Statement by DC 37 Executive Director Henry Garrido on the Passing of Lillian Roberts

NEW YORK— We are extremely saddened by the passing of our fearless union sister Lillian Roberts, former Executive Director of District Council 37 AFSCME. Lillian was more than a mentor to those of us who grew up in the labor movement under her tutelage– she was family.

Lillian’s union activism began in 1947 in Chicago, where she became one of the first Black nurse’s aides and fought for her fellow workers at the University of Chicago Hospital as a shop steward and secretary of their AFSCME local union. This engagement at the young age of 19 launched a career in labor that would span seven decades and impact the lives of hundreds of thousands of public sector workers.

In 1957, Victor Gotbaum and the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) recruited Lillian to organize state hospital workers in Chicago. She then joined Gotbaum in New York City in 1965 to help build the 30,000 members of DC 37, where she was later appointed Associate Director.

During a time of immense struggle for DC 37 and the labor movement, Lillian continued her courageous push for workers’ rights. In response to the inequity faced by hospital workers, who Lillian often remarked were treated as “second-class citizens,” she led a strike against three mental hospitals and New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller. When her actions were found in violation of the no-strike provision of New York’s Taylor Law, Lillian was sentenced to 30 days in jail. She was released early on Dec. 24, 1968.

In 1981, she was appointed New York State Labor Commissioner, the first Black woman to hold the post in New York. Lillian returned to the DC 37 family in 2002, when she was elected to serve as the union’s Executive Director. Under her leadership, the union flourished and returned to the position of strength and member-led power it held in the city before a period of corruption in the 1980s. As Executive Director, Lillian spearheaded the creation of the DC 37 Education Fund, the Municipal Employees Legal Services, Personal Services Unit, and other key initiatives to better serve the diverse needs of the union’s growing membership.

Lillian was an innovative thinker and planner who developed a strong and effective team at DC 37 that continues her work to this day to advance workers’ rights, safety, and the fight for fair contracts and equal rights. She continued to organize workers, fought against outsourcing and privatization, negotiated historic contracts, and remained a tireless advocate for workers until her retirement in December 2014.

In 2023, DC 37 and AFSCME announced the Lillian Roberts Endowed Scholarship in collaboration with the CUNY School of Labor and Urban Studies to help DC 37 and AFSCME members and their children to pursue their goals of higher education.

Throughout her life, the labor movement’s “Lady of Steel” opened doors for the working class, and when they were locked, she kicked them in. Lillian has left a legacy for future generations of labor leaders to follow, and she will be greatly missed. We extend our greatest condolences to her family and loved ones.

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District Council 37 is New York City’s largest public employee union, with 150,000 members and 89,000 retirees. Visit us at www.dc37.nyc.