2009 NYC LABOR DAY PARADE KICKS OFF SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 12, 2009
New York City Central Labor Council Hosts Annual Worker March Up Fifth Avenue
With Grand Marshal Lillian Roberts, Executive Director of DC 37,
New York City’s Largest Public Employee Union

NEW YORK, September 12, 2009 – The New York City Central Labor Council kicks off a traditional Labor Day solidarity march up Fifth Avenue on Saturday, September 12, 2009 at 10:00 a.m. to celebrate and honor the accomplishments and contributions of the working men and women of New York City. Over 50,000 union members representing 400 affiliated unions will assemble to march, along with marching bands, Emerald Society pipes and drums, color guards, festive floats, and jazz/salsa bands.

The Labor Day parade will be led by Grand Marshal Lillian Roberts, Executive Director of District Council 37, AFSCME, the city’s largest municipal workforce celebrating 65 years of keeping New York City working. DC 37 will lead the first union delegation of the parade representing over 1,000 vital city job titles ranging from Accountants to Zookeepers.

In a critical decision year for Congress, the parade will be a march of solidarity for labor’s two top priorities — health-care reform and the Employee Free Choice Act. As part of the labor movement’s strong support for national health care reform, parade participants will be united in their remembrance of the late Senator Edward M. Kennedy, a true profile in courage and the strongest champion in Washington for working people and the struggling disadvantaged.

Jack Ahern, president of the New York City Central Labor Council said, “The Labor Day parade is a tradition in New York City, dating back to 1882. Our parade is vintage New York, but while it is an important to remember our past, it is much more about our future. This year, we again march to protect and make better the future of working people. We march to uphold the right for all Americans to afford health care and their freedom to join a union. As we recognize the contributions of working men and women, we will march as a united labor movement in step together, shoulder to shoulder, in the ongoing fight for social and economic justice.”

Lillian Roberts, District Council 37 Executive Director and Parade Grand Marshal said, “It is an honor to be chosen to serve as Grand Marshal of the Labor Day Parade. It is also a tribute to the dedicated public employees District Council 37 represents that our union has been chosen for the first time to lead this march celebrating working men and women. It is deeply gratifying to be recognized by our peers for the fine job this union’s 125,000 members and 50,000 retirees have done and continue to do every day to keep New York running.”

A Labor Day Mass will be celebrated by Archbishop Timothy Dolan at St. Patrick’s Cathedral before the parade at 8:30 a.m. A moment of silence for the victims of September 11, 2001 will take place at 10:30 a.m. at the 69th Street Grand Stand.

History of Labor Day Parade

On September 5, 1882, some 10,000 workers assembled in New York City to participate in America's first Labor Day parade. After marching from City Hall, past reviewing stands in Union Square, and then uptown to 42nd Street, the workers and their families gathered in Wendel's Elm Park for a picnic, concert, and speeches. This first Labor Day celebration was organized and executed by New York’s Central Labor Union, an umbrella group made up of representatives from many local unions. The workers' holiday emerged from the ranks of organized labor at a time when workers wanted to demonstrate the strength of their burgeoning movement and inspire improvements in their working conditions.

For more information about the Labor Day Parade or the New York City Central Labor Council, visit www.nycclc.org or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/nycclc.

About the New York City Central Labor Council

The New York City Central Labor Council (NYCCLC) is a non-profit, chartered body of the AFL-CIO and is the largest regional labor council in the nation. We are a membership organization devoted to supporting, advancing and advocating for the working people of New York City. Over 400 unions are affiliated with the NYCCLC, representing more than 1.3 million union members and their families. The NYCCLC believes there is strength in unity. The mission of the NYCCLC is to improve the lives of workers, their families, and our community – to bring economic justice to the workplace and social justice to the nation. We accomplish this mission by working to build worker power through work on political education and action, economic development in New York City, union organizing, community service and job training/placement programs, and educational outreach.

District Council 37 is New York City's largest public employee union, with 125,000 members and 50,000 retirees.
NYC Board of Education Employees Local 372 of DC 37 represents 25,000 NYC school workers.