TWU Local 234 marked its 65th anniversary this month, and International President James C. Little was on hand to mark the occasion with presentation of a commemorative plaque. The brief ceremony took place at Local 234’s brank new union hall in Philadelphia. It also coincided with the passing of the baton from former Local 234 President Jeff Brooks, who has joined the International staff in Washington, D.C., to new President Willie Brown. The ceremony included another presentation by the Local to International Executive Vice President Harry Lombardo, who served Local 234 as President from 1989 to 1996.

How It All Started for Local 234

The successful organization of Local 234 in 1943 was the first major victory for TWU outside of New York City, where the union had been founded 10 years earlier. It didn’t come easy.

In 1937, TWU chartered the Philadelphia local and opened an office on North Broad Street. Confident of victory, one TWU organizer predicted; “We’ll enter an election anytime and win” But there would be no victory that year or for seven more years. Despite pouring organizers and committing the limited financial resources of the union into the organizing drive, TWU could not defeat the company union.

New Campaign Begins

On February 22,1943, TWU rechartered the group as Local 234. By June, almost 4,000 PTC employees had signed up with the TWU. Local 234 members packed Philadelphia’s Town Hall on July 1-2,1943 to hear leaders of organized labor endorse the TWU organizing drive.

TWU also filed for a union election that month. But the PTC held up the procedure through court litigation until March of the following year. Much happened in between.

Union Button

On November 1,1943, the company called in a number of workers in the Haverford, Woodlands, Jackson, and Cumberland depots, and threatened to fire anyone wearing a union button on company premises.

The next morning, every member reported for work wearing the TWU-CIO button. The PTC allowed a few runs to go out and then the superintendent of the depot demanded that all employees remove their union pins or they would not be allowed to work. The company demand was rejected and the stoppage spread throughout the Philadelphia system.

Now it was the TWU who was standing up to the company and gaining recognition all over the PTC property. The union election was finally scheduled for March 14,1944. In the meantime, the company union with the support of the PTC tried to incite a racist backlash by raising the issue of the government-ordered promotions of black workers to operating jobs on the trolley lines. The company union hired sound trucks whose message accused TWU of forcing “Negro supremacy on the company.”

The AFL union also attacked TWU calling it subversive and radical. TWU stood by its record and its strong commitment to racial equality. Answering both the company union and the AFL rival, TWU President Mike Quill commented: “When we first came to Philadelphia, it was the red issue. Now it’s the black issue. From red to black, no matter what the issue, our only issue is wages, hours, pay, and working
conditions.”

Like Mike Quill, the PTC employees also rejected both criticisms and they voted overwhelmingly for TWU representation, including a 2 to 1 margin in the maintenance shops.

On August 9, PTC finally inked its first contract with the TWU.