Joseph P. Ryan

He immediately joined the International Longshoremen's Association (ILA) and in 1913 became financial secretary of his local union.

[1][2] In 1916, Ryan began working full-time for the union, and two years later, he was elected as president of the ILA's Atlantic Coast District.

After World War II, he imposed a ban on ILA members handling cargo from the Eastern Bloc.

In 1953, he stood down as its leader, and faced charges ranging from misappropriating union funds to evading income tax.

In 1955, he was convicted of violating the Taft-Hartley Act by accepting money from a company that employed longshoremen, but that was overturned on appeal.