BULLETIN: Norm Schut, Pioneering WFSE/AFSCME Executive Director, dies

You may know the name of Norm Schut only from the scholarship we sponsor. But he was WFSE's first executive director from 1952 to 1974, and during that time established the Federation as THE state employees union, instituted a civil rights committee in the union in the early 1960s and started the fight that brought comparable worth/pay equity.

In 1972 he took the historic step of taking to the floor of the AFSCME Convention to nominate William Lucy for International Secretary-Treasurer, the first African-American to hold that post. Norm later went on to found our retirees chapter and in retirement also headed the Senior Citizen Lobby and was a trustee at South Puget Sound Community College and a leader in the association of trustees.

We got word from his niece that Norm died Monday. As we get more details on any services, we will pass them along.

Norm Schut was a big piece of the history of the Federation, AFSCME, and our state.