George Meany

Nationality

U.S.A.

Date of Birth

1894

Date of Death

1980

Political
Preference

Labour Union

George Meany was an American labour union leader. Born in Harlem, New York City, Meany trained as a plumber and played as a semi-professional baseball player. In 1920, he joined the executive board of the Local 463 of the Plumber’s Union, which started his long career in fighting corruption in labour unions. Meany eventually served as the secretary-treasurer of the American Federation of Labor (AFL), where he was known for his anticommunist position and his strong opposition to the creation of a World Federation of Trade Unions in 1945.

In 1947, he served on the President’s Committee on Foreign Aid. Later, when the Economic Cooperation Administration (ECA) was created, Meany was appointed to the Public Advisory Board that controlled the ECA.