Labor Loses Founding President of the UFCW

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William (Bill) H. Wynn, retired president of the 1.4 million member United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW), passed away on Friday after a recent illness, reports Yahoo!

A primary architect of the modern labor movement, Wynn earned a place in labor history for crafting the 1979 merger that established one of the first modern multi-jurisdictional, mega-unions — the UFCW. As President of the Retail Clerks International Union, Bill Wynn brought together the Retail Clerks and the Amalgamated Meat Cutters and Butcher Workmen to form a million member-plus organization that gave workers a unified voice in the food industry, from the packing house to the grocery store.

He served on the AFL-CIO’s Executive Council and the executive boards of the labor federation’s Maritime Trades, Food and Beverage Trades, and Industrial Union Departments.

Moderator Comment: Has the retail industry benefited
from unionization?

The labor movement in the United States is significantly
weaker than it was when Bill Wynn became a union representative back in the
fifties. Many today question its relevance in a tight labor market where the
competition for competent staff is so intense that employers are required to
be associate friendly if they hope to succeed. [George
Anderson – Moderator]

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