Labor
R. J. Thomas
1900–1967 · third president of the United Auto Workers (1939–1946)
Chrysler worker who rose from Detroit's assembly lines to lead the UAW through World War II, between Homer Martin and Walter Reuther.
- Born
East Palestine, Ohio- Died
Muskegon, Michigan
aged 66- Birth name
- Roland Jay Thomas
- Detroit years
- 1923–1940s
- Field
- Labor
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
Roland Jay Thomas left the College of Wooster after two years and moved to Detroit in 1923, working in a series of auto plants, mostly for Chrysler. He became a leader of the union at Chrysler's Kercheval body plant and emerged as a key figure in the March 1937 sit-down strikes that swept Chrysler's Detroit factories. When the UAW split in 1939, Thomas, backed by the union's center and left, was chosen president in place of Homer Martin, holding the union together while it battled for recognition at Ford, finally won in 1941 after the Rouge strike. During World War II he led the union as Detroit became the Arsenal of Democracy, supporting the no-strike pledge while wildcat strikes and racial tensions in the plants tested his authority. In 1946 Walter Reuther narrowly defeated him for the presidency; Thomas served as vice president until the Reuther caucus swept the board in 1947, then worked for the national CIO. He died in Muskegon in 1967.
Highlights
- UAW president, 1939–1946
- Led the union through its 1941 victory at Ford
- Headed the UAW as Detroit became the Arsenal of Democracy
- Lost the presidency to Walter Reuther in 1946