A Moving Workers’ Memorial

MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL

After a seven-year effort, a monument to slain road workers was unveiled at the Minnesota state capitol on Workers Memorial Day.

The project resulted from a joint effort by Locals 2792 and 1011 of AFSCME Council 6, together with the state and other unions. “The way we sold the idea,” says Bob Hilliker, Council 6 business agent, “was that the monument could be used to educate the public about work-zone safety.”

Resolutions put forth by Local 2792, Council 6 and the Minnesota AFL-CIO, led to the upgraded version. It depicts a bridge with its central span missing and offers this tribute: “[The missing span] can never be finished without those who have lost their lives building and maintaining Minnesota’s transportation system.”