American labor union leader
Everett B. Kelley is an American labor union leader.
Born in Goodwater, Alabama, Kelley was educated at Sylacauga High School, then joined the United States Army, serving for three years, and then for a further eight in the reserve. After leaving the Army, he studied at Central Alabama Community College, Selma University, and then at Rushing Springs School of Theology. He then became a professor at Rushing Springs, and also at the Birmingham-Easonian Baptist Bible College. He became senior pastor at the St. Mary Missionary Baptist Church in Lincoln, Alabama, serving for 31 years.
From 1981, Kelley worked at the Anniston Army Depot, where he joined the American Federation of Government Employees. He became president of his local in 2002, serving until 2011, in which time, he more than doubled its membership. He next became a national vice-president of the union, covering district 5, in which he also increased membership. He was elected as national secretary-treasurer of the union in 2018, and then as president in 2020. He was also elected as a vice-president of the AFL-CIO. In 2022, he won the AFL-CIO's Eyes on the Prize Award, and also the Alabama AFL-CIO's Labor Person of the Year Award.