Brian Pearson, the new head of the North Shore AFL-CIO Federation of Labor, wants the labor organization to play a greater role in local civic and political affairs, but he may be forced to first deal with issues from Washington.
President Donald Trump has vowed to slash federal jobs. His first day in office, he signed an executive order instituting a hiring freeze and ending policies that allowed some employees to work remotely. In the private sector, employers sometimes have ordered workers back to the office as a way to reduce the workforce. Many employees view remote work as a perk and often look for other jobs when their companies end the policy.
Billionaire Elon Musk, who heads the new Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), has said that the new department’s goals include shrinking the size of the federal government. (Vivek Ramaswamy said he is leaving DOGE to run for governor of Ohio.)
With Trump coming we’re very concerned about federal workers. We are mostly worried about our members in AFGE [American Federation of Government Employees], who work places like the Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in Cleveland.
Brian Pearson, new head of the the North Shore AFL-CIO Federation of Labor
Pearson, the leader of the 85,000-member North Shore AFL-CIO Federation of Labor is intent on fighting back. About 6,500 members of Northeast Ohio’s largest labor organization are federal workers, he said.
“Getting rid of a bunch of federal workers is a complete nightmare,” Pearson said. “When DOGE talks about getting rid of federal workers, these aren’t just people working in sandstone buildings in Washington, D.C. These are people you know. This is the local U.S. EPA worker you know or the local U.S. Department of Agriculture worker you know.”
Pearson was sworn in Jan. 8 as executive secretary, his official title, after being political director since 2021. He succeeds Leonard DiCosimo, who didn’t run for reelection.
Before coming to Cleveland, Pearson was active in labor organizations in the Youngstown area. First, in 2011, when he was a part-time firefighter in Canfield, Ohio, he served as a trustee of AFSME Local 765.
In 2013, he joined the International Association of Fire Fighters Local 1220 when he became a firefighter in his hometown of Girard. After two years on the job, Pearson was elected secretary-treasurer of that local. His duties included everything from participating in union negotiations to buying condiments for the firehouse.
“It was the touchiest thing,” he said of the latter. “If you didn’t get enough olive oil, you were being screamed at by senior firefighters.”
In 2019, Pearson became president of the local. In addition to overseeing contractual and other union matters, he started the tradition of the union being involved in community service. Activities included funding a summer camp at a community center, sponsoring soccer teams and buying coats for youngsters.
“When somebody in town needed something, they looked to the firefighters union, “ Pearson said.
He hopes to get the North Shore AFL-CIO Federation of Labor involved in more community service.
Pearson said the same thing that drew him to becoming a union official more than a decade ago keeps him one.
“I just like fighting for working people,” he said.
Signal Cleveland chatted with Pearson about issues he wants to tackle early on in his new job. Below are some of his responses, which have been edited for brevity and context.
You want to raise the visibility of the North Shore AFL-CIO Federation of Labor. How will you do this?
I think in Cleveland, we need to move from being a group that’s sometimes reactive to things or a group that mobilizes around a single event or issue to an organization that’s building power, driving the agenda or contributing to the overall agenda in Cleveland.
I think for everything to fall into place, it’s got to be a holistic approach. We’ve got to engage with our rank and file, with our [union] delegates, and we’ve got to be more engaged in the community. We’ve got to get more of our members to run for public office.
We need to fill all our Federation committees. We have to get our advisory council for the 35 and under group back up and going so that they can come forward with issues that are critical to young folks. We’re starting a committee for union members who are veterans to have a voice and a seat at the table for their issues.
We’re just trying to find ways for folks to get involved in different ways, get their voices heard and to develop them as leaders.
What do you mean when you say union members need to start practicing trade unionism?
I think we’ve got to get back to some basics when it comes to practicing what I call trade unionism. We need to live the labor movement every day. Take my own family, for example. We’re very thoughtful and careful about what we buy. When somebody’s on strike, we’re not buying. We try to book hotels that are union, if they’re available. If there’s a plumbing issue at our house, I’m calling the Pipefitters union or the Plumbers Union and saying, ‘Hey, who do you got?’
My four-year-old daughter knows all about unions. My wife and I read children’s stories to her about unions. I remember explaining to my daughter why we drove across town to go to a certain grocery store. I told her, “Well, because this is a union grocery store and those folks are paid better than non-union workers. They have a voice on the job, they live in our community, and we want them to do well.’ This is a very basic thing.
We need to raise the visibility of unions because many people don’t live in union households. People need to know, including some union members, what it took to get the nice paycheck and benefits. Unions brought you the weekend.
We’ve got to find ways for union members to get involved that aren’t necessarily political – like doing volunteer work and community service. This will give them an opportunity to develop as leaders, and it will give the community an opportunity to get to know us.
You’re anticipating that Trump administration policies will have an impact on unions in Greater Cleveland. In what way?
With Trump coming we’re very concerned about federal workers. We are mostly worried about our members in AFGE [American Federation of Government Employees], who work places like the Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in Cleveland.
We also have concerns about what will happen at the National Labor Relations Board and the Labor Department in Washington. Many of the Teamsters support Lori Chavez-DeRemer, Trump’s nominee to head the Labor Department, but she only has a 10% voting record supporting policies and legislation backed by the national AFL-CIO. [The national Teamsters union didn’t endorse for president, but Teamster President Sean O’Brien spoke at the Republican National Convention. The national AFL-CIO endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee.]
I’d like to see the Teamsters affiliate with the AFL-CIO on the national level. It would grow our organization significantly. The national SEIU just joined the national AFL-CIO. It will make for a stronger more diverse labor movement
The Teamsters seem to have Trump’s ear, but we’ll see. We’re getting our folks activated. We’re making sure they’re educated. We try to get a representative of all of our affiliate unions to come in so that we can talk about pressing legislative and political issues.
We have a platform that we can defend. So, it’s going to be a lot about trying to build solidarity within our labor movement and finding supporters and allies in politics and the community.
