Unions Accuse Gephardt Aide of Threats

http://www.newsday.com/news/politics/wire/sns-ap-gephardt-labor,0,1779197,print.story?coll=sns-ap-politics-headlines

Prominent labor leaders on Wednesday accused a St. Louis-based aide to Democratic presidential candidate Dick Gephardt of threatening retaliation against state employees if two prominent unions assist rival Howard Dean in the 2004 Missouri primary.

In a letter to Gephardt, D-Mo., Andrew Stern and Gerald McEntee accused Joyce Aboussie of vowing to seek the reversal of an executive order that granted Missouri state employees collective bargaining rights. The two called on Gephardt to fire Aboussie from the campaign and issue a written retraction of her threats.

Aboussie did not immediately return calls for comment. The Gephardt campaign issued a statement saying he strongly supports collective bargaining for public employees; he had no comment on the accusations.

McEntee, head of the 1.5-million member American Federation of State, County and Municipal employees, and Stern, president of the 1.6-million member Service Employees International Union, accused Aboussie of making her threat Monday at a meeting also attended by Missouri Gov. Bob Holden.

and spring Howard Deankakis