APPOINTED — Boston Local 103 Business Manager Lou Antonellis was appointed to the International Executive Council, effective Nov. 1.
Brother Antonellis represents the IEC’s Second District, which includes Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut. He replaces Boston Local 2222 Business Manager Myles Calvey, who is stepping away after 20 years on the council.
Calvey said Antonellis is a good fit, noting that Local 103 has continued to grow its membership under him. Calvey’s father and one brother were Local 103 members.
“Lou is passionate,” Calvey said. ”He will do a good job and he’s joining a great group.”
Antonellis’ connections to Local 103 run deep. His father, Rich, and grandfather, Louis, are retired members. Two brothers, Richard and Cali, are current members.
Yet, while growing up in suburban Boston, he didn’t think much about a career as an electrician.
“I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do,” he said. “But one year, my dad told me, ‘You’re going to work this summer,’ and he helped me get a job as a helper.
“When I got on a jobsite, I fell in love with the industry and how I was treated and the camaraderie,” he added.
Antonellis began his apprenticeship in 1990 and topped out five years later. He was active in Local 103 from the start, volunteering for several committees and activities and serving on the examining board and executive board.
He credits Mike Monahan — former Local 103 business manager and current Second District international vice president — for encouraging him to grow as a leader. It was Monahan who brought him on staff as a business agent in 2004.
“He kind of took me under his wing and was an easy guy to follow,” Antonellis said.
“They built a good family name. My brothers and I are the beneficiaries of that.”
– Boston Local 103 Business Manager Lou Antonellis on his father and grandfather
He stayed in that role until 2014, when he was elected Local 103’s president. In 2017, he was elected business manager by a nearly 2-1 margin.
“We developed a plan for the next 20 years on how to win market share, how to organize and how to put people to work,” said Antonellis, who has been reelected twice since without opposition. “I had a reputation as a business agent of being aggressive and winning back work, and I think that message resonated with our membership.”
Local 103 now has about 9,000 members and celebrated its 125th anniversary this year. It has added about 95 new contractors during Antonellis’ tenure.
Among the most noticeable are Annese Electrical Services, a leading public works contractor in the Boston area, which added about 90 members, and Norel Service, a Massachusetts-based fire alarm company, which added about 50 members.
Antonellis also prioritized a social media presence. He regularly posts on most platforms and compiles a weekly video update for members and supporters.
“Transparency is important, and we have to be able to communicate what we’re doing and where we’re making progress,” he said. “But the second part of that is, social media is now where our members are and where our future members are.
“If we can meet them there and establish a level of communication, it’s going to expose more people to the IBEW that maybe haven’t heard of us before.”
The IEC is made up of nine business managers from across the United States and Canada and is the highest judicial body within the IBEW. It hears and adjudicates charges against members and is the final authority on pension and disability payments.
Antonellis said he was surprised but didn’t hesitate to say yes when International President Kenneth W. Cooper asked him to join the committee.
“Not long after that, I called Myles and had a nice conversation,” he said. “We talked about his tenure on the IEC and what advice he could offer me. He’s been a great mentor and great friend. It’s an honor to follow him.”
Antonellis is a graduate of Harvard Law School’s Trade Union program. He and his wife, Dawn, have four children. Son Louis Jr. and daughter Erica are both Local 103 apprentices. Erica graduated from the University of New Hampshire with a bachelor’s degree in business.
Antonellis is the first from his family to assume a leadership position in Local 103 and the Brotherhood. He saluted his father and grandfather for making it all possible.
“They were model Local 103 members who worked hard for good wages and espoused what a good member is,” he said. “They built a good family name. My brothers and I are the beneficiaries of that.”
The officers and staff congratulate Brother Antonellis on his appointment and wish him much success in the position.
