ALPA President Endorses Trumka for AFL-CIO President

WASHINGTON, DC – Captain John Prater, president of the world’s largest pilots union, announced today that the Air Line Pilots Association, Int’l (ALPA), will endorse Richard L. Trumka as the next president of the AFL-CIO at the AFL-CIO Convention in September. Trumka is serving his fourth term as secretary-treasurer of the AFL-CIO.

“ALPA and Rich Trumka have a long history of supporting each other,” Prater said. “From the United Mineworkers strikes of the 1990s to Rich’s unconditional and unequivocal support for airline pilot issues, we have fought together for the rights of working Americans. He is without question the right person to lead the Federation as we face great challenges.

“Brother Trumka has stood with our members, and proven time and time again to airline pilots that he will never let us or any other union member down,” stated Prater. “He is a true trade unionist who wields the power of unionism every day for working men and women.”

Prater continued, “Like our new national administration, Rich is a product of the American dream. He is miner and a lawyer, with the education, experience, and labor heart to be the next president of the AFL-CIO.”

“This is a time of great excitement and opportunity in our country,” Prater said. “Our retiring president, John Sweeney, has done the hard work in the trenches to bring us from the abyss to solid ground, where we stand ready to grab the moment for working Americans. Now we need a dynamic, thoughtful, and respected leader to guide the labor movement into the future for the good of all workers. That man is Rich Trumka.”

Founded in 1931, ALPA is the world’s largest pilots union, representing nearly 54,000 pilots at 36 airlines in the United States and Canada.

CONTACT: Linda Shotwell, 703/481-4440 or media@alpa.org