United Workers Congress of Liberia

The United Workers Congress of Liberia (abbreviated UWC) was a trade union centre in Liberia.

UWC was founded in 1974, after a split in the Congress of Industrial Organizations of Liberia.[1] The most important CIO union, the National Mine Workers Union, joined the UWC.[2] Amongst the mine workers UWC organized all mines except the Mano River Mine.[3] Other sectors organized by UWC were timber workers, truck drivers and car mechanics.[3]

Frank Walker served as the general secretary of UWC, Emett Harmon was its president and Esmael A. Sherif its executive vice-president.[4][5][6] Harmon also served as Ambassador at Large.[6] UWC was affiliated to the Organisation of African Trade Union Unity (OATUU).[7] UWC participated in the second OATUU congress held in Tripoli, Libya in April 1976.[8]

By 1976 UWC claimed a membership of 7,000, the National Mine Workers Union organizing 4,700 members, the Domestic and Allied Workers Union (DAWU) 1,700 members and the Wood and Timber Workers' Union 400 members.[3]

In 1977 President William R. Tolbert Jr. urged the different trade union centres to unite into a single body.[7] The Liberian Federation of Trade Unions (LFTU) was founded, but UWC stayed out of LFTU.[7] In 1977, following labor agitations and accusations of corruption, the NMWU Local 3 (mine workers at LAMCO) broke away from UWC and formed an independent union.[3][9]

In 1980 UWC and LFTU merged, forming the Liberian Federation of Labor Unions (LFLU).[10]

References
  1. William D. Coale (1978). West German Transnationals in Tropical Africa: The Case of Liberia and the Bong Mining Company. Boston University. p. 201. ISBN 978-3-8039-0165-1.
  2. Worldmark Encyclopedia of the Nations. Gale Research. 1976. p. 162.
  3. Liberia-forum. Liberia Working Group. 1988. pp. 37–38, 41.
  4. Record of Proceedings -International Labour Conference. International Labour Office. 1975. p. xlviii.
  5. Africa Year Book and Who's who. Africa Journal Limited. 1977. p. 528.
  6. H. Boima Fahnbulleh (2004). Voices of Protest: Liberia on the Edge, 1974-1980. Universal-Publishers. p. 144. ISBN 978-1-58112-503-0.
  7. A. P. Coldrick; Philip Jones (1979). The international directory of the trade union movement. Macmillan. p. 297.
  8. Organisation of African Trade Union Unity (1976). Second Congress of the OATUU, Tripoli, Libya, 20-23, April, 1976: preamble. The Congress. p. 31.
  9. Elwood D. Dunn; Amos J. Beyan; Carl Patrick Burrowes (20 December 2000). Historical Dictionary of Liberia. Scarecrow Press. p. 199. ISBN 978-1-4616-5931-0.
  10. Martin Upham (1991). Trade Unions of the World. Longman Group UK Limited. p. 286.
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