An independent union is a trade union that represents workers in one plant or company and is free of employer control. [1] (This includes a union representing workers in more than one plant located in two or more states but employed by the same employer). In North America, a national independent union is a union of a national character not affiliated with the AFL or CIO; a local independent union is one of a local character not affiliated with the international union having jurisdiction over that branch of industry. [2]
A trade union is an association of workers forming a legal unit or legal personhood, usually called a "bargaining unit", which acts as bargaining agent and legal representative for a unit of employees in all matters of law or right arising from or in the administration of a collective agreement. Labour unions typically fund the formal organization, head office, and legal team functions of the labour union through regular fees or union dues. The delegate staff of the labour union representation in the workforce are made up of workplace volunteers who are appointed by members in democratic elections.
The National Labor Relations Act of 1935 is a foundational statute of United States labor law which guarantees the right of private sector employees to organize into trade unions, engage in collective bargaining, and take collective action such as strikes. Central to the act was a ban on company unions. The act was written by Senator Robert F. Wagner, passed by the 74th United States Congress, and signed into law by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
The International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace, and Agricultural Implement Workers of America, better known as the United Auto Workers (UAW), is an American labor union that represents workers in the United States and Canada. It was founded as part of the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO) in the 1930s and grew rapidly from 1936 to the 1950s. The union played a major role in the liberal wing of the Democratic party under the leadership of Walter Reuther. It was known for gaining high wages and pensions for auto workers, but it was unable to unionize auto plants built by foreign-based car makers in the South after the 1970s, and it went into a steady decline in membership; reasons for this included increased automation, decreased use of labor, movements of manufacturing, and increased globalization.
The American Federation of Labor (AFL) was a national federation of labor unions in the United States founded in Columbus, Ohio, in December 1886 by an alliance of craft unions disaffected from the Knights of Labor, a national labor union. Samuel Gompers of the Cigar Makers' International Union was elected president at its founding convention and reelected every year, except one, until his death in 1924.
The United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW) is a labor union representing approximately 1.3 million workers in the United States and Canada in industries including retail; meatpacking, food processing and manufacturing; hospitality; agriculture; cannabis; chemical trades; security; textile, and health care. UFCW is affiliated with the Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) and the AFL-CIO; it disaffiliated from the AFL-CIO in 2005 but reaffiliated in 2013.
Service Employees International Union (SEIU) is a labor union representing almost 1.9 million workers in over 100 occupations in the United States and Canada. SEIU is focused on organizing workers in three sectors: health care, including hospital, home care and nursing home workers; public services ; and property services.
The Canadian Labour Congress, or CLC is a national trade union centre, the central labour body in Canada to which most Canadian labour unions are affiliated.
The United Steel, Paper and Forestry, Rubber, Manufacturing, Energy, Allied Industrial and Service Workers International Union, commonly known as the United Steelworkers (USW), is a general trade union with members across North America. Headquartered in Pittsburgh, the United Steelworkers represents workers in Canada, the Caribbean, and the United States. The United Steelworkers represent workers in a diverse range of industries, including primary and fabricated metals, paper, chemicals, glass, rubber, heavy-duty conveyor belting, tires, transportation, utilities, container industries, pharmaceuticals, call centers and health care.
The United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America (UE), is an independent democratic rank-and-file labor union representing workers in both the private and public sectors across the United States.
Labor unions in the United States are organizations that represent workers in many industries recognized under US labor law since the 1935 enactment of the National Labor Relations Act. Their activity today centers on collective bargaining over wages, benefits, and working conditions for their membership, and on representing their members in disputes with management over violations of contract provisions. Larger trade unions also typically engage in lobbying activities and electioneering at the state and federal level.
The International Union of Elevator Constructors (IUEC) is a trade union in the United States and Canada that represents members who construct, modernize, repair, and service elevators, escalators, moving walkways, and other conveyances. The IUEC claims a membership of over 25,000.
Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU) is a labor union in the United States that is a semi-autonomous division of the United Food and Commercial Workers. The division represents service, clerical, sales and maintenance workers as well as employees in the citrus, food processing, tobacco, jewelry, novelty and toy industries.
The Labor Council for Latin American Advancement (LCLAA) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan Latino organization affiliated with the AFL-CIO and the Change to Win federation. It was formed in 1972 to provide Latino trade union members in the United States with a more effective voice within the AFL-CIO, to encourage Latino participation on the democratic process, and to encourage the organization of Latino workers into labor unions.
Labor federation competition in the United States is a history of the labor movement, considering U.S. labor organizations and federations that have been regional, national, or international in scope, and that have united organizations of disparate groups of workers. Union philosophy and ideology changed from one period to another, conflicting at times. Government actions have controlled, or legislated against particular industrial actions or labor entities, resulting in the diminishing of one labor federation entity or the advance of another.
The Amalgamated Lithographers of America (ALA) is a labor union formed in 1915 to conduct collective bargaining on behalf of workers in the craft of lithography. The ALA was established through the amalgamation of several small unions already existing in the lithographic industry, one of which dated back to 1886.
Frank J. Christensen is an American labor leader who is the general president of the International Union of Elevator Constructors. He was the longest-serving business manager of Elevator Constructors Local 2 in its history. and was the Chairman of the Illinois Elevator Safety Board from its inception in 2003 to 2013.
The Glass, Molders, Pottery, Plastics and Allied Workers International Union is a labor union which represents about 28,000 craft and industrial workers primarily in the ceramics, china, craft metals, fiberglass, glass, insulation, and pottery industries. It is one of the oldest unions in the United States, with its first locals formed in 1842.
The Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO) was a federation of unions that organized workers in industrial unions in the United States and Canada from 1935 to 1955. Created in 1935 by John L. Lewis, who was a part of the United Mine Workers (UMW), it was originally called the Committee for Industrial Organization but changed its name in 1938 when it broke away from the American Federation of Labor. It also changed names because it was not successful with organizing unskilled workers with the AFL.
North America's Building Trades Unions (NABTU) is a labor federation of 14 North American unions in the building trade, founded by the American Federation of Labor in 1907.