ILGWU Murray Gross Papers, 1945-1982
Collection Number: 5780/199

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


DESCRIPTIVE SUMMARY

Title:
ILGWU Murray Gross Papers, 1945-1982
Repository:
Kheel Center for Labor-Management Documentation & Archives
Collection Number:
5780/199
Abstract:
This collection contains the papers of Murray Gross, including correspondence, newspaper clippings and other printed material.
Creator:
Gross, Murray
International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union
Quanitities:
0.5 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

Murray Gross entered the garment industry as a capmaker in 1925, and later worked as a tucker and a dress operator. A former student at the Brookwood Labor College, Gross was elected to the executive board of the Dress Joint Board in 1932. He was longtime manager of Local 6. In 1941, he helped found the Union for Democratic Action (later Americans for Democratic Action). After serving in the Army from 1943 to 1945, Gross served as assistant general manager of the Dress Joint Board. In 1961, he was appointed National Chairman of the American Veterans Committee, and in 1962, he was named Commission of Human Rights for the City of New York. Murray Gross passed away on July 12, 1981, in New York City.
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 Murray Gross Papers #5780/199. Kheel Center for Labor-Management Documentation and Archives, Cornell University Library.

Related Materials

Related Collections: 5780/199 P: ILGWU Murray Gross Photographs 5780/199 AV: ILGWU Murray Gross Audio-Visual Materials 5780/199 MB: ILGWU Murray Gross Memorabilia

SUBJECTS

Names:
Gross, Maurice
American Veterans Committee
International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union.
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 Folder 1
American Veterans Committee
1956-1971
Box 1 Folder 2
Business cards
Box 1 Folder 3
Certificate of appreciation from John V. Lindsay, 1972; letter from Ted Kennedy, 1968
1968-1972
Box 1 Folder 4
Committees
1955-1976
Scope and Contents
Committees on which Murray Gross served
Box 1 Folder 5
Congratulatory letters
1965-1972
Box 1 Folder 6
Correspondence
1945-1953
Box 1 Folder 7
Correspondence
1958-1981
Box 1 Folder 8
Data regarding wage increase
1975
Box 1 Folder 9
Murray Gross's diploma from SUNY-Empire State College
1979
Box 1 Folder 10
Deborah Heart and Lung Center Testimonial Dinner Honoring Murray Gross
1977
Box 1 Folder 11
East Africa
1965
Box 1 Folder 12
Death certificate of Fanny Gross
1977
Box 1 Folder 13
Letters of condolence, obituaries for Murray Gross
1981
Box 1 Folder 14
Miscellany
1963-1980
Box 1 Folder 15
Occasional Papers, Labor College
1980
Scope and Contents
Include "A decade of labor leadership, excitement, education and frustration," by Murray Gross
Box 1 Folder 16
ORT, Garment Employers' Chapter honors Alex Redein
1974
Box 1 Folder 17
Roosevelt Day, Americans for Democratic Action
1949-1954
Scope and Contents
Programs
Box 1 Folder 18
85th birthday tribute to George Meany
1979
Box 1 Folder 19
Unity House fliers
1951
Box 1 Folder 20
Clippings
1956-1982