United Automobile Workers
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| Full name | The International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America |
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| Native name | United Automobile Workers |
| Founded | May 1935 |
| Members | 390,000 active members and more than 600,000 retired members |
| Affiliation | AFL-CIO, CLC |
| Key people | Dennis Williams, president |
| Office location | Detroit, Michigan, United States |
| Website | www.UAW.org |
The International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America, better known as the United Automobile Workers (UAW), is an American labor union that represents workers in the United States (including Puerto Rico) and Canada. Founded as part of the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO) in the 1930s, the UAW grew rapidly from 1936 to the 1950s. Under the leadership of Walter Reuther (president 1946-70) it played a major role in the liberal wing of the Democratic party, including the civil rights and anti-Communist movements. The UAW was especially known for gaining high wages and pensions for the auto workers, but it was unable to unionize auto plants built by foreign-based car-makers in the South after the 1970s, and went into a steady decline in membership — increased automation, decreased use of labor, movements of manufacturing (including reaction to NAFTA), and increased Globalization all were factors.
UAW members in the 21st century work in industries as diverse as autos and auto parts, health care, casino gambling and higher education. Headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, the union has more than 391,000 active members and more than 580,000 retired members in over 600 local unions. The UAW currently has 1,150 contracts with some 1,600 employers.
The UAW was founded in May 1935 in Detroit, Michigan, under the auspices of the American Federation of Labor (AFL) after years of agitation within the labor federation. The AFL had focused on organizing craft unions and avoided large factories. But at its 1935 convention, a caucus of industrial unions led by John L. Lewis formed the Committee for Industrial Organization, the original CIO, within the AFL. Within one year, the AFL suspended the unions in the CIO, and these, including the UAW, formed the rival Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO). It attracted young left-wing activists, socialists and Communists, in contrast to the older, established AFL leaders.
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