The more things change, the more they stay the same. This may be the case at the United Auto Workers (UAW) . A few years after two former UAW presidents were implicated in a massive corruption scheme, reports are emerging that current UAW president Shawn Fain is now the subject of an investigation.

According to the Detroit Free Press, “The independent UAW monitor is investigating union President Shawn Fain’s actions as well as those of Secretary-Treasurer Margaret Mock in the wake of a shake-up in union leadership in recent months. The monitor also is launching a separate probe into an unnamed International Executive Board member for alleged embezzlement.”

The article goes on to note Fain is being investigated for allegedly taking a retaliatory, adverse action against a fellow UAW officer "for among other things, refusing to engage in acts of financial misconduct to benefit others.”

If the investigation ultimately shows Fain or other top UAW officials have engaged in unlawful acts, it could spell big trouble for a union currently under a monitorship related to prior scandals. Penalties could be steep for both the individuals and the union at large.

It also could be a remarkable fall from grace for Fain. Last year, he grabbed extensive headlines during the UAW's labor agreement negotiations with the “Big Three.” Fain orchestrated a series of coordinated strikes at each of the automakers that the UAW then used to leverage what many perceived as favorable collective bargaining agreement terms.

Fain and the UAW have tried to parlay that newfound attention and enthusiasm into other wins, such as by trying to organize companies in the South, where the UAW and other unions historically have performed poorly. Those efforts, though, hit a speed bump recently when autoworkers at Mercedes-Benz in Alabama voted against having the UAW represent them.

We'll see how this plays out, but it seems to be more of the same at the UAW.