YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – Cody Hilliard was drawn to the construction industry at age 17, just after graduation from high school. That summer gave him his first real experience at a work site, where he learned some basics skills that he thought would prove useful in the future.
He opted to attend college at Slippery Rock University. Yet after a year, Hilliard concluded that his real passion was in the building trades.
“It started my path to getting into the industry – the electrical trades especially,” he says. “That was the goal.”
It didn’t happen immediately, Hilliard relates. “It took me a couple of times to get into an apprenticeship. But it’s what I always wanted.” It also kick-started his interest in union leadership – and his rapid rise within the ranks of Local 64 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers.
“I wanted to be in the IBEW in the worst way,” Hilliard says. “I was very passionate about the local union. I just wanted to be involved.”
Moving Up in the Ranks
Today, Hillard is Local 64’s business manager, a position he’s held for nearly two years. At 32, Hilliard represents a new generation of union leadership at a critical junction for the skilled trades, as more experienced members retire and the demand for younger workers increases. “I’m definitely on the younger end,” he says, compared to other business managers serving IBEW locals throughout the country.
Nevertheless, Hillard observes there’s a visible trend that points to a next generation taking the reins of union leadership at a more accelerated pace. “You’re starting to see a lot more people around my age – in their 30s,” he says. “There are still quite a few business managers and those in leadership positions with the IBEW and different trades that are getting closer to retirement age.”
This transition allows younger members of organized labor to take what they’ve learned during their tenure and assume leadership roles, bringing a fresh perspective to management that could relate to younger people moving into the workforce.
“The changes in technology are huge with the younger demographic coming in,” Hilliard says. Outreach efforts, for example, are today much more geared toward a younger audience, using social media platforms such as Facebook, X and Instagram, a major marketing shift from even a decade ago. Changes in more data-driven technology related to lighting and energy are also evident in the marketplace, he says.
Hilliard notes that there is some crossover between his generation and those joining the trades in their 20s or those just coming out of high school. In that sense, he says that younger prospects, apprentices, or members might relate better to union leaders that are closer to them in age. “There’s a lot of people around my age that are concerned about affordable housing, health care – insurance cost is a big thing,” he says. “I have a young family, so these are things I’m super concerned about and I’m dealing with currently. It does seem to be relatable to some of the younger men and women.”
It’s also important to take counsel from those more experienced members and leaders and listen to their concerns, Hilliard says. “Essentially, being the business manager is kind of like the CEO,” he says. He previously served as president and was elected to the new role after Local 64’s former business manager assumed a position with the International.
While younger members are looking ahead to advancing their careers in the IBEW, the older generation is contemplating retirement, Hilliard says. “There’s more emphasis on guiding them through retirement plans, because as you know, retirement can be scary,” he says. “We want to help them when it comes time to make that decision.”
Moreover, Local 64 boasts approximately 450 members, all of which have different needs and expectations. “This is probably the highest membership that we’ve ever seen in this local,” he says. Hilliard, while among the younger business managers in an IBEW local, is also experienced enough to relate to older members. Smartphones, for example, were not as ubiquitous as they are today when Hilliard was growing up, he says. “When we started driving, we’d get a TracFone. I didn’t get a smartphone until I was in the trades.”
Interest among the younger generation at the IBEW is percolating, Hilliard adds. “It’s super high for the electrical industry,” he says. “There’s been a big resurgence in the IBEW.”
The overall objective, Hilliard says, is to secure Local 64 for the future. “I want to see it succeed,” he says. “We’ve got to stay ahead of the market, so regressing is not an option.”
Union Membership
Union membership nationwide has remained relatively stable over the past several years, according to data from the U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics. In 2024, 16.023 million workers, or 11.1% of the workforce, were represented by unions. That’s down slightly from the previous year, when 16.193 million, or 11.2% of the workforce, reported union representation.
Union representation among younger workers in 2024 was also lower compared to 2023, data show. According to BLS, 3.44 million workers between the ages of 25 and 34 reported union representation in 2023. In 2024, that number had dropped to 3.315 million, data show.
Additional data support that younger workers have a favorable outlook on organized labor. According to a Gallup poll in August 2024, 77% of respondents ages 18 to 24 – the adult age range for Generation Z – said they supported unions in the workplace. Those between the ages of 35 and 54 also showed strong support for organized labor, as 70% of that age demographic responded favorably on unions. Pro-union sentiment drops to 66% for those workers 55 and older, the poll shows.
Young Leadership at UAW 1112
George Goranitis, at age 35, is likely the youngest president in the history of United Auto Workers Local 1112, which today represents more than 1,700 workers across the Mahoning Valley, including more than 1,200 at Ultium Cells LLC’s battery cell manufacturing plant in Lordstown.
“I love organizing. It’s one of my passions,” Goranitis says. He first became part of Local 1112 in 2008, when he was hired at General Motors’ Lordstown plant as it geared up to produce the Chevrolet Cruze. He remained at the plant until 2019, when GM discontinued production of the vehicle and closed the factory. He then transferred to GM’s Spring Hill plant in Tennessee.
“That really opened my eyes,” Goranitis says. “That’s when I wanted to get involved with the union.”
He returned to the Mahoning Valley shortly after being hired at Spring Hill to be close to family. At the same time, Ultium – a joint venture between GM and LG Energy Solution – was beginning the hiring process for its new plant in Lordstown, a new $2.3 billion factory that produces battery cells for GM’s lineup of electric vehicles. Goranitis was hired there, but Ultium was a nonunion shop, as it began as a separate entity from GM and therefore not covered under the national UAW agreement.
“Two to three weeks after being hired, I contacted the International union and talked to them about organizing,” he recalls. “They educated me on how they go about it, because this would be the first time I’d been involved.”
Goranitis then made it his goal to talk to those being hired at the new plant about the benefits of organizing. “I wanted to educate them about what their rights are, what a union is and how we could fight for better benefits, job security, and health and safety standards.”
The organizing effort paid off. In December 2022, workers at Ultium overwhelmingly voted to join the UAW during a vote hosted by the National Labor Relations Board. In October 2023, GM had agreed to include its battery manufacturing operations in its national agreement with the UAW. A formal local collective bargaining agreement at Ultium’s Lordstown plant was approved in June 2024, making it the first of GM’s EV battery operations in the country to ratify such a pact.
“That’s why I wanted to run for president,” Goranitis says. “I wanted to focus on educating the younger generation, and the members elected me.”
Goranitis values education as an important responsibility for a union president. In August, UAW 1112 will host students from local high schools at its hall in North Jackson to teach them about the benefits of belonging to a labor union. Several of them are from the local career and tech schools, and should they pursue a skilled trade such as welding or HVAC work, for example, it helps them to understand the basics of organized labor. “A lot of people don’t understand that you have the right to organize,” he says.
There’s an App for That
Goranitis says he can connect with younger people because he is relatively young himself, especially for a union president. The nature of the auto business has also changed, he emphasizes, and technology has made it possible to better communicate with 1112’s membership.
“It’s a different time from what past presidents experienced,” Goranitis says. “During the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s, they went through a lot of different challenges.”
But much has changed since, Goranitis says. “Working with technology with the younger generation has changed,” he says. Most importantly, it’s helped streamline how union leadership communicates with its membership, he says, especially with smartphone technology.
“Just recently, we finished launching the UAW 1112 app,” Goranitis says, a first for the union. “I love doing what I do, I love being involved with the communities.”
Pictured: Cody Hilliard, business manager for IBEW Local 64, represents the next generation of union leaders in the skilled trades.