Sweeney Rushes to Fill AFL-CIO’s No. 3
With an Unknown Personal Assistant

On Sept. 21, the day that Linda Chavez-Thompson will resign as executive vice president, AFL-CIO President John Sweeney will ask the Executive Council to endorse his recommendation that Arlene Holt-Baker, one of his personal assistants, immediately take over the Federation’s No. 3 spot. Sweeney told BNA that she has “strong leadership skills, as well as extensive organizing and political experience.˛”

What this means is that the 44 Executive Council members are being asked to elect the third most important AFL-CIO official, purely on Sweeney’s say-so, without even a day to vet her qualifications. Arlene Holt-Baker may be a good organizer, but she is a completely unknown personality, not only to the AFL-CIO membership, but to the Executive Council. What do we know about her? What has she said or done that qualifies her for this important job, especially at a time when our unions are facing a tough time? If she is chosen in this manner, she will be beholden to Sweeney. She won’t be the independent voice we need in that position.

Normally, when a top official resigns from an organization, he or she allots time to choose a qualified successor. Why couldn’t Linda also have followed the same practice? Why was the date of her resignation so timed that Sweeney could get his hand-picked candidate chosen without giving the Executive Council not even one day to deliberate on Chavez-Thompson’s replacement?

Why shouldn’t the Executive Council be allowed a sufficient amount of time to interview other candidates who are qualified for the important leadership position? Why settle on Sweeney’s choice, without giving “the best and the brightest” a chance to compete for the job?

On Sept. 21, the members of the Executive Council will be put to the test. It will have to decide whether Sweeney’s rush to elect his hand-picked, non-vetted candidate on one-day’s notice is the proper way to elect an executive vice president who will hold office for the next two critical years. Not only union members, but the public at large will be watching the outcome.

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