Alexander John Rohan (February 2, 1911 – December 30, 1985) was an American labor union leader. Born in

Haverstraw, New York Haverstraw is a town in Rockland County, New York, United States, located north of the Town of Clarkstown and the Town of Ramapo; east of Orange County; south of the Town of Stony Point; and west of the Hudson River. The town runs from the w ...

, Rohan was educated in

Yonkers, New York Yonkers () is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States. Developed along the Hudson River, it is the third most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City and Buffalo. The population of Yonkers was 211,569 as enu ...

, and in 1932 began work at Turner Press, a commercial printing plant. That year, he joined the

International Printing Pressmen and Assistants' Union of North America The International Printing Pressmen and Assistants' Union of North America (IPPU) was a labor union representing printing workers in the United States and Canada. The union was founded on 8 October 1889, as the International Printing Pressmen's Uni ...

(IPPU). He soon became a delegate to the city's Central Labor Council. Rohan moved to

Washington D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, Na ...

in 1938, working full-time for the union after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. He represented the union in cases before the Wage Stabilization Board and the

National Labor Relations Board The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is an independent agency of the federal government of the United States with responsibilities for enforcing U.S. labor law in relation to collective bargaining and unfair labor practices. Under the Natio ...

. He also spent time on secondment to the

United States Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other n ...

and the

United States Department of Labor The United States Department of Labor (DOL) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government. It is responsible for the administration of federal laws governing occupational safety and health, wage and hour standards, unemploym ...

, during which time he was a special advisor to the Japanese labor movement. Rohan became a vice-president of the IPPU in 1953, and was then elected as secretary-treasurer in 1961. In 1970, he was elected as the union's president, defeating Walter Turner. The same year, he was elected as a vice-president of the AFL-CIO. He negotiated a merger in 1973 which formed the

International Printing and Graphic Communications Union The International Printing and Graphic Communications Union (IPGCU) was a labor union representing printing workers in the United States and Canada. The union was established on 1 October 1973, when the International Printing Pressmen and Assistan ...

, becoming the new union's founding president, but retired from the union the following year. Rohan stood down from his AFL-CIO post in 1974. In retirement, he served on the Foreign Service Selection Board.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rohan, Alexander J. 1911 births 1985 deaths American trade union leaders People from Haverstraw, New York Trade unionists from New York (state) Vice presidents of the AFL–CIO