The Oregon AFSCME Executive Board has named one of its members, Fred Yungbluth, Jr. as president until the union’s April 2023 convention. He’ll serve the remainder of the term of Elizabeth Goetzinger, who resigned.
Yungbluth, 46, has worked as an emergency dispatcher for 25 years. He grew up near Youngstown, Ohio, where his parents were active members of the United Electrical union who would cross town to patronize union grocery stores. He worked as a dispatcher in Ohio, then moved to Oregon in 2005 to take a job at Clackamas County Communications 9-1-1.
Today he serves as chair of his union chapter at Clackamas County Communications 9-1-1, and as president of AFSCME Local 350, which represents about 700 employees of Clackamas County. Now he’ll also preside over a 23,000 member union, one of the state’s largest.
“We want to make sure that our public employee members are recognized for all of the commitment, the dedication and sacrifices that they’ve made through COVID and the wildfires and ice storms,” Yungbluth told the Labor Press. “It’s hard to maintain the public memory of those sacrifices.”
Oregon AFSCME president is a volunteer position except for a small stipend, and Yungbluth will serve while continuing to work as a dispatcher.
