DeForest, WI – The Wisconsin Laborers’ District Council today announced the appointment of Kent Miller as its next President/Business Manager. Mr. Miller was selected by the Executive Board of the Wisconsin Laborers’ District Council to complete the term of current President/Business Manager John Schmitt, who is retiring on August 31, 2022.
Kent Miller is a third-generation member of the Laborers’ International Union of North America (LIUNA). In 2003, Mr. Miller started his career performing landscaping, and in 2004 he became a topman and pipelayer for RG Huston Company Inc. Mr. Miller then took a position with Speedway Sand and Gravel in 2008 where he worked in the field for an additional four years. “I truly enjoyed the challenges each different project posed and how working together we built and improved sewer and water infrastructure throughout southern Wisconsin,” said Kent Miller.
In 2012, Mr. Miller left working in the field to become a marketing representative for the LIUNA Great Lakes Region. In this role, Mr. Miller traveled throughout southern Wisconsin promoting the union construction business model to non-union contractors, and the benefits of being a union laborer to non-union workers. Mr. Miller was subsequently hired as the Assistant Business Manager of the Wisconsin Laborers’ District Council in 2015, and in 2018 became the LIUNA International Representative overseeing the compliance of all national collective bargaining agreements in Wisconsin, including the National Distribution Agreement, National Pipeline Agreement, and the National Maintenance Agreement.
“I am very humbled and honored that my fellow brothers and sisters have selected me to lead our great union,” said Kent Miller. “I would also like to thank my predecessor, John Schmitt, for your trust and faith in me. I look forward to building upon the foundation that you have set to grow our union by advocating for industry-leading wages and benefits.”
“Our union will always be looking to organize emerging markets that need the strong workforce that our members can provide, and this will require our organization to double down on its efforts in recruitment, workforce development, training, and apprenticeship readiness programs.”
Mr. Miller is a native of Madison, Wisconsin and will continue to work out of the Wisconsin Laborers’ District Council office in DeForest. A photo of Mr. Miller can be found here.
The Wisconsin Laborers’ District Council is an affiliation of five Laborer local unions, representing nearly 9,000 construction craft laborers throughout Wisconsin. The Laborers are the most diverse trade in the construction industry servicing employers in transportation infrastructure, building, sewer and water, utility distribution, demolition, asbestos removal, and related sectors.
