Chelsea Connor Named Rising Star in City & State NY's 40 Under 40 List

In October 2019, Chelsea was named as a Rising Star in City & State NY’s 40 Under 40 List. Read the full story here or below.

“What makes me tick is telling the stories of workers,” says Chelsea Connor, who has been communications director for the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union for about two years. “These are workers who are struggling to make ends meet.”

Connor spent part of her 20s in political journalism and communications, including working for NBC News and Cyrus Vance Jr.’s campaign for Manhattan district attorney.

“I think to really understand how to get a message across, you have to have spent some time in the trenches with reporters,” she says. “We’re all just humans trying to work together. When you see both sides as coworkers, that makes a huge amount of difference.”

But Connor’s path to success in the communications industry wasn’t without challenges. She says she grew up with a learning disability that impaired her ability to read and write. 

“There were people who never thought I would graduate high school or graduate college,” Connor says. “Now I don’t think twice when I write a speech. I think if I were to say something to another student that’s struggling, it’s that you really can do anything.”

After working at the MirRam Group, the Consulate General of Canada in New York and the International Labor Communications Association, Connor has been focusing on writing and strategizing for campaigns as well as reacting to the news of the day.

“I go home thinking about those workers,” she says. “I think, too often, working people’s voices aren’t heard.”