Joyce Alston

As a groundbreaking leader in the labor movement for more than four decades, Joyce Alston has served as a local president for the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers (BCTGM) Local 53 for over 20 years. Born and raised in Newark, New Jersey, Alston started her career in 1977 as a rank-and-file member of BCTGM Local 50, which made Wonder Bread and Hostess products in East Brunswick. She was elected shop steward the following year and later became the first female shop chairperson elected to the office. Among her many roles and titles, Alston is the first woman to serve as president of the East Central Council for Regions One and Two for BCTGM and is a vice president of the New Jersey State AFL-CIO.