Richard Trumka

On Sept. 16, 2009, Richard L. Trumka was elected president of the AFL-CIO by acclamation at the federation's 26th Constitutional Convention in Pittsburgh. His election followed 14 years of service as Secretary-Treasurer of the AFL-CIO and built on his roots in the small coal mining communities of southwest Pennsylvania. He was elected the youngest Secretary-Treasurer in AFL-CIO history in 1995, as part of an insurgent campaign to reinvigorate the American labor movement. At the time of his election, Trumka was serving his third term as President of the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA).