Guide to ACTWU's Operations Department's Records on the Sidney Hillman Awards, 1947-1999
Collection Number: 5619/009
Kheel Center for Labor-Management Documentation and Archives
Cornell University Library
Title:
ACTWU's Operations Department's Records on the Sidney Hillman Awards, 1947-1999
Collection Number:
5619/009
Creator:
Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America. Operations Department
Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers' Union. Operations Department
Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers' Union. Operations Department
Quantity:
2 linear feet
Forms of Material:
Correspondence, reports, publications.
Repository:
Kheel Center for Labor-Management Documentation and Archives, Cornell University Library
Abstract:
This collection consists of correspondence, reports, and files from the Operations Department regarding the Sidney Hillman
Awards.
Prominent in this collection are materials related to the award luncheons and biographies of union officers.
Language:
Collection material in English
The Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America, the most significant union representing workers in the men's clothing industry,
was founded in New York City
in 1914 as a breakaway movement from the United Garment Workers. Radical and immigrant workers in the tailors’ and cutters’
locals were the core of the
seceding group, which advocated industrial unionism and economic strikes in opposition to the UGW’s craft organization,
which they saw as conservative
and timid. Their diverging views had come to the fore during the historic 1910 dispute at the Chicago firm Hart, Schaffner,
and Marx. The opposition called
the strike against the UGW leadership’s advice, and reached a path-breaking agreement with management that established
an arbitration system to settle
disputes.
Members flocked to the new union. Around 50,000 strong at its founding, by 1920 the ACWA counted about 170,000 members. Initially
composed mostly of
immigrants of Jewish European descent with Socialist leanings, the ACWA quickly welcomed members of a great number of
nationalities and diverse backgrounds.
Like in other garment unions, most workers and many members were women, but the leadership was predominantly male, a situation
that did not change for many
decades. Early on the union adopted a centralized administrative structure combined with industrial unionism, with the
joint boards’ by-laws having
precedence over those of locals.
Espousing a philosophy perhaps brought over by its early immigrant socialist members, the Amalgamated went beyond bread and
butter issues and adopted
a distinctive form of social unionism that was largely absent in the American labor movement. Starting in the 1920s, it
provided educational opportunities
and recreational facilities for its members, as well as services such as an insurance plan, banks offering personal loans
at low interest rates, low-cost
housing cooperatives, medical clinics, and even union-owned restaurants.
Sidney Hillman was the first president of the new union and the most important officer in its history. He applied his experience
as bargaining
representative in Chicago to the whole industry. Under his leadership the union made significant strides in securing better
wages and working conditions
for its members, and at the same time it consolidated gains and provided stability to the industry through the widespread
adoption of the arbitration
system tested at Hart, Schaffner, and Marx. Hillman paid close attention to industry issues, such as production, pricing,
and marketing. In order to help
management meet the competition of non-union firms, the union conducted studies of efficiency, work methods, and factory
costs. Letters to the official
publication of the union, Advance, document the controversy that ensued within the union over what was perceived to be
collaboration with management.
Hillman also understood the importance of labor’s involvement in national affairs and political action. In the 1920s the ACWA
sent delegates to the
Conference for Progressive Political Action and to the Farmer-labor party conventions. Although many members and officers
were Socialists, the union
stopped short of officially endorsing the party. Communist attempts at gaining influence within the union were firmly
curbed. Hillman’s participation
in national affairs and politics became prominent during the New Deal, when he became a close advisor to Franklin D. Roosevelt
on labor and economic
issues. He also served on the board of the National Recovery Administration. Later, during World War II, he helped establish
the Labor’s Non Partisan
League. He was also named associate director of the Office of Production Management, which assisted in mobilizing the
nation's resources for the war
effort. Hillman’s prestige perhaps reflected the healthy condition of his union, which by the end of the conflict was
strong and stable.
During the post World War II period the union faced a number of significant challenges. Membership continued to grow (peaking
at 395,000 in 1968), but the
union’s political influence and visibility in national affairs declined. In their never ending pursuit of lower production
costs, many firms relocated to
the South, forcing the union to engage in large organizing efforts. Simultaneously, signs began to appear of changes that
would lead to the almost complete
demise of the domestic apparel industry and, ultimately, to the erosion of union membership. Foreign imports of cheap
clothing goods steadily grew in the
1950s and 1960s, and mushroomed in the following two decades, plunging employment in the apparel sector into a steady
decline. Union efforts to stem the
tide included Buy American campaigns and extensive lobbying in Congress, but they were to no avail. In 1976, the ACWA
merged with the Textile Workers of
America to become the Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers Union. Despite successful and much publicized nationwide
actions such as the Farah boycott
and the J.P. Stevens corporate campaign, the woes threatening the union’s existence continued unabated. The fate of the
domestic industry was sealed in the
late 1970s and the 1980s by the flight of firms chasing tax breaks and cheap labor abroad. By 1995, when ACTWU voted to
merge with the International Ladies'
Garment Workers' Union, their combined membership was 350,000. The new Union of Needletrades, Industrial and Textile Employees
(UNITE!) seemed poised to
infuse new life in a troubled union.
Names:
Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers' Union
Hillman, Sidney, 1887-1946
Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers' Union --Archives
Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America --Archives
Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers' Union. Operations Department
International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union --Archives
Union of Needletrades, Industrial and Textile Employees --Archives
UNITE HERE (Organization) --Archives
Subjects:
Textile industry--New York (State)--New York
Textile workers--Labor unions--New York (State)--New York
Clothing trade--New York (State)--New York
Clothing workers--Labor unions--New York (State)--New York
Form and Genre Terms:
Records
Correspondence
Access Restrictions:
Access to the collections in the Kheel Center is restricted. Please contact a reference archivist for access to these materials.
Restrictions on Use:
This collection must be used in keeping with the Kheel Center Information Sheet and Procedures for Document Use.
Cite As:
Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers Union. Operations Department. Sidney Hillman awards files, #5619/009. Kheel Center
for Labor-Management Documentation and Archives, Cornell University Library.
Container
|
Description
|
Date
|
|
Box 1 | Folder 1 |
Sidney Hillman Foundation [folder 1 of 2]
|
1989 |
Box 1 | Folder 2 |
Sidney Hillman Foundation [folder 2 of 2]
|
1989 |
Box 1 | Folder 3 |
Sidney Hillman Foundation
|
1988 |
Box 1 | Folder 4 |
Hillman Health Center 40th Anniversary Luncheon
|
1991 |
October 18, 1991.
|
|||
Box 1 | Folder 5 |
Bernstein Award
|
1990 |
Box 1 | Folder 6 |
Sidney Hillman Foundation
|
1990 |
Box 1 | Folder 7 |
Sidney Hillman
|
1998-1999 |
Box 1 | Folder 8 |
Hillman Awards Luncheon
|
1993 |
Box 1 | Folder 9 |
Hillman Awards Luncheon
|
1992 |
Box 1 | Folder 10 |
Hillman Awards Luncheon
|
1994 |
Invitations, Plaques, Programs, Seating, Ads
|
|||
Box 1 | Folder 11 |
Hillman Awards Luncheon
|
1994 |
Bills
|
|||
Box 1 | Folder 12 |
Materials for Jay Mazur
|
|
Box 1 | Folder 13 |
Hillman Biography. Steve Fraser, Photographer
|
|
Box 1 | Folder 14 |
Hillman Foundation. Rieve-Pollock Foundation
|
|
Box 1 | Folder 15 |
Hillman Awards and Luncheon
|
1994-1995 |
Box 1 | Folder 16 |
Hillman Awards
|
1988-1989 |
Box 1 | Folder 17 |
Hillman Awards Luncheon
|
1995 |
Box 1 | Folder 18 |
Hillman Awards Luncheon
|
1996 |
Invitation, Program, Scrolls, Ad, Posting
|
|||
Box 1 | Folder 19 |
Hillman Awards Luncheon
|
1995 |
Box 1 | Folder 20 |
Hillman Awards Luncheon
|
1994 |
Correspondence, Biographies, Scripts, Articles
|
|||
Box 1 | Folder 21 |
Hillman Conference Material
|
1989 |
June 26, 1989.
|
|||
Box 1 | Folder 21 |
ILGWU/ACTWU Merger Articles
|
1995 |
Box 1 | Folder 22 |
The Institute for Urban Family Health
|
1991 |
Box 1 | Folder 23 |
Hillman Stamp
|
|
Box 1 | Folder 24 |
Sidney Hillman
|
|
Box 1 | Folder 25 |
Hillman Awards
|
|
Box 1 | Folder 26 |
Minutes. Sidney Hillman Foundation
|
1947-1965 |
Box 1 | Folder 27 |
Minutes. Sidney Hillman Foundation
|
1966-1991 |
Box 1 | Folder 28 |
Administration of Hillman Foundation Prize Award Program
|
1982-1986 |
Box 1 | Folder 29 |
1992 Hillman Awards
|
1992 |
Box 1 | Folder 30 |
1992 Hillman Awards Luncheon
|
1992 |
Box 1 | Folder 31 |
Sidney Hillman Foundation
|
|
Box 1 | Folder 32 |
1991 Sidney Hillman Awards
|
1991 |
Box 2 | Folder 1 |
1992 TV Award
|
1992 |
Box 2 | Folder 2 |
1992 Awards. AFL. CIO, Exec Council Mailing, GEB
|
1992 |
Box 2 | Folder 3 |
Sidney Hillman Foundation
|
1992 |
Correspondence, Memos
|
|||
Box 2 | Folder 4 |
Biographies. Other Unions
|
|
Box 2 | Folder 5 |
Biographies. Vice Presidents
|
|
Box 2 | Folder 6 |
Biography. Sol Stetin
|
|
Box 2 | Folder 7 |
Biographies. Joint Board Members
|
|
Box 2 | Folder 8 |
Biographies. A to D
|
|
Box 2 | Folder 9 |
Biographies. E to L
|
|
Box 2 | Folder 10 |
Biographies. M to Z
|
|
Box 2 | Folder 11 |
Biography. Scott M. Hoyman
|
|
Box 2 | Folder 12 |
Biography. Murray H. Finley
|
|
Box 2 | Folder 13 |
Biography. Joyce Miller
|
|
Box 2 | Folder 14 |
Biography. Arthur Loevy
|
|
Box 2 | Folder 15 |
Old Biographies. A to L
|
|
Box 2 | Folder 16 |
Old Biographies. M to Z
|
|
Box 2 | Folder 17 |
Biographies. Deceased
|
|
Box 2 | Folder 18 |
Biography. Sidney Hillman
|
|
Box 2 | Folder 19 |
Biography. Esther Peterson
|
|
Box 2 | Folder 20 |
Biography. Jacob S. Potofsky
|
|
Box 2 | Folder 21 |
Biography. Jack Rubenstein
|
|
Box 2 | Folder 22 |
Biography. Charles Sallee
|
|
Box 2 | Folder 23 |
Biography. Jack Sheinkman
|
|
Box 2 | Folder 24 |
Old Biography. Jack Sheinkman
|
|
Box 2 | Folder 25 |
Jack Sheinkman DNR Photos
|
1988-1989 |
Box 2 | Folder 26 |
Sol Stetin
|
|
Box 2 | Folder 27 |
UNITE! Logos
|
|
Box 2 | Folder 28 |
Press Release Materials
|
|
Box 2 | Folder 29 |
ACWA & TWUA Logos
|
|
Box 2 | Folder 30 |
Anniversary Celebration Logos (’75 & ’50) ACWA and Textile
|
|
Box 2 | Folder 31 |
Merger Articles
|
1995 |
Box 2 | Folder 32 |
Sidney Hillman Press Release
|
1997-1998 |
Box 2 | Folder 33 |
Biography. Jay Mazur, President of UNITE!
|
|
Box 2 | Folder 34 |
Biography. Susan Cowell
|