Joseph Maxwell

Joseph Maxwell is the M.O.R.E. Work Investment Fund recruiter for the Western States and a member of Boilermakers Local 11 in Helena, Montana. He brings 13 years of experience as a field construction Boilermaker to his role. He started as a helper, learned to weld, entered the Boilermaker apprenticeship program and graduated as a journeyman through the training provided by his local. Maxwell is two years into a three-year educational program through the AFL-CIO’s Grace Carroll’s Rocky Mountain School of Labor, further developing his knowledge of the labor movement and his leadership skills.

Throughout his career, he’s taken on leadership roles both on the job and within his local. He recently served as bull steward at the Colstrip Power Plant, representing men and women working through the Southeast Montana Building Trades and employed by NAES Power Contractors. He also has served as a steward for two other contractors on different jobsites. Within Local 11, he served as Recording Secretary on the executive board, currently serves on the local’s LEAP committee and he helped establish a recruiting committee.

As Western States recruiter, he’s focused on modernizing recruitment and helping Boilermaker lodges build a strong pipeline of applicants who are eager to learn and ready to work. Drawing on his experience in the field, he understands the qualities that make a good Boilermaker and is committed to connecting prospective members with opportunities to develop those skills.

At the heart of Maxwell’s work is his belief in the potential of people. He has a longstanding interest in understanding the experiences that shape people and believes no one should be defined solely by where they are at a particular moment in their lives. He believes everyone has the capacity to grow and become their best, and he sees the Boilermakers as a pathway for people to discover their skills, purpose and higher calling.