Victor George Reuther was born on January 1, 1912, and died on June 3, 2004. He was an important leader in the international labor movement. He was one of three brothers, Walter and Roy, who were members of the U.S. labor movement for their entire lives. His older brother, Walter, became the president of the United Auto Workers union (UAW). Victor led the Education Department of that union and worked as an organizer on an international level. He supported the idea of social democracy.

Early years

He was born in Wheeling, West Virginia, to Anna (Stocker) and Valentine Reuther, a worker at a brewery who supported socialist ideas and had moved to the United States from Germany. His father was active in workers' unions and supported Eugene Debs, a man who ran for president as a socialist. He began college as a freshman at West Virginia University in Morgantown.

Later, his brother Walter encouraged him to attend what is now called Wayne State University. After that, he joined Walter on a long trip to Europe and Asia, where the brothers worked at the Gorky Automotive Plant. The Reuthers were later not allowed to work in the Soviet Union and had to leave the country after leading a strike to demand safer working conditions.

In 1936, Victor returned to the United States and took a job at the Kelsey-Hayes Wheel Company in Flint, Michigan. There, he began organizing workers to form a union that would later become the UAW. He helped lead the 1936 General Motors Strike, where he faced violent police using clubs and tear gas. He became well-known for driving through Flint in a car with a loudspeaker on the roof, speaking to workers who were occupying factories. At that time, he was 24 years old.

Workers at General Motors in Flint took action, and the strike spread to more than 100 other factories. During the strike, 90% of General Motors' production stopped because of a lack of parts and workers.

The strike ended in February 1937, with many improvements for workers. However, Victor had to leave Flint with his wife, Sophie (who was the first woman to organize for the union), to avoid being arrested by a judge who worked for General Motors.

He and Sophie went to Anderson, Indiana, to support another strike there. They faced challenges from people who worked for companies and wanted to stop the union from growing.

World War II

The United States joined World War II on December 7, 1941, and many American workers shifted their jobs to produce materials needed for the war. Reuther noticed that large companies were wasting money and spending too much on military contracts. He traveled to Washington, D.C., and told the Roosevelt (New Deal) Democrats about unused machines and buildings that could help with war production. Because of this, the government placed stricter rules on how, when, and where money given to private companies could be used.

Postwar

After the war, Reuther went to Germany and helped to reorganize its labor unions. For the rest of his life, he remained a strong supporter of the union movement in Germany and other parts of Europe.

In 1947, his brother Walter was chosen to be the president of the UAW. Soon after, Victor became the head of the union's Education Department. He strongly supported the inclusion of women, minorities, and young people in leadership roles within the union. Reuther believed that providing more education to workers in regular positions would improve workplaces and help future workers.

In 1949, Victor began receiving calls from the Detroit Police Department about complaints from neighbors about his dogs barking. When he went outside to check on the dog, a car parked near his house drove away. After the police gave him a "final warning," he gave the dog to friends. On May 24, 1949, while reading a newspaper, a man with a shotgun shot at him through a closed window, hitting Reuther in the face and upper body. While in the hospital, Reuther told his surgeon, "Take my eye, or my arm or leg, but spare my tongue. I've got a living to make." He lost an eye and partial use of one arm but survived. The shooter was never found. Although the Detroit police had strong witness descriptions and clues, they did not successfully follow up on any leads. A neighbor provided details about the shooter to the police, but the information was ignored, and the neighbor later received anonymous phone calls telling him to stop talking. Earlier, in April 1948, Reuther's brother Walter survived an attack when a shotgun was fired through his kitchen window. Walter was hit in the arm instead of the chest or heart because he turned toward his wife at the moment of the attack. That crime was also never solved.

Later life

Reuther recovered from the assassination attempt and continued to lead the union's Education Department for several more years. He was later named the UAW's International Director. He worked with labor movements in many European countries and became well known in Canada's union community. His brother, Walter, died in a plane crash in 1970. In 1973, Victor retired to write his memoir, "The Brothers Reuther and the Story of the UAW," which was published in 1976.

He continued to speak at union events and was respected for his strong belief that workers should always improve their wages and working conditions. During the separation of the UAW and the Canadian Auto Workers (CAW) in the mid-1980s, he supported the goals of Canadian workers. He believed the UAW had given too many concessions to U.S. companies and thought the Canadian union would set a good example for the U.S. union. He stayed active even as he aged and died in Washington at the age of 92.

Archives

His life and work with the United Automobile Workers are recorded in several collections at the Walter P. Reuther Library. These collections include personal items, such as letters and notes, as well as files about his work in different parts of the UAW. Researchers can look for these collections on the library’s website.