Retired AFSCME Leader Marty Beil Dies

I was shocked to learn this afternoon that Marty Beil, long-time leader of AFSCME Council 24, has passed away. I only met Marty once, when we interviewed him at the local AFSCME headquarters the day after he retired on June 30th. He spoke of his little granddaughter, how she had this bear of a man wrapped around her little finger, and how much he was planning to enjoy grandparenthood in his retirement.

I barely knew the guy, but I feel all choked up now. Not just because of the story about his granddaughter, but also because he cared so much about working people. It’s always interesting to meet people you only know as public figures. You can have strong opinions of people, feel sharply critical of their actions, yet when you meet them, you encounter another fallible human being like yourself, who is often doing what they think is best at the time, given the circumstances in which they find themselves.

So it was with Marty Beil. I questioned many of his actions and strategies during the Uprising in 2011 and still do. But interviewing him, I learned how much he really did care about working people. More than four years after the Uprising he was still passionate about the injustice done to Wisconsin state workers.

The focus during the protests was on teachers and other college-educated professionals. But Marty noted that AFSCME includes many blue collar workers. The average wage of workers in his union, he reported, was less than $15 an hour. So he was understandably outraged about to cuts to pensions and healthcare benefits, especially difficult for this set of workers.

Marty led AFSCME Council 24 for nearly 40 years, first as president and later as executive director. AFSCME was formed in Wisconsin in 1932 and it pained Marty that the last chapter of his career was marked by the decimation of his union.

Nevertheless, he had faith that we can rebuild. “The hope,” he said, “comes from all of us struggling together and trying to make a better future.” RIP, Marty.

(photo credit Leslie Peterson, Wisconsin State Journal)