JULY 17, 2009:NWLP
7/14/09
10:27 AM
Page 8
IBEW Local 125’s Liz Shuler
Oregonian runs for AFL-CIO secretary-treasurer
Elizabeth (Liz) Shuler, a former
lobbyist and communications director
for IBEW Local 125 in Portland, is
running for secretary-treasurer of the
national AFL-CIO on a ticket with
Richard Trumka, who is running for
president, and Arlene Holt Baker, who
is seeking re-election as executive
vice president.
Trumka is currently secretary-
treasurer of the labor federation. He
hopes to succeed President John
Sweeney, who is retiring.
Election of officers will take place
at the 26th Constitutional Convention
of the AFL-CIO Sept. 13-17 in Pitts-
burgh.
Gregory Junemann, president of
International Federation of Profes-
sional and Technical Engineers, also
is running for secretary-treasurer.
If successful, Shuler would be the
highest ranking woman ever elected to
an AFL-CIO leadership post — and
also the youngest at age 39.
Shuler has served as executive as-
sistant to IBEW President Edwin Hill
since June 2004, where she oversees
the work and budgeting of 11 depart-
ments, including utility, manufactur-
PAGE 8
L IZ S HULER
ing, telecommunications, broadcast-
ing and government, education, re-
search, political/legislative affairs, hu-
man services, media and safety. The
appointment made her one of the
highest ranking women in IBEW’s
history.
Prior to that, Shuler served as inter-
national representative in the IBEW’s
Political/Legislative Affairs Depart-
ment, where she lobbied on numerous
issues and helped implement the
IBEW’s political program.
A graduate of the University of
Oregon with a degree in journalism,
Shuler was a Democratic Party ac-
tivist in college. She worked summer
clerical jobs at Portland General Elec-
tric, where her father, Lance, was a
lineman and member of IBEW Local
125, and her mother was an estimator
in service and design.
Shuler was initiated into IBEW
Local 125 in 1993, where she was the
local’s political/legislative director un-
der Business Manager Bill Miller un-
til 1998. For several legislative ses-
sions, she led the local’s effort at the
State Capitol to prevent the passage of
electricity deregulation in Oregon.
She built successful coalitions with al-
lied organizations, even against pow-
erful interests such as Enron. During
that time, she traveled across the lo-
cal’s multi-state jurisdiction conduct-
ing Construction Organizing Mem-
bership Education and Training
(COMET) and Membership Educa-
tion and Mobilization for Organizing
(MEMO) courses.
She served on the State of Ore-
gon’s Management-Labor Advisory
Committee on Workers’ Compensa-
tion and also was a delegate to the
Northwest Oregon Central Labor
NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS
Council.
In 1998, Shuler was assigned by
then-International President J. J. Barry
to coordinate the IBEW’s ground mo-
bilization effort to battle the Proposi-
tion 226 “paycheck deception” cam-
paign in California.
Later that year, she was appointed
international representative and
moved to Washington, D.C. In that
job, she lobbied on issues such as en-
ergy and electricity, Davis-Bacon,
health care, transportation, apprentice-
ship and training, unemployment and
telecommunications.
Shuler is active with Women in the
Trades and is a member of the board
of the Women’s Campaign Fund, a bi-
partisan fundraising organization that
aims to boost the number of women
holding public office. For several
years she has volunteered with the In-
ternational Women’s Democracy Cen-
ter, a mentoring program that encour-
ages women to run for office and seek
change in countries overseas.
Zachary
Zabinsky
• Social Security
• SSI - Disability Claims
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Since 1983
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621 SW Morrison, Portland
503-223-8517
JULY 17, 2009