Our Story
Follow the milestones that shaped the International Union of Operating Engineers. Scroll down to see the projects, people, and progress that keep us moving forward.
Steam engineers work on the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal in 1895. (Photo courtesy of the Chicago Metropolitan Water Reclamation District.)
1896
Eleven engineers unite in Chicago to fight unsafe working conditions and impossible hours under the National Union of Steam Engineers (NUSE), at a time when steam power drives nearly all industry.
These men constituted the first convention of the National Union of Steam Engineers held in August 1897 (however, their identities were not recorded for the photograph).
1897
The AFL grants the union its charter, establishing national legitimacy and presence, and the first Canadian locals join, prompting a new name: the International Union of Steam Engineers (IUSE).
The Temple Bar Building at 44 Court Street in Brooklyn, New York, in which the IUSE headquartered its offices from 1909 into 1913. (Photography ©New York Historical Society, George P. Hall & Son Photograph Collection, PR 024, nyhs_PR024_b-19_f-173_008-01.)
1909
The union establishes its first official headquarters at 44 Court Street in Brooklyn, New York.
Members of International Union of Steam Engineers Local 4 of Boston excavate the site for construction of the Mystic Generating Station in Everett, Massachusetts, during the early 1900s.
1912
As new technologies emerge, the union expands to include diesel, gas, and electric operators and adopts a new name: The International Union of Steam and Operating Engineers (IUSOE) — a catchall for operators of non–steam-powered machinery.
The former residence at 6334 Yale Avenue in Chicago, served as IUOE headquarters from 1913 into 1929.
1913
IUSOE relocates its national headquarters to 6334 Yale Avenue in Chicago. At the same time, operating engineers begin mastering mechanical refrigeration—a rapidly advancing technology.
Members of I.U.O.E. Local 37 in Baltimore operate a crane for employer Potts and Callahan on a job in the city at a site in what is now Camden Yards sometime during the late 1920s or early 1930s.
1926
Membership growth drives major gains in wages, hours, and safety. With technology moving beyond steam, the union becomes the International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) and relocates its headquarters to the Carpenters Union Building at 1003 K Street NW, Washington D.C.
IUOE and other building-trades members working on the Rockefeller Center project in New York City line up to receive their pay on Christmas Eve 1931 beside a Christmas Tree they erected, which was reportedly the very first Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree. (New York-based Local 14 member Brother Horace Gibbs is indicated by the arrow.)
1930
Amid the Great Depression, IUOE members secured federal construction work as the union pushed for stronger protections. The Davis–Bacon Act of 1931 established prevailing wages on federal projects, stabilizing employment and strengthening standards.
Members of IUOE Local 793 in Ontario, Canada, build the Rainbow Bridge over the Niagara River gorge between Niagara Falls, Ontario and New York (1941).
1938
The widespread adoption of diesel engines expands the technical skills required of operating engineers, while dredging becomes IUOE’s third formal division of membership, joining operating and stationary engineers.
IUOE Local 66, Pittsburgh, Brother William J. Shoemaker poses with his “Hellcat” bulldozer during World War II.
1941
IUOE members serve on both the home front and battlefields during World War II—constructing bases, airfields, bridges, and essential defense infrastructure while supporting military and industrial facilities across North America.
Members of IUOE Local 564 of Richwood, Texas, work at one of the Dow Chemical plants in its jurisdiction sometime during the late 1940s.
1946
Following WWII, the union marks 50 years of craftsmanship as members help rebuild modern North America—constructing airports, dams, railroads, pipelines, water systems, highways, hospitals, schools, and industrial centers.
Members of IUOE Local 3 in San Francisco stand with contractors and government officials in front of an HD 21 tractor during a project at Ponderay Lake (or Lake Pend Oreille) in Idaho in 1953.
1950
IUOE establishes a nationwide apprenticeship training system and expands accident-prevention programs—laying the foundation for future technical excellence and safety standards.
The current IUOE headquarters building in Washington, D.C. under construction in 1956.
1956
Organizing efforts among pipeline workers bring more than 75,000 new members into IUOE. To support this growth, the union builds a modern headquarters at 1125 17th Street NW in Washington, D.C.
Members of I.U.O.E. Local 653 in Mobile, Alabama, work on construction of the foundation for a high-rise building in the city during the 1960s.
1960
As membership climbs to 302,000—driven by pipeline and fabrication work—the union establishes the Central Pension Fund, enhancing long-term support for members.
Members of IUOE Local 513 in St. Louis operate crawler cranes to erect the Gateway Arch in 1964 and 1965 as part of the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial on the west bank of the Mississippi River. (Photos credit: Arteaga Photos LTD.)
1965
IUOE members build essential infrastructure—including highways, pipelines, dams, nuclear facilities, and major public works—while other members serve in the Vietnam War overseas. Many veterans later return to IUOE locals, strengthening the union for generations.
Members of I.U.O.E. Local 148 of St. Louis prepare to move a low-pressure turbine for the Labadie Power Plant near Labadie, Missouri, in 1971.
1972
With membership up by more than 100,000 over the previous decade, IUOE introduced its first National Maintenance Agreement—a pioneering framework that expanded work opportunities for members and generated more than 1.2 billion work-hours in the decades that followed.
A wind turbine maintenance class at Local 150.
1980
Recognizing that the collective skill of its members was its greatest asset, IUOE invested $25 million in training—supporting 63 hoisting and portable programs, as well as stationary training programs nationwide.
Members of IUOE Local 37 in Baltimore take part in the local’s first ever hazardous materials training class at its training center in October 1990.
1996
IUOE marks a century of craftsmanship and opens the International Environmental Technology and Training Center—launched with the U.S. Department of Energy to advance environmental and safety training through IUOE’s National HAZMAT Program.
(LEFT): Members of I.U.O.E. Local 14 in Flushing, New York, help erect the first of two towers of the original World Trade Center in New York City’s Manhattan district beginning in 1968. When completed in 1972 and 1973, the "Twin Towers" were the tallest buildings in the world. (Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, U.S. News & World Report Magazine Collection [reproduction number, e.g., LC-U9-15739, frame 18].) (RIGHT): IUOE members and international officers on site to clean up the aftermath of the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in New York City on September 11, 2001.
2001
IUOE members were instrumental in building the record-setting 110-story World Trade Center’s Twin Towers (1968-1971) and later played critical roles in the recovery and cleanup at Ground Zero, as well as supporting operations at the Staten Island landfill where debris was processed. Tragically, seven IUOE engineers lost their lives in the attacks—men whose commitment to their craft and community exemplified the very best of IUOE. We forever remember.
Cranes operated by Local 14 and Local 15 members place the final components of the spire at the top of the new One World Trade Center on May 10, 2013.
2014
IUOE operating engineers played key roles in the construction of One World Trade Center (Freedom Tower) rising at the World Trade Center site. The tower stands 1,776 feet tall—a reference to the year of the U.S. Declaration of Independence—and serves as a symbol of resilience, renewal, and the enduring skill of the men and women who build America.
Members of IUOE Local 57 (Rhode Island) and Marine Division Local 25 (New Jersey) set the foundational structures for a new wind-energy project by placing five 400-ton steel jackets to support turbines three miles off Block Island, at depths of about 100 feet. Developed by Deepwater Wind in 2015, this became the first offshore wind farm in the U.S.
2015
To meet growing energy-sector demand, IUOE expands its training programs, with the Stationary Engineers Apprenticeship and Training Trust (SEATT) supporting members working in refineries, petrochemical plants, and industrial facilities—advancing industry-leading standards.
The IUOE International Training and Education Center (ITEC) near Houston, Texas.
2018
IUOE opens its state-of-the-art ITEC facility in Crosby, Texas—one of the most advanced training centers in North America—providing cutting-edge education for operators and strengthening the industries the union serves.
Many of the more than 40 members of IUOE Local 150 of Chicago who worked at the Newton County (Indiana) Landfill in 2018 stand tall during a break from moving 1.2-million yards of dirt. (Photo courtesy of Local 150 and member Tony Walker.)
2021
IUOE celebrates 125 years of solidarity during the COVID-19 pandemic as more than 400,000 members continue essential work. By this milestone, IUOE’s membership reflects an expanding set of critical roles that includes nurses, public employees, and petrochemical industry workers.
The International Union of Operating Engineers commemorated its 125th Anniversary in December 2021 and the grand opening of its new International Training and Education Center near Houston, Texas, in November 2021 with a 125-Year History Book that chronicles the international union's entire story from its founding in Chicago in 1896 to the anniversary in 2021.
Read the Full History