Cedar Lane Unitarian Universalist Church, Bethesda, MD

IN MEMORY OF NORM GLEICHMAN

Cedar Lane Unitarian Universalist Church, Bethesda, MD

January 20, 2013

Good afternoon. I am Judy Scott. Norm was my dear friend and comrade-in-arms at the Service Employees International Union.

Let me begin by just saying again what is foremost in our hearts:

Norm was a remarkable man. This was a man who loved life to the fullest. I apologize for the cliché, but that’s simply the truth. Norm embraced every moment; hugged most everybody who crossed his path; and relished every chance to dig into a crisis and advocate for workers.

I am joined in this tribute by many of Norm’s SEIU family gathered here, who cherished and admired him, including SEIU President Mary Kay Henry and our Secretary-Treasurer Eliseo Medina; former and current SEIU leaders from around the country including Andy Stern and Anna Burger; union folks and colleagues of Norm’s from many corners of the labor movement; and of course, the SEIU legal department team who worked so closely with Norm. Norm hired many of our team and mentored all of us.

Over the past decade Norm - who was SEIU’s Deputy General Counsel - and I were partners and true work buddies. Since the moment Norm walked in the door of the union headquarters in 2002, we were joined at the hip, figuring out how to manage the myriad of legal complications – both big and small - that confront the labor movement in fighting for social justice every day.

Norm nurtured our legal team by way of his sharp legal skills and expansive view of teachable moments, and just as importantly, by way of his own example of living a well-rounded life that made plenty of room for family, friends, arts, theater, community and the regular practice of random acts of kindness.

You could have written an encyclopedia on Norm’s good deeds. Both Oprah and Mother Jones would have loved Norm Gleichman.

Since Norm died, messages have poured in from around the country from former law clerks and law fellows who were introduced to labor law through Norm. They tell stories of how Norm guided, inspired and cheered them along their way to meaningful careers in the public interest.

It is not surprising that Norm had earned the title of “super mentor” in the SEIU mentorship program. That’s because he devoted so much time and energy to developing people’s abilities throughout the union headquarters, promoting diversity and encouraging all of us to use our full talents not only at work but also outside of it.

Norm was a full service social justice movement lawyer. He arrived at SEIU with years of labor law practice on behalf of workers –ranging from a private employment law practice, service as counsel to the Communications Workers of America and an extended period as General Counsel to the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission during the Clinton years.

I didn’t fully appreciate until after Norm came on board that he had been born into such a formidable trade union legacy with a union activist father, Haskell Glenn, and a dynamo mother, Elinor Glenn, an SEIU leader in her own right who inspired many women union activists to follow in her footsteps. That heritage imbued Norm with the values that motivated him to pursue his vocation: a fierce advocate for workers and their unions.

Over the 34 plus years of Norm’s career, he tackled all the alphabet soup mysteries of labor law – ERISA, MSHA, Title VII and EEOC, NLRA, and the LMRDA.

But more important was that genuine part of Norm’s special nature that led him to care deeply about the workers and their families he represented. That is why Norm took every aspect of his job seriously, despite the wonderful sense of humor he brought to all his endeavors.

Norm could explain the most complex Supreme Court cases in a way that made them accessible to lawyers and non-lawyers alike and he helped shape the Union’s strategic response to pro-corporate rulings that dominate this court’s agenda.

When striking janitors were arrested in Houston for standing up for decent pay or hospital workers in Pittsburgh were fired for trying to form a union, Norm was always the steady counsel who made sure we powered up the legal support quickly and got lawyers on the ground to help in any way they could. He was a social justice connector in every way.

Similarly, Norm believed that it made a real difference for workers if their union ran smoothly and their leaders worked well together. So he worked hard using all his expertise and personal skills to get that done.

Norm called local union leaders just to find out how they were doing. He was devoted to helping them unravel the legal puzzles that sometimes stymie their work.

For Norm, the Union’s constitution and bylaws was not a document of bureaucracy; it was a manifesto to be treated with utmost respect on behalf of the workers who crafted the mission and rules of their union.

Norm could guide a convoluted internal governance hearing through its paces and produce a written report that made sense and was actually interesting to read. That is no small feat.

He was known to drive back from a union hearing singing songs all the way home to keep the hearing officer safe from driver fatigue.

Norm participated in numerous negotiations of partnership agreements between SEIU and other unions. That is no small feat either. I was touched to see that one of those prominent unions, AFCSME, posted a public tribute to Norm on its blog upon learning of his death, noting that Norm was invaluable in bridging the gap between AFSCME and SEIU.

At a difficult time for the Union, Norm shepherded the creation of the SEIU Ethics Commission with outside experts including Justice Abner Mikva and Justice James Zazzali. He then was instrumental in insuring the implementation of an innovative Code of Ethical Practices and ongoing training program.

Yet Norm was always one of the first volunteers to help in labor rallies, throwing himself into any assignment, no matter how mundane. Norm actually made it fun to direct buses to the right parking space at the RFK stadium.

Norm was a devoted fan of President Obama, going door-to-door in Virginia last fall. One report had Norm charging into a marathon discussion with an undecided voter at the wife’s urging - herself an Obama supporter who had given up hope for her husband’s political conversion until Norm arrived. Yes, not only could Norm talk frank politics with a stranger but he could also successfully explain why the so-called “individual mandate” of the Affordable Care Act really worked for them.

Granted, Norm had certain habits that might trick you into misreading him. Habits like packing a daily predictable lunch of apple, yogurt and sandwich in a recycled newspaper sack could lull you into thinking you could rely on his routines. But then you would turn around on Halloween to find Norm roaming the halls dressed in a matador outfit in black tights and cape. Or find him in the elevator reciting his lines for another lead role in a Shakespeare play in a community theater.

Who could forget Norm in his roles in Amadeus and The Last Days of Judas Iscariot? Certainly no one in the SEIU Legal Department who came in solidarity to see him in these plays and were left dumbstruck by his incredible performances.

I don’t ever remember a blow-up with Norm despite pressure-cooker times in our work together.

·  I do remember Norm often coming into my office, closing the door and trading high-fives when things worked out.

·  I do remember Norm on his knees bowing in homage to Alma Henderson, a lawyer colleague who had successfully arbitrated a difficult case;

·  I do remember Norm writing and directing our young lawyer team in a video comedy to depict – what else - the complicated legal scenario before the US Supreme Court on whether the two member National Labor Relations Board actually constituted a quorum. (Only Norm could turn this matter into a teaching moment with comic relief.) The video has since gone viral within the labor-management bar.

·  I do remember Norm greeting union co-workers at every level of the union with a unique salutation he had penned just for that person; like calling Dora Chen the “Mother of Max” because of her baby son Max; and asking Maryann Parker “How are the chickens?” that is, her two children, each morning he passed by her office.

·  I do remember Norm’s commitment to fighting against voter suppression, how he became an election judge at the Maryland polls, and urged the rest of us to find something real and practical to do about the voting rights crisis.

·  And I do remember Norm thoughtfully analyzing challenging legal problems and pushing me gently but steadily to get to the right decisions.

Indeed - A lot of intense work, delicate negotiations and a whole lot of laughter and humanity were packed into Norm’s time with us at SEIU.

Because of who Norm was, he had a huge impact on so many lives in the labor movement. He lives on in the acts of kindness, humor and dedication to social justice his life will continue to inspire in others.

Marie, Nick and Eve: You know he talked about you regularly with us with such joy and pride. We felt part of your huge extended family, and you will always be part of ours.

Thank you for sharing Norm with us, and with the members of SEIU.

We will miss him terribly.

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