Leader of construction trade union dies

By Kevin Bogardus - 04/09/12 12:27 PM ET

One of the more prominent voices in the labor movement for infrastructure spending passed away on Sunday.

In a statement Monday, the Building and Construction Trades Department (BCTD), AFL-CIO, said it was saddened by the sudden passing of Mark Ayers, who had been president of the union since October 2007.

“President Ayers was a labor leader of vision, innovation, passion and integrity, and it was through his leadership that North America's Building Trades Unions were on the path to success and increased market share for the union construction industry,” said the union.

“Mark Ayers was a true trade unionist in every sense of the word, and it was through that commitment to bettering the lives of working families that he was able to offer so much to his country, his family, and to the labor movement.”

Ayers, a Navy veteran, was director of the Construction and Maintenance Department of the International Brotherhood of Electric Workers (IBEW) before being elected in 2007 to lead BCTD. He also led the Union Veterans Council.

With Ayers at the helm, BCTD pushed aggressively for increased infrastructure spending by the federal government. The union has been a big supporter of a multi-year highway bill and clashed with environmentalists over its support of the Keystone pipeline.

Ayers had also butted heads with Democrats, labor’s traditional political allies. In an August 2011 letter to Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.), chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee, Ayers said BCTD would not participate in the party’s convention this year due to concerns over the use of scarce union resources and its location in Charlotte, N.C., a state with low unionization.

In a statement Sunday, AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka said he was saddened by the loss of Ayers.

“I am deeply saddened by Mark Ayers’ passing. We join his family in commemorating this extraordinary leader and friend,” Trumka said.