Elmer Louis Winter (March 6, 1912 – October 22, 2009) was an American lawyer who co-founded the

Manpower Inc. ManpowerGroup (formerly known as Manpower Inc.) is an American multinational corporation headquartered in Milwaukee, Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Founded in 1948 by Elmer Winter and Aaron Scheinfeld, ManpowerGroup is the third-largest staffing firm i ...

temporary

employment agency An employment agency is an organization which matches employers to employees. In developed countries, there are multiple private businesses which act as employment agencies and a publicly funded employment agency. Public employment agencies One ...

in 1948, after his law firm encountered difficulties hiring secretarial assistance in an emergency. By the time of his death, the firm was the world's third-largest temporary staffing firm, with 400,000 clients served by 4,100 offices in 82 countries.

Early life and education

Winter was born on March 6, 1912, in

Milwaukee Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

, where his immigrant father owned a clothing store.Martin, Douglas
"Elmer Winter, 97, Co-Founder of Manpower Temp Agency, Dies "
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', October 30, 2009. Accessed November 2, 2009. There he attended the local public schools, and graduated from Riverside High School in 1929.Silvers, Amy Rabideau; and Rornell, Rick
"Manpower co-founder Winter dies at 97"
''

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel The ''Milwaukee Journal Sentinel'' is a daily morning broadsheet printed in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where it is the primary newspaper and also the largest newspaper in the state of Wisconsin, where it is widely read. It was purchased by the G ...

'', October 23, 2009. Accessed November 2, 2009. He earned a degree in economics from the

University of Wisconsin–Madison The University of Wisconsin–Madison (University of Wisconsin, Wisconsin, UW, UW–Madison, or simply Madison) is a public land-grant research university in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. It was founded in 1848 when Wisconsin achieved st ...

and his law degree from the

University of Wisconsin Law School The University of Wisconsin Law School is the Law school in the United States, law school of the University of Wisconsin–Madison, a Public university, public research university in Madison, Wisconsin. Founded in 1868, the school is guided by a ...

Manpower

Aaron Scheinfeld, owner of a

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law firm, hired Winter in 1936 and Winter moved back to Milwaukee when the firm opened a new branch there. Unable to find a secretary available to type up a last-minute brief that had to be filed with the

Wisconsin Supreme Court The Wisconsin Supreme Court is the Supreme court, highest and final court of appeals in the state judicial system of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. In addition to hearing appeals of lower Wisconsin court decisions, the Wisconsin Supreme Court also ...

in April 1948, the two attorneys were only able to finish the work with the assistance of a former employee who worked all night typing. This experience led them to consider that there might be a business opportunity in providing temporary services to businesses that needed assistance. Despite the fact that almost all of their initial temps were women, they chose the name Manpower at the suggestion of a friend. They rented a Milwaukee storefront, offering bookkeepers, stenographers and typists to businesses as a sideline venture from their law firm. Though their first year was unprofitable, they were able to start making money in 1949. Manpower offered courses to help workers improve their skills on new technology and was the first to offer temporary staffing for industrial positions. Winter retired from the firm in 1976, but maintained an office at the company's headquarters where served as chairman of the firm's advisory council. He regularly drove into the office until three weeks before his death, where a sign on his desk read "Hang in there, Elmer".

Other work

Winter was national president of the

American Jewish Committee The American Jewish Committee (AJC) is a civil rights group and Jewish advocacy group established on November 11, 1906. It is one of the oldest Jewish advocacy organizations and, according to ''The New York Times'', is "widely regarded as the wi ...

in 1973–1977.

Death

A resident of

Fox Point, Wisconsin Fox Point is a village in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 6,934 at the 2020 census. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, Fox Point is one of the North Shore suburbs of the Milwaukee metropolitan area. Th ...

, Winter died at age 97 on October 22, 2009, in

Mequon, Wisconsin Mequon () is the most populous city in Ozaukee County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 25,142 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located on Lake Michigan's western shore with significant commercial developments along Int ...

. He was survived by his second wife, the former Hope Melamed, as well as by three daughters, eight grandchildren and 13 great-grandchildren. His 54-year-long first marriage to the former Nannette Rosenberg ended with her death in 1990.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Winter, Elmer 1912 births 2009 deaths 20th-century American businesspeople 20th-century American Jews University of Wisconsin Law School alumni University of Wisconsin–Madison College of Letters and Science alumni Lawyers from Milwaukee People from Fox Point, Wisconsin 20th-century American lawyers 21st-century American Jews Presidents of the American Jewish Committee