About this Event
Please join the New York Labor History Association for a reception honoring legal pioneer and former National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo, and activist scholar and Triangle Fire Memorial leader Mary Anne Trasciatti, for their extraordinary contributions to workers’ empowerment.
Each year since 1987, NYLHA has awarded the John Commerford Labor Education Award to two honorees for their outstanding uses of labor history in the service of improving the lives of workers.
The New York Labor History Association (NYLHA) was founded in 1976 by trade unionists, academics, students, archivists, educators, labor editors, attorneys, and retirees, mostly from New York State. NYLHA encourages the study of workers and their organizations and serves as a bridge between past and present labor unionists and academics.
This event is free to attend, though registration is required. The awards ceremony and reception—NYLHA's only fundraiser of the year—supports a wealth of NYLHA programming about labor and workers. Donations to NYLHA are appreciated and can be made online.
2025 HONOREES
Mary Anne Trasciatti is an activist, educator, scholar, and editor. She is a board member of the Triangle Fire Coalition, and a Professor of Rhetoric and Director of the Labor Studies program at Hofstra University in Long Island.
She is co-editor of Talking to the Girls: Intimate and Political Essays on the Triangle Fire with Edvige Giunta. She is also co-editor of Where Are the Workers?: Labor’s Stories at Museums and Historic Sites with Robert Forrant. Her most recent book is Elizabeth Gurley Flynn: The Rebel Girl, Democracy, and Revolution.
Trasciatti is the daughter and granddaughter of garment workers, and has devoted more than a decade to educating the public about the 1911 Triangle shirtwaist factory fire and advocating for the creation of a Triangle Fire Memorial, which was dedicated in 2023. She also serves on the board of directors for Long Island Jobs With Justice, helping to build coalitions among labor unions and worker centers, community and faith-based organizations, and individual social justice activists to protect the rights of working people on Long Island and support community struggles to build a more just society.
Jennifer Abruzzo is a pioneering labor attorney, renowned for her unwavering commitment to workers’ rights and her leadership at the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). During her tenure, the NLRB prioritized worker protections and streamlined unionization efforts.
Abruzzo began at the NLRB as a field attorney in Miami and ascended through various roles, including Deputy General Counsel and Acting General Counsel. Starting in 2018, she served as Special Counsel for Strategic Initiatives at Communications Workers of America, AFL-CIO (CWA), the largest media and communications union in the United States. Abruzzo served as General Counsel of the NLRB from July 2021 until January 2025. In January 2025 she was fired by President Trump. Her tenure was marked by significant initiatives resulting in the largest expansion of workers’ rights in decades, and her leadership in enforcing federal labor law played a pivotal role in supporting successful unionization efforts throughout the country. Following her tenure at the NLRB, Abruzzo joined Bush Gottlieb as Of Counsel, and is a Senior Advisor to the President at Communication Workers of America, AFL-CIO, continuing her lifelong commitment to advancing labor law and assisting and supporting workers, families and communities across the nation.
As a part of NYU's commitment to global inclusion, our events and initiatives are open to individuals of all backgrounds and identities.
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Bobst Library | 2nd Floor | Chase North Reading Room, 70 Washington Square South, New York, United States
USD 0.00
