World War I - Condemnation and Plaudits

On April 6, 1917, the United States entered World War I, in which Canada had been engaged since 1914. America faced production challenges such as it had never known. It was going to require a tremendous workforce. The Brotherhood yielded to none in eagerness to help the war effort. It would not be long before thousands of its own members would be in uniform. At the same time, it was reasonable and just that labor’s position should be maintained. The Brotherhood’s President was especially mindful of the favorable situation that had developed: the demand for labor was fast running ahead of the supply. Here was a made-to-order opportunity to organize the unorganized - and extend the union shop. Doing so, Hutcheson emphasized, would help the war effort: only through the union shop could the Brotherhood channel a full and steady supply of competent craftsmen into war work - and maintain the discipline that would serve as a brake on work stoppages.

Attempt to Establish Open Shop

But, the businessmen and industrialists who had been put at the head of wartime Government agencies had other ideas. They used the cry of “patriotic duty” to induce a number of labor leaders to accept the open shop in the huge programs of building military training camps and ships. One leader - William L. Hutcheson - refused to agree. He said: “While we have every desire to assist the Government in the crisis we are now passing through, we have no intention of waiving our rights to maintain for ourselves the conditions we have established.” He was subjected to vicious attack. His adversaries accused him of impeding the war effort. The idea seemed to be that it was “patriotic” for employers to gorge themselves with profits, but unpatriotic for labor to ask for justice. Meanwhile, a breakthrough was developing. . .

Praise from Government; Gains for Labor

Early in 1918, the Government called a conference of management leaders and labor leaders to develop workable principles for the handling of industrial disputes. To the Carpenters’ President, this was both challenge and opportunity. Though the attacks on him by open shop advocates were then at their merciless peak, he played a major role in the development of a plan for a National War Labor Board for mediation and arbitration of labor disputes. It was submitted to the Secretary of Labor late in March. Hutcheson was commended by both US Labor Secretary W.B. Wilson and by President Woodrow Wilson for his part in working out the plan. The President established the Board by proclamation on April 8, giving equal representation to labor and management, and adding members - one of whom was to become Hutcheson’s warm personal friend: former President William Howard Taft. Solid gains for labor were built into the plan: continuance of the union shop where it existed; the right to organize war plant workers; eight hours as the basic day; increases in living costs to be the basis for wage increases. And, as Hutcheson had urged from the beginning, the US Department of Labor was made the official worker-mobilizing agency, and instructed to work through the trade unions in recruiting. Thus, for the first time in World War I, the US Government had a clear cut labor policy. Order replaced confusion. Industrial unrest was greatly reduced. Labor had won an equal place in its dealings with management.

To Wreck the Unions: The American Plan

After World War I, the big industrial firms of America were loaded with war profits. They wanted to get rid of the collective bargaining processes which the National War Labor Board had bolstered in wartime. They wanted to cut back wages, and get rid of restrictions on hours of work. To do so, they determined to smash the trade unions. The weapon they hit upon was the so-called “American Plan,” based on the argument that every law-abiding American has the “right to work” when and where he pleases without “interference.” Therefore, as they put it, their “doors were open” to everyone seeking employment. They coined their own expression: the “open shop.” The idea spread like wildfire. The public was led to believe that the unions were somehow out to undermine the “American way of life” by their efforts to organize workers; and that the union shop was “un-American.” Offices were set up all over the country. Where employers were reluctant, they were pressured into adopting the American Plan. The drive was waged with particular vigor against the building trades, but few of these unions felt strong enough or financially able to do combat with the powerfully-organized and richly financed American Plan forces. One of them was ready, though; the United Brotherhood. It was the biggest union, with 366,000 members. It had a $700 thousand surplus in its treasury. And it saw that the American Plan had as its real goal the destruction of the labor movement.

San Francisco; Strategy for Victory

Firmly entrenched in San Francisco was the Industrial Association. It ruled with an iron hand. Contractors who wanted to hire union craftsmen and bargain collectively were told in effect: “Do it, and you won’t get any materials.” Hired thugs were used to enforce discipline. Hutcheson went to San Francisco and asked the Industrial Association to agree to mediation. Nothing doing, he was told. As for the right to bargain collectively; positively not. Several contractors were willing but they feared Association reprisals. So. . . Hutcheson came up with a new kind of strategy. The Brotherhood ordered cement from Belgium. Bought lumber from independent mills. Bought and operated rock quarries and gravel beds. These supplies were offered to contractors who would hire union workers. Before long, contractors began defecting from the Association - and soon more and more of them returned to union employment. The American Plan began disintegrating in San Francisco. The Brotherhood got out of the building supply business, and moved on to new battles - including a big one in Chicago.

In Chicago: “The Bigger They Are. . .”

Early in 1921, Chicago employers’ associations launched a drive to cut back wages. Agreement to arbitrate was made by unions in the building trades - except the Carpenters’ District Council. U.S. District Judge Kenesaw Landis, who later was to become baseball’s “czar,” handed down an award that reduced all building trades wages. The carpenters were told to take it or leave it. They left it - and walked out. Thousands of non-union carpenters were imported; contractors who wavered toward bargaining with the union were subjected to threats. For three long years, the struggle continued. It was in June 1924, when Hutcheson decided that the right time had come for a bold stroke. He called on seven of the biggest contractors; took the American Plan apart, piece by piece; got them to agree to a settlement. With the biggest contractors signed up, the back of the American Plan was broken. The Brotherhood came out of combat stronger than ever. By 1928, the General President was able to report to the convention that the American Plan had ceased to exist as a national movement, and had become purely local in nature. And, leadership in the long fight had come from the Brotherhood - at a cost of several hundred thousand dollars.

The Communists: Stepping on the Worm

Even as the Carpenters and others were waging their successful fight against the so-called “American Plan,” the Brotherhood was made the target of a plan that was blatantly un-American. Taking the name, “Trade Union Educational League,” a group of Communist-trained organizers in the early 1920’s began worming its way into Brotherhood locals all over the country on the pretext of wanting to make the unions “more democratic.” They managed actually to take over two New York locals, and made themselves a strong influence in locals of several major cities. At the Brotherhood’s 1928 convention, they made an open and determined effort to seize control, making vicious attacks on the General Officers. Before the convention was over, however, they had been thoroughly routed, and it was not long before the Communist faction had also been squeezed out of the Brotherhood for good. This had been the first time that Communists had made an organized effort to seize an American or Canadian union. The Carpenters’ blitz served as a guide to other unions in dealing with such radical elements.

Days of Darkness - And a Labor Milestone

It was October 29, 1929, when the bottom fell out of the stock market and set off the worst and longest depression in American and Canadian history. Millions of people became jobless. Wages were slashed for those who were lucky enough to keep working. By 1933, nearly 13 million persons had become unemployed - about one-fourth of the total workforce. Brotherhood Secretary Frank Duffy reported that less than 30% of the members were employed. Large numbers of them could not pay their dues. General officers cut their own pay. Yet, through all of these years of trial, Brotherhood members fought against the squeeze by employers. As President Hutcheson recalled: “Our members refused to believe that low wages would create work. . . While sheer poverty made it impossible for many thousands of our members to pay dues, they never surrendered their union principles." In 1933, passage of the National Recovery Act - the “NRA” - confirmed in one portion of its text the right of workers to organize. But, in 1935, the U.S. Supreme Court threw the Act out as unconstitutional. This was a challenge to labor to fight for legislation that would stand up in court. So, the following year, the United Brotherhood and other AFL unions joined forces to win supporters in Congress for what was to become a labor milestone: the Wagner Act. They won. As enacted by Congress, this Act not only reaffirmed workers’ right to organize, but declared it to be United States policy to encourage the practice of collective bargaining. Actions by employers to interfere with organization, or to refuse to bargain collectively, were defined as unfair labor practices. This was a major victory for labor. It consolidated gains that had taken decades to win. Despite the efforts of employers to get the Wagner Act declared unconstitutional, it was upheld by the Supreme Court in 1937.

Test of Fortitude: Benefits of Foresight

The fortitude of Brotherhood members was grimly tested during the depression of the late 1930’s. At the same time, that crucial period brought dramatic demonstration of the Brotherhood’s wisdom in building a strong financial position during the years of growth since 1915. It demonstrated the Brotherhood’s constant awareness that its No. 1 role is to care for its own. Even with the drop-off in membership and the inability of many to pay dues, the Brotherhood in the period, 1928-1940, was able to pay close to $12 million in benefits - including $7 million for death and disability and nearly $5 million in pensions.

The Hardy Woodsman: A Strong Union at Last

No chapter in labor’s history was more fraught with drama and struggle than the long efforts to organize the lumber industry. From its beginnings in Colonial times, the industry was dominated by rugged individuals - workers and operators, alike. Operators often worked on a shoestring; carried forward their risky business with bought, borrowed or stolen timber. The lumber workers, themselves, were a rough, tough breed - hard working and hard living. During most of the 19th Century and the early years of the 20th, the crews were largely immigrants. Living conditions in the camps were deplorable; wages were as low as 10¢ an hour. But organizing was difficult because the men moved around so much and because lumber operations were often far from cities. Before and during World War I, vigorous efforts to organize the West Coast lumber industry were made by the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW). These efforts were bitterly resisted by the employers, and the result was a number of pitched battles, with casualties on both sides. The IWW’s strictly Communistic principles were unpalatable to most woods workers. It collapsed after the war in the face of intense public hostility. Between 1917 and 1934, the AFL made sporadic efforts to organize lumber workers. It established more than a hundred federal unions, but they were never really effective. At its 1934 convention, the AFL awarded jurisdiction over the lumber workers to the Carpenters because of the close affinity between the trades. The United Brotherhood accepted the challenge, but organizing efforts met with angry resistance by the operators. They were determined that no union should get a real foothold in the industry. The result was an industry-wide confrontation in May 1935. Although the industry was only partially organized, workers by the tens of thousands joined the strike. The entire industry was involved. The struggle was a bitter one, lasting some six weeks. When it was over, the Lumber and Sawmill Workers Union had firmly established itself as a force in the lumber industry. Under the Brotherhood’s banner, the evils of the 1930’s have been eliminated. In the first 30 years, wages which had been 25 to 30¢ an hour were raised twenty-fold; safety standards were established; working conditions vastly improved. Today, a substantial percentage of Brotherhood membership is made up of workers in the lumber industry’s branches. They enjoy decent wages, paid vacations, pensions, and health and welfare programs.

Out of Depression - Into World War II

As the 1940’s began, the depression was easing. Before the new decade was two years old, the bombs fell on Pearl Harbor and, on December 7, 1941, we were again at war. Canada had been a combatant since September 1939, and many Canadian members had already gone to war. Immediately, the Brotherhood pledged cooperation to President Roosevelt. At the same time, it was determined that the national emergency should not be used - as in World War I - to subject Brotherhood Members to injustices. Months before the outbreak of hostilities, when the national defense program was calling for massive-scale production, the Carpenters’ President had urged the setting up of a National War Labor Board, such as the one which resulted from the plan he helped develop in 1918. A month after Pearl Harbor, the President established such a Board. Except for certain weaknesses, it was patterned much after its World War I predecessor. One of the first issues to confront the Board was the union shop. The argument ended in a compromise: maintenance of union membership. The compromise turned out to be a good one: wherever a union could show that it represented a majority of employees, the Board almost invariably granted maintenance of membership. Meanwhile, inflation was making it essential that there be control of prices and wages. The Office of Price Administration - the “OPA” - was created to regulate prices. As for wages, Hutcheson and other building trade leaders wanted a separate body, rather than an all-inclusive one, to handle wage stabilization for their crafts. They won. . .

A Board That Worked; A Proud Record

In May 1942, the Wage Stabilization Board was established by the President, with four members each from employers, labor and the public. Maurice A. Hutcheson, son of William L.Hutcheson, and a Brotherhood Vice President was designated as one of the three alternate members. The wisdom of having such a Board became increasingly evident as the war progressed. The labor members were top people, with authority to act. They worked tirelessly at their assignment. The Board’s decisions were generally accepted and strikes avoided. In summary, the Brotherhood was not only able to protect its members, but it made a distinguished record in helping the nation to victory. The Brotherhood kept war projects supplied with skilled craftsmen - as strikingly illustrated by a single example. . . A critical shortage of trained carpenters had developed at two key war plants. The Brotherhood acted swiftly. The results are evident in a letter to the Carpenters’ President from the Undersecretary of War: “Your assistance in recruiting skilled mechanics to help build the Clinton and Hanford projects was an important factor in rushing these projects to completion and making it possible to drop the first atomic bomb on Japan. I want to thank the officers and members of your organization for this contribution.” The Brotherhood had a leading role in the Navy’s heroic and miracle-building Construction Battalion - the “Seabees.” The war brought spectacular gains in strength to the United Brotherhood. Its membership soared from just under 320,000 in 1940 to more than 700,000 by war’s end.



Strong Threat and Major Gain: The Anti-trust Cases Against Labor

Few of the fights waged by the Carpenters have had greater significance to labor than the one that was brought on by the Department of Justice’s anti-trust onslaught. The onslaught had begun in 1939 with a barrage of indictments against literally scores of labor leaders, charging that they had acted in restraint of trade through monopolistic practices. So successfully did the Justice Department use its powers of threat-loaded persuasion that some of the men consented to the entering of decrees against them; others pleaded guilty. William Hutcheson not only rejected the Justice lawyers’ overtures, but denounced them to their faces. Seven indictments had been handed down against the Brotherhood and its officers: in Pittsburgh, Chicago, Seattle, San Francisco, and St. Louis. They were accused of interfering with shipments of lumber and other building materials, carrying on secondary boycotts, wrongfully refusing use of the union label, et cetera. The Justice Department decided to make the Carpenters the test target of its whole “anti-monopoly” drive against organized labor. It chose St. Louis as the testing ground. In that city, the Carpenters had struck against a brewing company in the course of a jurisdictional dispute with the Machinists. In The Carpenter, they had called for a boycott of the brewery’s beer. They also refused to work for the contractor who had hired Machinists to do a brewery-expansion job which the Carpenters thought should be theirs.

First Skirmish - Then, Court of Last Resort

The lawyers for the Justice Department went into U.S. District Court in St. Louis, ready for the kill. But, they underestimated their would-be victim: the Brotherhood persuaded the Court to dismiss the case. The government lawyers were furious. They appealed to the Supreme Court. The issue at stake was critical - not only to the Brotherhood, but to all organized labor, and that issue was this: Are the actions of labor organizations subject to the provisions of the Anti-Trust Act? The case was argued before the Supreme Court in December 1940, and the Justice Department had mustered its sharpest lawyers. But, the Brotherhood had enlisted distinguished counsel, also. The ruling came 14 months later: a majority decision, dismissing the indictment. This was a spectacular victory for labor - and it was won by the Brotherhood by fighting, when others were surrendering.

Setback for Labor: The Taft-Hartley Law

When the atomic bomb brought a sudden end to World War II, it brought, also, an abrupt end to industrial production for the armed services. Jobs vanished overnight. Workers’ earnings fell off as overtime disappeared. Unions began demanding wage boosts to cushion the effects.

THEY KNEW WHAT THEY WANTED. . . THE YEAR: 1946

“Mr. President. . . There is a misconception that legislation can correct difficulties which stem from basic human relationships. Were this true the world might be a happier place. . . I have been a part of the labor movement for fully a half a century. During these years I have seen ideas, patterns, and theories come and go. But in all this time I have never seen a sound concept of labor relations incorporated into the American way of life but what that concept was based on the fundamental premise that men must be free to work or not to work, to do business or not to do business, to accept or not to accept chances that the vagaries of ever-changing conditions present.”
William L. Hutcheson President of the Brotherhood 1915-1951 (At a meeting with President Truman)
By winter time of 1945-46, strikes were occurring all over the country - in steel, automobiles, meat packing, telephone, railroads, electric power. . . When coal miners struck, President Truman took over the mines until settlement was reached. All of this controversy, much of it hitting the public directly, produced a wave of animosity toward labor. Encouraged by anti-union employers, sentiment for restrictive legislation was mounting. A rash of such legislation was introduced, but the drive finally centered in bills introduced in the House by Rep. Fred A. Hartley, Jr., and in the Senate by Senator Robert A. Taft. Demands for stiffer controls over labor became overpowering. Despite the strong and tenacious efforts of Brotherhood officers and other union leaders, the Taft-Hartley Act was enacted by congress in June 1947. Though vetoed by President Truman, it was re-passed over his veto. The Taft-Hartley Act established a veritable manual of “can’t do” rules for labor. But, its most onerous provision was the now-notorious Section 14 (b), which permits states to pass laws forbidding union shop contracts. Putting it another way, it authorizes states to pass compulsory open shop laws. Nineteen states took advantage of this invitation to turn back the clock. In 1966, labor was on the verge of getting 14 (b) knocked out of the law. The House voted overwhelmingly for repeal, but the filibuster tactics of a minority in the Senate kept the section alive. Today, the so-called “right to work” laws remain a challenge to be met and disposed of.

THEY KNEW WHAT THEY WANTED. . . THE YEAR: 1947

“. . . if your (state) law is such that he (the employer) would sign what we call a union shop, we will work for him. But if he hires a non-union man, that is his privilege and he can hire him but if he comes in there and we solicit his membership and he refuses to join our organization, then we will go to our employer and say ‘you have a perfect right to keep that man, but if you do, we are not working with him. There is your choice.’”
William L. Hutcheson (At a Congressional hearing)


The Modern Era of the Brotherhood

It was the beginning of 1952 when Maurice A. Hutcheson became General President of the Carpenters. Since then, the Brotherhood has made great advances throughout the United States and Canada, and has established itself as one of North America’s largest, strongest, most respected unions. In 1961, the International headquarters were established in a handsome new building in Washington, D.C. just across the street from the U.S. Capitol grounds. The movement from Indianapolis to Washington had become necessary as the activities of the Federal government began having increasing impact on Brotherhood affairs. The organization was streamlined, and the national officers have been brought closer to the membership through district and regional conferences. Communication with members has been improved through bulletins and reports on subjects of current interest, supplementing the information presented by The Carpenter. The official journal, The Carpenter, has won several major awards of the International Labor Press Association: best single editorial, best front page, best feature article, and more. The Brotherhood has gone into film making to acquaint members with new techniques in the various branches of their trades. Its vast membership and financial records are handled by computer. Brotherhood officers continue to have a major role in the affairs of the AFL-CIO Building Trades Department. In this connection, one of the notable services of the General President, early in his administration, was his leadership in convincing leaders of the Department to deal forthrightly with the disruptive evil of jurisdictional raiding. Out of his activities came establishment of the National Joint Board for the Settlement of Jurisdictional Disputes, an employee-employer body on which he has helped cope with many a sticky problem.

Brotherhood Structure: to Serve the Membership

A successful trade union is strongly cohesive and effective to the extent that its leadership is responsive to the needs of its members. The organization structure of the Brotherhood is tailored to the basic pattern of the building industry, itself: relatively few giant contractors, operating interstate, and a great many small ones, doing business locally. Thus, the local union has a high degree of autonomy in dealing with employers in matters of working conditions and pay. But, in cities if any size, and especially in metropolitan areas, the interests of all locals are inter-related. This is why it is necessary to have district councils, made up of delegates from each local, with authority to act in unison. And, rounding out the picture, the General Office is empowered to negotiate agreements with the big interstate contractors, providing that the contractor will observe union conditions in localities where they operate. The General Office stands ready at all times to advise and assist the locals in seeing to it that these agreements are observed. A key figure in modern union affairs is the business agent. He is able to devote full time to the union’s interests, and thus to keep track of the many large and small jobs that are underway in his community - and see to it that union conditions are being maintained. Because of his strategic position, he is usually given authority to make decisions and take action quickly. The General Office does not interfere in activities of the locals or district councils unless they are contrary to the Brotherhood rules and policy. For a local or council to get financial aid for a strike, it must first inform the General Office of its demands and the status of negotiations, and get approval. This requirement serves as a brake against unwise or impetuous actions. In order to give unity to the Brotherhood’s position, and to maintain the discipline that is the keystone of union strength, the General Officers and the General Executive Board are given broad authority, under the Brotherhood’s constitution, to direct activities during the four-year period between General Conventions. The local unions have the opportunity to guide the activities of their General Officers through their delegates to the General Convention, and through the elections, in which every member has his ballot.

The Brotherhood In Canada

“Hands across the border” is not just a phrase with the Carpenters: it’s reality. Delegates from Hamilton, Ontario, were among those who answered Peter McGuire’s call for that historic organization meeting in Chicago in August, 1881. Their Local Union 18 received the first Canadian charter only a few months after the United Brotherhood was founded. Although their membership was of modest size for the first quarter century (only about 6,000 in 1904), Canadian unions have attained an increasingly important position in the Brotherhood. As Canadian industry expanded throughout the provinces and into the northern territories during the latter half of the 20th Century, it became evident that the Brotherhood must expand its activities in Canada as well. A research office was established in Toronto in the 1970’s, and this facility, along with the General Offices in Washington, D.C., maintains close ties with members throughout the two Canadian districts-working with the two General Executive Board members representing these districts. As early as 1876, millwrights of Toronto, Ont., formed unions of their craft. After the United Brotherhood was formed in 1881 a local union of millwrights was chartered in Toronto, and soon other Canadian millwrights joined the union, too. While there are natural variations in viewpoints on the two sides of the border because of different histories, the interest and problems of the Canadian membership are essentially the same as those of their fellow craftsmen in the United States. It was logical, then, that they should join in one union. They are prepared to work together in the future, as in the past, for those union aims and principles which know no national boundaries.

A Program to Help Those in Need

The United Brotherhood was only one year old when it adopted a modest program of death and disability payments. From the inception of this program until 1980, the Brotherhood has made payments totaling almost $144,000,000 to the disabled and the bereaved.



Competence and Pride

Apprenticeship and Training “And for want of a strict apprentice system and through lack of union among mechanics, the trade literally swarms with unskilled men.” Thus, our founders front-paged, in the original convention call, their exasperation at the downgrading of the craft by the work turned out by men ignorant of the full range of skills required by the competent carpenter. Action to reverse this trend got underway almost immediately. Traditionally, the good carpenter had always gained satisfaction from seeing to it that young fellows on the job “learned the trade properly.” As work projects grew bigger and hiring practices more complex in our rapid industrial development, the cooperation of employers became vital. And, as it is true today, the success of apprentice training came to depend upon the joint responsibility and initiative of labor and management. In 1937, the government set up the Bureau of Apprenticeship Training, a tremendous help in this cooperative effort. The work of the Brotherhood during World War II in the Seabee Program gave further impetus. Formalized on-the-job training with related classroom instruction was initiated. Today’s objective is to give training so thorough that the membership may hold their own in our fast-moving technology. It has been estimated that Brotherhood apprenticeship accounts for 60% of all apprentices in all the building trades. More than 37,000 men and women, an all-time high, are in the Brotherhood’s organized program and many more are receiving some measure of on-the-job training. AN OFFICIAL EMBLEM was first adopted by the United Brotherhood in 1884. It incorporated the shield, the divider, the folding rule, and the plane shown in the center of the emblem above. The Latin phrase, freely translated from the writings of Virgil, is “Labor triumphs over all,” and it, too, appeared on the original emblem. In the 1970’s an outer collar of color showing the full name of the organization was changed to the shape shown above, and the new design was copyrighted. THE UNION LABEL of the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America is shown above. Prior to the year 1900 the Brotherhood had no formal, universal label to attach or stamp on woodwork an other products to indicate that they had been made by Brotherhood members. As far back as 1869, however, the Carpenters Eight-Hour League of San Francisco issued a stamp to differentiate between work done in 8-hour day planing mills and work done in competing 10-hour day mills. Under a mandate of the Brotherhood’s 11th General Convention in 1900, the General Executive Board adopted a design for a union label on January 15, 1901, but this design was changed, and the label was not officially adopted until the 12th General Convention in 1920.

The Brotherhood Looks Ahead: A Century of Progress

George Meany, former president of the AFL-CIO, once said of Maurice Hutcheson: “He knows exactly where he is going at all times because he follows the simple philosophy that the trade union movement is an instrumentality to bring benefits to the people it represents. . .” The truth of the late Mr. Meany’s observations about President Hutcheson is dramatically borne out by the solid record of progress achieved by our Brotherhood during his two decades at the helm. Under his aegis the move from Indianapolis to Washington in 1961 was carried out smoothly and with practically no disruption of day-to-day operations. The move was made imperative by the growing encroachment of government into the field of collective bargaining and the resulting necessity of dealing with federal agencies on a regular basis. Convinced that the trend of government to inject itself into labor relations was an ongoing phenomenon, President Hutcheson logically concluded that the political muscle of organized labor had to be expanded greatly. To meet the challenge, President Hutcheson established the Carpenters Legislative Improvement Committee (CLIC) to collect voluntary contributions from officers and members to carry out labor’s traditional role of helping friends and defeating enemies. That this move paid off handsomely is written into the CLIC records. Through legislation sponsored and pushed by CLIC an unfair tax ruling against the Brotherhood was changed by law, thereby saving the organization millions of dollars.

In 1979, when a proposed new national park threatened to eliminate the jobs of several hundred Brotherhood members in Northern California, CLIC was unable to stop the expansion of the park, but it did something that was unprecedented - it had written into the law a guarantee of full pay for the Brotherhood members rendered jobless by the measure for a period of six years, plus first crack at the jobs that the expanded park would open up. The value of political clout could scarcely be pointed up more dramatically by a fiction writer. During his tenure as General President, Maurice Hutcheson greatly expanded the scope and effectiveness of the Apprentice Training Department. He authorized the production of training materials - including movies - that introduced journeymen to new materials and construction methods. He appointed a director of organization and beefed up organizing efforts. Under his administration the Brotherhood reached new heights of efficiency, growth and stability.

Through its long history the Brotherhood has been fortunate to have waiting in the wings a capable successor whenever the General Presidency has become vacant. Certainly this was the case in 1972 when General President Maurice A. Hutcheson decided that it was time for him to retire. When he did so, First General Vice President William Sidell took over the helm as was prescribed by the General Constitution. He stepped into the job well-prepared. He served a long and honorable apprenticeship preparing himself for the responsibilities of the presidency. As General Executive Board member for two years, Second General Vice President for five years, and First General Vice President for three years, he gained a wealth of knowledge about every facet of Brotherhood operations. This experience stood him in good stead when he assumed the duties of General President. Like his predecessor, President Sidell placed great emphasis on organizing. Under his direction the Volunteer Organizing Committee (VOC) program was instituted to encourage organizing in the industrial field. VOC has stimulated rank-and-file membership participation in the day-by-day organizing of industrial plant workers.

A companion program, CHOP - Coordinated Housing Organizing Program - was launched under the administration of William Sidell in 1973, and this program has revitalized efforts to bring union representation to residential construction workers throughout North America. Meanwhile, President Sidell served as chairman of the AFL-CIO committee on Housing and led labor’s legislative fight for reduced mortgage interest rates and consumer housing protections.

To assist Canadian locals and councils in their negotiations with management, Sidell established a Canadian research department in Ottawa. After patient and protracted negotiations, he succeeded in achieving the affiliation of the Wood, Wire, and Metal Lathers International Union with the United Brotherhood - a move which took place in 1979 that not only strengthened the organization but also eliminated a prime source of industrial dualism. THE LAKELAND HOME for Aged Members was established by the Brotherhood in 1928 as a retirement facility for members who had reached age 65 and had 30 years of continuous membership in good standing. There, craftsmen who had helped to build North America received a quality of care unsurpassed for completeness and compassion for individual needs. Located at Lakeland, Fla., the Carpenters Home was a self-contained community, complete with a lake for fishing and boating, a golf course, and many other facilities. A decline in occupancy during the 1970’s due to changing lifestyles, and the growth of federally-funded nursing homes, coupled with increased housing and hospitalization restrictions by the State of Florida, forced the 32nd General Convention in Chicago in 1974 to authorize the gradual closing of the Home. The residents still at the home were moved to nursing homes or other locations of their choice, and the Brotherhood continues to provide for their needs for their lifetime.

In 1955 the Brotherhood purchased Mettler’s Woods, a unique, 135-acre primeval forest near New Brunswick, N.J., and donated it as a research facility to Rutger’s University as the William L. Hutcheson Memorial Forest. The scientist above studies the growth of a hickory tree. “We’re building the Twentieth Century” is the theme of a public relations and promotional campaign launched by the Brotherhood in 1980 to spur organizing. The picture is from a 30-second commercial appearing on two major television networks in the United States. To provide specialized services to the industrial sector of the Brotherhood, he established an industrial union department at the General Office in Washington to zero in on the particular problems and goals of industrial members. He also expanded our organizing activities among commercial underwater divers - who work with Marine Carpenters and have been a part of the Brotherhood’s jurisdiction for more than a half century. The skills of divers are a highly important part of the construction industry, particularly with the rapid growth of the offshore petroleum industry. He, too, devoted much time and energy to upgrading apprenticeship training. Under his inspiration, the International Apprenticeship Contest gained added stature and importance. Under contract with the Federal government, the Brotherhood ran many training centers designed to give disadvantaged youths the kind of remedial education needed to enable them to qualify for regular apprenticeship training. The success rate of these centers has been very good. Although the years that made up the second half of the Seventies were plagued by economic standstill, high inflation and high unemployment, President Sidell’s steady hand on the helm piloted the organization safely through treacherous shoals.

When he voluntarily retired at the end of 1979 he left behind an organization healthy in membership and sound treasury. In January, 1980, William Konyha became General President. Like his predecessor, Konyha served a rigorous apprenticeship preparing himself for the job of General President. He, too, gained knowledge and experience while serving in a number of vital capacities - General Representative, General Executive Board Member, Second General Vice President, First General Vice President, and finally General President. Once more the Brotherhood proclivity for having a good man in the wings prepared to take over from a good man stepping down has manifested itself.

In 1980 the Brotherhood was approaching its 100th birthday, August 1981, would mark a century of service. Three-quarters of a million members of the United Brotherhood were truly building the 20th Century. In the ranks of the growing organization were construction workers, workers in aircraft plants and defense industries, workers on pipelines and in sawmills, piledrivers, millwrights, and scores of other skilled jobs, helping to make the US and Canada great.

A solid past constitutes the best guarantee of a bright future. The ability of the United Brotherhood to cope with all the wars, recessions, political upheavals, technological explosions, and social experimentation of the past 100 years bespeaks a vitality and a resilience that mere words cannot match. And not the least of the things that the Brotherhood has going for it is the quality of the leadership handling the reigns of authority.

INTERNATIONAL HEADQUARTERS. . . “closer to where the action is. . . “ After nearly six decades in Indianapolis, Ind., the United Brotherhood moved in 1961 into its magnificent home at 101 Constitution Avenue, N.W., in Washington, D.C. It’s across the street from the Capitol grounds, and its neighbors include the US Department of Labor and other union organizations: among them, the Letter Carriers, Teamsters and Railway Brotherhoods.

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