TOM CARLIN

1945 - 2024

For four decades, a Texas AFL-CIO convention, at least unofficially, started not with the rap of a gavel but with Tom Carlin’s shout of “Play Ball!”

That small detail offers a snapshot of a big personality. Carlin’s work in Transport Workers Union Local 513 and at the state labor federation produced a legacy of mentorship, friendship-waging, and activist sass that fortified the Texas labor movement to this day. 

After military service in the Vietnam War, Carlin went to work for American Airlines in Washington, D.C., in 1969, becoming a union steward just a few blinks after completing probation. He transferred to Love Field and moved up the leadership ladder, eventually working for the national union. 

As a key voice on the Texas AFL-CIO Executive Board and Tarrant County Central Labor Council, Carlin could be counted on to speak frankly and take on tough assignments. He built crucial alliances with labor activists and politicians. That relationship-building helped him play a major role in national legislation to block offshoring of aircraft maintenance. 

The details that fill out Carlin’s contribution to the Texas labor movement are too numerous to list on a plaque, but a few things about his contributions at large are worth knowing: Carlin quietly worked around-the-clock to find housing for victims of Hurricane Katrina; he volunteered in community youth baseball in every capacity from coaching to concession stands; and his “bride Peggy” Carlin is a true partner and amazing labor advocate in her own right.

The beauty of baseball lies in its timelessness. Tom Carlin’s work remains present in our movement.