Gotbaum, Victor

AFSCME Communications Department Records

jruss — Mon, 11 Jun 2012 14:06:22 -0400

AFSCME has produced a regularly published magazine since its inception. Publication duties for this organ and other materials were accomplished by the Education and Publications Department for the first twenty years of AFSCME’s existence. The 1954 Convention, however, passed Resolution 14, establishing a Publications and Public Relations Department. This new department would continue to publish the AFSCME magazine and other materials and would also take on new media public relations duties both at headquarters, and importantly, in the field. Recognizing that current field staff’s duties did not include crafting AFSCME’s message during organizing campaigns and strikes, it was hoped that the new department would provide skilled public relations professionals on the ground. The new department was created on April 1, 1956. The Publications and Public Relations Department existed until 1971 when the name was changed to the Public Affairs Department. This existed until 2011 when the name was changed again to the Communications Department.

The AFSCME Communications Department Records document the public activities of the Department, AFSCME International, and AFSCME officials. Records include speech transcripts; press releases; surveys and polls; documents related to AFSCME biennial conventions such as transcripts of proceedings, correspondence, and planning documents; correspondence; publications; meeting minutes; clippings; photographs, slides, and negatives; audio and video recordings; and posters.

AFSCME Office of the President: Jack Howard Records

jruss — Tue, 04 Dec 2012 15:25:52 -0500

International affairs were handled out of the AFSCME Office of the President. Sometime after 1969, Jack Howard joined the AFSCME staff. When Gerald McEntee became president of AFSCME in late 1981, Jack Howard became his executive assistant. In this role, Howard was responsible for, among other things, international affairs. As such, Howard also worked closely with Secretary-Treasurer William Lucy who was heavily involved in international affairs, eventually becoming president of Public Services International (PSI) in the mid-1990s. The records in this collection reflect Howard’s supervision of AFSCME’s international affairs in the 1980s and 1990s. Howard retired from AFSCME in the early 2000s.

This collection contains correspondence, schedules, publications, planning documents,
photographs, workshop materials, and reports related to AFSCME’s activities in foreign
countries, both as a union itself and in interaction with foreign public employee unions and
international organizations. Also covered are exchange visits between AFSCME and
foreign public employee union leaders.

AFSCME Office of the Secretary-Treasurer: Gordon Chapman Records

jruss — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 11:29:03 -0400

The records in this collection were created during the tenure of AFSCME's first and founding president Arnold S. Zander. The Secretary-Treasurer for most of Zander's presidency was Gordon Chapman. The Office of the Secretary-Treasurer during this time period oversaw the general financial health of the international union and kept records for its locals, councils, and the headquarters staff. The Office also maintained the records on dues payments.

The records in this collection relate to the chartering, organizing, placement under trusteeship, and disbanding of thousands of locals and councils in all the United States, Puerto Rico, Panama, and Canada. There is also historical information on some locals and councils, and a small amount of documentation on the financial operations of the Office, with data on salaries and payroll matters.

AFSCME Office of the Secretary-Treasurer: Gordon Chapman/Joseph Ames Records

jruss — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 15:47:43 -0500

This collection primarily covers the end of Gordon Chapman’s tenure as Secretary-Treasurer, and all of Joseph Ames’s tenure. These years saw turbulence in the International Union’s politics where founding incumbent president Arnold Zander faced challenges from an opposing faction called the Committee on Union Responsibility (COUR). COUR candidate Jerry Wurf won the presidency at the 1964 convention. Gordon Chapman held the office of Secretary-Treasurer. In 1966, Chapman retired due to poor health. He was replaced by Joseph Ames who had been President Wurf's assistant. Ames served as Secretary-Treasurer until 1972 when he became Judicial Panel Chairman, and William Lucy, then President Wurf's assistant, became Secretary-Treasurer.

The early records in this collection document the activities of President Zander's assistant Leo Kramer and COUR, illustrating their rival campaigns. The later records in this collection document the activities of the Office of the Secretary-Treasurer, including finances, conventions, International Executive Board meetings, correspondence and speeches, political activities, legislation, files on councils and locals, and files on various associations with which AFSCME had relationships.

AFSCME Office of the Secretary-Treasurer: William Lucy Records

jruss — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 14:21:25 -0400

The AFSCME Office of the Secretary-Treasurer oversees the general financial health of the international union, keeping records for its locals, councils, and the headquarters staff. The Office keeps files on council and local trusteeships, maintains per capita dues payments by locals and councils, issues charters to new locals, and suspends and disbands locals or councils when problems arise. William Lucy held this position for 38 years, 1972-2010.

Lucy joined AFSCME as a civil engineer in Contra Costa, CA in 1956. A decade later, he was working for the International in Washington, D.C. Proving his leadership abilities during the 1968 sanitation workers strike in Memphis, during which Martin Luther King, Jr., was assassinated, Lucy became AFSCME Secretary-Treasurer in 1972. Alongside his work with AFSCME, Lucy also served with countless labor, civil rights, and civic organizations to advance causes for blacks, women, and workers locally in Washington, D.C., nationally, and internationally. Lucy helped found the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists (CBTU) in 1972 to represent African Americans in the labor movement. He was instrumental in the Free South Africa Movement's efforts to end apartheid in South Africa. He served as president of Public Services International (PSI) and as a member of the AFL-CIO Executive Council. These activities are reflected in the Records. Lucy retired from the position of Secretary-Treasurer in July 2010 at the AFSCME biennial convention.

The AFSCME Office of the Secretary-Treasurer: William Lucy Records document the activities and operations of AFSCME International, the Office of the Secretary-Treasurer, and AFSCME’s state and local councils. The Records also convey the actions of William Lucy in a number of labor and civil rights organizations, including TransAfrica, the NAACP, CBTU, PSI, and the AFL-CIO. The Records include correspondence, reports, speeches, financial information, legal documents, convention transcripts and proceedings, publications, and meeting minutes. Several boxes of audio recordings of International Executive Board meetings are included, and a very small number of photographs appear in the collection.

Joseph Goulden Papers

scaloia — Tue, 24 Jan 2017 11:30:58 -0500

Joseph C. Goulden’s biography of AFSCME president Jerry Wurf was published in 1982. Wurf, a controversial figure in the labor movement, served as president from 1964 until his death in 1981. He gave Goulden permission to write about him, “warts and all,” and facilitated access to AFSCME records and employees. In addition to Wurf himself, Goulden interviewed AFSCME staff including Al Bilik, Victor Gotbaum, Joseph Ames, William Hamilton, Leamon Hood, Donovan McClure, Gerald McEntee, and Ernest Rewolinski, as well as United States Senator George McGovern, Jerry Wurf’s wife, Mildred Keifer Wurf, and brother, Al Wurf. Goulden also conducted significant research using the AFSCME collections at the Reuther Library. Jerry Wurf passed away in 1981, shortly before the book was published.

The Joseph Goulden Papers contain an annotated manuscript and master proof of Goulden’s book, Jerry Wurf: Labor’s Last Angry Man.

Researchers interested in Goulden's interviews should see the Jerry Wurf: Labor's Last Angry Man Oral Histories.

AFSCME's History-Making 1964 Convention

scaloia — Mon, 15 Apr 2019 13:04:06 -0400

Fifty-five years ago, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees elected a new president who would dramatically change the trajectory of the union.

A founding member of the Wisconsin Service Employees Association in 1932, Arnold Zander took the lead in forming the national public employee union that would become AFSCME. read more »

(12130) Victor Gotbaum and Albert Shanker

jhelpap — Wed, 17 Nov 2010 13:16:56 -0500

Victor Gotbaum, President of AFSCME district 37 and Albert Shanker, president of the United Federation of Teachers testifying about the New York City fiscal crisis.

(12259) Public Services International World Congress

jruss — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 15:16:03 -0500

Leaders at a reception at New York City mayoral home, Gracie Mansion, for the Public Services International 1973 World Congress. From left: AFSCME President Jerry Wurf, New York City Mayor John Lindsay, AFSCME District Council 37 leader Victor Gotbaum.

(12262) Public Services International World Congress

jruss — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 15:29:43 -0500

Leaders prepare to speak at the Public Services International 1973 World Congress in New York City. From left: New York Mayor John Lindsay, AFSCME President Jerry Wurf, and AFSCME District Council 37 President Victor Gotbaum.

(12299) International Executive Board Meeting

jruss — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 15:48:56 -0400

Arvid Anderson, director of New York City’s Office of Collective Bargaining, speaks at a dinner during an AFSCME International Executive Board meeting in New York City. Seated and facing the camera are Victor Gotbaum, director of New York City’s District Council 37; AFSCME President Jerry Wurf; and then Secretary-Treasurer Joseph Ames.

(24715) Victor Gotbaum

jruss — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 11:50:47 -0400

Victor Gotbaum, executive director of AFSCME District Council 37 in New York City.

(27902) Ames and Gotbaum

jruss — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 10:58:15 -0500

AFSCME Judicial Panel Chairman Joseph Ames (left) and New York City District Council 37 Executive Director Victor Gotbaum at the podium in Miami Beach.

(28408) A. Philip Randolph Award

jruss — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 15:29:51 -0400

AFSCME President Jerry Wurf speaks at a dinner honoring Lillian Roberts with the A. Philip Randolph Award. Roberts is seated left of Wurf, civil rights activist Bayard Rustin is seated right of Wurf, and AFSCME New York District Council 37 leader Victor Gotbaum is seated second from right.

(28409) A. Philip Randolph Award

jruss — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 15:40:30 -0400

AFSCME leader Lillian Roberts is honored with the 1969 A. Philip Randolph Award. From left: AFSCME President Jerry Wurf, AFSCME New York District Council 37 leader Victor Gotbaum, Roberts, and Frederick O'Neal, president of Actors' Equity.

(28411) District Council 37's 100,000th member

jruss — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 15:51:55 -0400

AFSCME New York District Council 37 honors its 100,000th member. "Miss 100,000" is Donna Martirano, a college office assistant at Queens College, part of Local 384. From left: DC 37 Director Victor Gotbaum, DC 37's 50,000th member Beverly Dabney Vance, Martirano, AFSCME President Jerry Wurf, and DC 37 Associate Director Lillian Roberts.

(28412) District Council 37 press conference

jruss — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 15:57:12 -0400

AFSCME New York District Council 37 leaders speak at a press conference. Standing from left: Associate Director Edward Maher, Treasurer Arthur Tibaldi, and Secretary James Corbett. Seated from left: Associate Director Lillian Roberts, Executive Director Victor Gotbaum, and President Joseph Zurlo.

(28415) District Council 37's 25th Anniversary

jruss — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 16:31:13 -0400

Dignitaries celebrate AFSCME New York District Council 37's 25th anniversary in 1969. The first four seated from left are DC 37 Associate Director Lillian Roberts, DC 37 Executive Director Victor Gotbaum, New York City Mayor John Lindsay, and AFSCME President Jerry Wurf. AFSCME Secretary-Treasurer Joseph Ames is standing at the far left.

(28416) District Council 37's 25th Anniversary

jruss — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 16:35:58 -0400

AFSCME President Jerry Wurf speaks at the celebration of New York District Council 37's 25th anniversary. Seated far left is AFSCME Secretary-Treasurer Joseph Ames; DC 37 Associate Director Lillian Roberts is next to him; and DC 37 Executive Director Victor Gotbaum is seated at far right.

(28417) District Council 37's 25th Anniversary

jruss — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 16:39:48 -0400

(28418) District Council 37

jruss — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 16:45:22 -0400

AFSCME New York District Council 37 Executive Director Victor Gotbaum speaks. Associate Director Lillian Roberts is seated left.

(30477) Gotbaum pickets, 1965

jruss — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 10:55:07 -0400

Executive Director of AFSCME New York City District Council 37, Victor Gotbaum, walks the picket line with striking welfare employees in 1965.

(30478) Creation of New York City Office of Collective Bargaining, 1967

jruss — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 11:12:10 -0400

New York City Mayor John Lindsay signs the law that created the Office of Collective Bargaining, the result of a year of work by AFSCME. Seated from left: Councilman Arthur J. Katzman; Lindsay; and New York City Comptroller Mario A. Procaccino. Standing from left: Paul Hall, president of the Seafarers International Union; Labor Relations Director Herbert Haber; AFSCME President Jerry Wurf; president of the New York City Central Labor Council, Harry Van Arsdale; AFSCME District Council 37 director, Victor Gotbaum; and Deputy Mayor Timothy Costello.

(30479) New York hospital workers agreement, 1966

jruss — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 11:24:21 -0400

New York City Mayor John Lindsay prepares to announce that a collective bargaining agreement has been reached with city hospital workers that improved conditions for 17,000 aides. Joining him at the microphone are AFSCME District 37 Director Victor Gotbaum (left) and City Labor Relations Director Herbert Haber. The union bargaining committee sits in the audience.

(30481) District Council 37's 50,000th member, 1967

jruss — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 13:20:59 -0400

New York Mayor John Lindsay congratulates Beverly Dabney, a member of Library Guild 1842, on becoming AFSCME New York District Council 37's 50,000th member. From left: Lawrence Brandwien, Library Guild 1842 president; Victor Gotbaum, Council 37 Director; Dabney; and Lindsay.

(30482) AFSCME Locals 1396 and 1308 sign contract, 1965

jruss — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 13:29:02 -0400

Union negotiators meet to sign a new contract between the Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority and AFSCME New York Locals 1396 and 1308. The contract provided wage increases, time-and-a-half for overtime, and fringe benefits. Seated from left: Local 1396 President Anthony Mauro, District Council 37 Director Victor Gotbaum, and Local 1308 President John Connally. Standing from left: Local 1396 Secretary Treasurer Tom O'Neill, Council Representative Tim Boyle, and union attorney Bertram Perkel.

(30483) AFSCME Local 1503 contract, 1965

jruss — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 13:36:22 -0400

Negotiators look over a new contract between AFSCME New York Local 1503 and the Metropolitan Museum of Art Board of Trustees that provided a pension plan, life insurance, and other benefits. Seated from left: District Council 37 Victor Gotbaum, Trustee President Arthur Houghton, Jr., and Local 1503 President Charles Kuther. Standing from left: Mike Landy, Karl Penzias, Neil Brosnan, John Kennedy, and Ed Lohse of Local 1503's negotiating team, and Council 37 Representative Charles Lange.

(30484) AFSCME New York hospital contract, 1965

jruss — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 13:44:25 -0400

AFSCME leaders give a press conference after successfully winning the right to represent New York City hospital employees. From left: Mae Edey, president of N.Y.C. Department of Hospital Employees Local 420; Victor Gotbaum, director of District Council 37; and Aura Tompkins, president of N.Y.C. Department of Hospitals Professional, Clerical and Administrative Employees Local 1784. Not pictured is Lillian Roberts, head of DC 37's hospital division, who was also an important figure in the effort.

(30487) New York City management - AFSCME workshop, 1973

jruss — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 14:12:36 -0400

New York City and AFSCME leaders discuss current issues in a workshop. From left: Herbet Haber, labor relations director for the city's Human Resources Administration; Arvid Anderson, head of New York's Office of Collective Bargaining; Victor Gotbaum, director of District Council 37; and Bart Cohen, president of Local 371.

(30495) Gotbaum and Wurf, 1967

jruss — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 09:33:28 -0400

AFSCME New York District Council 37 Director Victor Gotbaum explains worker demands for an end to City stalling tactics on prevailing rate determination at a 1967 hearing. AFSCME President Jerry Wurf looks on.

(30497) Gotbaum and Wurf

jruss — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 09:57:05 -0400

AFSCME President Jerry Wurf speaks while New York District Council 37 looks on.