Union Label and Service Trades Council of Greater New York and Long Island Records

The records of the Central Union Label Council and its related organizations consist of correspondence, reports, flyers, news releases, programs, convention proceedings, speeches and publications, as well as non-print material such as photographs, buttons and posters. The collection documents both the behind­ the-scenes operation of this union public relations program, largely through the officers correspondence and the Executive Committee Minutes of the Central Union Label Council, as well as the implementation of that program, documented in its many publications and reports. Gaps are most evident in regards to the records of the ULSTD of NYS where early annual convention material is much less bulky than during the later years when H. Avrutin was Secretary-Treasurer. Meeting minutes for the Executive Council of that organization are also spotty.

Correspondence between the ULSTD of the AFL in Washington, D.C. and the New York branch is a significant part of the Officers' Correspondence file. C. Sinnigen stayed in close touch with I.M. Ornburn, Secretary-Treasurer of the national organization, and followed policy from that office. Materials from Series V on the ULSTD of the AFL show the extent to which the New York organizations followed the publicity programs of the Washington office. On the other hand, the New York office functioned as a national center for information about where to purchase union made goods and about which companies were organized. The Washington office used the Official Directory of AFL-CIO Union Products and Services (published by the ULSTD-NYS) as a national guide.

The work of Union Label as a lobbying organization is represented by letter writing campaigns to the New York City and New York state political leadership and by the inclusion of political leaders in Union Label publicity programs. Extensive involvement in labor-sponsored community programs by the leadership is also documented.

This collection is significant for its documentation at the city and state levels of larger national trends for American labor - the strengths and weaknesses of craft unionism in the 1930's and 1940's, the revitalization which came about from a merger with the industrial union movement, the expulsion of the Left from the labor movement in the 1950's and the existence of a more hostile environment for unions in the 1970's and 80's.

Major subject areas likewise shift from disputes about CIO union labelled goods and goods without any union label to pressing economic issues like runaway shops and imports. By the mid 1970's, Charles Garrahan, President of the Greater New York and Long Island ULSTC stated that "the import issue has become the major cause within our jurisdiction." Similarly, the recent union label slogan "Buy union - the job you save may be your own" captures the shift which has occurred in the union label movement from a focus on craft pride to one of economic survival.

Series XII is comprised primarily of materials related to annual conventions including minutes, correspondence, promotional materials and press clippings. Also of note are files and press related to the Coors Brewing Company boycotts. Additionally files and photographs related to the naming and dedication of Union Square are included in the collection.