About NERCC

The United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America (UBC) can trace its beginnings to a meeting of 36 delegates from 14 local carpenter unions in 11 cities at Trades Assembly Hall in Chicago in 1881.  Their purpose was to urge working men to band together so that they could negotiate with employers, who had the advantage of economic clout, on equal terms.  These 36 delegates, representing 2,042 craftsmen from all over North America, established an international union called the Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America.  Since that time the UBC has grown into a powerful political and economic force that has set the standards for wages, benefits, working conditions, and quality on construction projects in the US and Canada. 

Peter J. McGuire, one of the most dynamic labor leaders of the 19th century and one of the moving forces behind the founding of the Brotherhood, was the first General Secretary of the new organization, an office he held for 21 years.  His efforts led to the 8-hour workday, higher wages, and increased union membership that had grown to more than 167,000 by 1903.  He also was one of the founders of the American Federation of Labor and is credited with creating one of the most visible memorials to the American worker—Labor Day.

Although much has changed since that first meeting in 1881, the main goal of the UBC remains the same--reaching out and opening doors to all working carpenters.  In the past few years under the leadership of General President Douglas McCarron, we have reorganized and centralized our structure and rededicated our efforts to represent every carpenter in the field through organizing and through our continued commitment to negotiating better wages and working conditions.

In New England we have combined several state councils and local unions that once operated separately into a single regional council consisting of more than 27,000 members and 30 local unions—all working together to achieve our common goals.  In recent years, we have increased our organizing and servicing staff by using an open, unbiased, and rigorous process for evaluating candidates that also allows every member the opportunity for consideration.  We have expanded the opportunities for training thus allowing our members to remain competitive in an ever-changing field.  We have negotiated contracts that are good for carpenters but also fair for contractors.  We realize that if a union contractor cannot compete and be successful, then neither can union carpenters.

But always—with all the developments and changes that have taken place since 1881, the UBC and NERCC have remained faithful to the main principle of the Brotherhood’s origins—namely, the dignity of all workers and their right to participate in decisions about the wages and conditions under which they agree to provide their labor.

For more information please visit the New England Regional Council of Carpenters Web site.