American Federation of Labor. Office of the President

When the Federation of Organized Trades and Labor Unions of the United States and Canada
(FOTLU) was organized in 1881, its constitution provided for the annual election of a Legislative
Committee that would supervise the organization. FOTLU had two chief aims: organizing workers and
supporting the passage of legislation recognizing the rights of workers. The organization's constitution
provided for the separate election of a federation secretary, who would serve as secretary of the
committee and act as a chief executive officer of the federation. That year W.H. Foster won the seat of
secretary and the remaining members of the committee included Richard Powers, Samuel Gompers,
Charles F. Burgman, and Alex C. Rankin. In 1883 the Legislative Committee was expanded to nine,
consisting of the President, First through Sixth Vice-Presidents, a Secretary and a Treasurer.
In 1883 the Legislative Committee was expanded to nine, consisting of the President, First through Sixth
Vice-Presidents, a Secretary, and a Treasurer. In 1886 FOTLU at its sixth annual session voted to merge
itself with the American Federation of Labor, then holding its first annual convention. The constitution
called for the following executive officers: a president, two vice-presidents, a secretary, and a treasurer.
The new organization's constitution also provided for an Executive Council which would bear
responsibility for organizing workers and pushing for such legislation as the convention directed. Since
that time, the executive structure of the AFL, with minor adjustments, has remained the same: the
president and secretary (later secretary-treasurer) serving as chief executive officers, the executive
council exercising the powers of the convention during the time between the meetings of the
convention, and the annual (later semi-annual) conventions electing officers and voting on broad policy
guidelines. The 1995 convention voted to establish the office of executive vice-president.