-466: A 1 ⁄ 6 -shekel per day freight rate for a 60-gur vessel. Depending on the structure and traditions of different economies around the world, wage rates will be influenced by market forces ( supply and demand ), labour organisation, legislation, and tradition. Market forces are perhaps more dominant in the United States , while tradition, social structure and seniority , perhaps play
84-442: A 2-shekel prevailing wage for each 60- gur (300- bushel ) vessel constructed in an employment contract between a shipbuilder and a ship-owner . Law 275 stipulated a ferry rate of 3- gerah per day on a charterparty between a ship charterer and a shipmaster . Law 276 stipulated a 2 1 ⁄ 2 -gerah per day freight rate on a contract of affreightment between a charterer and shipmaster, while Law 277 stipulated
112-412: A Federal investigation into hiring practices at Chicago City Hall , with Robert Sorich , Mayor Daley's former patronage chief, facing mail fraud charges for allegedly rigging city hiring to favor people with political connections. On July 5, 2006, Sorich, was convicted on two counts of mail fraud for rigging city jobs and promotions. Nick "The Stick" LoCoco was also of prime concern. He was discovered as
140-530: A central role in the annals of crime and corruption in New York, offering an efficient way for crooked politicians, union officials, mobsters and all manner of miscreants to funnel kickbacks and bribes to friends, family members, business associates and even themselves". Philip Carlo , in his biography of Anthony "Gaspipe" Casso , writes that no-show jobs are "a classic Mafia setup" and that such positions were highly prized among mobsters. A 2012 report of
168-415: A city water crew for five days, watching four Hired Trucks sit idly during each eight-hour shift. Each truck cost taxpayers $ 50.17 an hour . During these days of investigation, Novak and fellow reporter Steve Warmbir commented that the only excitement these truck drivers experienced was a lunch break to the local McDonald's . Novak and Warmbir began to research the program, resulting in "Clout on Wheels",
196-688: A dozen years. Kozubowski was sentenced to five years in prison. In June 2006, Laski was sentenced to two years in prison. It was also revealed that tons of asphalt paid for by the city were stolen by truck drivers in the Hired Truck program. The asphalt was then used on private jobs. Hourly wage A wage is payment made by an employer to an employee for work done in a specific period of time. Some examples of wage payments include compensatory payments such as minimum wage , prevailing wage , and yearly bonuses, and remunerative payments such as prizes and tip payouts. Wages are part of
224-450: A grand jury and deny that they had been giving him $ 500 to $ 1,000 a week in cash bribes to keep getting business from the Hired Truck program. Laski resigned his $ 135,545-a-year job and gave up his law license. In March 2006 he pleaded guilty. Laski came into office as a reformer after his predecessor, City Clerk Walter Kozubowski, was convicted in a ghost payroll scheme for paying a total of $ 476,000 to six "ghosts" for little or no work over
252-458: A greater role in Japan . Even in countries where market forces primarily set wage rates, studies show that there are still differences in remuneration for work based on sex and race. For example, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics , in 2007 women of all races made approximately 80% of the median wage of their male counterparts. This is likely due to the supply and demand for women in
280-692: A long history. In the corporate world, "no-show" employees—also called ghost employees—usually have some family or personal relationship to a manager or supervisor. In the corporate world, this is considered a type of payroll fraud. Fraud audits seek to detect such practices. Somewhat related to the aforementioned practice, in jurisdictions with progressive income taxation business owners may place non-arms-length persons (especially family members) on their payroll at salaries for which they perform no work, or alternatively perform limited duties which an arms-length employee would be willing to perform for substantially lower compensation. This results in
308-471: A number of cities have set their own minimum wage rates that are higher than the federal level. For certain federal or state government contacts, employers must pay the so-called prevailing wage as determined according to the Davis–Bacon Act or its state equivalent. Activists have undertaken to promote the idea of a living wage rate which account for living expenses and other basic necessities, setting
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#1732783506817336-626: A three-part series released by the Sun-Times in January 2004. This on-going series exposed how the city of Chicago spent $ 40 million a year on privately owned dump trucks. Part one gave detailed information about the program, where part two sparked conversation about ties to organized crime, and part three confronted political ties between the Hired Truck Program and the current political power base. Between 1996 and 2004, companies in
364-510: Is a similar paid position for which no work is expected, but for which attendance at the job site is required. Upon auditing or inspection, personnel assigned to a no-work job may be falsely justified to the controllers as waiting for work tasks or not being needed "right now." For example: no-show or no-work jobs may be used during illegal activities for scamming a construction project to generate extra payout or to provide alibis . The New York Times has written: "The no-show job has long played
392-409: Is married to Cook County Commissioner John P. Daley , the mayor's brother, pleaded guilty to taking at least $ 5,400 in bribes to steer Hired Truck work to a trucking company. The litany of cases of bribery grew to include former City Clerk James Laski , who was charged in January 2006 with taking bribes and obstructing justice after federal agents caught him on tape encouraging witnesses to lie to
420-493: The Internal Revenue Code : "For purposes of this chapter, the term “wages” means all remuneration (other than fees paid to a public official) for services performed by an employee for his employer, including the cash value of all remuneration (including benefits) paid in any medium other than cash;" In addition to requiring that the remuneration must be for "services performed by an employee for his employer,"
448-580: The Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor found that "no-show jobs held by relatives of mobsters and other well-connected people continue to vex government officials trying to make the ports more efficient and more competitive". In the past, no-show jobs were also an aspect of corruption in Boston . No-show jobs continue to play a role in corruption cases in Chicago , where they have had
476-651: The $ 40 million-a-year program "is a good program which does a good benefit to the taxpayers of Chicago. It saves taxpayer money. It allows the city to efficiently get jobs done. It is the appropriate use of private resources, as opposed to the city having to engage in its own use of resources." The scandal was damaging to then-Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley , whose brother sold insurance to three major trucking companies. Additionally, 25 percent of all Hired Truck money went to companies from Daley's 11th Ward power base, accumulating $ 47.8 million between 1999 and October 2003. Additionally, $ 108,575 in campaign contributions flowed to
504-497: The Hired Truck Program gave more than $ 800,000 in campaign contributions to various politicians, from House Speaker Michael Madigan to the Governor of Illinois , Rod Blagojevich , to a host of Hispanic politicians. Mayor Richard M. Daley got at least $ 108,575 and his brother, John Daley , and his ward organization took in more than $ 47,500 from firms in the Hired Truck Program in the same period. The scandal eventually sparked
532-453: The city employee whose primary job was to determine which trucks were used for work with the city's transportation department. LoCoco, a well-known mob bookie , was later charged but did not make it to trial because of a horseback riding accident. Despite the revelations in the Sun-Times , the city defended the program. As the first indictment was unsealed from a sweeping Federal investigation, Chicago City Corporation Counsel Mara Georges said
560-676: The concept of an hourly wage. Wages were paid in the Middle Kingdom of ancient Egypt, ancient Greece , and ancient Rome. Following the unification of the city-states in Assyria and Sumer by Sargon of Akkad into a single empire ruled from his home city circa 2334 BC, common Mesopotamian standards for length , area , volume , weight , and time used by artisan guilds were promulgated by Naram-Sin of Akkad (c. 2254–2218 BC), Sargon's grandson, including shekels . Codex Hammurabi Law 234 (c. 1755–1750 BC) stipulated
588-417: The definition goes on to list 23 exclusions that must also be applied. Political science: Comprehensive Employment and Training Act No-show job A no-show job is a paid position that ostensibly requires the holder to perform duties, but for which no work, or even attendance, is actually expected. The awarding of no-show jobs is a form of political or corporate corruption . A no-work job
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#1732783506817616-404: The expenses that are involved in running a business. It is an obligation to the employee regardless of the profitability of the company. Payment by wage contrasts with salaried work , in which the employer pays an arranged amount at steady intervals (such as a week or month) regardless of hours worked, with commission which conditions pay on individual performance, and with compensation based on
644-489: The issue in The Ancient Economy : The wage is the monetary measure corresponding to the standard units of working time (or to a standard amount of accomplished work, defined as a piece rate ). The earliest such unit of time, still frequently used, is the day of work. The invention of clocks coincided with the elaborating of subdivisions of time for work, of which the hour became the most common, underlying
672-436: The living wage rate much higher than current minimum wage laws require. The minimum wage rate is there to protect the well being of the working class. In the second quarter of 2022, the total U.S. labor costs grew up 5.2% year over year, the highest growth since the starting point of the serie in 2001. For purposes of federal income tax withholding, 26 U.S.C. § 3401(a) defines the term "wages" specifically for chapter 24 of
700-468: The market because of family obligations. Similarly, white men made about 84% the wage of Asian men, and black men 64%. These are overall averages and are not adjusted for the type, amount, and quality of work done. It is known that the wage level of employees in the public sector affects the frequency of corruption, and that higher salary levels for public sector workers help reduce corruption. It has also been shown that countries with smaller wage gaps in
728-423: The mayor from companies in the program beginning in 1996. In February 2005, Daley denied complicity in the unfolding scandal saying, "Anyone who believes that my interest in public life is in enriching my family, friends or political supporters doesn't know or understand me at all. My reputation and the well-being of this city are more important to me than any election." In February 2006, John Briatta, whose sister
756-439: The performance of the company as a whole. Waged employees may also receive tips or gratuity paid directly by clients and employee benefits which are non-monetary forms of compensation. Since wage labour is the predominant form of work, the term "wage" sometimes refers to all forms (or all monetary forms) of employee compensation. Wage labour involves the exchange of money for time spent at work. As Moses I. Finley lays out
784-534: The public sector have less corruption. Seventy-five million workers earned hourly wages in the United States in 2012, making up 59% of employees. In the United States , wages for most workers are set by market forces , or else by collective bargaining , where a labor union negotiates on the workers' behalf. The Fair Labor Standards Act establishes a minimum wage at the federal level that all states must abide by, among other provisions. Fourteen states and
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