Electrical Workers Without Borders North America (EWWBNA): Our Founder, Edwin D. Hill

Ed Hill was a compassionate human being who sought social justice through the economic advancement of workers and their families. He was a trade unionist to the core, who understood that worker empowerment came from organizing and grassroots political action. He was a visionary who saw no borders separating power professionals around the world, and called on them to serve, bringing electricity and hope to communities in the greatest of need.

Hailing from Beaver County Pennsylvania, Ed followed in his father’s footsteps to become a journeyman electrician, joining the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) when he was still a teenager. Not long after finishing his apprenticeship, he was appointed to the union’s political action committee, and from that point onward began a trade union career spanning six decades.

Ed with his good friend Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the United States House of Representatives.

As he rose through the ranks of leadership, eventually becoming International President and an influential power broker in Washington, he never forgot where he came from nor the electrical workers he steadfastly represented. His dedication to working people everywhere never wavered and earned him the respect and admiration of industry and political leaders worldwide. United States House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi speaking at his memorial noted, “Ed was driven by an inexhaustible passion for improving lives…. when it comes to the health and economic security of working people, few leaders have stood taller or spoken louder.”

Shortly after retiring as IBEW International President, he returned to Beaver and centered his focus on international development, leveraging his unique knowledge of the power industry and his network of over 750,000 skilled professionals. In 2016 he founded Electrical Workers without Borders North America, EWWBNA, and, in a short time, established a mission, direction and solid base for us to carry on his dream of a world where the benefits of electricity can be made available to everyone.

Ed’s Story

Ed was born in the middle of the Great Depression in Center Township, Pennsylvania, a rural community on the Ohio River about 25 miles northwest of Pittsburgh. His parents, William Hill, and Bessie Weigle Hill, came from farming families whose livelihoods were intertwined with the mining, oil, and steel industries of the region. Ed was the second of three children, with an older brother and a younger sister. During the Depression, the region suffered great economic hardship, and the Hill family, like so many others in this era, worked hard to make ends meet.

When Ed was just four years old, Imperial Japanese forces bombed Pearl Harbor, bringing the United States into World War II. Ed would recall the wartime years and the rationing of gasoline, butter, and other commodities. In 1942, his father, at the age of 36, was drafted into the Army which was unusual since he was older than most draftees and was married with three children. At first, he was stationed in South Carolina, and Ed would remember his father sending packages home including a pup tent that he and his brother would use to sleep outside. In 1943, his Father broke his back while training for D-Day and was reassigned to Arkansas for military police training. His young family was then able to join him and travelled with him to other assignments in Northern and Southern California. They settled for some time in Manzanita near San Diego, and, over the years, Ed would recount fond childhood memories of living on base in Southern California.

Shortly after the war, the Hill family returned home to Pennsylvania and found a very different place from what they had left: industry boomed during the war, and the economy around the confluence of the Ohio and Beaver Rivers had grown and prospered. In the post-war years, the standard of living of most everyone rose. Ed’s father found steady work as an electrician and became involved in the IBEW, which flourished as many trade unions did at this time.

As a teenager in the 1950’s, Ed attended Freedom High School across the Ohio River from Center Township. Like so many young men from his era, he was fascinated with cars. He became quite adept at engine building and turning old jalopies into hot rods and winning drag races at local racetracks. He also enjoyed motorcycles and raced motocross. He was an avid hunter, and along with his father, brother, and cousins, would frequent hunting camps in the western Pennsylvania preserves.

In 1956, he entered the electrical apprenticeship program at IBEW Local 712 in Beaver, PA. As an apprentice he experienced first-hand the benefits of collective bargaining – for a young man he earned a decent living with healthcare, a pension and other benefits while at the same time learning a trade that would give him the professional knowhow to enjoy a long and prosperous livelihood. By the time he completed his apprenticeship in 1960, he found his calling – a trade union career that would last a lifetime.

Top, Right: Grade school photo of Ed from the mid 1940’s. Bottom, Right: Ed and his early-stage race car in the mid 1950’s.

While still an apprentice, Ed was called to a job in Midland, PA. That small job at Midland Auto Sales was quite fateful because there he would meet his future wife, Rosemary Monaco, who worked after school at the shop owned by her uncle. Rosemary came from a close-knit Italian family with deep roots in the mountainous region of Abruzzo, Italy. They married in 1956, and shortly after began having a family: two daughters, Michelle and Toni, and a son, Ed Jr. Although Ed’s parents were devoted Christians it was after his marriage to Rosemary and his conversion to Catholicism that he became a devoted follower of the Catholic faith, whose teachings, especially those promoting social justice, would have a profound influence on Ed’s life.

In his first year as a journeyman wireman, Ed was appointed to the union’s political action committee, which he chaired soon after, and became involved in the local Building Trades and AFL-CIO, stumping for pro-union politicians at all levels. Ed also worked with three others to start the Local 712 Credit Union and established a scholarship program for members’ children. When he was 26, he was elected Vice President of the local and not long after he was elected President. Meanwhile he continued to work as an electrician in the construction of nuclear power plants, factories and large infrastructure projects in the region.

But tragedy can fall upon good times when least expected. In November 1966, while working for Millcreek Electric at the Westinghouse Plant in Beaver, Ed and two other Local 712 members were seriously injured in an industrial accident. A crane failed and the control box fell to the ground injuring several including Ed, who suffered severe injuries, the deleterious effects of which would persist for the rest of his life. It was a miracle he survived.

With several broken bones, lacerations, and months of recovery in the hospital with reconstructive bone and plastic surgery, it looked as though he would never return to work to support his young family. But during this crisis, the union and the membership to which he was so loyal, gave back to him, showing its loyalty many times over by supporting him and his family at this most unfortunate time. As Ed slowly recovered, he took on more roles at the local union. However, the injuries he sustained made it uncertain if he could return as a full-time journeyman wireman. He did return to the tools, but the leadership bug had taken hold, and, during this time, he became president of the Young Democrats of Beaver County. Ed worked long hours on the job and off to promote Local 712 and politicians who backed the causes of organized labor.

Within a few years after the accident, Ed was elected Business Manager of Local 712, a coveted full-time union position. At the time he was among the youngest IBEW business managers in the country, and he took on this role with great fervor. It was 1970, the beginning of a new decade and a time of economic and social challenges nationwide. As much of the country experienced recession and job losses, the Beaver County region continued to prosper with the construction of the Beaver Valley Nuclear Power Plant, while the steel mills and associated infrastructure continued to need maintenance and upgrades.

Right: Ed with his son Ed Jr. the morning they embarked on a two-week, 5200-mile, cross-country ride; Below: Ed leading hospital fundraising campaign in Beaver County.

Under Ed’s leadership, Local 712 became one of the busiest locals in the country which resulted in greater prominence for the IBEW in Pennsylvania. In addition to the many duties as Business Manager, Ed was elected President of the Beaver County Central Labor Council, and shortly after was elected Vice President of the Pennsylvania AFL-CIO, a position he held for over 20 years. He became a frequent visitor to Harrisburg, the state capital, and worked tirelessly building relationships and promoting pro-union political candidates at every level. He developed a close and strategic friendship with Lt. Governor Ernie Kline as well as with several state delegates and senators including Bob Casey who would later be elected Governor of Pennsylvania for two terms.

Though Ed would do most anything to benefit workers and their families, he was also an economic realist. He believed in quality craftsmanship and the dignity of work, and the need to promote excellence to keep the membership working and negotiating their fair share. He understood that labor and management have interests in conflict, but they also have interests in common, and unless structures are built and programs are created around issues where they have a common objective, the focus would tend to center on issues in conflict. He was a savvy leader who built relationships with industry and with politicians on both sides of the aisle, and would say, “It’s harder to say no to someone you like than to say no to someone you don’t like.”

As Business Manager, Ed was always hard at work.

Following the 1973 Arab Oil Embargo, economic recession hit most of the nation, and many unemployed IBEW members became travelers. Since Western Pennsylvania was uniquely shielded from most of the effects of the recession, hundreds of electricians from other union locals flocked to Beaver, and although the vast majority were looking for an opportunity to go to work, there were some troublemakers among the travelers. Ed was committed to provide opportunities for hardworking IBEW members from other locals, but he saw the tactics of a few detractors as detrimental to labor-management relations, potentially costing Local 712 members their hard-earned reputation for quality work and eventually their jobs. Ed’s efforts to preclude disruptions on worksites led to frivolous but costly lawsuits that went on for several years. In time, Ed’s approach to advance worker excellence helped improve relationships with employers and served as best-practice models for marketing the economic benefits of job safety and high-quality work.

In 1982, Ed was appointed “International Representative” for the Third District by then IBEW President Charles Pillard, expanding his trade union and political role in Pennsylvania as well as in the nearby states of New York, New Jersey and Delaware. In 1994 he was appointed Vice President of the Third District, overseeing the largest district at the time within the IBEW. In 1997, he was appointed IBEW International Secretary and moved to Washington, and shortly thereafter the offices of Secretary and Treasurer were combined, and Ed assumed the role of Secretary/Treasurer. Upon the retirement of IBEW International President Jack Barry in January of 2001, Ed was appointed as International President and was subsequently elected at the IBEW Convention in San Francisco which took place the week of September 11, 2001.

Above: As IBEW International Vice President of the Third District, Ed was an early advocate of the benefits of information technology; Right, Top: Ed with former IBEW International President, J. J. Barry when sworn in as International Vice President Third District in 1994; Right, Bottom: Annual IBEW motorcycle ride founded by Ed.

As International President, Ed brought to the position a unique hands-on experience of organizing, business development and political action at the grassroots level and applied his experiences and best practices from other regions at the international level (USA and Canada). He transitioned the IBEW into the “computer age”, started the highly successful IBEW Hour Power, established the IBEW Code of Excellence and created the IBEW Business Development Department which focuses on creating job opportunities and organizing new contractors through relationship building with construction owners and utilities. And in a nod to fellow IBEW motorcyclists, who shared Ed’s passion for the road, he founded the Annual IBEW Motorcycle Ride which has benefited several charities.

In Washington, he was a highly respected leader within the North American Building Trades Unions (NABTU) and at the AFL-CIO and on Capitol Hill. Ed was a recipient of the Franklin D. Roosevelt Distinguished Public Service Award, which honors individuals whose careers exemplify President Roosevelt’s dedication to public service. He created, along with the Edison Electric Institute (EEI), the National Labor and Management Public Affairs Committee (LAMPAC) which brings together industry executives and union leaders to advance the common objectives of the electric power industry. Since Ed’s passing, the LAMPAC created the “Ed Hill Award”, given annually to “those who advance state and local initiatives on behalf of the power industry and IBEW members”.

Left, Top: At Sturgis, South Dakota along with Don Siegel, President EWWBNA; Chris Erickson, Business Manager IBEW Local 3 New York; Local 3 representatives Rich Duva and Jim Bua; and former Assistant to the International President, Jerry Westerholm; Left, Bottom: Ed with his long-time friend Mark Ayers, former President of the North America Building Trades Unions.

Through his close friend and protegee Mark Ayers, an IBEW leader and former President of NABTU, Ed developed a strong bond with the Italian Federation of Electrical Utility Workers (FLAEI) and a special personal friendship with the union’s Secretary General Carlo De Masi. Carlo, a devoted Catholic, shared Ed’s interest in the Church’s “Social Doctrine” and its teachings on human and trade union rights. Carlo was also an internationalist and for many years was involved in goodwill projects in developing countries together with Vatican non-profits.

IBEW 2011 Convention in Vancouver. Ed together with Carlo De Masi, former Secretary General of the Italian Electrical Utility Workers Union.

During the 2011 IBEW Convention in Vancouver, Ed invited a delegation of union leaders from Italy and other countries, and the slogan of the Convention was “Brotherhood Without Borders”. And there was a 10-year commemoration honoring several IBEW members who lost their lives while working at the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. During the commemoration, the names of the fallen IBEW members were read, and Carlo De Masi quickly realized that most of the victims had Italian surnames. When Carlo was asked to address the Convention, he took the opportunity to honor the victims and said, “They were your brothers, and many of them were our sons, sons of Italy, and we feel the pain just as you do.” Following the speech, Ed met with Carlo and IBEW New York City Business Manager Chris Erikson, and they committed to jointly honoring the Italian American victims. Two years later, the FLAEI and the IBEW organized a special commemoration in Padova, Italy the site of the largest September 11 memorial outside of the United States.

Following a devastating earthquake in Haiti, Carlo De Masi along with other Italian union leaders and Vatican officials called on Ed to assist in rebuilding a Don Bosco school in Port-au-Prince which had suffered the deaths of hundreds of students and teachers and the near-complete destruction of its campus. Ed assigned his Vice President, Joe Davis, and Miami IBEW Local 349 Business Manager Bill Riley to lead the IBEW’s effort on the project. The experience of sending IBEW volunteers to Haiti to rebuild the school led to discussions of doing similar projects in other countries.

Meeting in Port-au-Prince with Haitian Prime Minister Evan Pauls along with Sam Chilia, former IBEW International Secretary Treasurer; Joe Davis, former IBEW International Vice President; Sherilyn Wright, Assistant to the IBEW International President; and Bill Riley, Business Manager IBEW Local 349 Miami.

In 2014, Ed led an IBEW delegation to Italy, and in addition to meetings with Vatican officials and union and industry leaders, Ed was the first American to be honored at a special ceremony in Assisi of the Italian Golden Eagle, an award given annually to distinguished individuals of Italian descent who, through their careers, have advanced human rights and freedom. Ed, by chance, was eligible for the award since the family of his wife Rosemary came from Corfinio, Italy – the homeplace of the award. The award is one of Italy’s highest honors and is recognized by the Italian Presidency, Senate and Chamber of Deputies. The only other American recipient of the Award was United States House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

Above, Right: Meeting with Cardinal James Michael Harvey in Rome, Italy along with Carlo De Masi; Left: Ed with the coveted Golden Eagle Award in Assisi, Italy.

In early 2015, during an IBEW conference in Washington, Carlo De Masi was invited to address participants, and, during his speech, he announced the creation of “Elettrici Senza Frontiere Italia” (Electrical Workers Without Borders Italy). Following Carlo’s speech, Ed proposed that the IBEW should create a similar non-profit, working together with the Italians and other countries to field volunteer electrical workers on goodwill projects around the world. Two months later, Ed would retire as International President of the IBEW, and, with the support of his successor Lonnie Stephenson, he began the process of organizing Electrical Workers Without Borders North America.

Ed’s vision was to bring together on-going volunteer efforts associated with IBEW locals and individual members and expand on and channel this spirit of goodwill to make a greater impact. In a short time, Ed organized a steering committee, bylaws, and incorporation documents and established EWWBNA as a 501-c-3 tax-exempt non-profit with the United States government. He named a board of directors and began the process of fund raising, identifying volunteers and drafting project implementation plans. And seeing the benefit of creating synergies with other international partners, he brought EWWBNA into an alliance with Electrical Workers Without Borders Italy and sister non-profit organizations in France, Germany, Spain and Switzerland.

Above, Right: Together with Lonnie Stevenson, IBEW International President, the day Ed announced his retirement; Top, Left: Ed with an instructor at the Fondation Vincent vocational training center in Cap Haitien, Haiti; Bottom, Left: Ed and Don Siegel together with Max Laroche, a prominent Haitian businessman, philanthropist, and co-developer of the Project Phoenix waste-to-energy project in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.

In the months before he passed away, Ed led a delegation to Haiti to develop workplans for several projects, moved forward a workplan with Italian partners to install a solar array for a maternity hospital in Angola and initiated the first steps to organizing a joint fundraising gala together with partners of the Italian Golden Eagle Award.

Ed Hill has left us at EWWBNA with a rich legacy of ideas, a solid structure, and an expansive network in the power industry to build upon. But more importantly his compassion and spirit of volunteerism has endowed us with a conviction to carry on his dream of a world where the benefits of electricity can be made available to everyone.