International Union of Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers : The International Union of Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America (IUE) was established in November 1949 by dissident members of the United Electrical, Radio, and Machine Workers of America (UE) following the expulsion of that union from the Canadian Congress of Labour, and (in the United States) from the Congress of Industrial Organizations. In Canada, the UE expulsion was caused by its long support of Communist Party policies in areas of economic development and international politics, which its critics charged violated its basic purpose as a trade union. With the beginning of the Cold War in North America, the major labour federations wanted to end the influence of the communist trade unionists within their ranks.
In Canada, the expulsion of the UE and other left-wing unions allowed the more moderate socialists within the labour movement to consolidate their influence and establish formal links to the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation. In the United States, the IUE and its president James Carey were able to win over a large number of former UE members to the new union, but in Canada the progress of the IUE was somewhat slower. In part this was due to the labour legislation in Canada which limited the opportunities for the IUE to solicit support from UE members.
With the assistance of the Canadian Congress of Labour and a few staff representatives from the United States, the Canadian IUE established locals in Brockville, Cobourg, and Montreal, but lost a key battle with the UE over the Peterborough Canadian General Electric plant in the early 1950s. The bulk of the IUE membership was from Ontario and Quebec among employees working in the production of radio, television and sound equipment in such companies as RCA, Canadian General Electric, Canadian Admiral, Westinghouse, and a number of smaller manufacturers. Its membership included a high proportion of women, skilled workers, and white-collar employees.
IUE locals in Canada were part of District 5 of the union, which was officially established in 1954 with George Hutchens as president. Before 1954, the Canadian district was under the control of its first director J.G. Morton, and from 1952 was directed by a provisional District Council. The President and Secretary-Treasurer of the District served on the International Executive Board of the IUE and represented the interests of Canadian workers.
Leadership in the union was very stable with Hutchens serving as president until 1976 when he became the International Secretary-Treasurer. Evelyn McGarr served as Secretary-Treasurer of District 5 from 1954 to 1980. Glenn Pattinson became Canadian president in 1976. In 1982, the Canadian District separated from the International and soon afterwards began merger talks with the Communications Workers of Canada. In January 1984, convention delegates from these two unions approved the merger and created the Communications, Electronic, Electrical, Technical and Salaried Workers (later shortened to Communications and Electrical Workers of Canada). Glenn Pattinson became a vice-president of the new union.
