AFL-CIO Election
On September 11, 2007, Chavez-Thompson announced she would retire from her post as AFL-CIO Executive Vice-President on September 21, 2007. AFL-CIO President John Sweeney immediately announced that he intended to have the federation executive council approve Holt Baker to fill the remainder of Chavez-Thompson's unexpired term. At its regularly scheduled meeting 10 days later, the AFL-CIO Executive Council unanimously voted to approve Arlene Holt Baker as AFL-CIO Executive Vice-President. Her term expired in 2009.
At least one prominent labor commentator sharply criticized Holt Baker's elevation. Longtime union democracy activist Harry Kelber has argued that Chavez-Thompson should not have resigned immediately, but rather given the Executive Council several months' notice so that additional candidates could be recruited and/or their qualifications considered; that the timing of Chavez-Thompson's retirement gave only a few days' notice to the Executive Council before an election was held; and that the appointment of a staff member as an elected leader violates basic principles of union democracy.
Holt Baker was re-elected to the position of Executive Vice President for a full four-year term at the AFL-CIO's regularly scheduled quadrennial convention in September 2009.
Read more about this topic: Arlene Holt Baker
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