Local labor reformer Fred 'Nook' Kelley has died

Labor reform pioneer Fred "Nook" Kelley, 76, died Friday morning, leaving behind a widely respected legacy of "labor and management, working together."

That was the motto of the Craftsman International Union, which Kelley founded in 1983 in an effort to bring collaborative solutions to an economy plagued by labor woes. Union vice president Roger Amos said in the 32 years since its inception, the Craftsman International Union has succeeded in realizing Kelley's vision of a better approach to organized labor.

"Back in the Carter years, as we called them, the economy fell flat -- real flat," he said. "Around here, we were having a lot of labor problems."

It was so bad, Amos said, local manufacturer Procter & Gamble was contemplating a move that would take with it many Cape Girardeau jobs.

"Industry was scared to death of this area," Amos said. "(Kelley is) the one who really turned that around."

Kelley had served as president of Local 282 of the Laborers International Union of North America, but was convicted on federal conspiracy charges in 1976 for interfering with the rights of Laborers Local 282 members to petition for a special election of officers. After serving two years in prison, he formed the Craftsman International Union, and through it, worked to look out for those in need.

Cape Girardeau Mayor Harry Rediger said he saw Kelley's charitable works as a defining part of his character.

"He heartfeltedly promoted throughout the year all of his people contributing for the Christmas boxes that they'd give away at Christmas time," Rediger recalled. "To me, that was just the genuine part of him; he wanted to help people and he encouraged all the people he worked with to contribute to that throughout the year."

Rediger remembers helping package the boxes of food and the gratitude of the families who received them.

"Those people were so appreciative," he said. "It was really rewarding, being a part of that."

But the other side of Kelley's business was keeping his members employed, and he went about it with a singular focus, Amos said.

"Businesspeople approached him and said, 'If you can make this work, then Procter & Gamble would maybe stay,'" Amos said. "And he made it work."

An open letter provided by the union, written by retired Procter & Gamble paper supply director Robert Empie, described the strong impression Kelley and his ideas made as an alternative to the AFL-CIO-affiliated unions that were often too hindered by red tape to accommodate the needs of business or laborers.

"In 1985, I met Fred Kelley, president and founder of the C.I.U., who impressed me with his willingness to embark on a collaborative relationship between the needs of P&G, its general contractors and those of its workers, culminating most notably in a commitment to working tirelessly in preventing work stoppages," Empie wrote. "P&G shifted their contractors to C.I.U. workers, and the P&G plant hasn't suffered a single work disruption since: no strikes, no pickets, no headaches, and, importantly, the highest productivity via flexing crafts and flowing to the work in every effort to ensure the profitability of the sights."

Former Cape Girardeau Mayor Jay Knudtson said Kelley still made quite an impression years later when Knudtson ran for mayor in the early 2000s.

"I'll never forget the first meeting I had with him. ... At first it was intimidating," Knudtson recalled. "[But] he wanted nothing but the best for this community."

Knudtson said what made Kelley stand apart from other community leaders was his ability to work effectively at both sides of an issue, to help facilitate mutual benefits in the middle.

"He was a man who believed in second chances," Knudtson said. "He'd be taking these guys who may have made bad decisions in the past and would be helping them to make good decisions, and on the other hand, he was dealing with Procter & Gamble."

Kelley was acutely aware of the fact individuals make up a community, and was steadfast in his dedication to making a better community as a whole, Knudtson said.

"We're a hardworking community, we're an honest community and we're a disciplined community," he said. "Nook, through his leadership and through what his union stood for, helped define that image."

Empie at Procter & Gamble was so impressed with the way Kelley and his union operated, he not only suggested that other companies use Craftsman International Union labor, but even arranged to use it in other Procter & Gamble locations.

"I then continued to use C.I.U. workers wherever possible, even after I was relocated to Cincinnati, Ohio, later on in my career," Empie wrote.

"It's hard to explain to people the positive impact (Kelley has) had in our community," Amos said.

Missouri Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder said Kelley's effect is measured in the continued investment of businesses in Cape, thanks to the favorable labor atmosphere.

"Everyone in Cape County owes a debt to Kelley's leadership and that union," Kinder said. "You couldn't have a better corporate citizen than Fred Kelley."

Kinder said he'll remember Kelley not only for his diplomacy and organizational acumen, but for his friendship.

"Fred Kelley was a great man and a great friend of mine," he said. "If he was your friend, he was your friend until the very end, and I greatly mourn his passing. He meant a lot of things to a lot of people."

"He'll always be known to me as a person who gave people that hand up," said Knudtson. "This community is better because Nook Kelley was a part of it."

tgraef@semissourian.com

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