VT AFL-CIO Press Release, October 9, 2002
Burlington – At the Vermont State Labor Council AFL-CIO Convention Saturday, September 14th James Haslam was awarded the Lena Brown Labor Award, Vermont’s top labor award. Haslam is the Executive Director of the Vermont Workers’ Center. Past recipients of this prestigious award include longtime labor supporter and Ludlow state legislator John Murphy and current US Congressman Bernard Sanders.
“James has brought a lot of energy and a tremendous amount of commitment to the struggle for justice for the working people of Vermont,” said Ron Pickering, President of the State Federation of Labor. “The work that he and so many other great worker activists are doing at the Vermont Workers’ Center has really made a huge impact on the labor movement in this state. Whether it’s educating people on economic issues effecting Vermonters, encouraging solidarity amongst all different types of workers throughout the state or fighting the abuses of workers, the Workers’ Center has made a crucial difference in many of our lives.”
The Lena Brown Labor Award was established to honor the person that has gone above and beyond in their commitment to workers in this state. It is named in honor of Lena Brown, who signed the original charter for the State Labor Council and committed her life to the labor movement in Vermont.
The Vermont Workers’ Center was established in 1996 and has an office in Montpelier. It is a non-profit community organization committed to fighting for workers’ rights and economic justice. The Vermont Workers’ Center is a coalition of labor and community organizations and they are part of a national workers’ rights campaign called Jobs with Justice. The work of the organization is mostly done by volunteers, who are comprised of union and non-union Vermonters who work together in the struggle for fairness and justice. They operate the Vermont Workers’ Rights Hotline, which is toll-free 866-229-0009.