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Beer Research Guide: Labor

WAYS TO LEARN ABOUT WORKERS

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BREWERY WORKERS

The experiences of workers in breweries varied significantly based on the size, scale, and place of production.  

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Archival Collections and Materials 

  • United Brewery Workers Records at George Washington University. 
    • Collection description: The United Brewery Workers Records consists of convention proceedings, Officers’ and Presidents’ reports, General Executive Board minutes, miscellaneous printed matter and general correspondence microfilm. The materials range in date from 1888-1977.
    • Note: there is also a Teamster Union Archive at George Washington University. 
  • International Union of United Brewery, Flour, Cereal, Soft Drink, and Distillery Workers of America Records at the University of Texas at Arlington Libraries Special Collections. 
    • Collection description: The National Union of the Brewers of the United States (later the International Union of United Brewery, Flour, Cereal, Soft Drink, and Distillery Workers of America) was founded in Baltimore, Maryland on August 29, 1886. In 1941, the union was suspended from the American Federation of Labor (AFL) and merged with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters in 1973. The items in this collection originate during the time period between the Brewers’ AFL suspension and their merger with the Teamsters, and include agreements, by-laws, constitutions, dues books, union cards, an authorization form, and several issues of a union magazine. 
    • Learn more about this group on Wikipedia 
  • International Union of United Brewery, Flour, Cereal, Soft Drink and Distillery Workers Records at the Western Reserve Historical Society. 
    • Collection description: The International Union of United Brewery, Flour, Cereal, Soft Drink and Distillery Workers  [next hit]  was founded in 1886 as the National Union of United Brewery Workmen. The union affiliated with the American Federation of Labor in 1887 and merged with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters in 1973. The union was open to all employees regardless of craft, making it the first industrial union in the United States. The union had locals representing brewery and soft drink employees in Cleveland, New Philadelphia, Akron, Norwalk, and Sandusky, Ohio. The collection consists of membership dues ledgers, membership journals, permit holder journals, and statistical ledgers.
  • International Union of United Brewery, Flour, Cereal, Soft Drink, and Distillery Workers of America, Local 67 and Local 144 Records. University of Pittsburgh Library System Archives & Special Collections.
    • Collection description: Workers at western Pennsylvania beer breweries were represented by three locals of the International Union of United Brewery, Flour, Cereal, Soft Drink, and Distillery Workers of America. Local 22 represented the brewers, Local 67 represented the drivers, and Local 144 represented the bottlers. This collection includes the records of Locals 67 and 144 at various breweries in western Pennsylvania, as well as records of the Joint Local Executive Board. 

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