The Massachusetts AFL-CIO celebrated the 50^th anniversary of its Scholarship Program on Sunday, May 4^th with a banquet at Boston ’s Park Plaza Hotel in honor of this year’s scholarship winners. More than 600 people attended the scholarship banquet dinner, supporting the 210 high school students who were awarded 228 scholarships this year. Aside from being the 50^th anniversary of the program, this year was especially momentous because it was the first year to give away more than $1 million in scholarships.

College tuition costs are at an all-time high and higher education is one of the key components to attaining a good job and good quality of life. The Massachusetts AFL-CIO, understanding this fundamental need for higher education, has continued to grow the scholarship program so that we help more students with more necessary funds for them to be able to afford college.

Massachusetts AFL-CIO President, Robert Haynes, and State Representative and friend of labor, Martin Walsh both addressed the crowd, applauding the students for their hard work and encouraging them to go on with their education with the same enthusiasm and determination.

Scholarship recipients stand proudly

President Haynes spoke with pride about the Scholarship Program as one of the many ways that organized labor gives back to the community, saying “The Scholarship Program has been building for a half-century, helping countless young people not only learn about the Labor Movement but access the higher education that allows them to attain the good jobs with good wages and working conditions that have been the very hallmark for our great Labor Movement. We pause to commemorate and celebrate this great moment, and pledge to keep it going another fifty years.”

The website for the Massachusetts AFL-CIO Scholarship Program can be viewed at http://www.massaflcio.org/scholarship-program.

Click here to read a news report on Workers Independent News.

Click here to listen to an interview of President Robert Haynes by WRKO radio host, Tom Finneran.