Abstract

Chartered by the Congress of Industrial Organizations in 1935-1936, the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America (UE) quickly became one of the "big three" CIO unions. Local 475 was chartered in June 1939 as a merger of three UE locals, all involved in organizing small manufacturing concerns. With the outbreak of WWII and the expansion of war-related manufacturing, Local 475's organizing efforts were successful. Contracts were negotiated with 100 shops, most of them in Brooklyn, and the local grew to 20,000 members. The UE withdrew from the CIO under threat of expulsion in 1949, and in 1956 Local 475 entered the recently formed International Union of Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers (IUE), becoming Local 485. This collection includes minutes of the Stewards Council, Executive Board and general membership meetings of Local 485 and its predecessor Local 475; information on union elections, conventions, and financial reports; as well as materials pertaining to other locals and special events. The Local's extensive bargaining and arbitration history is well represented. The collection also includes fifty photographs and a small amount of ephemera.