In 1932, the union threatened a strike, which prompted the Elevator Manufacturers Association to raise wages. In 1972, the union was involved in a major elevator strike. Historically, the union has excluded black members. In 1963, the head of the New York local of the union said it had "maybe three" black members and argued that this was because black people were "afraid of heights." In 1974, the union entered into an agreement with the Labor Department where it pledged to make a "good faith effort" to hire more minority workers. In 1977, 1,500 union members went on strike against the Westinghouse Elevator Company. In the early 2000s, Local 1 of the union, which represented 2,900 members, was subject to a federal labor
racketeering investigation, leading to the indictment of several union leaders. ==Presidents==