Union boss Richard Trumka dies

Richard Trumka rose from the coal mines of Pennsylvania to preside over one of the largest labor organizations in the world. Known for his aggressive style of leadership, he served as president of the AFL-CIO since 2009 after 14 years as the organization’s secretary-treasurer. Trumka died Thursday. He was 72 years old.

What was he known for? Trumka was the son and grandson of coal miners and worked for seven years in the mines before earning an accounting degree from Penn State and then a law degree from Villanova University. He led the AFL-CIO through an era of change as membership declined and white, working-class Americans shifted away from the Democratic Party, a longtime ally of big labor. President Joe Biden called Trumka a close friend who was “more than the head of AFL-CIO.”

Dig deeper: From the WORLD archives, read Emily Belz’s profile of Trumka following his election as union boss.