President
MaryBe McMillan is President of the North Carolina State AFL-CIO. With her election to this position in 2017, she became the first female president in the history of the organization and is one of nine women leading state AFL-CIO federations in the country. Prior to her election as President, she served 12 years as Secretary-Treasurer—again the first woman to serve in that position.
Before working for the NC State AFL-CIO, she worked for the national AFL-CIO’s Union Community Fund, as Research Director for the Common Sense Foundation, and as State Policy Analyst for the Rural School & Community Trust.
MaryBe grew up in Hickory, North Carolina. She became involved with union organizing as a student and is passionate about organizing workers in the South. MaryBe frequently speaks to groups around the country about the importance of building a strong labor movement in the South.
MaryBe graduated with honors from Wake Forest University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in sociology. She also holds a Master of Arts degree from UNC-Greensboro and a doctorate degree in sociology from NC State University. MaryBe is a member of the International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) Local 465 in Durham, North Carolina.
marybe@aflcionc.org, @marybemcmillan
Speeches & Poems by MaryBe McMillan
“#TimesUp” by MaryBe McMillan (poem)
“Time to Organize” by MaryBe McMillan (poem)
“Union Yes” by MaryBe McMillan (poem)
General Counsel
A partner in the law firm of Patterson Harkavy LLP, Mike Okun has served as General Counsel for more than two decades. An honors graduate of the University of North Carolina Law School, Mike clerked for a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit and worked in the Appellate Court Branch of the Enforcement Division of the National Labor Relations Board before entering practice.
Mike is listed in the Best Lawyers in America, in Business Carolina’s Legal Elite, and in North Carolina Superlawyers published by Law and Politics magazine. Mike is one of two North Carolinians to be elected a Fellow of the national College of Labor and Employment Lawyers. He has served as chair of the N.C. Bar Association’s Labor and Employment Section, on the Board of Directors of the AFL-CIO’s Lawyer Coordinating Committee’s Advisory Board, on the Board of Directors of the National Employment Lawyers Association. He has done consulting work in the former Soviet Republics for the ABA and for Solidarity House. His work has been honored by, among others, the A. Philip Randolph Institute, NCOSH, the N.C. Academy of Trial Lawyers, the N.C. Justice Center, the N.C. Association of Retired Americans, the Triangle Native American Association, and Southerners for Economic Justice. Formerly an ironworker, he is still a member of the Ironworkers’ union.
Communications Director / Operations Manager
Jeremy Sprinkle is the Communications Director and Operations Manager for the North Carolina State AFL-CIO, where he has worked since 2005. Prior to being hired, Jeremy interned with our state fed on the Immigrant Workers Freedom Ride and Justice @ Smithfield campaigns and worked for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. Jeremy is responsible for developing and implementing an external and internal communications plan using traditional and online media outreach, available digital platforms, and creative special events – as well as for planning state federation conferences and maintaining day-to-day operations at our headquarters. Jeremy is a political science graduate of the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Jeremy is a member of the Washington-Baltimore News Guild, TNG-CWA Local 32035.
Campaign Manager & Field Director
Aiden Graham is the Campaign Manager for the North Carolina State AFL-CIO. Aiden is a member of the Washington-Baltimore News Guild, TNG-CWA Local 32035.
Executive Board Members
The North Carolina State AFL–CIO is governed by an executive board of Vice Presidents (listed in alphabetical order by last name).
| Rick Armstrong, IBT |  |
| Rob Axford, IBEW |  |
| Janice Barnes, USW |  |
| Andre Barnett, UFCW |  |
| Harold Black, CWA |  |
| J. David Cox, AFGE |  |
| Daniel Dashman, IATSE |  |
| Jackie Davis, SEIU Workers United | |
| Terrence Dewberry, ATU |  |
| Randy Fulk, BCTGM |  |
| Vernon Gammon, IBT |  |
| Tim Godfrey, USW | |
| Michael Gravinese, AFGE |  |
| Corey Hill, UAW |  |
| Charles Hines, IAMAW |  |
| Essie Hogue, AFGE |  |
| Ron Ingerick, SMART |  |
| Yvonne Kinston, CWA |  |
| Darla McGlamery, IATSE |  |
| Theodore McNeal, IAMAW |  |
| Denise Moore, OPEIU |  |
| Jim Moore, AFSCME |  |
| Angelita Morrisroe, FLOC |  |
| Bob Riggins, UAW |  |
| Tim Rorie, Central Labor Councils |  |
| Craig Schadewald, NALC |  |
| Larry Sorrells, APWU |  |
| Scott Thrower, IBEW |  |
| Al Vincent, UFCW |  |
| Alvin Warwick, IBEW |  |
| Grant Welch, CWA |  |
| Denicia Montford Williams, Constituency Groups |  |
| Tony Wilson, APWU |  |
| Leticia Zavala, FLOC |  |
