Title
To Congratulate John B. King Sr. as the 2025 George Meany Community Service Award Recipient.
Body
WHEREAS, the George Meany Awards Banquet, the largest labor recognition of its kind in the country, is a night for the Central Ohio AFL-CIO and the United Way Community Services Department to recognize local business and labor leaders who have given outstanding volunteer service to the community; and
WHEREAS, the George Meany Awards, named after the late George Meany, former President of the national AFL-CIO, are presented by the Central Ohio AFL-CIO to a labor person for outstanding leadership and support of health, welfare, and recreation services to the Central Ohio Community; and
WHEREAS, John has served on the staff of UFCW Local 1059 for 16 years, but his union journey started when he first joined the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union in 1981, working for Pathmark supermarkets in Danbury, Connecticut; and
WHEREAS, in 1989, John moved back to Ohio and took on the position of Head Grocery Manager at Cub Foods, a union position represented by UFCW Local 1059. When Cub Foods was acquired by Kroger in 1997, he moved into a Head Frozen role with Kroger, becoming a Head Grocery in 1998. He soon became a Union Steward, and his union activism continued to grow; and
WHEREAS, in 2009, John joined the staff of UFCW Local 1059 as an organizer. He worked to build his union, the labor movement, and bring together workers in collective action; and
WHEREAS, after becoming a Union Representative in 2014, John found a new purpose serving the Local 1059 membership through representation and advocacy. In 2024, he became the Head Steward of his own bargaining unit in the Federation of Agents and International Representatives (FAIR); and
WHEREAS, John currently serves as an Executive Board member of the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists (CBTU), the A. Philip Randolph Institute (APRI), UCFW Local 1059, and the Mid-Ohio Central Labor Council; now...
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