born Feb. 22, 1892, Brest-Litovsk, Russian Empire
died Sept. 17, 1982, New York, N.Y., U.S.
U.S. labour leader.
The son of a baker in Russian Poland, he was sent to Siberia in 1908 for his union activities. In 1911 he escaped and immigrated to the U.S., where he renewed his union work. In 1932 he became president of the International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union (ILGWU), a post he held until 1966. As president, he transformed the ILGWU from a small, fractious regional organization into a model international union. He also played a significant role in the merger of the American Federation of Labor and the Congress of Industrial Organizations (see AFL-CIO ) in 1955.