Friends, union leaders, and supporters from across Long Island came together recently to honor Janet Powers for her decades-long career in standing up for the men and women of organized labor. She is a champion of the middle class, according to her proponents, who helped set the standard for decent wages and benefits for the hard-working people of New York.
“Janet has been an honest, trustworthy, loyal, and incorruptible representative of the Enterprise Association Steamfitters Local Union 638 for years,” said Assemblyman Joseph DeStefano, who put together the event at Harbor Crab in Patchogue. “She says you become a true leader when you help your team become successful. Leadership, she notes, is not about the leader but the people they serve.”
“Janet is a terrific partner with all of the trades. She is so deeply trusted by her union colleagues that she is a trustee of the Suffolk County Business Agents and also the President of the Building & Construction Trades Council of Nassau & Suffolk Counties,” noted Senator Mario Mattera, a Business Agent with Plumbers Local 200. “She is the kind of person that you trust as soon as you meet her.”
Starting with the Steamfitters in 1987, when few women were in the trade, the Sayville resident graduated from the union’s apprentice program and became a Fitter in Charge. She was a Deputy Foreman at Con Edison’s 14th St. Powerhouse and a Shop Steward. She served six years on the local’s Finance Board and another six on the Executive Board before earning the honor of being Local 638’s first woman Business Agent. She represented over 9,100 members of her local, which is one of the largest unions in the nation.
Powers was elected delegate to the 36th, 37th, and 38th national conventions of the United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipefitting Industry of the United States and Canada. The organization represents approximately 380,000 Plumbers, Pipefitters, Sprinkler Fitters, HVACR Service Technicians, Welders, and Pipeliners working in the construction industry throughout North America. She attended the 39th convention as well as a Business Agent.
Powers was appointed trustee to the union’s Educational Fund and served on numerous committees, including Good and Welfare, Emergency Relief, Uninsured Medical, Political Engagement, Constitution Revisions, and the Labor Day Parade Committee. She also sits on the Long Island Labor Advisory Council.
“All of the people of Long Island, union or otherwise, have benefited from her passion for the working class,” says Assemblyman DeStefano, a longtime member of the Suffolk Association of Municipal Employees. “For those willing to work hard and dedicate themselves to a career, the standard of living is very high. They have labor leaders such as Janet Powers to thank for that.”