Sol Stetin (April 2, 1910 – May 21, 2005) was a Polish-born American labor union leader.
Born in
Pabianice
Pabianice is a city in central Poland with 63,023 inhabitants (2021). Situated in the Łódź Voivodeship, it is the capital of Pabianice County. It lies about southwest of Łódź and belongs to the metropolitan area of that city. It is the ...
, now in Poland, when Stetin was 10, he and his family emigrated to
Paterson, New Jersey
Paterson ( ) is the largest city in and the county seat of Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.
In 1930, Stetin began working as a dyer, soon joining a union, and taking part in the major textile strike of 1934. By the end of the decade, he was active in the
Textile Workers Union of America
The Textile Workers Union of America (TWUA) was an industrial union of textile workers established through the Congress of Industrial Organizations in 1939 and merged with the Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America to become the Amalgamated Cl ...
, serving as a
shop steward
A union representative, union steward, or shop steward is an employee of an organization or company who represents and defends the interests of their fellow employees as a labor union member and official. Rank-and-file members of the union hold ...
, then as an organizer, and eventually the full-time director of the union's mid-Atlantic district.
In 1968, Stetin was elected as secretary-treasurer of the union, then in 1972 as its president. He led a major campaign to unionize workers in the South, targeting J.P. Stevens in particular. He also championed a merger of the various textile unions, which was achieved in 1975, with the formation of the
Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers Union
The Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers Union (ACTWU) was a labor union representing workers in two related industries in the United States.
The union was founded in 1976, when the Textile Workers Union of America merged with the Amalgamate ...
. He became the Senior Executive Vice President of the new union, accepting the less senior post in order to facilitate the merger.
Stetin retired from the union in 1982. He taught labor studies at
William Paterson College
William Paterson University, officially William Paterson University of New Jersey (WPUNJ), is a public university in Wayne, New Jersey. It is part of New Jersey's public system of higher education.
Founded in 1855 and was named after American ju ...
, and became labor leader in residence at
Rutgers University
Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and wa ...
Haledon, New Jersey
Haledon ( ) is a borough in Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 9,052, an increase of 734 (+8.8%) from the 2010 census count of 8,318, which in turn reflected an ...
. In 2001, he moved to
St. Louis
St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...
, where he joined the St. Louis Worker Rights Board, and the local
Jobs With Justice
Jobs With Justice (JWJ) is a labor rights organization in the United States, focused on the vision that all workers should be able to collectively bargain. It was founded in 1987 and is made up of individuals and affiliated organizations. As of ...
chapter. His last involvement in a labor dispute came when he attended a rally at the age of 95, a month before his death.
Tribute
The Sol Stetin Award, for labor leaders who have contributed to workers' advancement, is named in his honor, as is Sol Stetin Wing of the Labor Education Center at Rutgers.