Mike Rose, IAM Chief of Staff to the International President assigned to the wood, pulp and paper sectors, will retire from the IAM, effective January 1, 2023.
Rose, a 42-year member, is renowned throughout the IAM and globally as a leading voice for working people in the wood, pulp and paper industry. He has spent the last 14 years on the IAM’s Grand Lodge staff, working in several roles to organize new members, negotiate contracts, and grow the IAM’s power on a global scale.
“The IAM and our members in the wood, pulp and paper sector have benefitted greatly from Mike’s leadership and expertise,” said IAM International President Robert Martinez Jr. “His dedication, knowledge and first-hand experiences have resulted in countless victories on behalf of our membership. We wish Mike and his family all the very best in a well-earned retirement.”
Rose first initiated into IAM Local W261 in 1980 while working in the logging department of the International Paper Company in Gardiner, OR. He rose through the ranks of his local, serving as Shop Steward, Chief Shop Steward and Business Representative. From 1997 to 2008, Rose was a Business Representative and Organizer for District W1.
Rose joined the IAM Organizing Department in 2008, serving as an Organizer and then as a Grand Lodge Representative. Rose led several successful organizing drives at major employers in the wood, pulp and paper sector.
From 2014 until his retirement, Rose has served as Woodworkers Department Chief of Staff, where he has fought for the interests of tens of thousands of IAM members in the sector.
Rose has served on the boards of the Building and Wood Workers’ International (BWI) World Council, the Forest Products Industry National Labor Management Committee, the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC), and the Oregon Board of Forestry. He is a member of the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC).