Vice President at Large James K. Phillips worked at Air Products & Chemicals, Inc., from 1969-1994, and served for 19 years as president of the Oil, Chemical & Atomic Workers (OCAW) Local 3-727. He served as president of OCAW District 3 for eight years. He represented the district on the OCAW constitution committee for six consecutive conventions.

In 1988, he was elected to the OCAW merger committee, and was on the PACE merger committee as well.

Since 1985 he has served as a member or alternate of the OCAW, then PACE executive board. In 1994 he became Vice President of OCAW. After the OCAW-UPIU merger in 1999, he became a Vice President at Large.

Phillips has served as a board member of the Kentucky AFL-CIO; the Marshall County (Ky.) Board of Education; the Kentucky Economic Development Partnership Board; and, the Kentucky governor's labor-management advisory board. He also has served as director for the Center for Labor Education and Research at the University of Kentucky.

Active in political issues for many years, Phillips directed the PACE political and legislative program. He continues to do political work for the USW and coordinates the nuclear sector of the union.