I get how some of them worked, so I am more so asking about, using examples from TV shows and movies, skimming a casino or “busting out” a business? How did they use the unions and construction businesses to make money, other than the traditional, non-mafia, way?
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Lots of ways, all of them illegal. I drove for a trucking company that always hauled heavier than the law allowed. They hauled say 20% heavier than was allowed, and they got paid for the tonnage so it looked like they were hauling more loads and paying more drivers and for more trucks than they actually ran. All that ‘extra’ money was on the books as drivers and trucks that didn’t really exist, and it was just pocketed. It was hundreds of thousands a year.
There was a case where organized crime bosses bought tons of cheese that had been condemned and was useless. They stored it at a warehouse business they owned, doctored documents to show it as legitimate and valuable foodstuff and then burned the warehouse for the insurance on the alleged high value contents.
Mafia members and associates bribed and intimidated Union leaders and other Union members to gain influence and in some cases have their associates hold positions of authority within the unions themselves. Once a labor union is taken over, the mobsters have access to pension fund accounts which they skim from and use for their own business investments. The power they had within the Unions allowed them to extort legitimate businesses by threatening strikes and other labor problems. Being connected to unions allowed the Mafia to gain in-roads into legitimate businesses where they could hide their dirty money.
Small time money comes from protection. You own a small store or business and some ‘associates’ collect insurance on your business not being burned or vandalized. Pay the ‘insurance’ or be driven out of business or possibly mysteriously mugged and severely beaten.
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