Edward T. Hanley

Edward T. Hanley (January 21, 1932 – January 7, 2000) was a labor activist and president of the Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees International Union (HERE).

Edward Thomas 'Ed' Hanley was born in Chicago, Illinois in 1932, the son of James and Doris Hanley. His father was a tavern owner. Hanley graduated from St. Phillip's High School in Chicago in 1949 and served in the United States Air Force in the Korean War.

In 1959, Hanley tended bar at his father's tavern. In 1964, Hanley was elected president of the Chicago Bartenders and Beverage Dispensers Union. He quickly rose in the union's ranks.

At the age of 41, Hanley was elected president of HERE in 1973. He succeeded Ed Miller. That same year, he married Kathryn Dekker. Over the next few years, they had two sons, Edward Jr. and Thomas.

Hanley was elected to the AFL-CIO executive council in 1975, and played a key role in bringing the International Brotherhood of Teamsters back into the AFL-CIO.

Hanley was often criticized for his union's close ties to organized crime. In 1977, the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) said HERE was a classic example of organized crime's control over a major labor union. DOJ also alleged that Hanley's election as president of the union was assisted by Chicago crime boss Joey Aiuppa. Hanley denied the accusation.

HERE was investigated for ties to organized crime again in 1984. Testifying before a United States Senate, Hanley asserted his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination 36 times.

In 1985, the President's Commission on Organized Crime claimed that HERE was one of the four most corrupt unions in the United States. Hanley denounced the allegation.

HERE was a union in decline when Hanley took over. Over the next two decades, union membership fell to 230,000 from 400,000. But Hanley could be a vigorous organizer when it suited him, and union membership recovered by 20,000 in the 1990s. In the late 1980s, Hanley hired John Wilhelm, an organizer and future president of the international union.

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