Schneps Media honors Leaders of Labor at Terrace on the Park

Hundreds of businesspeople celebrated the most influential and impactful members of the labor community and the organizations that support them at Schneps Media’s 2022 Leaders of Labor event represented by MetroPlus Health on Thursday, Sept. 15, at Terrace on the Park.

“I am feeling very excited. We are obviously a very important part of this city, and the labor unions are a critical part of this city,” said Talya Schwartz, president and CEO of MetroPlus Health. “Coming all together and recognizing the people who are really pulling more than their weight every single day means a lot to us. This is our mission to really help New Yorkers, work with New Yorkers. We are New Yorkers and are for New Yorkers. This is our place. We feel very, very at home here.”

Leaders of Labor, represented by MetroPlus Health, recognize the achievements and contributions of outstanding individuals who have created a significant impact in the workers’ rights movement in New York.

“It’s truly been an honor to be here. It means so much because correction officers are doing so much right now,” said Benny Boscio Jr., president of the Correctional Officers’ Benevolent Association. “During the pandemic, we didn’t have the luxury of staying home and working from home. We provided safety and security to the city of New York. It’s been an honor and privilege to represent the men and women working so many hours because of the staffing crisis. A lot of things are said about correctional officers, but not everything is true. We’re an 85% minority-based law enforcement group, and we live in the city of New York amongst everyone else and want the safety and security of everybody on Rikers Island.”

Schneps Media, publishers of amNewYork Metro, Brooklyn Courier, the Bronx Times, The Queens Courier, Times Ledger Newspapers, El Correo, Caribbean Life, the Long Island Press, Noticia and more than 80 publications, is proud to bring together the most extraordinary individuals who are a part of and who support labor, to connect, support one another, conduct business and build community.

“I am so honored to be part of the labor leaders. The building and the foundation of our city, which we built this great city upon, it’s great that we acknowledge those union members for their work and efforts, not just on Labor Day, but certainly every day,” Hon. Senator Joseph Addabbo Jr. said. “These are people who are dedicated and are working hard for themselves and to provide for their families, and we say thank you.”

The Leaders of Labor event included a VIP Power Hour where honorees connected during the ultimate networking cocktail hour and culminated in a high-energy celebratory awards ceremony.

“It’s really not about Kyle Bragg, but the 175,000 members of 32BJ, who every day are essential workers that service this city and across the East Coast,” said Kyle Bragg, president of 32BJ SEIU. “Airport workers, residential cleaners, commercial cleaners, school janitors, window cleaners: These are the people that keep this city moving every day, and I accept the honor on their behalf.”

The event was an absolute success as it featured not only powerful connections and great food and drink but also a raffle that raised money for Project Renewal, whose mission is to end the cycle of homelessness by empowering individuals and families to renew their lives with health, homes and jobs.

“When I saw the honorees that I was amongst, it excited me,” said Shaun D. Francois, president of D37 & Local 372. “A lot of them are peers. A lot of them I’ve worked with in the past, and I plan to work with them in the future. It’s amazing to see how many people came from my council as well that have been on it. Coming here, the overwhelming feeling that Schneps brought to me, the welcoming and love, it felt like a family reunion.”

Joey Jackson, principal and founder of Joey Jackson Law PLLC, said he is privileged to be with the labor leaders in the fight to affect the terms and conditions of employment of so many members and their families.

“Labor leaders do so much for so many, and they do it because they have a calling to it, and they want to make people’s lives better,” Jackson said. What is life and what is a legacy? It’s about inspiring and uplifting others. What this means to me is to have the benefit to be next to so many other people, who are uplifting members and making their lives better and enabling and entitling them to support their families.”

Visit LeadersofLabor.com for more information on the honorees and go to SchnepsEvents.com to learn about upcoming events. For tickets, nominations and sponsorship opportunities, please reach out to Demetra Mattone at DMattone@SchnepsMedia.com or at 718-260-4512.