United Packinghouse Workers of America

In the early years of the twentieth century the AMCBW experienced some success, however the union was very divided and unorganized, and lost two major strikes in 1904 and 1921–1922.[1] It was also successful in recruiting rural white workers, and succeeded in overcoming ethnic and racial antagonisms that had plagued similar, previous efforts.Active in both black and white neighborhoods, the PWOC functioned as an important social and cultural institution in addition to its primary role as a union.[8] In 1950, the UPWA created an Anti-Discrimination Department, dedicated to ending racial discrimination in meat packing plants and working against segregation in local communities.[6] In the 1950s and 1960s, the UPWA was at the forefront of union support for the Civil Rights Movement and was a strong ally of Martin Luther King Jr.By establishing plants in areas closer to animal populations, and by introducing new technologies that required less skill, the "Big Three" drove many older companies out of business.
labor unionmeatpackingMidwestern United StatesArmourCudahyChicagoKansas CityAmalgamated Meat Cutters and Butcher WorkmenAmerican Federation of LaborNational Industrial Recovery ActCongress of Industrial OrganizationsMidwesternGreat Plainsindustrial unionismcraft unionSaul Alinskycommunity organizingCivil Rights MovementMartin Luther King Jr.social unionismConAgraCargillAmalgamated Meat CuttersRalph Helstein