IBEW Local 1’s Tim Green honored by UMSL

60 distinguished alumni being recognized during University’s 60th anniversary year-long celebration

By ED FINKELSTEIN
Publisher Emeritus

St. Louis – Tim Green, executive vice president and director of Governmental Affairs of the Electrical Connection, the Labor-management partnership between IBEW Local 1 and the National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA), is being honored by his alma mater, the University of Missouri at St. Louis (UMSL), for his life-long role in applying “the university’s core value in the world and helping to make it a better place” as one of 60 alumni highlighting the university’s 60th anniversary being celebrated throughout this year.

“As a strong voice for the people, Tim Green has made life better for generations of Missouri residents,” said the university’s announcement, noting that the university “is proud of the economic and philanthropic reach of its programs and partnerships, but it’s the people UMSL most wants to honor as it celebrates its 60th anniversary.”

DISTINGUISHED CAREER
Green is currently the executive vice president and director of Governmental Affairs of the Electrical Connection, the Labor-management partnership that unites more than 5,000 highly skilled and safe IBEW electricians and communication technicians and the more than 150 electrical contractors that employ them.

During his 40-year career as a Local 1 member, he served:

• 22 years as a distinguished political leader; eight years as a state senator and 14 years as a state representative fighting for the rights of workers on many fronts.
• 20 years as president of the Missouri State Building Trades Council.
• Commissioner, St. Charles County Convention & Sports Authority.

And despite these intense responsibilities, he managed to also serve on the:

• UMSL Chancellor’s Council Legislative Advocacy Committee.
• Historic Revitalization of Missouri Association.
• U.S. Green Building Council, Missouri Gateway Chapter.

UNIVERSITY ANNOUNCEMENT
“Throughout his legislative career, Green served as an advocate for Labor unions to improve the state’s business climate. Significant legislative accomplishments included measures that redistributed municipal sales tax dollars in St. Louis County, required utility companies to set aside pension benefits for retirees and gave contractors the right to receive prompt payment for their services.

“I understood the demands of business and how to utilize public policy to achieve success in our region and our state,” Green said. “Bringing quality jobs with health and pension benefits provided citizens opportunities for gratifying careers.

“The hard work and perseverance needed to complete courses for a degree, while working full-time, gave me the work ethic to knock on doors and ask people for their vote. My education was critical in helping me understand the positive outcomes that were possible through legislation.”

The University noted Green’s legislative work also made a positive difference for the mentally ill and developmentally disabled, earning recognition from the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill that and the Missouri Association of County Developmental Disabilities Services. In addition, he fought to ensure that low-income Missourians have access to legal assistance, an effort recognized by Legal Services of Eastern Missouri.

Green, who graduated from UMSL with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration in 1990, says the experience gave him the courage to pursue a career in politics.

FAMILY TRADITION
Brother Green’s political insights and educational desires are a family tradition. He credits his father, a union construction electrician member of Local 1, and his mother, a teamster forklift driver, for instilling in their seven children a thirst for knowledge through education. That passion became a family affair after all seven children (five of which are Local 1 electricians) earned their bachelor’s degrees from UMSL. Green’s grandfather Tom Walsh, also a union electrician, was the legendary “dean” of the Missouri House of Representatives serving from 1944 to 1972.