International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, Industrial Aircraft, Lodge 743 Records

Finding aid prepared by Archives and Special Collections Staff

Archives & Special Collections at the Thomas J. Dodd Research Center
405 Babbidge Road, Unit 1205
Storrs, Connecticut 06269-1205

© 2005 University of Connecticut


Overview of the Collection
Repository:	Archives & Special Collections at the Thomas J. Dodd Research Center.
Creator:	International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, Industrial Aircraft, Lodge 743.
Title:	International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, Industrial Aircraft, Lodge 743 Records.
Dates:	undated, 1900-1983
Quantity:	33 linear feet.
Identification:	MSS19840013
Language:	English.
Abstract:	Chartered in 1941 to represent members of the International Association of Machinists at Hamilton Standard in East Hartford, Connecticut. In 1952, it moved to Windsor Locks, Connecticut.

History

Hartford Aircraft Lodge 743 was chartered in 1941 and represents members of the International Association of Machinists at Hamilton Standard. It was located in East Hartford, Connecticut, until 1952 when it moved to Windsor Locks, Connecticut. Lodge 743 is a member of District Lodge 91 which oversees Lodge activity in Eastern Connecticut.

Local 743 has had several problems with management in its time. The first occurred in 1946 when the union went out on strike over seniority and grievance rights. The strike was unsuccessful, however, and only lasted for a few days. President of the local at that time was Thomas Lynch. In 1960, the union went out on strike for nine weeks over work grievance procedures, union power, job security, and seniority. The president of the local during this strike was Butler Siedman.

During its history, the union has appealed numerous times to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) when it believed United Aircraft/United Technologies Company was bargaining in bad faith. In the early 1970s, the union appealed to the NLRB, but before the hearing was scheduled, United Aircraft transferred the Broadbrook facility to Composite Materials Corporation, a subsidiary of American Aluminum Company (ALCOA). In 1976, Composite Materials Corporation declined to renew its lease with United Aircraft Company. At this time, United Aircraft closed its Broadbrook facility and moved its production to the Windsor Locks Electronic buildings.

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Scope and Content

general administrative records, include job descriptions, employee service ratings, and union membership application cards, Legal files (restricted), contract proposals, meeting minutes, and drafts of agreements, final agreements, correspondence, publications.

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Arrangement

Series I: Administrative Files (undated, 1950-1981) contains subject files, arranged in alphabetical order, of the union's general administrative records. Topics include financial records, census reports, conference notes, District correspondence, education and training programs, Executive Board minutes, Grande Lodge activities, and various other materials relating to the daily functions of the local.

Series II: Membership Records (undated, 1950-1982) consists of records maintained by the United Aircraft Company and Local 743. These include job descriptions, employee service ratings, and union membership application cards. Employee service ratings are computer- printed listings of active employees, provided monthly by the company to the union as stipulated by the union contract. They are listed alphabetically by name of employee, by clock number, or by department number. The ratings provide important data on the production workforce, including race, sex, employment and promotion dates, pay grades, etc. The more recent years also note union membership. (Hamilton Standard does not provide union memberships, and union members are marked by hand at the union office.) Archives staff took a one-month (December) sample per year of available records.

Series III: Grievances (1960-1979) consists of three subseries. RESTRICTED FILES

A. Individual Grievances (1962-1979) contain grievances filed alphabetically by name of the grievant. This subseries is restricted.

B. Subject Files (1966-1970) contains grievances filed under subject headings, such as holiday pay, lay-offs, merit rating, termination, contract violations, and working conditions. Also included are administrative records pertaining to grievance procedures containing mostly minutes of company-union grievance hearings.

C. Grievance Steps (1960-1979) make up the majority of the series. The subseries divides grievances into second, third, and fourth steps. Beginning in 1975, the local filed grievances by year and number.

Series IV: Arbitrations (undated, 1954-1979) consists of three subseries.RESTRICTED FILES

A. Opinions and Awards (undated, 1954-1979) contain court decisions and awards for each arbitration case in Loca 743's arbitration file. Also included are awards and decisions from other locals that were used by Local 743 in preparing arbitration briefs.

B. Hearings (undated, 954-1964) contain the daily court proceedings of the arbitration cases.

C. Subjects (undated, 1959-1978) contain briefs, petitions, meeting minutes, notes, and correspondence relating to arbitration cases.

Series V: Contracts And Negotiations (undated, 1953-1981) consists of negotiation sessions, contract proposals, meeting minutes, and drafts of agreements between Local 743 and United Aircraft/United Technologies Company.

Series VI: Agreements (undated, 1941-1983) contains bound copies of agreements between Local 743 and Hamilton Standard Division of United Aircraft/United Technologies Company. Also included are agreements negotiated by Local 743 with Accessory Control Company (1968-77) and Flight Enterprises Company (1959).

Series VII: Court Cases (1952-1978) is the largest series consisting of seven subseries. Subseries F. contains RESTRICTED FILES.

A. State Court Cases (1960-1969) contains court transcripts from United States District Court of Appeals and Hartford County Superior Court.

B. Civil Court Cases (1961-1968) contains transcripts of civil suits brought by the union against United Aircraft and United Aircraft against the union following the 1960 strike, principally 1-CA-9084-9085 and 133844-133885.

C. NLRB Correspondence (1963-1968) consists of correspondence between union representatives and the NLRB pertaining to cases before the Board.

D. NLRB Cases (1955-1976) contains transcripts of cases argued before the Board by Local 743 and United Aircraft Company.

E. Arbitration Subject Files (1960-1974) contains general information relating to various arbitration issues such as job codes, employee rosters, legal correspondence, NLRB rulings, layoffs, employment records, and withdrawal cards.

F. Arbitration, Individual Cases (1959-1978) consists of arbitration cases filed under the grievant's name in alphabetical order. These cases were utilized by union attorneys in various court cases to document unfair labor practices. This subseries is restricted.

G. Contracts and Negotiations (1952-1976) include minutes of negotiations between the company and union referred to by union attorneys to documents the company's reluctance to bargain in good faith.

Series VIII: Flyers (undated, 1900-1977) contains Local 743 and 1746 newsletters, District 91 IAM flyers, and the New Union News.

Series IX: Broadbrook (1958-1976) consists of Local 743 activities at United Aircraft Company's Boron Filament facilities in Broadbrook, Connecticut. On 16 April 1970, as a result of a certified election conducted by NLRB Local 743 was chosen as the exclusive bargaining representative of Broadbrook employees. Four days after the workers' decision to organize, United Aircraft retracted a previously scheduled salary increase. Efforts by Local 743 to negotiate a new contract were delayed by United Aircraft until 1972. After six months of negotiations, Local 743 filed charges with the NLRB that United Aircraft was not bargaining in good faith. Before a hearing could be scheduled, ownership of the Broadbrook facility was transferred from United Aircraft to Composite Materials Corporation (CMC), a subsidiary of American Aluminum Company (ALCOA). As a leasor of the Broadbrook facility, CMC refused to recognize the union and on 11 March 1974 filed a petition with NLRB challenging the union's majority status. Following and investigation by the NLRB on 11 September 1974, CMC voluntarily withdrew its petition and recognized Local 743 as the sole bargaining agent of employees at the Broadbrook facility. An agreement was subsequently negotiated by Local 743 and CMC on 9 September 1974. In 1976, CMC declined to renew its lease and returned the Broadbrook facility to United Aircraft Company. United Aircraft discontinued all operations in Broadbrook and transferred production to its Windsor Electronics 3 building.

The Broadbrook series consists of five subseries.

A. Correspondence (1974-1976), contains correspondence between Composite Materials Company and Local 743.

B. Subject Files (1970-1978) contains agreements, membership list, employee records, newsclippings, and job evaluation data.

C. Negotiations (1971-1976) contains negotiations between Local 743 and United Aircraft and beginning in 1973, negotiations between Local 743 and Composite Materials Company. Also included is a copy of a 1974 agreement between Composite Materials Company and Local 743.

D. Flyers (undated, 1957-1960, 1966) contain flyers and newsletters printed by Local 743.

Series X: Accessory Controls Company (1959-1978), consists of two subseries.

A. Subject Files (1959-1978) contain a variety of topics including correspondence, court cases, contract materials, grievances, job descriptions, meeting minutes, negotiation forms, research reports, and employee records.

B. Negotiations and Agreements (1959-1978) contains negotiations minutes, proposals by the company and the union, and agreements between Local 743 and Accessory Controls Company.

Series XI: Local 2126 (1958-1961) consists of a single subject file that includes correspondence, financial records, and agreements. Local 2126 represents aircraft maintenance workers employed by International Aircraft Services, Inc., Bradley Field Division, Windsor Locks. Local 2126 is affiliated with District Lodge 91 and the International Association of Machinists for the purpose of collective bargaining as of 25 October 1958. The Local's administrative and financial records are maintained by Local 743.

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Restrictions

Restrictions on Access

Series III, Grievances, and Series VII, Court Cases, contain confidential and personal material; these series have restricted access and are open only to Lodge #743 officers.

Restrictions on Use

Permission to publish from these Papers must be obtained in writing from both the University of Connecticut Libraries and the owner(s) of the copyright. Permission to publish or disseminate extensive excerpts must be obtained in writing from the depositor.

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Related Material

Archives & Special Collections has a substantial collection of Connecticut labor records. For detailed information on these collections please contact the curator or ask at the reference desk.

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Index Terms

This record series is indexed under the following controlled access subject terms.

Subjects:

Document Types:

Administrative Records.

Blueprints.

Books.

Financial Records.

Flyers. [printed matter]

Legal Records.

Membership Records

Press releases.

Scrap-Books.

Occupations:

Labor union.

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Accessory Controls Company, Correspondence, 1961-1962

(see also Series X)

1:2

Alcoholic Anonymous, 1955-1968

1:3

Annual Reports, 1968-1972

1:4

Arbitration Cases, 1953-1955

1:5

Arbitration Correspondence, 1977-1979

1:6

Arbitration: recall nights, 1977

1:7-11

Audit report; local lodges, 1950-1954