Union Women's Work Not Done
Friday, May 11, 2007
“Throughout my whole
working life, my fate was always dependent on a
manager's decision,” said Teresa Martin at
Metro DC CLUW’s Gloria T. Johnson Awards
Luncheon last Sunday, “I was laid
off…forced to take a (lowerpaying) job…When
I finally was hired for my present job and
joined the UAW, I was so thankful for every
benefit (that) I felt like I should give my
time back to serve the people who work on my
behalf. Since then, my work has developed into
a passion to help others who are affected by
anti-working family issues.” Martin and
Clayola Brown each received DC CLUW’s crystal
"Breaking the Glass Ceiling " Award at
Sunday’s Luncheon. Added Brown, the first
black woman to serve as an international
vice-president for UNITE and the first woman
elected president of the A. Philip Randolph
Institute, “I have stood on the shoulders of
and been supported by my many union and CLUW
sisters and this award is really a testimony to
their strength (and) courage.” Gloria
Johnson, President Emerita of CLUW and
originator of the award, noted how hard women
have worked to gain recognition and that the
job “is not over yet. Women need to step up
to the challenges that organized labor faces
right now and make their views heard.”
(from left to right) Clayola
Brown, Gloria Johnson, Fred Mason, and Teresa
Martin, photo by Claudia Cole
-reported by
Connie Cordovilla