November 27, 2006

 

Balal Ahmad, 57, Hudson News Unit Chair

 

           Balal Ahmad, 57, Chairperson of our Hudson News unit since its inception in 2000, died November 18 of a heart attack.

 

           Balal was an invaluable key organizer in our drive to sign up the more than 300 Hudson News workers, almost all of whom are immigrants from India, Pakistan, or Bangladesh.  In the late summer of 2000, as agents of the National Labor Relations Board had finished tallying the workers’ votes in the election that named the New York Guild as their union, and after the room exploded in the workers’ and Guild staffers’ joyous celebration of the victory, N.Y. Local President Barry Lipton turned to Ahmad and others and said:  “Welcome to our union. This is your victory.  You are our heroes.”

 

           Balal was heroic in his fearless drive to win a union for the shop, resisting harassment, threats, and even tearful appeals in his apartment by a management agent calling on him to abandon the Guild.

 

           He refused.

 

           Leading the Unit Negotiating Committee, Ahmad helped to bargain the shop’s original and renewal contracts.  He was a member of our Executive Committee and a delegate to several Newspaper Guild conventions.

 

           A U.S. resident for more than 20 years, Balal was born in Pakistan, where he was buried.

 

           Barry paid tribute to Ahmad for “his wonderful courage and exhaustive work on behalf of his co-workers and our union.  I honor his dedication and enjoyed his friendship.  I’ll miss him a lot.”

 

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11/27/06