Veterans News: Massachusetts Building Trades Council Honors Veterans with City Hall Ceremony and Helmets to Hardhats Program Donations

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Boston- In recognition of Veterans Day, union affiliates of the Massachusetts Building Trades Council held a ceremony and fundraiser for the Helmets to Hardhats program at the Boston City Hall on November 9th.  

Helmets to Hardhats is a program that connects veterans with union jobs and training. Since 2007, the program has connected 575 military veterans to union jobs statewide. Massachusetts Building Trades Council has been an ardent supporter of Helmets to Hardhats and organized its affiliate unions to donate towards the program. 

Helmets to hardhats have provided a large number of veterans the opportunity to work in professions such painting, construction and much more. The program, headquartered in Washington D.C., is managed by Center for Military Recruitment, Assessment, and Veterans Employment.

“Joining a union through Helmets to Hardhats helped me go from an uninsured, underemployed hard worker to a highly trained well-insured worker with the pension. It’s turned my life around and my family’s around,” said Tom McEvoy, member of International Union of Operating Engineers, IUOE Local 4.

The jobs available for veterans through the program portal are well-paying union jobs that ensure best benefits, a promising career, and top-of-the-art training program. 



“Talking to veterans returning from duty, I would tell them that if they have any interest in construction they should definitely get involved. They will need to be patient because nothing happens overnight but it will be worth it,” said Evan Donohoe, who served in the Marine Core from ’06 to ’10 and graduated from the sheet metal workers apprenticeship program in August of 2017.

The Massachusetts Building Trades Council recognizes the contributions of and the efforts made by Helmets to Hardhats program in providing our veterans with career opportunities. MassBTC is committed to providing the best training and job opportunities to our veterans. 

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 For nearly 100 years, theMassachusetts Building Trades Council (MBTC) had been dedicated to helping working people improve their quality of life. The organization is comprised of 74 member locals representing over 75,000 working men and women across the state.