2026 Honoree

Henry A. Garrido is the executive director of District Council 37, New York City’s largest public employee union, representing 150,000 members and 89,000 retirees. On Nov. 26, 2024, Garrido was reelected to a fourth term effective January 2025.

Since becoming executive director in 2015, Garrido has focused on encouraging greater member

participation, initiating the DC 37 Union Strong organizing campaign. The campaign has led to the

highest union membership in DC 37’s 80 year history

Garrido previously served as the union’s associate director. In that position, he helped establish the Municipal Employees Housing Program, which coordinates grants for first-time homebuyers and provides foreclosure prevention services, financial education and counseling. He also directed the union’s white paper project that addressed government waste by investigating the privatization of City services and identifying additional revenue sources. Garrido was also involved in a sustainability initiative focused on increasing green jobs in New York State.

Garrido is an international vice president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), co-chair of the Municipal Labor Committee, a trustee on the City of New York’s Workforce Investment Board, an advisory board member of the New York City Independent Budget Office, and serves on the board of the New York City Employees Retirement System (NYCERS). Garrido has also served as chair to two Charter Revision Commissions as co-chair of the Racial Justice and the co-chair of Commission to Strengthen Local Democracy.

Garrido oversaw the redevelopment of the union’s headquarters at 125 Barclay, which reopened as a state-of-the-art member service center during the union’s 80th anniversary in 2024. A native of the Dominican Republic, he is the first Latino to head DC 37 since it was formed in 1944.