UAW-CIO, Local 499 records and photographs
Scope and Contents
This collection includes papers, books, newsletters and newspaper clippings relating to the AFL-CIO, GM-UAW, UAW-CIO, and Local 499 in Muncie, Indiana ranging from 1940-2005.
Dates
- 1937 - 2005
Conditions Governing Access
This collection is open for research.
Conditions Governing Use
Legal title, copyright, and literary rights reside with Archives and Special Collections, Ball State University Libraries, Muncie, IN. All requests to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted to Archives and Special Collections.
Administrative History
In late 1936 and early 1937 Chevrolet-Muncie had no union organization, making itself isolated from the numerous strikes during those years (including one in nearby Anderson, Indiana that closed down that Chevrolet plant for nearly a month). As a result of the pro-union work done by the Reuther Brothers (Walter P., Roy L., and Victor G.), by late 1937 many employees of Chevrolet-Muncie were members of the C.I.O. International Union, but the plant was still considered an "open shop." The employees of Chevrolet-Muncie voted on April 16 and 17, 1940, to finally become a "Union Shop" and formed Local 499 affiliated with the C.I.O. On November 11, 1940, the C.I.O. union granted a United Auto Workers (UAW) charter to Local 499, and the first wage and seniority agreement was reached between the management of Chevrolet-Muncie and Local 499. A major strike in 1958, led Local 499 president Louis E. Burns, resulted in wage and benefit increases, as well as severance pay for all permanently laid off workers.
Due to the recession in 1981-1982, Chevrolet-Muncie suffered numerous financial setbacks. In 1981, 600 employees were laid off at Chevrolet-Muncie. The following year, the Forge Operations division of Chevrolet-Muncie was moved to a plant in New York. By 1983, Chevrolet-Muncie had only 1,150 employees, down from 2,650 just two years earlier. In 1984, the Chevrolet-Muncie plant became part of Detroit Diesel Allison, and then part of Hydra-Matic in 1986. In 1990 things improved a bit for Local 499 when New Venture Gear, a transmissions manufacturer also known as Manual Transmissions of Muncie, joined the union adding 136 jobs. The good news did not last, as Chevrolet-Muncie closed its doors on March 31, 2006.
Extent
1 Cubic Feet (7 boxes )
Language of Materials
English
Arrangement
This collection is arranged in the following series:
Series 1: AFL-CIO documents, 1958-1976
Series 2: GM-UAW documents, 1947-1958
Series 3: UAW-CIO documents, 1947-2003
Series 4: Local 499 documents, 1940-2005
Series 5: Artifacts, 1937-1939, undated
Series 6: UAW-CIO, Local 499 photographs, circa 1970-1980
Series 7: UAW-CIO, Local 499 oversize photographs, 1950-1952
Series 8: UAW-CIO, Local 499 negatives, undated
Custodial History
This collection was received by Archives and Special Collections as a donation.
Accruals
No further additions are expected.
Processing Information
Collection processing completed 2006/06/13 by D. Lewis. Collection revision completed 2007/03/01 by Maren Read. Collection revision completed 2011/03/09 by Bethany Fiechter. EAD finding aid created 2011/03/09 by Bethany Fiechter. EAD finding aid revised by Rebecca Marangelli.
- Clippings Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Constitutions Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Correspondence Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Dedications Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Delaware County (Ind.) Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Delaware County (Ind.) -- History -- 20th century -- Sources Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Directories Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Documents Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Labor unions Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Legal documents Subject Source: Art & Architecture Thesaurus
- Local history Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Muncie (Ind.) -- History -- 20th century -- Sources Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Newsletters Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Reports Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Stoeckel Archives of Local History Subject Source: Local sources
- Title
- UAW-CIO, Local 499 records and photographs
- Status
- Completed
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- Undetermined
- Script of description
- Code for undetermined script
Repository Details
Part of the Stoeckel Archives of Local History Repository
Alexander M. Bracken Library
2000 W. University Avenue
Muncie Indiana 47306 USA
libarchives@bsu.edu
