Washington, D.C. (PRWEB) May 11, 2012

Ullico Inc. (Ullico), a privately held specialty insurance and investments holding company serving the union workplace, today announced that it has added six new members to its board of directors.

Ullicos board is responsible for establishing the companys goals and objectives according to its mission and for evaluating the companys and executive officers performance in reaching those goals and objectives. Joseph J. Hunt, President Emeritus of the International Association of Bridge, Structural, Ornamental and Reinforcing Iron Workers, is the board chairman.

The new board members are:

????The Honorable Jerry F. Costello, U.S. Congressman, 12th District of Illinois
????Barbara J. Easterling, President, Alliance for Retired Americans.
????Sean McGarvey, President, Building and Construction Trades Department, AFL-CIO.
????Joseph J. Nigro, General President, Sheet Metal Workers International Association.
????Kenneth E. Rigmaiden, Executive General Vice President, International Union of Painters and Allied Trades.
????DeMaurice F. Smith, Executive Director, National Football League Players’ Association.

Ullicos President and CEO Edward M. Smith, said, As we continue to celebrate the 85th anniversary and rich heritage of this union-owned company focused on bettering the lives of Americans employed in union jobs, we are delighted to welcome these outstanding leaders to our board of directors. We appreciate their expertise and commitment to serve, and everyone at Ullico looks forward to working with them in this milestone year.

About Jerry F. Costello

The Honorable Jerry F. Costello serves as Congressman for Illinois 12th District in the U.S. House of Representatives. Costello began his public career when he was elected Chairman of the St. Clair County Board, one of Illinois largest counties in 1980. He was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives for Illinois 12th District in 1988. Costellos tenure in the House has been characterized by his results-oriented, bipartisan approach to issues. He serves as a senior Democrat on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and as the second ranking Democrat on the Science, Space and Technology Committee, playing a major role in writing several major pieces of legislation while focusing on improving the transportation infrastructure of the nation and his district, as well as the research and development of clean coal technologies.

About Barbara J. Easterling

Since 2009, Easterling has been President of the four-million-member Alliance for Retired Americans, a grassroots organization that educates and mobilizes retirees for progressive campaigns at the federal, state, and local levels. She led the Alliances efforts to pass the 2010 health reform law and serves in a number of elected and appointed positions for the International Trade Unions Confederation, the U.S. State Departments Advisory Committee on International Economic Policy, the Americans Friends of the Yitzhak Rabin Center and the American Income Life Labor Advisory Board. Before joining the Alliance, Easterling was the first woman in history to serve as Secretary-Treasurer of the Communications Workers of America, as well as Secretary-Treasurer of the AFL-CIO. Easterling previously served on the Ullico Board of Directors from 2005-2008.

About Sean McGarvey

Recently elected President of the Building and Construction Trades Department, McGarvey has also served as the Departments two-term Secretary-Treasurer, Assistant to the General President, a General Presidents Representative for the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (IUPAT), Government Affairs Director for the IUPAT and General Vice President At Large. He is a Board Member for the National Alliance for Fair Contracting, Inc., the Bipartisan Policy Center National Transportation Policy Project and the U.S. Maglev Coalition. He is also Treasurer of The Center for Military Recruitment, Assessment, and Veterans Employment.

About Joseph J. Nigro

Before becoming General President of the Sheet Metal Workers International Association, Nigro was the organizations General Secretary-Treasurer and prior to that – Assistant to the General President. Currently, he directs and supervises 151 Sheet Metal Workers local unions throughout the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico. Nigro also is Vice President of the AFL-CIO Executive Council, Vice President of the Building and Construction Trades Council and is actively involved in labor-management relations at the national level. Nigro has been a major contributor in planning the Labor-Management Partnership Conferences and a participant in the Mutual Gains Bargaining training program.

About Kenneth E. Rigmaiden

Since 2002, Rigmaiden has been Executive General Vice President of the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (IUPAT), where he is the General Administrator of the organizations affairs, assigns tasks to board members and staff and coordinates national union meetings, conferences and the general president’s schedule. He is Co-Chair of the Finishing Trades Institute, Co-Secretary of the Labor Management Cooperation Initiative and a Trustee of the IUPAT International Pension Fund and the AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust. He is also a Member of the Board of Directors for several AFLCIO constituency and allied groups.

About DeMaurice F. Smith

Smith was elected Executive Director of the National Football League Players’ Association in 2009, succeeding the late Gene Upshaw. He was elected to a second term in 2012. Among his accomplishments, he negotiated a 10-year collective bargaining agreement with Roger Goodell and the National Football League (NFL) and led players through the preceding 132-day NFL lockout. During his tenure, the U.S. Congress inquired into how the NFL handles player concussions, resulting in improved protocols. Previously, Smith was a Partner with Latham & Watkins, LLP, and Patton Boggs, LLP, in Washington D.C., worked with the U.S. Attorneys Office for the District of Columbia and was Counsel to Deputy Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. in the U.S. Department of Justice.

Directors elected for another term include Stuart M. Bloch (Chairman Emeritus of the Board of Directors, Congressional Bank), James Boland (President, International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers), Salvatore Sam J. Chilia (Secretary-Treasurer, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers), James A. Grogan (General President, International Association of Heat and Frost Insulators and Allied Workers), Joseph T. Hansen (International President, United Food and Commercial Workers International Union), Joseph J. Hunt (President Emeritus of the International Association of Bridge, Structural, Ornamental and Reinforcing Iron Workers), Thomas C. Jones (Senior Advisor, The Hagerty Group, LLC.), Daniel J. Kane (Vice President, International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Eastern Region), Christopher B. Lissner (President and Managing Member, Acropolis Investment Management, LLC.), Edward J. McElroy (President Emeritus, American Federation of Teachers, AFL-CIO), Terence M. OSullivan (General President, Laborers International Union of North America), Patrick R. Perno (Retired General Secretary-Treasurer, United Association of Plumbers and Pipefitters), Kinsey M. Robinson (International President, United Union of Roofers, Waterproofers and Allied Workers), Edward C. Sullivan (President Emeritus, Building and Construction Trades Department, AFL-CIO), George Tedeschi (President, Graphic Communications Conference of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters), and Richard L. Trumka (President, AFL-CIO).

About Ullico Inc.

For 85 years, Ullico has served the union workplace. From insurance products for union members and innovative risk management solutions for contractors and