William Aloysius Gillen (1918 or 1919 – April 1, 1995) was an American labor union leader. Born in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

, Gillen served with the

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in Europe during

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 opposing ...

. After the war, he returned to Pennsylvania and worked in a factory, then later became managing director of the

Pop Warner Little Scholars Pop Warner Little Scholars, commonly known simply as Pop Warner, is a nonprofit organization that provides activities such as American football, for over 425,000 youths aged 5 to 16 years old, in several nations. It is the largest youth footbal ...

program. In 1955, he was appointed as president of the

Insurance Workers of America The Insurance Workers of America (IWA) was a labor union representing workers in the insurance industry, in the United States. The union was founded be the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO) on May 1, 1950, as the Insurance and Allied Worke ...

union. As leader of the union, Gillen organized a merger with the rival

Insurance Agents' International Union The Insurance Agents' International Union (IAIU) was a labor union representing agents in the insurance industry, in the United States and Canada. The union originated in 1938 as the National Federation of Insurance Agents Council of the American F ...

, forming the

Insurance Workers' International Union The Insurance Workers' International Union (IWIU) was a labor union representing workers in the insurance industry in the United States and Canada. History The union was established on May 18, 1959, when the Insurance Agents' International Union m ...

. He was elected as secretary-treasurer of the new union, then defeated the incumbent to become its president in 1965. He also served on the general board of the AFL-CIO, and acted as a mediator and lecturer for the federation. Gillen stood down as leader of the union in 1976, to become assistant director of the George Meany Center for Labor Studies. He retired in 1984, and settled in

Leisure World, Maryland Leisure World is a census-designated place and unincorporated area in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. It is an age-restricted, gated development primarily inhabited by retirees. Leisure World was formerly known as the Rossmoor census- ...

, where he died in 1995.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gillen, William A. Year of birth missing 1995 deaths American trade union leaders People from Philadelphia Trade unionists from Pennsylvania