Donald Stanley Wasserman

Donald S. Wasserman, loving husband, father, and grandfather, trailblazer in public sector labor relations, and a staunch workers’ and civil rights advocate, died peacefully at the age of 92 early Sunday morning of complications from pneumonia.

Wasserman spent 28 years at the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), where he served as assistant to the president and director of research and collective bargaining. He was drawn to AFSCME in 1967 because of its commitment to racial and economic justice under the leadership of his mentor, then-AFSCME President Jerry Wurf.

At a time when public employee collective bargaining rights were ascendant, Wasserman helped hundreds of thousands of government workers secure a voice on the job, negotiating first contracts in Alaska, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa and Ohio, among other states. He was also a mentor to current AFSCME President Lee Saunders, whom he hired as a labor economist in the late 1970s. His keen analytical skills and quick wit made him a formidable adversary for many of the management representatives he faced.

Wasserman was AFSCME’s primary liaison to federal government agencies. He worked on the National and Community Service Act of 1993 and played a critical role in drafting the regulations governing the applicability of the Fair Labor Standards Act to government employees. Within AFSCME, he had a reputation for brilliance and effectiveness. He built the union’s research and information capacity, as well as its national collective bargaining support program, and he professionalized the national union’s operational support to its state-based affiliates. AFSCME more than tripled in size during Wasserman’s tenure, and he contributed substantially both to that growth and to the union’s capacity to effectively represent its members.

After his AFSCME tenure, Wasserman was tapped by President Bill Clinton for a seat on the Federal Labor Relations Authority, where he served from 1996 to 2001, including one year as the chair. During his term, he sought to interpret the federal sector labor law fairly, reversing what he perceived to be a pro-management bent.

Wasserman graduated from Temple University in 1952 and earned an MBA at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School in 1956. A Korean War veteran, he served for six years in the Navy, where he witnessed racism and bigotry that fueled his commitment to civil rights. He became a fierce advocate, participating in marches and lunch counter sit-ins, protesting apartheid (and getting arrested) at the South African Embassy.

He loved his extra dry martinis, large family dinners, jazz concerts, art museums and collecting art, and he was known for his generosity and kind spirit.

Wasserman is survived by his wife of nearly 60 years, Natalie; two sons, Adam (Rose) and Matthew (Jackie); and grandchildren Nina and Gavin.

In lieu of flowers please consider a donation to the Temple University Fox School of Business Don Wasserman Scholarship, or the University of District of Columbia David A Clarke School of Law Fund in honor of Katherine S. Broderick.