Glenn Ellis Watts (June 4, 1920 – August 30, 2002) was an American labor union leader. Born in

Stony Point, North Carolina Stony Point is a census-designated place (CDP) in Alexander and Iredell counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina. The population was 1,317 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Hickory–Lenoir– Morganton Metropolitan Statistical Are ...

, Watts' family 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, ...

during the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

. He attended

Wilson Teachers College The University of the District of Columbia (UDC) is a public historically black land-grant university in Washington, D.C. It was established in 1851 and is the only public university in the city. UDC is a member school of the Thurgood Marshall ...

. In 1941, he began working as a telephone installer with the

Chesapeake and Potomac Telephone Company The Chesapeake and Potomac Telephone Company, usually known as C&P Telephone, is a former d/b/a name for four Bell Operating Companies providing service to Washington, D.C., Maryland, West Virginia, and Virginia. Today, three of the companies ar ...

, and he joined the

National Federation of Telephone Workers The Communications Workers of America (CWA) is the largest communications and media trade union, labor union in the United States, representing about 700,000 members in both the private and public sectors (also in Canada and Puerto Rico). The uni ...

. He was soon elected as president of his local, then began working full-time for the union. He was elected as vice president of District 2 of what had become the

Communication Workers of America The Communications Workers of America (CWA) is the largest communications and media labor union in the United States, representing about 700,000 members in both the private and public sectors (also in Canada and Puerto Rico). The union has 27 loc ...

(CWA), and then in 1956 became an assistant to president Joseph A. Beirne. Beirne was later elected as vice-president of the union, then in 1969 as secretary-treasurer. In 1974, he succeeded Beirne as president of the union, and led three rounds of successful negotiations with the

Bell System The Bell System was a system of telecommunication companies, led by the Bell Telephone Company and later by the American Telephone and Telegraph Company (AT&T), that dominated the telephone services industry in North America for over one hundr ...

, the contract covering more workers than any other at the time. He promoted co-operation with management, and the formation of "quality of work-life" committees. Once the break-up of the Bell System was announced, he launched a Committee for the Future, which met with

futurist Futurists (also known as futurologists, prospectivists, foresight practitioners and horizon scanners) are people whose specialty or interest is futurology or the attempt to systematically explore predictions and possibilities abou ...

s to plan the future role of the union as communications changed. He also promoted better rights for women at work. He was a vice president of the

AFL–CIO The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL–CIO) is the largest federation of unions in the United States. It is made up of 56 national and international unions, together representing more than 12 million ac ...

, and persuaded the federation to create a Committee on Women. Watts also served as president of the

Postal, Telegraph and Telephone International The Postal, Telegraph and Telephone International (PTTI) was a global union federation bringing together unions of communications workers worldwide. History While a meeting of unions of communication workers was held in Paris in 1911, no lasting o ...

, in which he prioritized support for unionization in Latin America. He served on the

Democratic National Committee The Democratic National Committee (DNC) is the governing body of the United States Democratic Party. The committee coordinates strategy to support Democratic Party candidates throughout the country for local, state, and national office, as well a ...

, as chair of the board of governors of the

United Way of America United Way is an international network of over 1,800 local nonprofit fundraising affiliates. United Way was the largest nonprofit organization in the United States by donations from the public, prior to 2016. United Way organizations raise funds ...

, on the

National Holocaust Memorial Commission National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...

, and as a trustee of the

Ford Foundation The Ford Foundation is an American private foundation with the stated goal of advancing human welfare. Created in 1936 by Edsel Ford and his father Henry Ford, it was originally funded by a US$25,000 gift from Edsel Ford. By 1947, after the death ...

. He retired in 1985, to live in

Chevy Chase, Maryland Chevy Chase () is the name of both a town and an unincorporated census-designated place (Chevy Chase (CDP), Maryland) that straddle the northwest border of Washington, D.C. and Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. Several settlements in th ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Watts, Glenn E. 1920 births 2002 deaths American trade union leaders People from Stony Point, North Carolina