The Laundry Workers' International Union (LWIU) was a

labor union A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...

representing laundry workers in Canada and the United States. The union was founded in November 1900 at a congress in

Troy, New York Troy is a city in and the county seat of Rensselaer County, New York, United States. It is located on the western edge of the county, on the eastern bank of the Hudson River just northeast of the capital city of Albany, New York, Albany. At the ...

, as the Shirt, Waist and Laundry Workers' International Union. It was chartered by 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 mutual ...

to represent both makers and launderers of shirts. In 1909, its shirt makers were transferred to the

United Garment Workers of America The United Garment Workers of America (UGW or UGWA) was a United States labor union which existed between 1891 and 1994. It was an affiliate of the American Federation of Labor. History The UGWA was formed in New York in April 1891 and led a ...

, but it began representing all workers in laundries, and became the LWIU. In 1925, the union had 6,500 members, but this figure grew to 100,000 in 1953. It became part of the new

AFL-CIO The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) is a national trade union center that is the largest federation of unions in the United States. It is made up of 61 national and international unions, together r ...

in 1955. In 1956, it absorbed the International Association of Cleaning and Dye House Workers, changing its name to the Laundry, Cleaning and Dye House Workers' International Union. This merger occurred without the consent of the AFL-CIO, and in 1957, the federation expelled the union, on charges of corruption. In March 1962, the union merged into the

International Brotherhood of Teamsters The International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT) is a labor union in the United States and Canada. Formed in 1903 by the merger of the Team Drivers International Union and the Teamsters National Union, the union now represents a diverse members ...

Presidents

:1900: John J. Manning :1912: James F. Brock :1932: Robert Roy Burt :1935: Bill Donovan :1943: Ray Nickelson :1945: Sam J. Byers :1957: Ralph Thomas Fagan

References

{{reflist Laundry workers' trade unions Trade unions absorbed by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters Trade unions established in 1900 Trade unions disestablished in 1962