[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 149 (2003), Part 17]
[Senate]
[Page 22792]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                   THE DEATH OF MORRIS ``MOE'' BILLER

 Mr. LIEBERMAN. Mr. President, it saddens me to note the recent 
passing of an old friend, Moe Biller. Moe was, until 2001, the long-
time president of the American Postal Workers Union, and a tireless 
advocate for the postal employees he worked with and represented.
  I met Moe through my first Senate chief of staff, Michael Lewan, who 
was a long-time friend of Moe's from his days as a local union official 
in New York. Michael invited him to attend my Senate swearing-in 
ceremony, and we hit it off immediately.
  Moe was one of a kind--some would say the last of the breed of old 
time labor leaders. He was passionate about the causes he believed in, 
but always remained just a ``regular guy.'' It's fair to say that Moe 
was a pioneer who created the modern labor movement for Federal and 
postal employees. Surely he paved the way for the establishment of 
those employees' rights--postal workers, in particular, had little 
clout until Moe came along.
  He began his career as a substitute postal clerk in 1937 on 
Manhattan's Lower East Side, earning 65 cents an hour with no vacation 
benefits or sick pay. His success in negotiating a sick leave benefit 
for his fellow workers led to the beginning of his rise through the 
ranks of the union hierarchy, which culminated in his election as 
President of the national union in 1980.
  However, his national reputation as a fiery, but effective, leader 
was solidified a decade earlier in 1970, when his efforts encouraged 
Congress to pass the landmark legislation that created today's United 
States Postal Service, the Postal Reorganization Act of 1970. Among the 
important changes instituted by this law was the right postal workers 
received to engage in collective bargaining over pay, benefits, and 
working conditions.
  In addition to his vital work to improve wages and working conditions 
for postal workers, Moe was an active supporter of civil rights and 
women's rights. He also gave generously of his time, serving on 
numerous trade, charitable, and civic organization boards, including 
the Muscular Dystrophy Association and the United Way International.
  Moe will be sorely missed by all of those who knew him, but I know 
that his achievements and his work will live on.

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