WAUGurtizaRichardAPALA6161.xml Guide to the Richard Gurtiza Collection On Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance 1987-2001 Gurtiza (Richard) Collection On Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance Special Collections, University of Washington Libraries © 2017 (Last modified: 3/19/2018)

Allen Library BOX 352900 Seattle, Washington 98195-2900 Business Number: 206-543-1929 speccoll@uw.edu http://www.lib.washington.edu/specialcollections/

This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2026-03-23. Description is written in: English, Old (ca.450-1100), Latin script. Finding aid based on DACS (Describing Archives: A Content Standard), 2nd Edition. Special Collections, University of Washington Libraries Richard Gurtiza collection on Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance Gurtiza, Richard 6161 0.87 cubic feet 2 boxes 1987-2001 1992-2000 Materials related to the national APALA organization and the Seattle APALA chapter Collection materials are in English.

Richard Gurtiza is a Filipino American labor union activist and union officer originally from Wapato, Washington. Gurtiza is president of Region 37, Inlandboatman's Union of the Pacific, the marine division of the International Longshre and Warehouse Union. The union represents Alaska cannery workers, who from the 1930s onwards were largely Filipino Americans and Asian Americans. Gurtiza became a member of Local 37 in 1977 and became Regional Director of the IBU 1993.

Gurtiza was born in the small farming community of Wapato, Washington in the 1950s. Gurtiza was a founder of the local chapter of the Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance (APALA), an American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations constituency organization for Asian American and Pacific Islander labor union members. Gurtiza was also on the national Executive Board of APALA

In the late 1970s, Gurtiza was part of a rank and file reform movement of activist Local 37 cannery workers to reform the union and fight for better working conditions. Gurtiza worked with Silme Domingo and Gene Viernes—the leaders of the Alaska Cannery Workers Association—to build the reform movement. After Domingo and Viernes were murdered in 1981, Gurtiza and other reformers won leadership positions and transformed Local 37.

Gurtiza remains active in the IBU/ILWU, the King County Labor Council, and the Washington State Labor Council.

Collection of mailings, newsletters, convention and conference materials collected by Seattle Filipino American labor activist and union officer Richard Gurtiza. Gurtiza was a founder of the local chapter of the Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance (APALA), an American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations constituency organization for Asian American and Pacific Islander labor union members. Gurtiza was also on the national Executive Board of APALA, and some of the materials consist of convention materials from the national organizations' founding in 1992, leadership and education conferences; correspondence and newsletters.

Forms part of the Labor Archives of Washington

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Records stored off site; advance notice required for use.

Request at UW

Creator's copyrights transferred to the University of Washington Libraries Special Collections.

2017-01-04

The APALA Seattle Chapter website has been captured several times by the Internet Archive Wayback Machine since 2022. The snapshots can be viewed here: https://wayback.archive-it.org/3988/*/https://www.apalawa.org/ The Seattle APALA blog has been regularly captured by the Internet Archive Wayback Machine since 2014. The snapshots can be viewed here: https://wayback.archive-it.org/3988/*/http://seattleapala.wordpress.com/

Wikidata is available for this collection

Gurtiza, Richard--Archives Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance Labor Archives of Washington (University of Washington) Labor Archives of Washington (University of Washington) Labor--Washington (State)--Seattle Labor movement--Washington (State)--Seattle Labor unions--Washington (State)--Seattle Personal Papers/Corporate Records (University of Washington) Labor Unions Labor History Records (Documents) Series I, Newsletters, 1992-1999 APALA News 1992, 1993, 1999 6161-001 Box 1 1 Asianweek: Siding with Organized Labor 1996 6161-001 Box 1 2 Fliers and pamphlets 1996-1999 6161-001 Box 1 3 Series II, Mailings and Forms, undated APALA New York Chapter jacket form undated 6161-001 Box 1 4 Membership renewal undated 6161-001 Box 1 5 AFL-CIO applications undated 6161-001 Box 1 6 Series III, Seattle APALA Chapter, 1993-1999 Seattle Chapter meetings 1993 6161-001 Box 1 7 Seattle Chapter By-Laws undated 6161-001 Box 1 8 Binder 1: APALA Seattle 1 of 2 1997 6161-001 Box 1 9-10

Chapter information, political action, correspondence

Binder 1: APALA Seattle 2 of 2 1997 6161-001 Box 1 10

Miscellaneous and membership

Retreat Agenda and evaluations 1999 6161-001 Box 1 11 Series IV, Memorandums, 1992-1993 Executive Board members 1992 6161-001 Box 1 12 Draft Model By-Laws July 13, 1992 6161-001 Box 1 13 Memo and ballot 1992 6161-001 Box 1 14 January APALA/ Organizing Institute Training Program 1993 6161-001 Box 1 15 Materials available, Start-up funding 1992 6161-001 Box 1 16 Memorandums February, 1993 6161-001 Box 1 17 Series V, Proposals and Policies, 1987-1993 Policy on Clearance of Targets: Texas Triangle Organizing Committee 1987 6161-001 Box 1 18 Proposal Draft: The "Seattle Plan" Organizing Immigrant and Ethnic Communities 1993 6161-001 Box 1 19 Series VI, Convention Materials, 1992-2001 National Convention invitations 1992, 1993, 1995 6161-001 Box 1 20 Founding Convention resolution 1992 6161-001 Box 1 21 Founding Convention brochures 1992 6161-001 Box 1 22 National Convention Materials: Los Angeles August, 1993 6161-001 Box 1 23 National Convention Materials: New York City August, 1995 6161-001 Box 1 24 National Convention Materials: San Francisco August, 1997 6161-001 Box 1 25 National Convention Materials: Washington, D.C. August, 1999 6161-001 Box 1 26 National Convention Materials: Honolulu, Hawaii August, 2001 6161-001 Box 1 27 Binder 2: APALA Founding Convention: Making an Impact 1 of 2 1992 6161-001 Box 2 1

Convention agenda, convention floorplan, rules and procedures, APALA constitution

Binder 2: APALA Founding Convention: Making an Impact 2 of 2 1992 6161-001 Box 2 2

Convention resolutions, APALA chapter, AFL-CIO, Convention pre-registration list

Series VII, Leadership and Education Conference, 1994 Invitations and program 1994 6161-001 Box 2 3 Conference materials 1994 6161-001 Box 2 4 Series IIX, Elections, 2000 Election 2000 and Beyond August, 2000 6161-001 Box 2 5 APALA Vote 2000 2000 6161-001 Box 2 6 Series IX, Executive Board Meetings, 1998-2001 Executive Board Meeting, Los Angeles, California 1998 6161-001 Box 2 7 Executive Board Meeting, Las Vegas, Nevada March, 1999 6161-001 Box 2 8-9 Executive Board Meeting, Washington, D.C. 1999 6161-001 Box 2 10 Executive Board Meeting, Honolulu, Hawaii 2001 6161-001 Box 2 11 Series X, Miscellaneous, 1993 Settings, manual undated 6161-001 Box 2 12 Letter 1993 6161-001 Box 2 13 APALA note pages undated 6161-001 Box 2 14