Edward Flore

Edward Frank Flore (December 5, 1877 – September 27, 1945[1]) was an American labor unionist.

Born in Buffalo, New York, Flore worked in the saloon owned by his father from his teenage years. In 1900, he joined the Hotel and Restaurant Employees' International Alliance, holding various positions in his local, before in 1905 becoming vice-president of the international union. In 1909, he contested the presidency of the union, but lost and became a bartender once more. However, in 1911, he again stood for the presidency, this time successfully.[2]

When Flore was elected president, he was only the second most powerful figure in the union, behind secretary-treasurer Jere L. Sullivan. However, Flore became increasingly unhappy with Sullivan's focus on organizing bartenders at the expense of other areas of the industry. In 1927, he formed a faction to challenge Sullivan. Sullivan died the following year, and Flore took the opportunity to reorganize the union, giving himself the greater share of power. To do so, he worked closely with West Coast locals, and focused on recruiting lower-paid workers in the industry, such as bellhops, maids and busboys. By 1940, the union's membership reached 200,000.[3]

Flore was elected as a vice-president of the American Federation of Labor in 1936. He died in 1945, still in office.[2]

References
  1. Current Biography Yearbook. H. Wilson Company. 1946.
  2. The Samuel Gompers Papers. University of Illinois Press. 1986. ISBN 9780252033896.
  3. Arnesen, Eric (2007). Encyclopedia of U.S. Labor and Working-class History. Routledge. ISBN 9780415968263.
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