International Union of Electrical Workers (IUE), Local 755 Records

This brief agency history is drawn almost verbatim from a history of IUE #755 found in an introduction to a study course on grievance procedures. This material can be found in Series VII, Educational Materials, folders 62 1 and 63 10.

Organization of the Local Union began in July of 1936 when the International Union sent an organizer, James Pascoe, to Delco Products to assist in the plant organization. By April of 1937, there were forty members in what was known then Local #803. During 1937, the General Motors "sit down" strikes occurred in Detroit which added impetus to the organizational drive in Dayton. By the end of 1937, Local #803 had swelled its ranks to about 800 members. At the same time, a five man union committee was established and recognized by Delco Products to handle employee grievances.

At nearly the same time the union was effectively organizing in the plant, massive layoffs took place. Because of the layoffs and resulting short time operations, the union organization drive was dealt a severe blow. The membership dropped to 225 members in 1938 which necessitated an amalgamation with Local #801 (Frigidaire) in order to maintain an effective union organization. By the beginning of 1939, employment was on the upswing and the union embarked on a greater enlistment effort than before. The five man union committee continued to handle grievances and other problems with the company.

The local union steadily increased in numbers and by 1940 about 1200 workers had joined. A National Labor Relation Board Certification election was held in June 1940 and the union won the election. As provided by National Labor Relation Board Certification, the union negotiating committee was to thereafter sit with the company and negotiate new rates for all jobs in the plant. In addition, job descriptions covering all jobs within the bargaining unit were negotiated. These job descriptions outlined the types of work to be performed in each classification.

On June 17, 1941, the first National Agreement between General Motors and the various electrical divisions of G.M., including Delco Products, was signed. The local unions covered by this agreement included locals at Delco Products, Frigidaire, and Moraine. This agreement provided, for the first time at Delco Products, for union representatives (committeemen and alternates), nondiscrimination against employees in the union, and a prescribed grievance procedure.

To further bolster the position of the union, another National Agreement was signed November 2, 1942. Certain sections of this agreement were the result of the War Labor Board Directive Orders. This board was an agency established by the federal government to handle labor disputes during the war with the power to force both unions and industry to abide by its decisions in cases of stalemate between labor and management.

During the latter part of 1945 new wage negotiations were opened between the union and General Motors. Negotiations continued until the middle of January 1946 when they were deadlocked and as a result a strike of the electrical sections of General Motors, including Delco Products, was staged. This strike lasted until February of 1946 with the union gaining wage increases. The history of IUE Local #755 since the end of World War II can be considered as an effort to provide for and represent labor, purge "communist" agitators from its ranks, and to enlighten labor as to their position and responsibilities.

The International Union of Electrical, Radio, and Machine Workers is an affiliate of the AFL CIO. A charter was granted to the IUE at the 11th Constitutional Convention of the Congress of Industrial Organizations held in Cleveland in September, 1949. At the same CIO convention, the UE (Union of Electrical Workers) was expelled for refusing to take action against the communist infiltration that allegedly controlled the policy and actions of that organization.

In 1955 the AFL and CIO merged to become AFL-CIO.