Interview transcript, 2011 August 10- December 4

Item — Folder: SR11262

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

From the Collection:

This oral history interview with Jean Eilers was conducted by Carolyn Matthews from August 10 to December 4, 2011. The interview was conducted as part of the Oregon Labor Oral History Program, which collects oral histories of individuals who have advocated for working people of Oregon, including public figures, union members, and workers. The interview was conducted in eight sessions. Robert Byrne and Michela Byrne were also interviewed in session eight. In this interview, Eilers discusses joining the Society of the Holy Child Jesus convent in Rosemont, Pennsylvania, teaching at Catholic schools from 1962 to 1976, and her reasons for leaving the convent in 1981. She speaks about her involvement with labor organizing in California with the United Farm Workers, and in Oregon with AFSCME, OPEU Local 503, and SEIU Local 49. She then talks about serving as the state director of the AFL-CIO and discusses Jobs with Justice; speaks about union negotiations at Kaiser Permanente, Xerox, and the Oregon Department of Transportation, as well as her involvement with the campaign to unionize the employees of Providence hospitals. She also talks about Occupy Portland.

Dates

Creation: 2011 August 10- December 4

Creator

From the Collection: Eilers, Jean A. (Jean Anne), 1940- (Interviewee, Person)
From the Collection: Byrne, Bob (Robert N.), 1940- (Interviewee, Person)
From the Collection: Byrne, Michela E. (Michela Eilers), 1983- (Interviewee, Person)
From the Collection: Matthews, Carolyn K. (Carolyn Kay), 1944- (Interviewer, Person)

Conditions Governing Access

Session 5 and portions of session 7 are restricted until 2032. The transcript and digitized audio files have been redacted to reflect the restriction. The remainder of the interview is open for research.