JACKIE W. ST. CLAIR

1934-

A strong Secretary-Treasurer of the Texas AFL-CIO and a stalwart of the building trades in Texas, Jackie St. Clair has devoted his life promoting the interests of working people in Texas. 

St. Clair began his labor career in 1957 as a member of Plumbers and Pipefitters Local 790, winning Outstanding Apprentice for three years in a row. He went on to hold a variety of offices in that union. In 1973, Gov. Dolph Briscoe appointed St. Clair as Commissioner of the Texas Department of Labor and Standards. 

St. Clair left his government job to become Executive Secretary of the Texas Building and Construction Trades Council, where he advocated effectively in the legislature. He helped other state appointments before winning election 1989 to the Texas AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer post on a ticket with President Joe D. Gunn. 

A couple of years later, St. Clair left the state federation to become commissioner representing labor at the Texas Employment Commission, where he served as a distinguished advocate for the interests of working people. A promised appointment of St. Clair to the newly formed Texas Workforce Commission in 1995 didn't materialize, prompting the commissioning of a “Bushnocchio” portrait that made the Texas AFL-CIO the first organization to raise serious questions about the credibility and performance of George W. Bush in public office. 

In recent years, St. Clair has worked at union-friendly American Income Life.