Background on United Auto Workers, District 65
The decision of clerical and technical workers at Boston University to organize with District 65 of the UAW was as rooted in the labor movement as it was in the womens movement. By the early 1970s, office workers at B.U. were dissatsified with working conditions that included -- among other grievances -- sexual harassment and a classification system that did not value "women's work." In 1979 after an intense struggle with the administration, B.U. finally recognized the union and signed their first contract. Originally part of the Distributive Workers Union, District 65 had affiliated with the United Auto Workers in 1979, and was instrumental in leading similar efforts to organize white collar workers at Harvard and several other universities.
