ILGWU Legal Department Audio-Visual Materials, 1965-1980
Collection Number: 5780/107 AV

Kheel Center for Labor-Management Documentation & Archives
Cornell University Library


DESCRIPTIVE SUMMARY

Title:
ILGWU Legal Department Audio-Visual Materials, 1965-1980
Repository:
Kheel Center for Labor-Management Documentation & Archives
Collection Number:
5780/107 AV
Abstract:
The collection contains audio recordings of interviews with ILGWU members relating to working at, and, later, striking against the Kellwood Company, as well as notes relating to these interviews.
Creator:
Siems, Frederick Rolle
International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union
Quanitities:
1.47 cubic feet
Language:
Collection material in English

Biographical / Historical

The International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union was once one of the largest labor unions in the United States founded in 1900 by local union delegates representing about 2,000 members in cities in the northeastern United States. It was one of the first U.S. Unions to have a membership consisting of mostly females, and it played a key role in the labor history of the 1920s and 1930s. The union is generally referred to as the "ILGWU" or the "ILG". The ILGWU grew in geographical scope, membership size, and political influence to become one of the most powerful forces in American organized labor by mid-century. Representing workers in the women's garment industry, the ILGWU worked to improve working and living conditions of its members through collective bargaining agreements, training programs, health care facilities, cooperative housing, educational opportunities, and other efforts. The ILGWU merged with the Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers Union in 1995 to form the Union of Needle trades, Industrial and Textile Employees (UNITE). UNITE merged with the Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees Union (HERE) in 2004 to create a new union known as UNITE HERE. The two unions that formed UNITE in 1995 represented only 250,000 workers between them, down from the ILGWU's peak membership of 450,000 in 1969.

Biographical / Historical

From very early on in its existence, the ILGWU had need for legal counsel, and this was handled in the union's main offices in cooperation with hired attorneys. As the union grew and especially after the passage of the Taft-Hartley Act in 1947, the union found cause to establish a Legal Department. The department provided general legal counsel to the union and its affiliates, worked to develop collective bargaining agreement terms, and represented the ILGWU in litigation and arbitration. After the formation of the Master Agreements Department in 1965, the responsibilities for developing CBA terms shifted to the new department.

The Legal Department records do not comprehensively document the ILGWU legal activities, instead focusing on specific cases or series of cases.
Two ILGWU cases are documented in the Legal Department records. The first case involved the Kellwood Corporation, and the second involved the Donnelly Garment Company. The records relating to the Kellwood case (5780/107, 5780/107 AV, 5780/107 P) include court documents, correspondence and memoranda, surveys of strikers, organizing leaflets and newsletters (from both the union and the company), Steve Honeyman's draft accounts of the strike, audio and transcripts of Honeyman's interviews with ILGWU members and staff, newspaper clippings, photographs, and other printed material. The Donnelly Garment Company's case against the ILGWU is documented primarily through transcripts of the case, legal briefs, and related court documents.
Records on series of cases are the most general and extensive of the Legal Department records. They include records on ILGWU cases in the U.S. courts (5780/081), records documenting cases before the National War Labor Board (5780/085), and records relating to a wide variety contract negotiations, arbitration proceedings, and courts cases (5780/063).
Researchers may find complementary material in the other parts of the ILGWU records, such as the papers of the international leadership, especially the papers of ILGWU presidents (Series IV); the records of local unions in instances where these affiliates were involved in litigation or arbitration (Series III); and the collective bargaining agreements (Series VI). Related collections at the Kheel Center include decisions of the Coat and Suit Industry's Impartial Chairman (6036/015) and decisions of the Dress Industry's Impartial Chairman (6036/017).
For the AV collection, included are audio recordings of interviews with ILGWU members relating to working at, and, later, striking against the Kellwood Company, as well as notes relating to these interviews. Also included are several tapes on sweatshops, some of which feature Frederick Siems.
Access to the collections in the Kheel Center is restricted. Please contact a reference archivist for access to these materials.
Conditions Governing Use

This collection must be used in keeping with the Kheel Center Information Sheet and Procedures for Document Use.

INFORMATION FOR USERS

Preferred Citation

ILGWU Legal Department Audio-Visual Materials #5780/107 AV. Kheel Center for Labor-Management Documentation and Archives, Cornell University Library.

Related Materials

Related Collections: 5780: ILGWU records 5780/107: ILGWU Legal Department Records 5780/107 P: ILGWU Legal Department Photographs 5780/081: ILGWU Legal Department Records 5780/063: ILGWU Legal Department Records 5780/162: ILGWU Legal Department Donnelly Garment Company v. ILGWU Records

SUBJECTS

Names:
Siems, Frederick Rolle, 1915-
International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union. Legal Dept.
Subjects:
Women's clothing industry -- United States
Clothing workers--Labor unions--United States.
Clothing workers -- United States
Industrial relations -- United States

CONTAINER LIST
Container
Description
Date
Box 1 1
Movie Duplicate Film
Box 1 2
Movie Duplicate Film
Box 1 3
Movie Duplicate Film
Box 1 4
Movie Duplicate Film
Box 1 5
Movie Duplicate Film
Box 1 6
Movie Duplicate Film
Box 1 7
Movie Duplicate Film
Box 1 8
Movie Duplicate Film
Box 1 9
Movie Duplicate Film
Box 2 1
Bolden, Mary [interview]
Box 2 2
Bolden, Mary [interview]
Box 2 3
Bulison, Nellie [interview]
Box 2 4
Cato, B.C. [interview]
Box 2 6
Clay, Glenn [interview]
Scope and Contents
2 copies
Box 2 7
Clay, Glenn [interview]
Scope and Contents
copy
Box 2 8
Daniels, Jessie [interview]
Box 2 9
Daniels, Ora [interview]
Scope and Contents
part 1
Box 2 10
Daniels, Ora [interview]
Scope and Contents
part 2
Box 2 11
Daniels, Ora [interview]
Scope and Contents
part 3
Box 2 12
Glenn, Ida [interview]
Box 2 13
Hanby, Ocyleue [interview]
Box 2 14
Jackson, Jerry Sue [interview]
Box 2 15
Jefferson, Bobby [interview]
Box 2 16
Lacey, Jack [interview]
Scope and Contents
part 1
Box 2 17
Lacey, Jack [interview]
Scope and Contents
part 2
Box 2 18
Luop, Alice [interview]
Box 2 19
Martin, Art [interview]
Scope and Contents
part 1
Box 2 20
Webster, Lew [interview]
Box 2 20
Martin, Art [interview]
Scope and Contents
part 2
Box 2 21
Martin, Eldora [interview[
Box 2 22
Perlstein, Jerry [interview]
Scope and Contents
part 1
Box 2 23
Perlstein, Jerry [interview]
Scope and Contents
part 2
Box 2 24
Quiggle, Richard [interview]
Scope and Contents
part 1
Box 2 25
Quiggle, Richard [interview]
Scope and Contents
part 2
Box 2 26
Roberts, Florence [interview]
Box 2 28
Rodgers, Alberta [interview]
Box 2 30
Siems, Fred [interview]
Scope and Contents
part 1
Box 2 31
Siems, Fred [interview]
Scope and Contents
part 2
Box 2 32
Siems, Fred [interview]
Scope and Contents
part 3
Box 2 33
Siems, Fred [interview]
Scope and Contents
part 4
Box 2 34
Siems, Fred [interview]
Scope and Contents
part 5
Box 2 35
Siems, Fred [interview]
Scope and Contents
part 6
Box 2 36
Wilson, Delores Jean [interview]
Scope and Contents
part 1
Box 2 37
Wilson, Delores Jean [interview]
Scope and Contents
part 2
Box 2 38
Youngdahl, James Edward [interview]
Scope and Contents
part 1
Box 2 39
Youngdahl, James Edward [interview]
Scope and Contents
part 2
Box 2 40
Youngdahl, James Edward [interview]
Scope and Contents
part 3
Box 2 41
Youngdahl, James Edward [interview]
Scope and Contents
part 4
Box 2 42
Youngdahl, James Edward [interview]
Scope and Contents
part 5
Box 2 43
Executive Board Panel Discussion
Scope and Contents
August 3
Box 2 44
Horizons #800319, Sweatshops in New York
1980
Box 2 45
Tape 8
Box 2 46
Attention New York, WABC-radio, Fred Sims [Siems] from the ILGWU
1979
Scope and Contents
September 30
Box 2 47
NBC Metropolitan Report, Fried Siems, "Sweatshops"
1979
Scope and Contents
August 30
Box 2 48
WOR
Box 2 49
WNBC Metropolitan Report, Fred Simms [Siems] of ILGWU
Scope and Contents
September 2; 8:00 a.m.
Box 3 1
Mary Bolden
Scope and Contents
Master Copy. 2 Discs
Box 3 2
Nellie Burlison
Scope and Contents
Master Copy. 1 Disc
Box 3 3
B.C. Cato
Scope and Contents
Master Copy. 1 Disc
Box 3 4
Glenn Clay
Scope and Contents
Master Copy. 3 Discs
Box 3 5
Jessie Daniels
Scope and Contents
Master Copy. 2 Discs
Box 3 6
Ora Daniels
Scope and Contents
Master Copy. 3 Discs
Box 3 7
Ida Glenn
Scope and Contents
Master Copy. 1 Disc
Box 3 8
Ocyleve Hanby
Scope and Contents
Master Copy. 1 Disc
Box 3 9
Jerry Sue Jackson
Scope and Contents
Master Copy. 1 Disc
Box 3 10
Bobby Jefferson
Scope and Contents
Master Copy. 1 Disc
Box 3 11
Jack Lacey
Scope and Contents
Master Copy. 2 Discs
Box 3 12
Alice Lupo
Scope and Contents
Master Copy. 1 Disc
Box 3 13
Art Martin
Scope and Contents
Master Copy. 2 Discs
Box 3 14
Eldora Martin
Scope and Contents
Master Copy. 2 Discs
Box 3 15
Jerry Perlstein
Scope and Contents
Master Copy. 2 Discs
Box 3 16
Richard Quiggle
Scope and Contents
Master Copy. 2 Discs
Box 3 17
Florence Roberts
Scope and Contents
Master Copy. 2 Discs
Box 3 18
Alberto Rodgers
Scope and Contents
Master Copy. 1 Disc
Box 3 19
Fred Siems
Scope and Contents
Master Copy. 6 Discs
Box 3 20
Lew Webster
Scope and Contents
Master Copy. 1 Disc
Box 3 21
Delores Jean Wilson
Scope and Contents
Master Copy. 1 Disc
Box 3 22
James Edward Youngdahl
Scope and Contents
Master Copy. 6 Discs
Box 3 23
Executive Board
Scope and Contents
Master Copy. 1 Disc
Box 3 24
Horizons
Scope and Contents
Master Copy. 1 Disc
Box 3 25
Tape 8
Scope and Contents
Master Copy. 1 Disc
Box 3 26
WABC
Scope and Contents
Master Copy. 1 Disc
Box 3 27
NBC
Scope and Contents
Master Copy. 1 Disc
Box 3 28
WOR
Scope and Contents
Master Copy. 1 Disc
Box 3 29
WNBC
Scope and Contents
Master Copy. 1 Disc
Box 4 1
Mary Bolden
Scope and Contents
2 Discs
Box 4 2
Nellie Buelison
Scope and Contents
1 Disc
Box 4 3
B.C. Cato
Scope and Contents
1 Disc
Box 4 4
Glenn Clay
Scope and Contents
3 Discs
Box 4 5
Jessie Daniels
Scope and Contents
2 Discs
Box 4 6
Ora Daniels
Scope and Contents
3 Discs
Box 4 7
Ida Glenn
Scope and Contents
1 Disc
Box 4 8
Ocyleve Hanby
Scope and Contents
1 Disc
Box 4 9
Jerry Sue Jackson
Scope and Contents
1 Disc
Box 4 10
Bobby Jefferson
Scope and Contents
1 Disc
Box 4 11
Jack Lacey
Scope and Contents
2 Discs
Box 4 12
Alice Lupo
Scope and Contents
1 Disc
Box 4 13
Art Martin
Scope and Contents
2 Discs
Box 4 14
Eldora Martin
Scope and Contents
2 Discs
Box 4 15
Jerry Perlstein
Scope and Contents
2 Discs
Box 4 16
Richard Quiggle
Scope and Contents
2 Discs
Box 4 17
Florence Roberts
Scope and Contents
2 Discs
Box 4 18
Alberta Rodgers
Scope and Contents
1 Disc
Box 4 19
Fred Siems
Scope and Contents
6 Discs
Box 4 20
Lew Webster
Scope and Contents
1 Disc
Box 4 21
Delores Jean Williams
Scope and Contents
1 Disc
Box 4 22
James Edward Youngdahl
Scope and Contents
6 Discs
Box 4 23
Executive Board
Scope and Contents
1 Disc
Box 4 24
Horizons
Scope and Contents
1 Disc
Box 4 25
Tape 8
Scope and Contents
1 Disc
Box 4 26
WABC
Scope and Contents
1 Disc
Box 4 27
NBC
Scope and Contents
1 Disc
Box 4 28
WOR
Scope and Contents
1 Disc
Box 4 29
WNBC
Scope and Contents
1 Disc
Box 5 1
Mary Bolden
1966
Box 5 2
Nellie Burlison
Scope and Contents
August 2
Box 5 3
B.C. Cato
Scope and Contents
August 12
Box 5 4
Geneva Childs
1966
Box 5 5
Glenn Clay
Scope and Contents
November 4
Box 5 6
Ora Daniels
Box 5 7
Ocyleve Hanby
1965
Box 5 8
Jessie Daniels
1965
Box 5 9
Ida Glenn
Scope and Contents
August 12
Box 5 10
Jerry Sue Jackson
Scope and Contents
August 15; News Clipping Included
Box 5 11
Bobby Jefferson
Scope and Contents
August 17
Box 5 12
Jack Lacey
Scope and Contents
August 28
Box 5 13
Alice Lupo
Scope and Contents
August 4
Box 5 14
Art Martin
1973
Scope and Contents
August 21
Box 5 15
Eldora Martin
Scope and Contents
August 18
Box 5 16
Jerry Perlstein
1977
Scope and Contents
January 15
Box 5 17
Richard F. Quiggle
1974
Scope and Contents
August 21
Box 5 18
Ross Roberts
Scope and Contents
July 2
Box 5 19
Alberta Rodgers
1967
Scope and Contents
September 10
Box 5 20
Fred Siems
Scope and Contents
September 2
Box 5 21
Delores Jean Wilson
Scope and Contents
August 23
Box 5 22
James Edward Youngdahl
Box 5 23
Executive Board Discussion
Scope and Contents
August 3
Box 5 24
Notes On Audio Transfer
Box 6
Audio digitized from the collection.