John Sturdivant; Head of Employees Union

John N. Sturdivant, 59, national president of the American Federation of Government Employees. One of the few African Americans to head a major national union, Sturdivant served nine years at the helm of the group that represents 600,000 of the nation’s federal employees. He sought to work with the Clinton administration, particularly Vice President Al Gore, to streamline government work with minimal pain to employees. He also strove to present federal workers as ordinary citizens rather than unfeeling bureaucrats. Born in Philadelphia, Sturdivant served in the Air Force and worked as a civilian for Army Interagency Communications. Active in the union from the outset, he earned a bachelor’s degree in labor studies from Antioch College in 1980. On Tuesday in Falls Church, Va., of leukemia.