Williams, Roy Lee (1915-1989), served as president of the Teamsters Union, the largest labor union in the United States, from 1981 to 1983. Many of the Teamsters are truckdrivers.
Williams was born in Ottumwa, Iowa. He became a truckdriver in 1935. Williams began his union career in 1948 as business agent for the Teamsters in Wichita, Kansas. He served as president of Joint Council 56, a regional Teamsters organization, from 1953 to 1981. In 1976, the Teamsters president, Frank Fitzsimmons, appointed Williams to serve also as director of the union’s 14-state Central Conference. Williams was elected Teamsters president after Fitzsimmons died.
Williams’ supporters praised his ability to bargain for advantageous contracts for Teamsters members. Critics believed Williams had close ties to criminals and pointed to grand jury indictments (charges of criminal activity) that were brought against him. He had been indicted four times. In 1982, Williams was found guilty of attempting to bribe Senator Howard W. Cannon of Nevada. He was sentenced to 55 years in prison. In 1985, his sentence was changed to 10 years. He was released from prison in 1988 after serving about three years of the sentence.
