Iron Workers District Council of New England Pension Fund

A board of trustees jointly governs the plan. Labor-side trustees include John F. Hurley, president of the Iron Workers District Council of New England, Vincent J. Coyle Jr. of Local 7, and David Langlais of Local 37. Management-side trustees include Russell Anderson of Union Steel Erectors and Daniel Koury of Daniel Koury Construction. Day-to-day administration is handled by Fund Administrator William P. Hurley. The board structure is mandated under Taft-Hartley rules, with equal representation from labor and contributing employers.

Many allocations flow through vehicles explicitly tied to organized labor. The fund holds stakes in the AFL-CIO Building Investment Trust and the AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust, both of which target commercial and residential projects that mandate union labor. Additionally, the fund invests directly in union-related real estate — including union halls and the Dublin Corporate Center — and allocates to private-credit and hedge-fund managers through a multi-manager structure. Co-investments and venture-stage exposures round out the menu.

Publicly available Department of Labor Form 5500 filings show the plan's funded percentage. As with many multiemployer plans, the funded ratio fluctuates with market returns, contribution levels, and actuarial assumptions. In September 2024 the trustees updated the discount rate and mortality tables to reflect revised PBGC and MPRA guidance, signaling active management of the plan's long-term funding trajectory. Exact quarterly figures are reported to the DOL.

The fund is not directly controlled by the AFL-CIO, but its member locals — Iron Workers Local 7 and Local 37 — are affiliated with the international union, which is a member of the AFL-CIO federation. The plan invests directly in AFL-CIO-sponsored trusts (the Building Investment Trust and the Housing Investment Trust) that deploy capital into union-built projects. This relationship gives the fund a pipeline into real-estate developments that require ironworker labor.

Yes. Beyond its core real-asset and AFL-CIO trust positions, the fund allocates to private credit, distressed debt, mezzanine, special situations, a dedicated hedge-fund sleeve, and a commodity-exposure portfolio. It also holds stakes in registered investment companies and participates in fund-of-funds and direct co-investment structures. The plan's strategy spans buyout, growth, and venture-stage partnerships.

The Iron Workers District Council of New England Pension Fund operates as a Taft-Hartley multiemployer plan — jointly administered by an equal number of labor and management trustees. This structure is codified under the Labor Management Relations Act of 1947. Contributions come from signatory employers based on hours worked by union ironworkers, and benefit accruals are governed by collective bargaining agreements negotiated between the unions and employer associations such as the Building Trades Employers' Association and the Associated General Contractors of Massachusetts.

The fund's board includes Dave Powell, a labor relations consultant for the Building Trades Association, connecting the pension plan to a broader network of construction-industry labor groups. Former Boston Mayor and U.S. Labor Secretary Martin J. Walsh maintains a long-standing political and labor relationship with the fund's leadership. For investment consulting and actuarial work, the plan retains external firms that are typically disclosed in its annual DOL filings.