Resolution 230215

..Title Also naming South 22nd Street, between Market Street and Chestnut Street, "Pat Eiding Way", to honor Patrick J. Eiding for his service as President of the Philadelphia Council AFL-CIO and his accomplishments on behalf of Philadelphia workers. ..Body WHEREAS, Patrick J. Eiding is a lifelong Philadelphian who grew up in the City's Kensington neighborhood. Before embarking on his landmark career, Eiding was educated at Philadelphia public schools, including Dobbins Technical High School where he studied plumbing; and WHEREAS, After honorably serving his country in the United States Army, Eiding began his extensive career in the labor movement as a member of the Insulators and Asbestos Workers Local 14 in 1963. First starting as an apprentice, Eiding quickly rose through the union's ranks and eventually served as the local's Business Manager and Financial Secretary for over twenty-five years; and WHEREAS, Eiding has served as the Secretary Treasurer of the Philadelphia Building Trades and Construction Council since 1980. Pat is also a member of the Executive Council of the Pennsylvania American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), co-chair of PALM/BuiltRite, and is the Northeast Regional representative to the National AFL-CIO General Board; and WHEREAS, Pat was first elected President of the Philadelphia Council of the AFL-CIO in January 2002, and he has served seven terms. During his presidency, the AFL-CIO grew to represent more than 200,000 workers from more than 100 unions, and Eiding has worked tirelessly to ensure that Philadelphia's union workers prospered during a period when organized labor has faced significant challenges; and WHEREAS, Eiding has been a champion for improving conditions for workers in Philadelphia, and he has successfully advocated for a broad expansion of workers' rights through municipal policy, including the appointment of the first-ever Deputy Mayor for Labor and the creation of a permanent Office of Labor. Eiding was also involved in advocating for the passage of a domestic workers bill of rights, paid sick leave legislation, enhanced protections against wage theft, and Philadelphia's Fair Workweek ordinance; and WHEREAS, Eiding has consistently advocated for Philadelphia's public schools, helping to protect teachers and school staff against recurring efforts to break their contracts or privatize their positions. He has also worked to secure funding for facilities to provide students and staff a safe and healthy environment in which to learn and teach; and WHEREAS, Philadelphians have benefited immensely from Eiding's time and service through his representation of organized labor on a number of civic boards and commissions including Temple University, Philadelphia Works, the Urban Affairs Coalition, United Way of Greater Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey, the Committee of Seventy, Graduate Philadelphia, the Pennsylvania Workforce Development Board, the Philadelphia Housing Authority, and the Philadelphia Planning Commission. He also helped establish the Working Families Partnership of Philadelphia and Vicinity, a non-profit that brings together labor and community organizations to improve the lives of low and middle income families; and WHEREAS, Eiding is also involved in his community through a variety of charitable organizations. His favorite charity is the Asbestos Workers Mesothelioma Fund which he helped to develop in 1992 in an agreement between the Insulators union and building contractors. The Fund has raised more than $2 million for Fox Chase Cancer Center since its inception; and WHEREAS, Pat Eiding is widely respected as a trusted leader and mentor, and working families across the City of Philadelphia will continue to feel the impact of his groundbreaking work long into the future; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, THAT THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, Hereby also names South 22nd Street, between Market Street and Chestnut Street, "Pat Eiding Way", to honor Patrick J. Eiding for his service as President of the Philadelphia Council AFL-CIO and his accomplishments on behalf of Philadelphia workers. FURTHER RESOLVED, That an Engrossed copy of this resolution be presented to Patrick Eiding as an expression of the admiration and respect of this legislative body. ..End