Pennsylvania Manufacturers' Association

The Pennsylvania Manufacturers’ Association was founded on October 19, 1909 at the Hotel Senate in Harrisburg, PA. The organization’s founding chairman was Joseph R. Grundy, a successful textile manufacturer from Bucks County.

Joseph R. Grundy

A second meeting, held in Philadelphia with more interested parties, directed Grundy to form an executive committee to serve the group until the first official meeting of the Association in January 1910. The members of this executive committee - made up of Grundy and six others, are considered the official founders of the association.[1]

The Articles for Agreement, adapted by the committee, called for the group “...to advance and protect the interests of its members.” There was a provision for two classes of membership: 1. Individuals and businesses engaged directly in manufacturing. 2. Trade and local associations representing manufacturers. The Executive Committee was empowered with management of the organization. The original membership, mostly textile and related organizations, were focused primarily on protecting their economic interests and the political system that had created their economy.[2] The motto of the fledgling association was “Manufacturing is the Keystone of the Keystone State.”[3]

The first few years of the PMA’s existence were challenging. Annual meetings in 1911 and 1912 were postponed due to lack of a quorum. When the Third Meeting was held, in 1912, Grundy reported that the association was specifically founded to "prevent, as far as possible, vicious, unfair, and unwarranted legislation in our State affecting the employment of labour," and that the Association’s members should pay more attention to the Pennsylvania Legislature.[4] Grundy’s personal leadership held things together and, by 1913 the Fourth Annual Meeting was a success. Grundy continued to push for more members and, by 1917, every county in Pennsylvania was represented in the PMA. Also, by 1917, the PMA organized its first publicity committee which developed two important publications, the PMA Monthly Bulletin and the PMA Legislative Bulletin.[5] Under Grundy’s leadership, the PMA was one of the early supporters of Worker’s Compensation and Child Labor Laws in the Commonwealth.[6]

By the end of World War I the organization enjoyed a dominant political impact, with the PMA leadership also serving as Republican Party bosses. By the 1980s, membership had grown to 10,000+, 35 trade associations and 10 manufacturing groups. Its president once stated, “There is no Senator or Representative that our members cannot reach and talk with over every weekend….” The organization preferred to ally itself with other Republican factions or groups when attempting to influence elections. Its veto in a primary was usually successful. The membership was overwhelmingly Republican and entirely conservative. Interestingly, John “Jack” Flynn (Pres. 1932-1942) was a Democrat in the Pennsylvania Statehouse for three decades. In the 1960s, the organization’s lobbyist openly admitted he had written bills for the Commonwealth’s House of Representatives.[7]

Grundy resigned his presidential posts in 1929, when he was appointed to serve in the US Senate, a position he held until December 1930. J.W. Rawle succeeded him, but Grundy kept his power by becoming chairman of the Executive Committee when his Senate term concluded. Robert Allen's book on state governments reported Grundy "...professes to be in semi-retirement, but the PMA makes no important decisions without his OK."[8] Grundy held the chairman post until he retired in 1947. Grundy died at age 98 in 1961.[9]

James F. Malone, former Allegheny County (Pittsburgh) District Attorney, chairman of the Republican Party in Pittsburgh and Pennsylvania State Insurance Commissioner, became PMA’s president in 1957, serving until 1971. The New York Times described him as “…a power in Pennsylvania Republican politics for more than 30 years.” [10] In 1975 Fred Anton became CEO and president of the organization, giving him significant political influence because, in part, of many of the PMA’s member companies like Hershey Foods, Sun Oil and their thousands of employees. He also guided nominations to the 32-member board of trustees of Penn State University with the honorific “the 33rd trustee.” In spite of his strong ties to the Republican Party, Anton also enjoyed close relationships with Philadelphia Democrats like Michael Nutter, Ed Rendell and Sen. Arlen Specter.[11] Current president and CEO David Taylor was named the second most influential communicator to Pennsylvania’s elected officials by the Pennsylvania Association of Broadcasters.[12]

In 1915, PMA formed a committee to begin a casualty insurance company that could provide workers’ compensation insurance to the members. By late 1915, a charter was granted and on January 10, 1916, the first annual meeting of the Pennsylvania Manufacturers’ Association Casualty Insurance Company was held, with Grundy as the company’s new president. By 1919, the Pennsylvania Manufacturers’ Association Fire Insurance Company incorporation was approved and that company, again with Grundy as president, held its first annual meeting in January 1920.[13]

In 2004, the Association exited the insurance business and sold the Pennsylvania Manufacturers’ Association Casualty Insurance Company to PMA Capital Insurance Company of Blue Bell, Pennsylvania. The sold entity retained the names Pennsylvania Manufacturers' Association Insurance Co. (PMAIC), Pennsylvania Manufacturers' Indemnity Co. (PMIC) and Manufacturers' Alliance Insurance Corp.(MAIC)[14] In 2010, PMAIC, PMIC and MAIC were acquired by Old Republic International Corporation of Chicago, IL.[15]

The PMA remained determinedly focused on Pennsylvania affairs until the 1920s, when it joined forces with the National Industrial Council, part of the National Association of Manufacturers|National Association of Manufacturers.[16]

Membership grew steadily from 1920 through the 1950s, with the most members leaving the group at the height of the Great Depression in 1933.[5]

The PMA made its opinions on national matters known as early as the 1920s. In May 1929, PMA voiced its opposition to a new flexible tariff bill, when Grundy indicated that provisions in the bill that gave the Treasury Secretary authority to value imported articles were “woefully lacking.”[17] In June 1930, then Sen. Grundy supported the Smoot-Hawley tariff bill, enduring criticism from Sen. Pat Harrison (D) Mississippi, who said, Grundy “…destroyed much of our work” preparing the bill. Grundy, having lost his Senate seat, returned to the PMA at the end of the year.[18] President Hoover signed the bill on 17 June 1930.[19]

PMA opposed tariffs imposed by the Trump administration mainly because they applied to trading allies such as Canada and Mexico. China, the group pointed out, had saturated the US market with inexpensive, government-subsidized steel products. Canada in particular, is heavily integrated with Pennsylvania manufacturers, the commonwealth exports more to Canada than any other country.[20]