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State Lawmaker Elected Head Of Mass. Labor Union
The largest labor union in Massachusetts has elected a state lawmaker to be its next leader.
Sen. Steven Tolman, a Boston Democrat, was running unopposed for the presidency of the Massachusetts AFL-CIO.
Tolman, who succeeds outgoing president Robert Haynes, said one of his goals is to bring several unions that have split off in recent years back into the AFL-CIO to give the organization more clout.
The Massachusetts AFL-CIO represents about 400,000 workers around the state.
The choice of Tolman comes as labor unions — particularly those representing public sector workers — face a number of legislative issues including pension and health care changes.
Tolman is in his seventh term in the Senate after two terms in the House.
A special election will be needed to fill Tolman's Senate seat.
This program aired on October 5, 2011. The audio for this program is not available.