Henry Garrido

DC 37 Executive Director Henry A. Garrido is the first Latino to head District Council 37, the largest municipal employees union in New York City. A native of the Dominican Republic, Mr. Garrido assumed the position on Dec. 31, 2014.

As executive director, Mr. Garrido, 43, leads a union of 121,000 municipal workers who come from around the world and are employed in 1,000 titles. The union’s members work in mayoral agencies, the public schools, city libraries and cultural institutions, the Health and Hospitals Corp., the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, School Construction Authority, Emergency Medical Services, the Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority, the Unified Court System and New York Law School.

Before becoming executive director, Mr. Garrido served for four years as associate director during the administration of longtime DC 37 leader Lillian Roberts, who retired in 2014.

As associate director from 2011 to 2014, Mr. Garrido was involved in DC 37 policy and administration. His responsibilities included testifying at the City Council and State Legislature on union issues, administering the DC 37 field staff and coordinating the union’s white paper project, which addressed city waste by investigating contracting out and identifying revenue sources. He also was involved in an initiative on sustainability and green jobs in New York State.

Mr. Garrido helped establish a housing program for municipal employees, which he administered. The Municipal Employees Housing Program handles over $3 million in grants for first-time homebuyers, foreclosure prevention services and an educational and counseling program. The program also provides a preference for municipal employees in all city- and state-sponsored apartment lotteries.

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