Labor-management relations

AFSCME Publications

mcourtney — Mon, 28 Apr 2014 11:10:47 -0400

AFSCME Publications is a collection comprised of serials created and collected by AFSCME International, District Councils, and Locals. The collection also contains material produced as part of AFSCME’s biannual international conventions and articles published about AFSCME from an academic standpoint. The publications in this collection arrived at the Reuther Library over time and came from multiple sources.

The collection features AFSCME’s official publication, which was first known as The Journal of State and Local Government Employees (1937-1947), then Public Employee (1947-2007), and later, AFSCME WORKS (2007-2017). Much of the collection is made up of newsletters produced at the Council or Local level between 1968 and 1974, illustrating the issues relevant to different types of AFSCME workers during a formative time for the Union.

Note that this collection was updated in September 2019 with the final issues of AFSCME Works and issues of Council 5's Stepping Up.

Irving Bluestone Papers

drice — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 11:37:40 -0400

Irving Bluestone (January 5, 1917 – November 17, 2007) was born and raised in New
York City. He received his B.A. at City College of New York in 1937 and attended the
University of Bern, Switzerland for one year of postgraduate studies. In 1942 he joined
the UAW in New Jersey and showing promise, was moved to Detroit in 1947 by Walter
Reuther to join the General Motors department. He became Leonard Woodcock’s
administrative assistant in 1955 and Walter Reuther’s in 1961. In 1972 he was elected
Vice President of the UAW and also served as the Director of UAW General Motors
Department. Bluestone retired from the UAW in 1980, and became a professor and then
director of the Labor Studies program at Wayne State University, a position he held until
1999. During his retirement he served on numerous labor and economic councils, was
heavily involved in Joint Action and Quality of Work Life programs, promoted Michigan
industry and economy, and served as a labor representative on several companies’ board
of directors. In 1999 he retired fully and moved to Brookline, Massachusetts.

This collection highlights Bluestone’s retirement years from 1980-1999. It covers his
activities on labor councils, economic alliances, worker’s programs, technology and
manufacturing research, and Quality of Work Life and Joint Action programs. His
educational work and research are included, as well as his correspondence, publications and speeches.

National Policy Association Records

drice — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 13:28:13 -0500

The National Policy Association (NPA)was established in 1934 as the National Planning Association, a nonpartisan, nonprofit research institution founded by prominent business and labor leaders who believed that the private sector should actively participate in the formulation of public policy. The organization’s name was changed to National Policy Association in 1997. Organized with a broad-based structure of committees and an independent research program, the NPA brought together influential leaders from business, labor, agriculture and academia in four major policy committees: The Committee on New American Realities, Food and Agriculture Committee, Global Economic Council and North American Committee. Among the influential committees on international economic and foreign policy were the Canadian-American Committee, the British-American Committee and the Committee on the Changing International Realities. At one time, over 400 private-sector leaders belonged to one or more of the policy committees, which explored domestic and global concerns, developed recommendations and commissioned studies. NPA-sponsored research focused on major economic and social issues facing the U.S. and other nations and fundamental questions relating to strengthening U.S. global competitiveness. The NPA reached out to policymakers and the public through publications and events such as seminars and conferences. The NPA had its offices in Washington, D.C. It ceased operation in 2003.

The records detail the daily operations and interests of the NPA. They show the growing
range of policy issues that the organization dealt with during its seven decades and its
wide range of members, authors and contributors. The records include many NPA
publications and publications of its committees from the 1930s to 2003. There is
correspondence with White House and congressional leaders, CEOs and executives of
hundreds of corporations in the U.S., Canada and overseas, as well as many academics
and labor leaders. They include organizational documents such as memos,
correspondence, reports and meeting minutes of the Board of Trustees and Executive
Committee, as well as documents from many events sponsored by the NPA and its
committees.

UAW Vice-President's Office: Donald Ephlin Records

drice — Tue, 18 Jan 2011 12:30:20 -0500

Donald F. Ephlin became active in the UAW at the General Motors Assembly Plant in Framingham, MA in the late 1940s, before joining the International Union staff in 1960. As administrative assistant to UAW President Leonard Woodcock from 1970 to 1977, and later Vice-President in charge of the Ford and subsequently the General Motors Departments, Ephlin played a key role in negotiations with both companies. He helped launch the Saturn Corporation and create a labor agreement which changed the face of labor relations in the automobile industry. Ephlin became widely recognized as an expert in labor-management problem solving and was instrumental in the development of employee involvement and in improving job security and the quality of work life for autoworkers.

The material in this collection reflects the range of issues that Donald Ephlin was involved in with the UAW, Ford Motor Company, General Motors and many industry, community and academic institutions. It represents primarily his work as a UAW International Vice President, but also includes documents from his membership on various boards and some personal materials relating to his years with the UAW.

Event Announcement: Ben Zdencanovic, “The CIO and the World: Research in 1940s Labor Internationalism and Social Politics”

Public Relations Team — Thu, 08 Oct 2015 10:14:29 -0400

Ben Zdencanovic, a doctoral student in the history department at the Yale University, will present an overview of his current research at a brown-bag lecture at noon on Thursday, October 15, in the Reuther Conference Room of the Walter P. Reuther Library.

His presentation, “The CIO and the World: Research in 1940s Labor Internationalism and Social Politics at the Reuther Library,” explores changes in postwar politics in the United States and abroad. read more »

[Podcast] The UAW’s Southern Gamble in Foreign-Owned Factories

teller — Mon, 26 Feb 2024 09:32:50 -0500

Dr. Stephen Silvia explains how the UAW built a cooperative relationship with workers’ councils and unions at foreign automotive companies, but has nevertheless struggled to organize those companies’ vehicle factories in the southern United States since the 1990s due to anti-labor politics and the companies’ shared anti-union playbooks. read more »