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The Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) is a labor organization in the United States and Canada that represents employees in the
public transit Public transport (also known as public transportation, public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) is a system of transport for passengers by group travel systems available for use by the general public unlike private transport, typical ...
industry. Established in 1892 as the Amalgamated Association of Street Railway Employees of America, the union was centered primarily in the Eastern United States; today, ATU has over 200,000 members throughout the United States and Canada.


History

The union was founded in 1892 as the Amalgamated Association of Street Railway Employees of America. The union has its origins in a meeting of the
American Federation of Labor The American Federation of Labor (A.F. of L.) was a national federation of labor unions in the United States that continues today as the AFL-CIO. It was founded in Columbus, Ohio, in 1886 by an alliance of craft unions eager to provide mutu ...
in 1891 at which president
Samuel Gompers Samuel Gompers (; January 27, 1850December 13, 1924) was a British-born American cigar maker, labor union leader and a key figure in American labor history. Gompers founded the American Federation of Labor (AFL) and served as the organization's ...
was asked to invite the local street railway associations to form an international union. Gompers sent a letter to the local street railway unions in April 1892, and based on the positive response arranged for a convention of street railway workers. The convention began on 12 September 1892 in Indianapolis, Indiana, attended by fifty delegates from twenty-two locals. Many of the smaller unions were affiliated with the AFL, while four larger locals were affiliated with the
Knights of Labor Knights of Labor (K of L), officially Noble and Holy Order of the Knights of Labor, was an American labor federation active in the late 19th century, especially the 1880s. It operated in the United States as well in Canada, and had chapters also ...
and two were independent. The first president was William J. Law from the AFL-affiliated local in Detroit. Detroit was chosen as the headquarters, using the same facilities as the Detroit local. Because the number of members affiliated with the
Knights of Labor Knights of Labor (K of L), officially Noble and Holy Order of the Knights of Labor, was an American labor federation active in the late 19th century, especially the 1880s. It operated in the United States as well in Canada, and had chapters also ...
was greater than the numbers affiliated with the AFL, according to the claims of the delegates, the new international remained unaffiliated despite pleas by Gompers. The objectives included education, settlement of disputes with management, and securing good pay and working conditions. The international was given considerable authority over the locals. The second convention was held in Cleveland in October 1893, with just fifteen divisions represented by about twenty delegates. At this meeting William D. Mahon was named president, and he still held this position in 1937. By then the union had been renamed the Amalgamated Association of Street, Electric Railway and Motor Coach Employees of America. The union struggled in the early years as the transit companies followed the practice of firing union activists. In the 1897 meeting in Dayton, Ohio, there were twenty delegates. The treasury of the union now had $4,008. An early achievement was to have laws passed in a dozen states by 1899 that mandated enclosed vestibules for the motormen. Wages were close to $2 a day where the union was established, and in Detroit and Worcester the nine-hour day had been achieved, although in most cities ten- or eleven-hour days were common. At the start of the 20th century the Amalgamated Association launched a militant organizing program. Although the union was always willing to arbitrate in disputes, there were many strikes against the streetcar companies. Often these turned violent, as in St. Louis in 1900 or Denver in 1920. The public and small businesses sympathized with the strikers, and passengers and other unions often became involved in the street actions. When buses began to replace streetcars, the association began to be challenged by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Chauffeurs, Stablemen and Helpers. It was agreed that the Amalgamated Association would have jurisdiction over buses operated by street railway companies, while the Teamsters would have jurisdiction over independent bus lines and over road transportation of goods.


Political and legislative activities

In 2008, the ATU endorsed
Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...
in her unsuccessful bid for the Democratic Presidential nomination; after she conceded defeat, the ATU endorsed
Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...
in his bid to become president. The ATU was named the "Most Valuable National Union" in
The Nation ''The Nation'' is an American liberal biweekly magazine that covers political and cultural news, opinion, and analysis. It was founded on July 6, 1865, as a successor to William Lloyd Garrison's '' The Liberator'', an abolitionist newspaper tha ...
magazine's Progressive Honor Roll of 2012 for its support of the
Occupy movement The Occupy movement was an international populist socio-political movement that expressed opposition to social and economic inequality and to the perceived lack of "real democracy" around the world. It aimed primarily to advance social and econo ...
, the National Day of Action for Public Transportation, and other social justice issues.


Timeline


Leadership


Presidents

:1893: William D. Mahon :1946: Abraham Lincoln Spradling :1959: John M. Elliott :1973: Daniel V. Maroney :1981: John W. Rowland :1985: James La Sala :2003: Warren S. George :2010: Larry Hanley :2019: John A. Costa


Secretary-Treasurers

:1892: J. C. Manual :1893: S. M. Massey :1894: M. G. Moore :1895: James G. Grant :1895: Rezin Orr :1917: L. D. Bland :1934: William Taber :1946: Rip Moscho :1968: James J. Hill :1974: John Rowland :1976: Raymond C. Wallace :1989: Oliver W. Green :2001: Oscar Owens :2019: Kenneth R. Kirk


References


Citations


Works cited

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External links

* *
Amalgamated Transit Union Local 587 Records
1941-2019. 34.51 cubic feet. At th
Labor Archives of Washington, University of Washington Libraries Special Collections.
{{Authority control AFL–CIO Canadian Labour Congress Road transport trade unions Trade unions established in 1892 Transport trade unions in Canada Transportation trade unions in the United States 1892 establishments in Canada 1892 establishments in Indiana