In October 1973 John Harte brought his first documented complaint against officials of the United Brotherhood of Carpenters, Local 608. From 1973 through the early 1990s Harte took part in a continuing campaign for fair practices and democracy in the local. Also active within the organization Carpenters for a Stronger Union, he was involved in attempting to restructure the election process in the union, and making hiring books available to rank and file members to view. The way in which union members were placed on jobs was the major issue for Harte, believing that preferential treatment was given to loyalists over dissenters who wanted to see more accountability in the way the union operated. On his behalf, the National Labor Relations Board brought suit against Local 608, and when the union still delayed in letting Harte see the hiring books, another suit for contempt was brought against it. The case between the National Labor Relations Board and Local 608 lasted from 1987 to 1994. In the early 1990s a federal racketeering charge was brought against Local 608 for alleged involvement with the Genovese crime family. In the RICO case John Harte was one of many people to give a deposition about the activities and irregularities of the union.