DOJ Opens Grand Jury Probe Into UAW President Shawn Fain as National Park Workers Vote to Unionize

About 650 National Park Service employees across 12 park sites and offices have voted to form a new union chapter, approving representation by the National Treasury Employees Union by a 317-11 margin. The June 17 tally created NTEU Chapter 347, covering workers at Grand Canyon, Grand Teton, Rocky Mountain and Glacier national parks, among other sites in the Intermountain Region, from the Rocky Mountains to the Chihuahuan Desert. More than 100 Glacier employees participated in the unionization effort.

At the same time, the U.S. Department of Justice has opened a grand jury investigation into United Auto Workers President Shawn Fain. Bloomberg News first reported the probe on July 12, 2026.

Together, the developments frame the question of whether this is labor's moment of grassroots momentum or another crisis centered on union leadership accountability.

The grand jury investigation focuses on allegations that Fain abused his power to secure benefits for his fiancée and her sister—specifically, a financial bonus for his fiancée and a worker's compensation claim for her sister—and retaliated against union Vice President Rich Boyer when Boyer refused to approve them. Neil Barofsky, the court-appointed independent monitor overseeing the UAW, previously substantiated the claim that Fain acted improperly and that Boyer's refusal contributed to the retaliation. A federal grand jury has subpoenaed Barofsky as part of the probe.

Union attorneys state that the UAW itself is not the subject of the investigation; the probe is focused specifically on Fain. Fain has denied the allegations. Shawn Fain, UAW President, said: "Rich Boyer has fed the monitor false allegations about me and is now trying to weaponize these bogus allegations to steal the upcoming UAW election."

Fain argues the monitor has a political grudge against him due to the UAW's anti-war stance on Gaza. An email from June 18, 2026, indicates the monitor withheld detailed factual findings out of deference to the newly initiated grand jury investigation and did not plan to publicly disclose its existence at that time. The probe coincides with upcoming union leadership elections in which Boyer is running against Fain.

Barofsky was appointed to oversee the UAW's compliance with a 2021 Consent Decree entered between the union and the DOJ. The decree was designed to eradicate fraud, corruption and unethical practices following a major bribery and embezzlement scandal that convicted two former UAW presidents and 11 other senior officials. It mandates at least six years of oversight, anticipated through 2027, with Barofsky empowered to investigate, audit and seek discipline or removal of union officials engaged in misconduct.

Former UAW President Gary Jones was sentenced to 28 months in prison for racketeering, embezzlement and tax evasion, having embezzled up to $1.5 million in union funds. Former UAW President Dennis Williams was sentenced to 21 months in prison for embezzlement and conspiracy, having embezzled over $1 million. Jones and Williams used union money for luxury vacations, golf trips, expensive meals, premium liquor and stays at luxury villas in Palm Springs, California.

Fain was sworn in as UAW President on March 26, 2023, becoming the first UAW president directly elected by union members.

Doreen Greenwald, NTEU National President, said: "This is a historic day for these NPS employees, who have chosen to stand together in solidarity and have a meaningful voice in their workplace." Doreen Greenwald, NTEU National President, said: "NPS IMR employees protect our national heritage and some of our most cherished national treasures... NTEU is honored to help them exercise their collective bargaining rights and improve their work lives."

Peri Sasnett, Glacier National Park employee and interim union officer, said: "We were watching our colleagues watching their jobs, people being pushed out of careers that they have invested a lifetime in... workers who were unionized were more protected."

Peri Sasnett, Glacier National Park employee and interim union officer, said: "Having the protection of a union, having representation is going to allow us to do our jobs as best we can and to take care of these places, which is why we got into these careers to begin with."

The national park vote is part of a broader wave of organizing among Park Service workers, with earlier union wins at Yosemite and Sequoia & Kings Canyon national parks with the National Federation of Federal Employees. Additional NTEU union votes are expected among Pacific West Region national park workers, with ballots going out beginning July 3 and voting continuing through July 31, 2026.

Leadership scandals in organized labor—whether substantiated or not—have historically been weaponized by employers and anti-union politicians to cast doubt on collective bargaining itself rather than holding individual leaders accountable. The current investigation is focused narrowly on one individual's alleged conduct, yet rank-and-file UAW members who directly elected Fain in 2023 now face the risk that his legal troubles will be used to justify attacks on the collective bargaining power they voted to exercise.

The near-unanimous national park vote shows that workers' appetite for organizing is driven by workplace conditions and economic security, not the legal status of any single union president. The real test is whether the federal probe into Fain will be weaponized to undermine that momentum or whether workers' continued wins—from the Intermountain Region to the Pacific West votes expected through July 31—will prove more durable than any one leader's legal troubles.