WHEREAS, Glass Glaziers Local No. 252 was chartered by the Brotherhood of Painters, Decorators and Paperhangers of America on April 12, 1926, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, today the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (I.U.P.A.T.), establishing a union home for glaziers in the Greater Philadelphia region and laying the foundation for a century of organized labor in the glazing and glass working trades; and
WHEREAS, Local 252 persevered through the Great Depression, multiple economic recessions, and the COVID-19 pandemic, repeatedly demonstrating the resilience of its membership by adapting to difficult conditions while continuing to fight for the wages, benefits, and working conditions of union glaziers across southeastern Pennsylvania, southern New Jersey, and Delaware; and
WHEREAS, Over its hundred-year history, Local 252 has secured landmark collective bargaining agreements that established pension, health and welfare, and annuity plans for its members, and has grown from a struggling local into one that leads the tri-state glazing and glass working industries in pay, training standards, and worker protections; and
WHEREAS, Local 252 members have contributed their skilled craftsmanship to the Philadelphia skyline and regional landmarks including One Liberty Place, the Comcast Technology Center, Citizens Bank Park, Lincoln Financial Field, the Pennsylvania Convention Center, and scores of hospitals, universities, and commercial developments that define Greater Philadelphia; and
WHEREAS, In 2024, Local 252 became the first union local in the nation to require Architectural Glass and Metal Technician (A.G.M.T.) Certification through its collective bargaining agreement, demonstrating its commitment to the highest professional standards in the trade; and
WHEREAS, Local 252 and its leadership have remained steadfast advocates for working families, securing more than $16 million in training grants since 2007, supporting labor-friendly candidates and legislation, and standing in solidarity with the broader Philadelphia labor movement for one hundred years; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, That it proudly recognizes and celebrates the 100th Anniversary of Glaziers Local No. 252 of the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades, and honors the generations of skilled glaziers whose work, sacrifice, and solidarity have shaped the built environment of Philadelphia and the surrounding region for a century.
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