Trade Union Unity League

{{short description|Former trade union of the United States}} {{Other uses|Tuul River}} {{Infobox political party | name = Trade Union Unity League | abbreviation = TUUL | colorcode = {{Party color|Communist Party USA}} | predecessor = [[Trade Union Educational League]] | founders = William Z. Foster | founded = {{start date and age|1929||}} | dissolved = {{end date and age|1935||}} | ideology = [[Dual unionism]] | position = [[Far-left politics|Far-left]] | international = [[Profintern]] | country = the United States }} {{Socialism US}} The '''Trade Union Unity League''' ('''TUUL''') was an industrial union umbrella organization under the [[Communist Party of the United States]] (CPUSA) between 1929 and 1935. The group was an American affiliate of the [[Profintern|Red International of Labor Unions]]. The formation of the TUUL was the result of the [[Communist International]]'s [[Third Period]] policy, which ordered affiliated Communist Parties to pursue a strategy of [[dual unionism]] and thus abandon attempts at "[[boring from within|bore from within]]" existing [[trade unions]]. TUUL unions aimed to organize semi-skilled and unskilled workers, many whom had been expelled from the [[American Federation of Labor]] (AFL).<ref>Johanningsmeier, Edward P. [https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00236560120047743 "The Trade Union Unity League: American Communists and the Transition to Industrial Unionism: 1928-1934."] ''Labor History,'' vol. 42, no. 2 (2001), p. 162.</ref> According to the TUUL, the AFL was "an instrument of the capitalists for the exploitation of the workers."<ref>The Trade Union Unity League (American Section of the R.I.L.U.): Its Program, Structure, Methods and History. New York: Trade Union Unity League, n.d. Print. 11.</ref> Thus, the TUUL was formed as an organization in opposition to the AFL."<ref>Chaffee, Porter Myron; Jarrell, Randall; & Reti, Irene. (2004). Porter Chaffee: Labor Organizer and Activist. UC Santa Cruz: Regional History Project. 90.</ref>

== History ==

=== Background === The Trade Union Unity League had its roots in an earlier Communist Party foray into the [[trade union]] movement, the [[Trade Union Educational League]] (1920-1929), headed by [[William Z. Foster]].<ref>The best history of TUEL and its activities remains Philip S. Foner's multi-volume ''History of the Labor Movement of the United States.'' See: ''Volume 9: From TUEL to the End of the Gompers Era,'' (New York: International Publishers, 1991) and ''Volume 10: The TUEL'' (New York: International Publishers, 1994).</ref> This earlier organization sought to pursue a "boring from within" tactic inside the previously existing unions, inside and outside of the [[American Federation of Labor]] — seeking to organize left wing "militants" within these unions with a view to transforming the unions themselves into revolutionary instruments.<ref>See: David Saposs, ''Left Wing Unionism: A Study of Radical Policies and Tactics.'' New York: International Publishers, 1926; "Chapter 3: Communist Boring From Within," pp. 48-65.</ref> The TUEL sought to build a democratic, industrial, rank and file-centered union movement by attempting to steer conservative AFL and independent unions to the left on the political spectrum.<ref>Devinatz, Victor G. 2007. "A Reevaluation of the Trade Union Unity League, 1929--1934."Science & Society 71, no. 1. 33.</ref>

Despite his lifelong enmity towards dual unionism, Foster remained at the helm of the TUEL organization when it changed its name and tactics at its 1929 convention.<ref>James R. Barrett, ''William Z. Foster and the Tragedy of American Radicalism.'' Urbana, IL: University of Illinois Press, 1999; pp. 160-161.</ref> This change of line was externally driven, Foster explained to his associate from the [[United Mine Workers of America]], [[Powers Hapgood]] at the time of the change, declaring "Powers, the Communist Party decided that policy. As a good Communist I just have to go along."<ref>Quoted in Saul Alinsky, ''John L. Lewis: An Unauthorized Biography.'' New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons, 1949; pg. 58.</ref>

=== Formation === The TUUL was founded at a convention held in [[Cleveland, Ohio]], on August 31, 1929. The TUUL emerged out the Trade Union Education League (TUEL), which was founded by William Zebulon Foster in 1920.<ref>Philip S. Foner, History of the Labor Movement in the United States: Volume IX: The TUEL to the End of the Gompers Era. New York: International Publishers, 1991. 105.</ref> The TUEL attempted to create an "amalgamation of the trade unions" by forging alliances, organizing unity conferences, winning control of different local unions as well as city and state labor federations.<ref>Palmer, Bryan D. 1996. "Forging American Communism: The Life of William Z. Foster." Labour / Le Travail 37. 331.</ref> The TUEL aimed to provide leadership for numerous local, as well as regional, industry-wide strikes. In 1928, the Communist International finally encouraged League members to abandon their "boring from within" strategy. In 1929, the TUEL gave way to the Trade Union Unity League (TUUL) and began to establish new unions. The TUUL founded about a dozen industrial unions in various economic sectors including textiles, marine labor, mining, shoe and leather manufacturing, and agricultural labor. Soon after the founding of the TUUL, approximately 50, 000 workers were organized by TUUL affiliates.<ref>Johanningsmeier, Edward P. "1.The Trade Union Unity League: American Communists and the Transition to Industrial Unionism: 1928-1934." Labor History 42.2 (2001): 159-77. Taylor & Francis Online. Web. Dec. 2014. 159</ref>

This period in the Party's history has been called its "hey day" and is notable for Communists' unyielding antagonism to more moderate organizers, who were branded "[[Social fascism|social fascists]]." TUUL activists attempted to organize some of the most marginal populations of the [[working class]], such as the unemployed, women, and [[African-American|Blacks]] in the racially segregated [[Southern United States|American South]].<ref>Devinatz, "Trade Unions As Instruments of Social Change: Does Ideology Matter?", ''WorkingUSA,'' January 2007; Smethurst, ''The New Red Negro: The Literary Left and African American Poetry, 1930-1946,'' 1999.</ref>

=== Development of the Union === At its founding conference, the TUUL outlined that it would use three organizing strategies: forming national industrial unions along the lines of the NMU, NTWU and the NTWIU; in industries where the federation struggled to organize unions, grouping together local unions and shop committees into national industrial leagues; and organizing left-wing oppositions in the AFL unions.<ref>Devinatz, Victor G. 2007. "A Reevaluation of the Trade Union Unity League, 1929--1934." Science & Society 71, no. 1. Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost (accessed November 25, 2014). 33</ref> The TUUL largely focused on building extensive industrial unions and on inter-ethnic and inter-racial organizing.<ref>Johanningsmeier, Edward P. "1.The Trade Union Unity League: American Communists and the Transition to Industrial Unionism: 1928-1934." Labor History 42.2 (2001): 159-77. Taylor & Francis Online. Web. Dec. 2014. 161</ref> Specifically, the TUUL focused on promoting the rights of marginalized African American workers: "The advancement of the workers generally is inseparably bound up with the advancement of the Negroes."<ref>The Trade Union Unity League (American Section of the R.I.L.U.): Its Program, Structure, Methods and History. New York: Trade Union Unity League, n.d. Print. 25.</ref> The TUUL viewed class struggle as a unifying experience for all workers. Beginning in 1928, when the TUUL the organization helped organize between 40,000 and 60,000 workers.<ref>Johanningsmeier, Edward P. "1.The Trade Union Unity League: American Communists and the Transition to Industrial Unionism: 1928-1934." Labor History 42.2 (2001).Taylor & Francis Online. Web. Dec. 2014. 159.</ref> The TUUL organized more than a dozen unions including the National Miners Union (NMU), the National Textile Workers Industrial Union, the Needle Trades Workers Industrial Union, and the Agricultural Workers Industrial League (which later became the Cannery and Agricultural Workers' Industrial Union).<ref>Johanningsmeier, Edward P. "1.The Trade Union Unity League: American Communists and the Transition to Industrial Unionism: 1928-1934." Labor History 42.2 (2001). Taylor & Francis Online. Web. Dec. 2014. 159.</ref> The TUUL also set up the Office Workers Union in New York with [[Gertrude Lane]] as its leader.<ref name=Opler>{{cite book |author1=Daniel J. Opler |title=For All White-Collar Workers: The Possibilities of Radicalism in New York City's Department Store Unions, 1934-1953 |date=2007 |publisher=[[Ohio State University Press]] |isbn=9780814210635|pages=31–32}}</ref>

The passage of the [[National Industrial Recovery Act]] (NIRA) in 1933 led to increase in strike activity by the AFL and TUUL unions.<ref>Victor G. Devinatz. "An Analysis of Strikes Led by the Trade Union Unity League after Passage of the National Industrial Recovery Act, 1933-1934." Nature, Society & Thought. 18, no. 2. Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost. 208.</ref> With the enactment of the NIRA and the inclusion of Clause 7(a), which provided many private-sector workers with a federally protected right to organize, union membership in the United States increased considerably.<ref>Devinatz, Victor G. 2005. "An Analysis of Strikes Led by the Trade Union Unity League after Passage of the National Industrial Recovery Act, 1933-1934." Nature, Society & Thought 18, no. 2: 205-217. Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost (accessed November 25, 2014). 208</ref> Clause 7(a) of the NIRA was unclear regarding workers' legal right to collective-bargaining representation. Therefore, many employers established company unions in an attempt to prevent workers from joining AFL, TUUL, or independent unions.<ref name="auto1">Devinatz, Victor G. 2005. "An Analysis of Strikes Led by the Trade Union Unity League after Passage of the National Industrial Recovery Act, 1933-1934." Nature, Society & Thought 18, no. 2. Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost (accessed November 25, 2014). 208</ref> Nevertheless, the TUUL benefited from the National Industrial Recovery Act through significant increases in its membership.<ref name="auto1"/> At one point, the TUUL had an estimated membership of 125,000 to 130,000 members.<ref name="auto3">Devinatz, Victor G. 2005. "An Analysis of Strikes Led by the Trade Union Unity League after Passage of the National Industrial Recovery Act, 1933-1934." Nature, Society & Thought 18, no. 2. Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost (accessed November 25, 2014). 208</ref> The CPUSA referred to the NIRA as "slave legislation" and considered its character to be protofascist.<ref name="auto3"/> This was largely because the National Industrial Recovery Act promoted the regulation of prices, wages, and production through a tripartite relationship of labor, capital, and the state.<ref name="auto3"/> CPUSA leader, Earl Browder, denounced the labor provisions of the NIRA as "the American version of Mussolini's 'corporative state,' special state controlled labor unions closely tied up with and under the direction of the employers."<ref name="auto3"/> Furthermore, the CPUSA viewed the NIRA as an attempt by the state, capital, and AFL leaders to deter militancy within labor unions.<ref name="auto3"/>

=== Successes and defeats === While TUUL unions suffered major defeats and had difficulty organizing in heavy and mass production industries, the TUUL experienced considerable success organizing in light industries. Specifically, the TUUL organized light industries in New York City.<ref>Devinatz, Victor G. 2007. "A Reevaluation of the Trade Union Unity League, 1929--1934." Science & Society 71, no. 1. Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost (accessed November 25, 2014). 33.</ref> Many TUUL-led strikes were offensive in character and pushed for wage increases or improved working conditions.<ref name="auto">Devinatz, Victor G. 2007. "A Reevaluation of the Trade Union Unity League, 1929--1934." Science & Society 71, no. 1. Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost (accessed November 25, 2014). 38.</ref> However, many of these strikes were spontaneous, thus the unions had little opportunity to prepare sufficiently.<ref name="auto"/> The TUUL attempted to carry out two major activities during work stoppages. The TUUL provided guidance and resources to those on strike and it sought to recruit members to affiliated unions.<ref name="auto"/> Although many TUUL-led strikes were lost, many of them resulted in substantial gains for the workers.<ref name="auto"/> These successes, however, did not necessarily lead to a long-term membership increases or organizational stability for the TUUL's unions.<ref name="auto"/>

=== Dissolution === The TUUL was dismantled in 1935 when the Comintern switched to the [[Popular Front]] strategy. CPUSA organizers then joined the industrial union movement under the [[Congress of Industrial Organizations]], where they applied skills developed during the TUUL era. In 1935, with the formation of the Committee for Industrial Organization (soon to become the [[Congress of Industrial Organizations]]), and with the shift in the Communist Party's policy to the Popular Front strategy, the TUUL came to an end.<ref name="auto2">Johanningsmeier, Edward P. "1.The Trade Union Unity League: American Communists and the Transition to Industrial Unionism: 1928-1934." Labor History 42.2 (2001): 159-77. Taylor & Francis Online. Web. Dec. 2014. 176</ref> Communist trade unions were ordered to enter CIO industrial unions or to work within existing AFL unions. Radical, communist unions were instructed by the CPUSA to join with the CIO and the AFL in order to promote general labor unity as well as industrial unionism.<ref>Devinatz, Victor G. 2007. "A Reevaluation of the Trade Union Unity League, 1929--1934." Science & Society 71, no. 1. Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost (accessed November 25, 2014). 55.</ref> With the establishment of the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO) and the end of Third Period Communism in 1935, American communist leader, William Z. Foster, returned to a "boring from within" strategy. Thus, Foster and the CPUSA worked to integrate hundreds of Communist organizers into [[John L. Lewis]]'s newly established industrial union organization.<ref name="auto2"/> John L. Lewis, who had originally expelled Communist Party members from his United Miner Workers, now welcomed Communists to join the CIO.<ref name="auto2"/> Other TUUL activists became leaders in the emerging CIO unions of the late 1930s.<ref name="auto2"/> Communist leaders brought with them many of the organizational skills that they had developed in their time with the TUUL.

=== Legacy === Although the TUUL was able to organize many light industries in New York City, it is unlikely that the TUUL would have achieved prominent status given the organization's difficulty to recruit members from heavy industries.<ref>Devinatz, Victor G. 2007. "A Reevaluation of the Trade Union Unity League, 1929--1934." Science & Society 71, no. 1. Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost (accessed November 25, 2014). 54.</ref> However, the vision of a democratic and activist trade unionism, which was bolstered by the TUUL, ultimately provided a bridge and a training ground for CPUSA trade union activists when they reentered the AFL in 1934.<ref name="auto4">Devinatz, Victor G. 2007. "A Reevaluation of the Trade Union Unity League, 1929--1934." Science & Society 71, no. 1. Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost (accessed November 25, 2014). 55.</ref> Former TUUL members played a role in organizing the CIO unions during the 1930s.<ref name="auto4"/> The TUUL unions' struggle marks the inception of the CPUSA's commitment to building industrial unionism in the United States.<ref name="auto4"/>

== Affiliated unions and headquarters== '''National organizations''' <small>(As of 1931)</small><ref>Nathan Fine (ed.), ''American Labor Year Book, 1930.'' New York: Rand School of Social Science, 1930; p. 126.</ref> * [[Food and Packinghouse Workers Industrial League]] (New York) * [[Lumber Workers Industrial League]] (Seattle) * [[Marine Workers Industrial Union]] (MWIU) (New York) * [[National Auto Workers Industrial Union]] (Detroit) * [[National Metal Workers Industrial League]] (Pittsburgh) * [[National Miners Union]] <small>(Briefly known as Mine, Oil and Smelter Workers Industrial Union)</small> (Pittsburgh) * [[National Railroad Workers Industrial League]] (Chicago) * [[National Textile Workers Union]] (New Bedford) * [[Needle Trades Workers Industrial Union]] (New York) * [[Shoe Workers Industrial Union]] (New York)

'''Others''' * [[Agricultural Workers Industrial Union]]<ref name=Fish>American Vigilant Intelligence Federation, April 29, 1930. Published in Hamilton Fish (chairman), ''Investigation of Communist Propaganda: Hearings Before a Special Committee to Investigate Communist Activities in the United States of the House of Representatives...: Part 1, Volume No. 3, June 18–19, 1930.'' Washington, DC: United States Government Printing Office, 1930; p. 162.</ref> * [[Amalgamated Clothing Workers Industrial Union]]<ref name=Fish /> * [[Building Maintenance Workers Industrial Union]]<ref name=Fish /> * [[Cleaning and Laundry Workers Industrial Union]]<ref name=Fish /> * [[Fishermen and Cannery Workers Industrial Union]] * [[Food Workers Industrial Union]] * [[Fur Workers Industrial Union]] * [[Furniture Workers Industrial Union]]<ref name=Fish /> * [[Jewelry Workers Industrial Union]]<ref name=Fish /> * [[Painters Industrial Union]]<ref name=Fish /> * [[Rubber Workers Industrial Union]]<ref name=Fish /> * [[Tobacco Workers Industrial Union]]

TUUL also had dedicated sections for Negroes, Women, and Youth.<ref name=Fish />

== See also == {{Portal|Organized labor}} * [[Trade Union Educational League]] * [[Profintern]] * [[Workers' Unity League]] * [[Labor federation competition in the U.S.]]

== Footnotes == {{Reflist|2}}

== Publications == * [http://www.marxists.org/history/international/profintern/strike_strategy/index.htm ''Problems of Strike Strategy: Decisions of the International Conference on Strike Strategy, held in Strassburg, Germany, January 1929''] New York: Workers Library Publishers, 1929. * [https://archive.org/details/TheTradeUnionUnityLeagueAffiliatedToR.i.l.u.ItsProgramStructure ''The Trade Union Unity League, Affiliated to RILU: Its Program, Structure, Methods and History.''] New York: Trade Union Unity League, 1929. * William Z. Foster, [https://archive.org/details/VictoriousSocialistConstructionInTheSovietUnion ''Victorious Socialist Construction in the Soviet Union.''] New York: Trade Union Unity League, 1930. * William Z. Foster, [https://archive.org/details/LittleBrothersOfTheBigLaborFakersReportOfASpeechAgainstThe_977 ''Little Brothers of the Big Labor Fakers: Report of a Speech against the Conference for Progressive Labor Action, Made in New Star Casino, New York City on May 10, 1931.''] New York: Trade Union Unity League, 1931. * [https://archive.org/details/TheTradeUnionUnityLeagueamericanSectionOfTheR.i.l.u.ItsProgram ''The Trade Union Unity League (American Section of the RILU): Its Program, Structure, Methods and History.''] New York: Trade Union Unity League, n.d. (1930s).

== Further reading == * Victor G. Devinatz, "Trade Unions As Instruments of Social Change: Does Ideology Matter?" ''[[WorkingUSA]],'' vol. 10, no. 4 (January 2007). * Victor G. Devinatz, "A Reevaluation of the Trade Union Unity League, 1929-1934." ''Science & Society,'' vol. 71, no. 11 (November 2007). * Edward P. Johanningsmeier, "The Trade Union Unity League: American Communists and the Transition to Industrial Unionism: 1928-1934." ''[[Labor History (journal)|Labor History]],'' vol. 42, no. 2 (May 2001). * Brian Grijalva, ''[http://depts.washington.edu/labhist/cpproject/grijalva.shtml Organizing Unions: The 30s and 40s],'' Communism in Washington State History and Memory Project, 2002. * John Manley, "Moscow Rules? 'Red' Unionism and 'Class against Class' in Britain, Canada, and the United States, 1928-1935," ''Labour / Le Travail,'' vol. 56 (Fall 2005), pp. 9–49. [https://www.jstor.org/stable/25149616 In JSTOR]. * Judith Stepan-Morris and Maurice Zeitlin, ''Left Out: Reds and America's Industrial Unions.'' New York: Cambridge University Press, 2002.

[[Category:Defunct trade unions in the United States]] [[Category:Comintern organizations]] [[Category:History of socialism]] [[Category:Profintern]] [[Category:Trade unions disestablished in 1935]] [[Category:Trade unions established in 1929]] [[Category:National trade union centers of the United States]] [[Category:Communist Party USA mass organizations]] [[Category:William Z. Foster]] [[Category:Trade Union Unity League| ]]