Continuing its ongoing mission to develop young union leaders in the Commonwealth, the Massachusetts AFL-CIO held its Third Annual Futures Convention at the Plymouth Radisson Hotel on Friday, February 5^th and Saturday, February 6^th.

 

Along with a packed agenda of speakers discussing the overall state of the Labor Movement, the progress and next steps for the Futures Program, and strategies to develop leadership among young union members, a staple of the Massachusetts AFL-CIO Futures Program is the election of a Futures Representative to serve a one year term on the Massachusetts AFL-CIO Executive Council and to head the Futures Program for the coming year. This year, delegates to the Convention voted among a group of three candidates nominated by their fellow delegates and chose Daniel Manning of IBEW Local 2325 as their new Representative. Also running for the Futures Seat were Ben Sherman of Sheet Metal Workers Local 17 and Christopher Deane of Iron Workers Local 7.

 

Dan Manning will be the third young union member to hold the Futures seat on the Executive Council, taking over for Allison Doherty-LaCasse, a member of the Boston Teachers Union who served for the past year and led the Futures program through its successful second year. Jeremy McKeen, a member of the Lynn Teachers Union, served as the first Futures Representative in 2008.

 

Dan Manning has been an active member in his own local, IBEW Local 2325, the Worcester-area local representing Verizon’s telecom workers. In October of this year, he delivered a memorable speech at a rally in front of Verizon’s New England headquarters in Boston, urging the company to stop a round of devastating and unjustified layoffs during these trying economic times. Unfortunately, Dan’s job was one of thousands that Verizon eliminated nationwide, but he remains an active member of the local, serving on its Executive Board.

 

Massachusetts AFL-CIO President Robert Haynes, who opened the Convention with a speech to delegates on Friday, had this to say: “Congratulations to Dan Manning on becoming the next Massachusetts AFL-CIO Futures Representative. I look forward to working with him throughout the next year to further grow this important program, and to have his voice representing young union members on our Executive Council. I also wish to thank Ben Sherman and Chris Deane for their clear dedication to the program which they demonstrated by running for the Futures seat, and Allison Doherty-LaCasse for her excellent work as Futures Representative during the past year. It is inspiring to see so many younger members, including all of our delegates, who wish to become more involved in our Labor Movement.”

 

The Futures Convention featured many compelling speakers throughout the two days. AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Liz Shuler offered a video-greeting to the delegates and expressed her regret for not being able to join the event in person. Secretary-Treasurer Shuler was scheduled to speak, but had to fly back to Washington, DC immediately after addressing the Mass. AFL-CIO State of the Union Convention due to the massive snowstorm headed for the nation’s capital. Also speaking on Friday was former Massachusetts Secretary of Labor and Workforce Development and candidate for State Auditor Suzanne Bump.

 

Some exciting news broke during Thursday’s events, with two Futures delegates announcing that they are running for elected office in 2010. John Kelly, President of IBEW Local 2321, announced a run for State Senate in the Second Essex and Middlesex district, and IBEW Local 2325 member Paul Mark announced a run for State Representative in the Second Berkshire District.

 

Friday’s agenda also featured a series of workshops on labor law, workers’ rights and running for elected office. Attorneys James Shaw and Louis A. Mandarini of the law firm Segal, Roitman LLP led the workshop on labor law, with the workers’ rights panel being led by Isabel Lopez of the Massachusetts Coalition of Occupational Safety and Health (MassCOSH) and James Kelley of the law firm Thornton & Naumes. Isabel brought with her two immigrant workers who contacted the MassCOSH Workers’ Center for assistance in dealing with abusive employers.

 

On Saturday, Jeff Santos, host of The Jeff Santos Show on progressive talk station AM 1510, spoke to delegates about communicating Labor’s message through the media, and Elaine Bernard, a preeminent labor scholar and the Executive Director of the Labor and Worklife Program at Harvard University, spoke to delegates about the state of the Labor Movement in the U.S. and how it is up to the next generation of union leaders to rejuvenate it.