James Callahan, general president of the Operating Engineers (IUOE), and DeMaurice Smith, executive director of the NFL Players Association (NFLPA), were elected to the AFL-CIO Executive Council this morning at the council’s annual winter meeting in Lake Buena Vista, Fla.

Callahan replaces Vincent Giblin, the recently retired IUOE president who stepped down from the council today after serving since 2005. Callahan has a long history of fighting for and protecting working people. He was one of the many union members who rushed into service when planes crashed into the Twin Towers on Sept. 11, 2001, and he worked the entire recovery effort at Ground Zero.

DeMaurice Smith is returning to the council following the successful negotiation of a new collective bargaining agreement for the players of the National Football League, which includes improved player safety, better player salaries, long-term health care and increased benefits for retired players.

Robbie Sparks, an Electrical Workers (IBEW) business manager, who retired from the council today, is “a life-long champion of equal rights in the workplace…and left an indelible mark on our union movement,” said the council in a statement.