International Typographical Union - ITU Role in Forming The CIO

ITU Role in Forming The CIO

The ITU had been active in organizing new workers for almost 80 years. As the Great Depression created a crisis for American workers, the ITU joined with other unions in the AFL to agitate for more organizing.

In 1935, Charles P. Howard, president of the ITU, joined with John L. Lewis of the United Mine Workers; David Dubinsky of the International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union; Sidney Hillman of the Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America; Thomas McMahon of the United Textile Workers; John Sheridan of the International Union of Mine, Mill, and Smelter Workers; Harvey Fremming of the Oil Workers Union and Max Zaritsky of the Hatters, Cap and Millinery Workers to form the Committee for Industrial Organization within the AFL.

In 1937, ITU Secretary Randolph was livid at AFL President William Green. The AFL executive council levied an assessment to fight industrial organization, upon allied unions. The ITU refused to pay; Randolph's reason was "not to pay any assessment levied by any means other than a referendum vote of ITU printers and mailers."

The craft unions within the AFL demanded that the committee stop organizing members on an industrial basis. Lewis and the other members of the CIO persisted.

In 1938, the AFL ejected the eight member unions of the CIO, including the ITU. At the 1938, ITU convention at Birmingham, President Claude M. Baker disclosed to the delegates the decision of the AFL. Three subsequent unions returned to the AFL. May 21, 1941, the ITU turned down reaffiliation with the AFL by referendum vote of the ITU members. In 1944, the ITU reaffiliated with the American Federation of Labor. The AFL promised the ITU full autonomy. ITU President Woodruff Randolph and AFL President William Green re-established and re-affirmed the ITU-AFL relationship, as if no breach had taken place. The five remaining unions subsequently formed the Congress of Industrial Organizations. The CIO rejoined the AFL in 1955, forming the new entity known as the American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO). AFL-CIO President George Meany would have a cool relationship with all ITU presidents from Randolph to Bingle. ITU President Joe Bingle asked AFL-CIO President Lane Kirkland to speak at the 1983 San Francisco ITU Convention; Kirkland declined.