[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 140 (Tuesday, September 10, 2024)]
[House]
[Page H5109]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                RECOGNIZING GEORGE NEE ON HIS RETIREMENT

  (Mr. MAGAZINER asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. MAGAZINER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the remarkable 
career of George Nee, a good friend, father, grandfather, and tireless 
advocate for working Rhode Islanders, who is retiring as the president 
of the Rhode Island AFL-CIO after four decades of service.
  George has dedicated his life to improving the lives of working 
people and their families. At just 21 years old, he left college to 
work for the farm workers' union, helping to organize Boston's grape 
boycott in the late 1960s and the lettuce boycott of 1971.
  He worked closely with renowned labor leader Cesar Chavez and saw 
firsthand how these boycotts improved the lives of workers. George then 
created an independent union of clerical workers, healthcare workers, 
and jewelry workers in 1976 that grew to more than 1,500 members.
  In 1983, he joined the Rhode Island AFL-CIO, working his way up from 
staff representative to president in 2009, leading more than 80,000 
union members across our State as the quintessential happy warrior on 
behalf of working people in Rhode Island.
  In addition to the hundreds of fights for fair contracts, better 
wages, and better benefits, George boldly led the Rhode Island AFL-CIO 
in support of marriage equality and stood for commonsense gun safety 
laws.
  It is a real honor to recognize my friend, George, and to 
congratulate him on his impactful and tremendous career.

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