Cynthia Hall, President Florida AFL-CIO

Cynthia Hall is a former classroom teacher and a long time activist in Florida's labor community. She has been a member of the United Teachers of Dade since 1981 where she served as the organization's Legislative Director. She has lobbied the Florida Legislature on behalf of public education for the past 23 years, building a solid reputation amongst the capitol community as a tough and intelligent advocate for education and labor policies. She served as President of the South Florida Central Labor Council, during which time she played a central role in the passage of living wage ordinances in both Miami-Dade County and the City of Miami Beach. She has a solid record of community involvement working with the Dade County Public Health Authority, the Greater Miami Service Corp. and The United Way of Dade County.

Cindy was elected to the office of President of the Florida AFL-CIO in September 2001 by the delegates to the 2001 Biennial Convention and subsequently re-elected in 2005. In a press release following her installation as President, she promised to "work even harder than we have in the past to include all unions large and small in our legislative efforts. We will make sure that Florida's elected leaders understand that the state's workers stand united in the struggle to make government more accountable to Florida's working families."

She also pledged that, "Florida is about to see a labor community more energized than ever. We will aggressively participate in every aspect of the lawmaking process with a coordinated campaign of electoral, legislative and grassroots action to ensure that Florida's workers are at the forefront when public policy decisions are made."

The Florida AFL-CIO has seen unprecedented growth in the years since Cynthia was first elected, and in 2006 was appointed by AFL-CIO national President John Sweeney to the Advisory Committee on State Federations and Central Councils.