The United Hatters of North America (UHU) was a

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 ( ...

representing hat makers, headquartered in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

History

The UHU was founded and received a charter in 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 1896 through a merger of the International Trade Association of Hat Finishers of America and the National Hat Makers' Association of the United States. One of its co-founders was John A. Moffitt, who served consecutively as UHU vice president, president, and editor of its official journal from 1896 to 1911. In 1934, the UHU merged with the Cloth Hat, Cap and Millinery Workers International Union to form the

United Hatters, Cap and Millinery Workers International Union The United Hatters, Cap and Millinery Workers International Union (1934–1983), also known by acronyms including UHCMW, U.H.C. & M.W.I.U. and UHC & MWIU, was a 20th-century American labor union. History In 1934, the United Hatters of North Amer ...

(UHCMW), a founding member of the

Committee for 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 ...

. Subsequent mergers led to the formation of the

Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers Union The Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers Union (ACTWU) was a labor union representing workers in two related industries in the United States. The union was founded in 1976, when the Textile Workers Union of America merged with the Amalgamated ...

(ACTWU) in 1983, and the

Union of Needletrades, Industrial and Textile Employees The Union of Needletrades, Industrial, and Textile Employees (UNITE, often stylized UNITE!) was a labor union in the United States. In 2004, UNITE merged with the Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees Union (HERE) to form UNITE HERE. Histor ...

(UNITE) in 1995. The UHU was the ''de facto'' defendant in the landmark 1908

United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...

Loewe v. Lawlor ''Loewe v. Lawlor'', 208 U.S. 274 (1908), also referred to as the Danbury Hatters' Case, is a United States Supreme Court case in United States labor law concerning the application of antitrust laws to labor unions. The Court's decision effectivel ...

'' decision, which was found adversely for the UHU and, by extension, for all unions in the United States. ''Loewe v. Lawlor'' outlawed

secondary boycotts Solidarity action (also known as secondary action, a secondary boycott, a solidarity strike, or a sympathy strike) is industrial action by a trade union in support of a strike initiated by workers in a separate corporation, but often the same e ...

and ruled that individual union members could be held personally liable for damages incurred by their union.

Leadership

Presidents

:1896: Frederick W. Schmalz :1898: John A. Moffit :1911: Simon Blake :1914: John W. Sculley :1918: Michael F. Greene

Secretary-Treasurers

:1896: John Phillips :1904: Martin Lawlor

References

Defunct trade unions in the United States 1896 establishments in the United States 1934 disestablishments in the United States UNITE HERE Trade unions established in 1896 Trade unions disestablished in 1934 Hat makers' trade unions {{Trade-union-stub