News

Delegates to the North Atlantic Regional Council of Carpenters have elected Joe Byrne as Executive Secretary-Treasurer. A slate of candidates he headed were all elected to positions on the NASRCC Executive Board.

Byrne was appointed to the office last spring when Tom Flynn resigned following his appointment to the office of General Secretary-Treasurer of the United Brotherhood of Carpenters. Byrne will now continue in his role for a term that will expire in 2024.

Byrne’s election, which was won without opposition, was seen as a mandate for the agenda he has promoted since taking office, which emphasizes long-term planning and sustainable growth.

Elected as part of the “Byrne Slate” were:

Joe Byrne, Executive Secretary-Treasurer
Raheem Shepard, President
Bill Banfield, Vice President
Kim Hokanson, Warden
John Murphy, Conductor
Anthony Villa, Trustee
Michael Holmes, Trustee
Mynor Perez, Trustee
Jeff Wolcheski, Executive Committee
Jomo Akono, Executive Committee
Jack Donahue, Executive Committee
Krystal Green, Executive Committee
Dennis Lassige, Executive Committee
Jim Mason, Executive Committee
Ernie Pagan, Executive Committee

The slate was nominated by Joe Walsh, a delegate representing Local 327 and seconded by Ed Cooke of Local 279.

Shepard succeeds Rich Monarca, who had served as president of the executive board of NASRCC and its predecessor, the New England Regional Council, since 2005. Monarca had been a member of the executive board in some capacity for the two councils since 1997.

Shepard is a third-generation union carpenter and a member of Local 327 in Boston. He is a full-time employee of NASRCC, working as a business representative in Local 327.

Banfield moves into the vice president slot vacated by Brian Richardson. Richardson announced earlier this year that he would be retiring this summer from his position as organizing director and would not seek re-election. Richardson had served on the NERCC and NASRCC executive boards for nearly 20 years.

Banfield is a member of Local 279 in New York’s Hudson Valley and part of the executive leadership team for NASRCC. He is assistant to the executive secretary-treasurer and a regional manager for New York, overseeing the work of the agents and organizers in the five locals in the state.

Ernie Pagan and Kim Hokanson are also new members of the board. Pagan is a member of and business representative for Local 326 in Connecticut. Hokanson is the regional manager for Northern New England Local Unions 349 and 352.

The election continues the trend of the board to adding new faces that are younger and more diverse. The NASRCC executive board now includes four Black members (Shepard, Greene, Akono and Pagan), two women (Green and Hokanson) and one Latinx (Perez). It mirrors changes happening among full-time council staff as the council continues to emphasize succession planning and representation of membership diversity in regards to age, gender and race.