Gregory Smith

Gregory Smith has been a career program administrator in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors, overseeing initiatives designed to empower and provide advocacy to
underserved populations.

He has been a Local 1180 Staff Representative since 2016, bringing his extensive background in labor relations and program development to the union. Prior to joining Local 1180, Gregory worked at the Human Resources Administration’s Homelessness Prevention
Administration (HPA) and the Office of Labor Relations. He served as a deputy director in HPA, working collaboratively with City agencies and organizations to help families avert homelessness and maintain permanent housing through direct services, advocacy, and the delivery of financial resources.

At OLR, Gregory served on the Labor-Management Safety and Health Committee, co-chaired the Quality of Work Life (QWL) Health Committee comprised of members from labor and management, and examined HRA employees’ health concerns stemming from issues internal and external to the workplace.

Gregory’s background with underserved populations began prior to his becoming a civil servant with HRA, when he worked with the NYC District Council of Carpenters coordinating the union’s construction pre-apprenticeship programs that successfully placed 80 percent of graduates into the construction industry. He subsequently joined OAI, Inc. and lead the efforts in establishing construction pre-apprenticeship programs in New York, Washington, D.C., and Texas that delivered customized training to public housing residents.

Since becoming a Local 1180 Staff Rep, Gregory has continued his commitment to empowering individuals and communities. He helped form the Union’s Staten Island Borough Community Coordinating Committee, and remains a key figure in its ongoing development. Gregory’s career-long advocacy for the underserved, adeptness in cultivating strategic partnerships, and background in labor relations are demonstrative of his capacity to further strengthen Local 1180 as it augments its ability in the future to serve the membership.