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Dan Gustafson, Jr., who began his career as a plasterer and ended as leader of Minnesota’s labor movement, has been honored with a plaque at the Minneapolis Labor Center.
Union officers and members mingled with Gustafson and his family at a reception Aug. 21 at the Union Bank & Trust, located in the labor center, 312 Central Ave. SE, Minneapolis. They admired a large plaque with an image of Gustafson that is displayed in the lobby of the labor center.
“Dan Gustafson has devoted his working life to the causes and interests of the labor movement,” organizers of the reception said.
Gustafson played a key role in the building of the labor center and the creation of the Union Bank.
“Without his persistence, we wouldn’t have the labor temple and we wouldn’t have this bank,” said Minnesota AFL-CIO President Emeritus David Roe, who spoke on behalf of the labor movement at the reception. “We’re here today to say, ‘Danny – thank you!’”
Gustafson joined the Plasterers Union in February 1947. After years of working in the trade, he succeeded Roe as president of the Minneapolis Building & Construction Trades Council.
In the 1970s, Gustafson spearheaded the effort to build a new labor center, “to unite the labor movement in Minneapolis under one roof.” He also advocated that unions should operate their own bank.
“Union members represent a major element of the economy but the labor movement is left out of the financial decisions made by the community,” he told the Minneapolis Labor Review in November 1974. “We create the industrial wealth, build the towns, but someone else always handles the money.”
Gustafson has continued to serve on the board of the Union Bank.
In 1979, he was elected secretary-treasurer of the Minnesota AFL-CIO, serving six years while Roe was president. In 1985, Gustafson became the top official of the state labor federation, retiring as Minnesota AFL-CIO president in January 1991.
During those years, business interests worked to undermine the workers’ compensation system. Gustafson was known for tireless efforts to maintain benefits for workers injured on the job.
Gustafson’s three successors in the position of Minnesota AFL-CIO president – Bernard Brommer, Ray Waldon and current President Shar Knutson – attended the reception in addition to Roe.