Ron Gettelfinger, an advocate for working men and women and the head of the United Auto Workers, will be the featured speaker at the Livingston Democrats' annual Winans Dinner, set for April 19.
Gettelfinger is a strong backer of universal health care and of a program to re-industrialize the nation with a modern-day domestic "Marshall Plan" to build energy-saving vehicles. He also has been a critic of international trade agreements that fail to protect workers' rights and the environment, and of the corporate drive to scour the globe for the lowest possible wages.
"Ron Gettelfinger is the ideal speaker to address many of the pressing issues that are worrying Livingston County residents -- good-paying jobs, health care, energy-efficiency, and globalization," said Donna Anderson, county vice-chair and chair of the Winans Dinner commuittee.
"Mr. Gettelfinger's appeal extends beyond union members to all of us who work for a living or care about someone who does."
The Winans Dinner, Livingston Democrats' most important annual fund-raising event, will be Saturday, April 19, 2008, at the Hamburg VFW Hall. The event begins at 6 p.m., with dinner at 7 p.m. Tickets are $60 a person (or free to monthly party pledgers.)
Anderson said that Gettelfinger is known as an excellent speaker and tickets are expected to go quickly. Invitations to the event have been mailed to some 1,100 Livingston Democrats. Anyone wishing to receive tickets may call (810) 229-4212 or email livcodems@sbcuc.net.
Earlier this year, Automotive News named Gettelfinger its Person of the Year for his leadership during delicate contract negotiations with automakers during 2007.
A one-time chassis line repairman at Ford's Louisville Assembly plant, Gettelfinger has been a member of the UAW since 1964. His co-workers elected him to represent them as committeeperson, bargaining chair and president.
Gettelfinger served as the elected director of UAW Region 3, which represents UAW members in Indiana and Kentucky, for six years before being elected a UAW vice president in 1998. He was elected president in 2002 and re-elected in 2006.
Gettelfinger is a graduate of Indiana University. He is married and he and his wife, Judy, have two adult children and four grandchildren.
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