Marvin J. Boede
February 17, 1997
Portland, OR
WHEREAS, our friend and brother Marvin Boede, former president of the United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipefitting Industry, has resigned from this Executive Council; and
WHEREAS, Marvin Boede has devoted his life to the dedicated and faithful service of the members of his union and of the labor movement for more than 40 years; and
WHEREAS, he began his service to his union in 1952 as a member of UA Local 601 in Milwaukee, eventually being elected to office as vice president, business agent and business manager of the union. He was appointed as an international representative of the UA in 1975 and he was chosen by the UA national executive board to be assistant general president in 1977. He was elected general president of the national union in 1982, and he became a vice president of the AFL-CIO in 1983. In 1992, he was appointed by the President of the United States to the Department of Labor's National Advisory Commission on Work-Based Learning. As a member of this Council, he ably chaired the federation's Education Committee and its Training Committee, and he served with distinction on key committees that helped to shape the federation's national priorities and policies.
WHEREAS, as a trade unionist, Marvin Boede has devoted his life to the goal of assuring a good life for working families. He has been a champion of the right to organize, and he has strived to guarantee all workers safe jobs, fair working conditions, secure pensions and the training and education they need to bring the highest standards of skill, quality and pride to their work.
RESOLVED, that this Executive Council of the AFL-CIO expresses its gratitude and appreciation to Brother Marvin Boede for his contributions to the American labor movement and to the best interests of workers and their families in every union.
RESOLVED, that this expression of appreciation be perpetuated in the permanent records of the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations.