Marine and shipbuilding workers' convention

The Industrial Union of Marine and Shipbuilding Workers of America (IUMSWA) was an American

labor union A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ( ...

which existed between 1933 and 1988. The IUMSWA was first organised at the

New York Shipbuilding Corporation The New York Shipbuilding Corporation (or New York Ship for short) was an American shipbuilding company that operated from 1899 to 1968, ultimately completing more than 500 vessels for the U.S. Navy, the United States Merchant Marine, the United ...

shipyard in

Camden, New Jersey Camden is a city in and the county seat of Camden County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Camden is part of the Delaware Valley metropolitan area and is located directly across the Delaware River from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. At the 2020 ...

after striking in 1934 and 1935. From here it slowly spread to a number of other private shipyards in the Northeast, gaining representation at the Staten Island shipyard in 1936, the Federal Shipyard in 1937, Brooklyn and Hoboken in 1939,

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

and

Sparrows Point Sparrow's Point is an unincorporated community in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States, adjacent to Dundalk. Named after Thomas Sparrow, landowner, it was the site of a very large industrial complex owned by Bethlehem Steel, known for steelm ...

in 1941, as well as a range of other smaller ship repair yards in the New York area. The IUMSWA's industrial coverage of all production workers in the shipbuilding industry brought it into conflict with established

craft unions Craft unionism refers to a model of trade unionism in which workers are organised based on the particular craft or trade in which they work. It contrasts with industrial unionism, in which all workers in the same industry are organized into the sa ...

, such as the boilermakers, leading the IUMSWA to be refused an

AFL AFL may refer to: Sports * American Football League (AFL), a name shared by several separate and unrelated professional American football leagues: ** American Football League (1926) (a.k.a. "AFL I"), first rival of the National Football Leagu ...

charter in 1933. The IUMSWA later joined the

Congress of Industrial Organizations 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. Originally created in 1935 as a committee within the American Federation of ...

in 1936. In 1940, the membership was about 100,000. IUMSWA gained size and strength during the World War II

shipbuilding Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other floating vessels. It normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation that traces its roots to befor ...

effort, and membership reached about 250,000. IUMSWA Local 15 signed a contract on May 15, 1941 covering workers at

Bethlehem Steel Corporation The Bethlehem Steel Corporation was an American steelmaking company headquartered in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. For most of the 20th century, it was one of the world's largest steel producing and shipbuilding companies. At the height of its succe ...

's shipyard in

Hoboken, New Jersey Hoboken ( ; Unami: ') is a city in Hudson County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 60,417. The Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program calculated that the city's population was 58,690 i ...

. This ended the company's policy of an open shop in shipbuilding, and was an important step towards the

Steel Workers Organizing Committee The Steel Workers Organizing Committee (SWOC) was one of two precursor trade union, labor organizations to the United Steelworkers. It was formed by the CIO (Committee for Industrial Organization) on June 7, 1936. It disbanded in 1942 to become the ...

(SWOC-CIO)'s success in the organizing the workers in Bethlehem's steel manufacturing plants. The IUMSWA generally had a weak track record on the issues of racism and the rights of Black workers, often acquiescing to the racism of white workers, particularly in the South. Anti-racist initiatives within the IUMSWA came from local activists and not from national officers. The most successful example of anti-racist activism within the union was due to left-wing trade unionists organizing to integrate the

Federal Shipbuilding and Drydock Company The Federal Shipbuilding and Drydock Company was a United States shipyard, active from 1917 to 1948. It was founded during World War I to build ships for the United States Shipping Board. During World War II, it built ships as part of the U.S. Gov ...

. Black and Jewish activists including Bob Monroe, Lou Kaplan and Al Elliott, as well as members of the Philadelphia Black community, were instrumental in the push to desegregate the shipyards at the Sun Shipbuilding & Drydock Co. Anti-racist efforts were much less successful in Mobile, Alabama. IUMSWA organizers at the

Alabama Drydock and Shipbuilding Company The Alabama Drydock and Shipbuilding Company (ADDSCO) located in Mobile, Alabama, was one of the largest marine production facilities in the United States of America during the 20th century. It began operation in 1917, and expanded dramaticall ...

bowed to pressures from Southern segregationists in order to cater to white workers. Black workers and women workers were included at Bethlehem Steel's

Fore River Shipyard Fore River Shipyard was a shipyard owned by General Dynamics Corporation located on Weymouth Fore River in Braintree and Quincy, Massachusetts. It began operations in 1883 in Braintree, and moved to its final location on Quincy Point in 1901 ...

and

locations, but they were generally consigned to auxiliary yards that only lasted for the duration of World War II. The membership of the union declined after the war ended. In the 1970s and 1980s, the union was known for its efforts in worker

health and safety Occupational safety and health (OSH), also commonly referred to as occupational health and safety (OHS), occupational health, or occupational safety, is a multidisciplinary field concerned with the safety, health, and welfare of people at wor ...

. IUMSWA was merged with the

International Association of Machinists The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) is an AFL–CIO/ CLC trade union representing approx. 646,933 workers as of 2006 in more than 200 industries with most of its membership in the United States and Canada. Or ...

in 1988.Industrial Union of Marine and Shipbuilding Workers of America (IUMSWA) archives, 1934-1970
188.75 linear feet. University of Maryland Libraries, State of Maryland and Historical Collections.

Presidents

:1934:

John Green John Michael Green (born August 24, 1977) is an American author, YouTube Content creation, content creator, podcaster, and philanthropist. His books have more than 50 million copies in print worldwide, including ''The Fault in Our Stars'' ( ...

:1951: John J. Grogan :1968: Andrew Pettis :1970s: Eugene L. McCabe :1975: Frank Derwin :1980s: Arthur Batson

References

External links

Industrial Union of Marine and Shipbuilding Workers of America (IUMSWA) archives, 1934-1970
188.75 linear feet. University of Maryland Libraries, Labor History Collections.
Andrew Pettis papers
1924-1972. 23.50 linear feet, University of Maryland Libraries, Labor History Collections. Former president of IUMSWA
A. G. Delman papers
Former director of publicity and research,

University of Maryland Libraries The University of Maryland Libraries is the largest university library in the Washington, D.C. - Baltimore area. The university's library system includes eight libraries: six are located on the College Park campus, while the Severn Library, an of ...

* Robert W. Pemberton papers, 1918-1999. 3.00 linear feet, University of Maryland Libraries, State of Maryland and Historical Collections. Working files of a National Vice President and Secretary-Treasurer of IUMSWA, who was associated with the Sparrow Point and Key Highway shipyards in

. {{Authority control 1933 establishments in the United States 1988 disestablishments in the United States Defunct trade unions in the United States Industrial unions Shipbuilding trade unions International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers