INTERNATIONAL LADIES' GARMENT WORKERS' UNION

International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union: translation

Atrade unionthat was formed in the United States in 1900 due to appalling working conditions in garment factories known assweatshops. It was chartered by the American Federation of Labor (AFL) and started with approximately 2,000 members. In 1909, the union conducted a strike of 20,000 shirtwaist workers known as the Big Strike and, in 1910, held a strike of 60,000 cloakmakers called the Great Revolt. The strikes ended in a settlement known as the Protocol of Peace granting workers a fifty-hour work week, higher wages, double pay for overtime, better working conditions, and the closed-shop concept whereby employers could only hire union members. The ILGWU merged in 1995 with the Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers' Union (ACTWU) to form the group UNITE and, in 2004, merged with the Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees International Union (HERE) to formUNITE HERE.