1 min read

Season 5, Episode 36

Everett Kelley working to lead AFGE members to a better future

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Guest Name:


Everett Kelley

Guest Website:


afge.org 

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Everett Kelley, National President of the American Federation of Government Employees, joined the America’s Work Force Union Podcast to discuss his 44 years with the union. Kelley talked about his success organizing at all levels of the organization and how the AFGE uses its National Legislative and Grassroots Mobilization Conference to fight for government workers.

Growing up in Anniston, Alabama, college isn’t always possible for good students. For Kelley, that was the case, like many Alabamians, the financial issues his family faced kept him from attending college. He joined the military instead, and thanks to his time in the Army, he qualified and utilized the GI Bill to eventually earn a Doctorate degree in Theology. 

From 2002 to 2011, Kelley served as President of AFGE Local 1425 in Anniston —the first Black President of this Local — where he was able to increase membership by 103 percent by the time he moved on to become the Vice President of AFGE District 5. Again, he was the first Black Vice President of District 5 and he didn’t stop organizing. He grew the largest district in the federation from 38,000 members to more than 51,000 in his seven years in charge. In recognition of his organizing accomplishments and leadership at the Local and District level, AFGE members elected Kelley as the National President in August 2018, becoming the second Black National President in AFGE history.

It often feels like government employees are walking around with targets on their backs, Kelley said. When something happens with the government, whether it’s a new law or cuts in funding, government employees are often the forgotten workers. Kelley spoke about the way AFGE is using its National Legislative and Grassroots Mobilization Conference to assist them in their fight for protections. At the end of the day, Kelley said AFGE is here to serve and provide the members with the benefits they need and deserve.

Listen to the show above to hear more from President Kelley.


America’s Work Force is the only daily labor podcast in the US and has been on the air since 1993, supplying listeners with useful, relevant input into their daily lives through fact-finding features, in-depth interviews, informative news segments and practical consumer reports. America’s Work Force is committed to providing an accessible venue in which America's workers and their families can hear discussion on important, relevant topics such as employment, healthcare, legislative action, labor-management relations, corporate practices, finances, local and national politics, consumer reports and labor issues.

America’s Work Force Union Podcast is brought to you in part by our sponsors: AFL-CIO, American Federation of Government Employees, American Federation of Musicians Local 4, Alliance for American Manufacturing, Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield, Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes-IBT, Boyd Watterson, Columbus/Central Ohio Building and Construction Trades Council, Communication Workers of America, Mechanical Insulators Labor Management Cooperative Trust, International Association of Heat and Frost Insulators and Allied Workers Local 50, International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Crafts, International Union of Painters and Allied Trades District Council 6, Ironworkers Great Lakes District Council, Melwood, The Labor Citizen newspaper, Laborers International Union of North America, The National Labor Office of Blue Cross and Blue Shield, North Coast Area Labor Federation, Ohio Federation of Teachers, United Labor Agency, United Steelworkers.

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