[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 160 (Thursday, November 13, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2391-E2392]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       TRIBUTE TO JOHN STURDIVANT

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. RICHARD A. GEPHARDT

                              of missouri

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, November 13, 1997

  Mr. GEPHARDT. Mr. Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to the late, great 
American labor leader, John N. Sturdivant. John passed away on October 
28 after a long and courageous battle with cancer. He will be forever 
remembered and missed, especially by those of us who worked alongside 
him on issues of critical importance to America's working men and 
women.
  John was the National President of the American Federation of 
Government Employees [AFGE] since 1988. An AFGE activist for more than 
30 years, he worked his way up the ranks, serving as president of Local 
1754 in Winchester, VA, from 1968 until 1976, when he joined the 
union's national office. Upon his election as national President in 
1988, he had the proud distinction of being the first African-American 
to hold that office and to serve as president of a major AFL-CIO union.
  John was born in Philadelphia on June 30, 1938 and raised in 
Bridgeport, CT. In 1956 he enlisted in the Air Force, where he served 
our country until 1960. In 1961 he went to work as an electronics 
technician with the Army Interagency Communications Agency in 
Winchester, VA, where he became active in AFGE.
  When he was elected National President of AFGE, John inherited an 
AFGE that was in dire financial straits. Although the union was near 
bankruptcy, John was determined to save it and continue its long 
history of service to Federal employees. He made the difficult 
financial decisions needed to stabilize the union, and succeeded in 
saving the organization from disarray. Today, AFGE has about 178,000 
active members in 1,100 locals and represents over 700,000 workers in 
68 Federal agencies, more than one third of the Federal workforce. 
Under John's leadership AFGE became a watchdog against inefficiency in 
government and a champion of workers' and human rights both at home and 
abroad.
  John was well known and highly respected on Capitol Hill, where he 
worked tirelessly on behalf of better pay, improved working conditions, 
and higher quality health and retirement benefits for federal 
employees. He helped win the locality pay system that will bring 
Federal salaries in line with those in the private sector. And he led a 
long battle for the Health Act Reforms that now permit Federal 
employees to participate in our democratic process.
  In the aftermath of the Oklahoma City bombing, John worked closely 
with President Clinton and Federal, State and local officials to 
provide aid and comfort to survivors and to the families of those who 
died. Once the grieving had subsided, he was instrumental in bringing 
increased security measures at Federal installations so this tragedy 
would never be repeated.
  As a member of the President's National Partnership Council, he was a 
full partner in the effort to create better employee-management 
relationships and to reinvent the Federal Government. He understood 
that the best way to improve service to the public is by giving those 
who do the work a voice in how the work is done.
  During the partial shutdowns of the Government in 1995 and 1996, 
John's voice was a powerful one in support of reopening the government 
and providing workers with back pay when they returned.
  John, who lived in Vienna, VA, had been an at-large member of the 
Democratic National Committee. He was a vice president of the AFL-CIO 
and a trustee of the George Meany Center for Labor Studies. He received 
a Bachelor of Arts degree in Labor Studies from Antioch University in 
1980 and later studied law at George Washington University.
  John Sturdivant devoted his life to championing the causes of working 
people in America. His courage, honesty, dedication and vision made him 
the model of a great union leader. I was proud to know and work with 
him. All of his many friends and colleagues join me in remembering his 
passing, and praising his many contributions to improving our 
Government and Nation.

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