The International Union of Allied Novelty and Production Workers (IUANPW) is an American labor union representing over 18,000 employees. Traditionally it organized workers at toy factories but, as that industry moved overseas, it evolved into a

general union A general union is a trade union (called ''labor union'' in American English) which represents workers from all industries and companies, rather than just one organisation or a particular sector, as in a craft union or industrial union. A gene ...

in a variety of industries. The union is affiliated with 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 ...

History

The IUANPW was established in the 1940s. The union was originally named the International Union of Dolls, Toys, Playthings, Novelties and Allied Products of the United States and Canada. The name was changed to the International Union of Allied, Novelty and Production Workers in the late 1970s as toy manufacturing was largely shipped overseas. During the 1990s, the union struggled with infiltration by organized crime. Union officer John Serpico from the

Chicago Outfit The Chicago Outfit (also known as the Outfit, the Chicago Mafia, the Chicago Mob, the Chicago crime family, the South Side Gang or The Organization) is an Italian-American organized crime syndicate or crime family based in Chicago, Illinois, ...

was convicted of fraud with pension funds, two members of the

Colombo crime family The Colombo crime family (, ) is an Italian American Mafia crime family and is the youngest of the "Five Families" that dominate organized crime activities in New York City within the criminal organization known as the American Mafia. It was duri ...

were convicted under the RICO Act for taking bribes from an employer on behalf of the union, and union attorney Sanford Pollack was convicted of both racketeering and arson to conceal evidence. The 23rd Quinquennial Convention of the International Union of Allied, Novelty and Production Workers was held from April 26, 2021 to April 29, 2021 in St. Pete Beach, Florida. Also in 2021, the union lead an unsuccessful organizing drive for employees of cookie maker Tate's Bake Shop where the employer was accused of threatening to deport undocumented workers. Today the IUANPW represents a wide array of job classifications at numerous employers in industries including general manufacturing, construction, food production, transportation, and automotive fields. Members make the Weber grill.

Structure

A majority of the membership is concentrated in the Chicago and New York City metro areas but the union currently represents workers in 11 states and Ontario, Canada. It is especially active with the

Chicago Federation of Labor The Chicago Federation of Labor (CFL) is an umbrella organization for unions in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It is a subordinate body of the AFL–CIO, and as of 2011 has about 320 affiliated member unions representing half a million union members in C ...

Divisions

* Central States Joint Board, Illinois ** Local 18, Plastic Workers
web site
** Local 30, Chemical & Production Workers
web site
* Eastern States Joint Board, New York ** Local 22, Production & Service Workers ** Local 298, Amalgamated Workers
web site
** Local 811, Worker Justice
web site

Executive board

* President: Mark Spano * Secretary-Treasurer: Benny Castro * First Vice-President: Joseph Giovinco * Second Vice-President: Anthony Iori * Third Vice-President: Nicole Jean-Charles * Fourth Vice-President: Angel Febus * Executive Board Member: Phil Sitkowski * Executive Board Member: Cosmo Lubrano * Executive Board Member: Carl Whaling

References

Trade unions in the United States Professional associations based in Chicago AFL–CIO Toy industry Manufacturing trade unions General unions {{Trade-union-stub