Michael J. Sullivan is a former American labor union leader. Sullivan grew up in

Indianapolis Indianapolis ( ), colloquially known as Indy, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Indiana, most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana, Marion ...

, and in 1965 he started an apprenticeship as a sheet metal worker. He joined the

Sheet Metal Workers' International Association The Sheet Metal Workers' International Association (SMWIA) was a trade union of skilled sheet metal workers. Such workers perform architectural sheet metal work, fabricate and install heating and air conditioning work, shipbuilding, appliance cons ...

, and in 1973 he began working full-time for his local union, as its business agent. In 1979, he became business manager of the local, then in 1994 he won election as general secretary of the international union. In 1999, Sullivan was elected as general president of the union. As leader, he improved the position of the union's pension fund, and created new training opportunities for members, including an associate degree program. He was also elected as a vice-president of the

AFL-CIO The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) is a national trade union center that is the largest federation of unions in the United States. It is made up of 61 national and international unions, together r ...

. He retired in 2011, becoming president of the Eugene V. Debs Foundation.

References

Year of birth missing (living people) Living people American trade union leaders People from Indianapolis Trade unionists from Indiana Vice presidents of the AFL-CIO {{trade-unionist-bio-stub