Tapping into the wealth of experience that is among the IAM’s greatest resources, International President Tom Buffenbarger named Sito Pantoja to become the newest member of the IAM Executive Council. Pantoja will begin serving as General Vice President (GVP) of the Transportation Territory on January 1, 2012 and succeed current Transportation GVP Robert Roach, Jr., who will become the IAM’s General Secretary-Treasurer.
Pantoja, a 34-year IAM member who began his union career as a Shop Steward at Local 1056 in New York while working as a TWA aircraft mechanic, went on to hold numerous IAM positions before being appointed Grand Lodge Special Representative in 1999. A graduate of Aviation High School in New York and the National Labor College in Maryland, Pantoja is a current member of Local 949 in St. Louis, MO and has served as Chief of Staff to Transportation GVP Robert Roach, Jr. since 2005.
“Sito’s leadership skills have been on display at every level of this union for more than three decades,” said International President Tom Buffenbarger. “He understands the importance of direct contact with the membership and he knows how to manage the complex laws that govern organizing, bargaining and contract administration in the air and rail sector. His insights and his experience will be invaluable for the nearly 100,000 members in the transportation sector.”