Joseph Hughes is the Director of Government Relations for the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades District Council 57 of Western PA, a union glazier out of Local 751, and a lifelong western Pennsylvania resident. Born to a large union family and raised in the Allegheny-Kiski Valley during the decline of the region’s steel industry, Joseph’s adolescence was shaped by seeing his father and others in the community struggle to find good-paying, dignified jobs.
After graduating from Springdale High School in 1991, he spent a few semesters at Indiana University of Pennsylvania before realizing that college was not for him. Joe went into the workforce, spending a few years with a landscaping company and a non-union glazing outfit before joining Glaziers Local 751 in 2000, graduating from their registered apprenticeship program and working for multiple glazing contractors on a variety of small and large jobs in the Pittsburgh region, including downtown’s PNC Tower. A proud trade unionist, Joe has held positions on the union’s executive board and served as a part-time instructor for years before joining IUPAT DC 57 staff as an organizer in 2016. While on staff, Joe has participated in organizing campaigns in the region and across the country, signing new contractors to the union and bringing in new members from communities throughout western PA.
Joe completed the IUPAT’s Leadership program and in 2019 he took over as Director of Organizing before moving to his current position in 2021. As Director of Government Relations, Joe has assisted pro-worker federal, state, and local campaigns and testified in front of state legislature committees about wage theft, misclassification, and other issues facing working Pennsylvanians. In addition to his departmental duties, Joe has negotiated multiple contracts on behalf of DC 57’s members, volunteered for union charity events and is a lively feature at Pittsburgh’s annual Labor Day parade.