HR0279 94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0279 LRB094 11906 CSA 44446 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, Jeremiah J. O'Connor, International Secretary-Treasurer of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), is retiring; and

WHEREAS, Secretary-Treasurer O'Connor has served at virtually every role in the IBEW; he was appointed International Secretary-Treasurer in January 2001 and elected to that position the following September at the 36th IBEW International Convention in San Francisco, California; and

WHEREAS, He has provided steady leadership during a tumultuous time in the union's development and has faced the difficult task of balancing priorities for the union in a time of industry deregulation, plant shutdowns, global economic upheaval, and a hostile political environment; and

WHEREAS, Initiated as an apprentice into Lisle Local 701 in 1959, he served as a journeyman wireman, foreman, and general foreman; and

WHEREAS, He combined his leadership in the field with service on several Local 701 committees; he extended the local's influence as a leader of the DuPage County labor and trade councils; appointed assistant business manager of Local 701 in 1965, he served in that capacity until 1978, when he was elected Business Manager-Financial Secretary; and

WHEREAS, In 1987, President J.J. Barry appointed Secretary-Treasurer O'Connor to the position of International Representative for the Sixth District; he gained a thorough knowledge of the broad membership reach of the IBEW as he represented members in construction, utility, manufacturing, and radio-TV broadcasting local unions throughout the Sixth District; and

WHEREAS, In 1995, he was appointed International Vice-President of the Sixth District and was elected to that position at the International Convention one year later; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we congratulate IBEW Secretary-Treasurer Jeremiah J. O'Connor on the occasion of his retirement and wish him all the best in the years ahead; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to Secretary-Treasurer Jeremiah J. O'Connor as an expression of our esteem.