Hoffa, James R.

Hoffa, James R.

▪ American labour leader
in full  James Riddle Hoffa  byname  Jimmy Hoffa 
born February 14, 1913, Brazil, Indiana, U.S.
died July 30, 1975, Bloomfield Hills, near Detroit, Michigan

      American labour leader who served as president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (Teamsters Union) from 1957 to 1971, becoming one of the most controversial labour organizers of his time.

      The son of an Indiana coal miner who died when Hoffa was seven, Hoffa moved with his family to Detroit in 1924. He left school at 14, worked as a stockboy and warehouseman for several years, and began his union-organizing activities in the 1930s. Initially the business agent for Local 299 in Detroit, Hoffa by 1940 had become chairman of the Central States Drivers Council and by 1942 president of the Michigan Conference of Teamsters. In 1952 he was elected an international vice president of the Teamsters, and five years later he succeeded Dave Beck as international president.

      Known throughout the trucking industry as a tough and knowledgeable bargainer, Hoffa successfully centralized administration and bargaining in the international office of the union. He also played a key role in the creation of the first national freight-hauling agreement. His efforts helped make the Teamsters the largest labour union in the United States.

      Known to have long associated with organized crime figures, Hoffa nevertheless survived a series of governmental prosecutions until 1967, when he entered the federal prison in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, to begin a 13-year sentence for jury tampering, fraud, and conspiracy. Hoffa refused to resign as president of the Teamsters while in prison and kept his position until 1971. U.S. President Richard M. Nixon commuted Hoffa's sentence in December 1971, stipulating that he could not engage in any union activity until 1980. Hoffa, however, fought the restriction in court and was widely believed to have covertly continued his efforts to reestablish a union position. On July 30, 1975, he disappeared from a restaurant in suburban Detroit under circumstances that have never been fully determined. He was said to have had an appointment at the restaurant with Anthony Provenzano, a New Jersey Teamsters official and former Mafia figure, and Anthony Giacalone, a Detroit mobster; both later denied having encountered Hoffa, who was never seen again. He was legally declared “presumed dead” in 1982.

      James P. Hoffa (Hoffa, James P.), son of the former president, was sworn in as general president of the Teamsters on May 1, 1999, after a bitter election campaign culminated in his defeat of Ron Carey, a longtime critic of the senior Hoffa.

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • Hoffa, James P. — ▪ American labour leader in full  James Phillip Hoffa  born May 19, 1941, Detroit, Michigan, U.S.       American labour leader elected general president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (Teamsters Union) (IBT) in 1998 and son of… …   Universalium

  • Hoffa,James Riddle — Hof·fa (hŏfʹə), James Riddle. Known as “Jimmy.” 1913 1975?. American labor leader who became president of the Teamsters Union (1957) and attempted to organize all transportation workers into one union. Hoffa was jailed for jury tampering and… …   Universalium

  • James Phillip Hoffa — James P. Hoffa Pour les articles homonymes, voir Hoffa. James P. Hoffa James P. Hoffa (1941 ) e …   Wikipédia en Français

  • James R. Hoffa — Jimmy Hoffa und James P. Hoffa James Riddle „Jimmy“ Hoffa (* 14. Februar 1913 in Brazil, Indiana; † (vermutlich) 30. Juli 1975) war ein US amerikanischer Gewerkschaftsführer. Als Präsident der Teamsters Gewerkschaft war Hoffa in d …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • James Riddle Hoffa — Jimmy Hoffa und James P. Hoffa James Riddle „Jimmy“ Hoffa (* 14. Februar 1913 in Brazil, Indiana; † (vermutlich) 30. Juli 1975) war ein US amerikanischer Gewerkschaftsführer. Als Präsident der Teamsters Gewerkschaft war Hoffa in d …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • James P. Hoffa — Jimmy Hoffa und James Philipp Hoffa James Phillip „Jim“ Hoffa (* 19. Mai 1941 in Detroit (Michigan) ist seit 1999 der Präsident der „International Brotherhood of Teamsters“. Biografie James Phillip Hoffa ist der einzige Sohn von J …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • James Phillip Hoffa — Jimmy Hoffa und James Philipp Hoffa James Phillip „Jim“ Hoffa (* 19. Mai 1941 in Detroit, Michigan) ist seit 1999 der Präsident der International Brotherhood of Teamsters. Biografie James Phillip Hoffa ist der einzige Sohn von …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • James Riddle Hoffa — Jimmy Hoffa Pour les articles homonymes, voir Hoffa. James Riddle Hoffa, plus connu comme Jimmy Hoffa (14 février 1913 disparu le 30 juillet 1975) était un chef syndicaliste américain. Sommaire 1 Biographie …   Wikipédia en Français

  • James P. Hoffa — Pour les articles homonymes, voir Hoffa. James R. Hoffa et James P. Hoffa James P. Hoffa (1941 ) est un chef syndical américain. Il est depuis …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Hoffa — noun United States labor leader who was president of the Teamsters Union; he was jailed for trying to bribe a judge and later disappeared and is assumed to have been murdered (1913 1975) • Syn: ↑Jimmy Hoffa, ↑James Riddle Hoffa • Instance… …   Useful english dictionary

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