Who We Are

It was a strike of 60,000 clothing workers that gave rise to the New York Joint Board (NYJB) in 1913. This marked a major event in the history of our Union. 60,000 men and women went on strike— clothing workers of many ethnic backgrounds and cultures; more than half of them Jewish, one-third Italian the rest, East European, all newcomers to America. Between them all, a total of eight languages were spoken.

Since its dramatic beginnings, the New York Joint Board—now called the New York New Jersey Regional Joint Board—has been a leader in the Union and the labor movement as a whole. During World War 1, members of the labor movement fought and endured casualties exceeding those of any other segment of the population, but still managed to grow in membership and power. There were 5 million unionists in 1919. The Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America (ACWA) was a major national union (today we’re called UNITE HERE); The New York Joint Board was its largest unit.

The New York Joint Board and the ACWA was the first union to have its industry’s management “sign, seal, and deliver” the 44 hour work week. That agreement included about 99% of workers in men's clothing sector. This was a major victory for workers in this country.

The New York Joint Board’s year of years was a six month period between 1920 and 1921. In that short period, there were enough explosive events to last a lifetime. Those events were set in motion by a number of employers who attempted to crush ACWA by using lock outs and strikes. Through the brilliant leadership of ACWA President Sidney Hillman, the employers’ attempts were thwarted.

Today, the New York New Jersey Regional Joint Board is as dynamic as ever. Even under constant attack by corporate greed and globalization— the Joint Baord continues to grow and mobilize. In the last 4 years the New York New Jersey Regional Joint Board affiliated and merged with a number of area Joint Boards and Local Unions, such as the Central and South Jersey Joint Board, The New York New Jersey Joint Board, Local 340— and most recently, Local 69 (now known as Local 96) the Hotel and Restaurant Local of New Jersey!

The New York New Jersey Regional Joint Board has been in existence for 93 years, and has grown and evolved with the times. Today we represent thousands of workers in nearly every sector of society; everything from textiles, plastics, retail, hotels, health care and more. This includes companies like Hilton Hotel, Duane Reade, Johnson and Johnson, Barney’s, Brooks Brothers, Xerox and hundreds more!

The goal of our Union is to grow. Only through that growth can we remain strong; after all, that has been the basic philosophy of our Union for over 93 years. Only through that growth, can we maintain our rights and voices in the work place.