[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 54 (Friday, May 3, 2002)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E701-E702]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   TRIBUTE TO MR. WILLIAM BURRUS, PRESIDENT, AMERICAN POSTAL WORKERS 
                             UNION, AFL-CIO

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. WM. LACY CLAY

                              of missouri

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 2, 2002

  Mr. CLAY. Mr. Speaker, I ask for unanimous consent to insert my 
statement into the record and revise and extend my remarks. William 
Burrus is the President of the American Postal Workers Union, AFL-CIO. 
The APWU represents 330,000 clerk, maintenance and motor vehicle 
employees working in the 38,000 facilities of the U.S. Postal Service, 
as well as workers in several private transportation and mail 
companies.
  Mr. Burrus was elected in October 2001 with more than 53 percent of 
the vote in a three-way contest. He is the first African-American in 
220 years of American labor history to be directly elected president by 
the membership of a national union. He also serves on the Executive 
Council of the national AFL-CIO.
  Mr. Burrus has held numerous elected and appointed positions within 
the APWU. Beginning in November 1980, he served as APWU Executive Vice 
President until his election as president. From 1974 to 1980, he served 
as President until his election as president. From 1974 to 1980, he 
served as President of the Cleveland, Ohio APWU Local. While President 
of the Cleveland Local, he was a delegate to

[[Page E702]]

the Cleveland AFL-CIO. In 1968 he was elected Vice President of the 
Cleveland Local of the National Postal Union, a predecessor of the 
APWU. In 1971, after serving on the committee that merged five unions 
to create the American Postal Workers Union, he was elected Director of 
Research and Education of the Ohio State APWU. In 1972, he was 
appointed to the national APWU's Human Relations Committee.
  In 1975, Mr. Burrus joined with the presidents of the APWU locals in 
New York, Pittsburgh and Detroit to form the APWU Presidents 
Conference. He was elected chairman in 1978. During his tenure, he led 
a movement to reject the 1978 tentative collective bargaining 
agreement, resulting in a re-negotiation of the wage package.
  Mr. Burrus began working for the United States Post Office in 1958 as 
a distribution clerk.
  In 1980, Mr. Burrus was appointed to the Ohio Advisory Board of the 
U.S. Civil Rights Commission, and in 1984, he was elected to the 
National Board of the A. Philip Randolph Institute. Mr. Burrus served 
on the Board of Directors of the National Black College Alumni Hall of 
Fame. He serves as a member of the Executive Board of the National 
Coalition of Black Voter Participation. In May 2002, Ebony magazine 
named Mr. Burrus one of the 100+ Most Influential Black Americans.
  Mr. Burrus is a member of the Executive Committee of the Union 
Network International, a global federation of unions that represent 
postal workers and other service workers. He also serves on the Federal 
Advisory Council on Occupational Safety and Health.
  William Burrus was born in Wheeling, West Virginia. After graduating 
with honors from Lincoln High School, he attended West Virginia State 
College. He served in the 101st Airborne Division and 4th Armored Tank 
Division of the United States Army.
  Mr. Burrus is married to Ethelda Burrus. He has four daughters: 
Valerie, Doni, Kimberly and Kristy, one stepson, Antwon, seven 
grandchildren and two greatgrandchildren. He resides in southern 
Maryland.
  I urge my colleagues to join me in congratulating Mr. Burrus, a great 
American labor leader.

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