Coalition of Labor Union Women

CLUW

Full name	Coalition of Labor Union Women
Founded	March 24, 1974
Country	United States
Head union	Karen See, president
Affiliation	AFL-CIO
Office location	Washington, D.C.
Website	www.cluw.org

The Coalition of Labor Union Women (CLUW) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization of trade union women affiliated with the AFL-CIO.

CLUW has four goals:

• Promoting affirmative action in the workplace
• Strengthening the role of women in unions
• Organizing more women into unions
• Increasing the involvement of women in the democratic process.

History

CLUW was founded in Chicago, Illinois in 1974 as part of a wave of constituency group organizing within the AFL-CIO. The AFL-CIO had chartered its first retiree organization, the National Council of Senior Citizens (NCSC), in 1962 and its first civil rights organization, the A. Philip Randolph Institute (APRI), in 1965. The Coalition of Black Trade Unionists (CBTU) followed in 1972.

The impetus for the formation of CLUW came in June 1973 when women labor union leaders, led by Olga Madar of the United Auto Workers and Addie Wyatt of the United Food and Commercial Workers met to discuss the formation of a new AFL-CIO body to create a more effective voice for women in the labor movement. More than 3,000 women attended the conference.

The Coalition of Labor Union Women was formed during a national convention held March 23 to March 24, 1974. Myra Wolfgang, secretary-treasurer of the Detroit Joint Executive Board of Hotel and Restaurant Employees' and Bartenders' International Union, brought the 3,200 delegates to their feet by declaring:

You can call Mr. Meany and tell him there are 3,000 women in Chicago and they didn't come here to swap recipes!^[1]

Olga Madar was elected the organization's first president.

Structure and governance

CLUW is governed by its membership. The membership meets in a biennial convention in October in odd-numbered years. Members may belong to any labor union, and be active or retired. Provisions exist for associate membership for those who are not union members or on long-term layoff. members must belong to a local chapter, or, when no local chapter exists, be a member at-large. National unions and local chapters may elect one delegate to the national convention for every five CLUW members. The membership discusses and sets policy, and elects the officers and board of directors of the organization.

CLUW has five national officers: A president, executive vice president, treasurer, recording secretary, and a corresponding secretary. There are also 12 vice presidents. The president-emeritus, executive vice-president emeritus, officers and vice presidents comprise a National Executive Board (NEB).

The CLUW constitution also provides for a National Officers Council. The Council comprises the members of the NEB, state vice-presidents,^[2] state alternate vice-presidents,^[2] union delegates,^[3] chapter presidents^[4] and chapter delegates.^[4] The Council governs CLUW in the period between conventions. Its rulings and policies are binding unless reversed by the convention. The Council meets three times a year.

CLUW has both state and local chapters. The NEB is empowered to charter new chapters, and Article XIII of the CLUW constitution governs the conditions under which they may be established. Currently, there are about 75 CLUW chapters in the U.S. and Canada, with members in about 60 international American and Canadian unions.

In 2009, Karen See, a member of the APWU, was elected CLUW president.

Programs

CLUW holds educational conferences the day before each NEB meeting. The conferences cover a wide variety of topics, from equal pay to organizing new workers to family-friendly collective bargaining language.

In 1979, CLUW established the CLUW Center for Education and Research. The center is a nonprofit entity which provides education and training programs to CLUW members. The goal of the Center is to train members to become more effective advocates for working women in the workplace and the labor movement.

CLUW also sponsors a number of women's health initiatives. These cover breast and cervical cancer awareness and a project to increase access to contraception.

Trivia

Joyce Miller, a vice president of the Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers Union, was elected president of CLUW in 1977. In 1980, she was elected a vice president of the AFL-CIO and became the first woman to sit on the federation's executive council.

Notes

1. ^ Fink, Biographical Dictionary of American Labor, 1984, p. 591.
2. ^ ^{a b} Article VIII of the CLUW constitution provides for the election of "state vice presidents" and their alternates in each state, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and all U.S. territories with fifty (50) or more regular CLUW members.
3. ^ Article XII, Section 7, outlines the proportional representation and election procedures for international union delegates.
4. ^ ^{a b} Article X outlines the proportional representation and election procedures for chapter delegates.

References

• Dubofsky, Melvyn and Dulles, Foster Rhea. Labor in America. 7th ed. Wheeling, Ill.: Harlan Davidson, 1993. ISBN 0882959980
• Fink, Gary. Biographical Dictionary of American Labor. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1984. ISBN 0313228655
• History and Achievements, Coalition of Labor Union Women

External links

• CLUW Center for Education and Research
• CLUW Web site

Organized labour portal