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Late Indiana Director Mae Mann Was CWA Pioneer
VIVIAN MAE MANN, who went to work as an operator with Indiana Bell Telephone in 1925 and later served as a CWA state director in Indiana for 23 years, died on Feb. 28 in Mishawaka, Ind. She was 90 years old at the time of her death.
Mann joined the CWA staff in 1951 as an Indiana director and stayed in that position until her retirement from the union in 1974. Like so many of her peers, she went to work as a teenager. She became increasingly involved in the union movement within the still-fledgling telephone industry and her career corresponded with CWA's pioneering days.
Mann was actively involved in early organizing efforts and she became a leader in the old Indiana Traffic Division Number 56. In the late 1940s, she played a major role on CWA's historic Dial Conversion Committee, one of the first major technological challenges that confronted CWA and the telephone industry.
From 1947 to 1950, Mann served on the Special Constitution Committee which was instrumental in the development of the union. During those formative years, she was also a member of the union's Resolutions Committee.
Throughout her career, Mann was frequently recognized for her work on behalf of the union's programs and, in particular, her work on behalf of CWA members in Indiana. On the occasion of her retirement, CWA President Emeritus Glenn E. Watts (who was secretary- treasurer at the time) wrote that "the years have been good to us and the Union, and your contribution to the Union has made much of its accomplishments possible."
Mae Mann's survivors include two sons, John R. Mann of Elkhart, Ind., and Donald L. Mann of Mishawaka, Ind., and a daughter, Nancy E. Whiteman of Mishawaka, Ind. Mann's husband of 43 years, Don, passed away in 1980.
Mann joined the CWA staff in 1951 as an Indiana director and stayed in that position until her retirement from the union in 1974. Like so many of her peers, she went to work as a teenager. She became increasingly involved in the union movement within the still-fledgling telephone industry and her career corresponded with CWA's pioneering days.
Mann was actively involved in early organizing efforts and she became a leader in the old Indiana Traffic Division Number 56. In the late 1940s, she played a major role on CWA's historic Dial Conversion Committee, one of the first major technological challenges that confronted CWA and the telephone industry.
From 1947 to 1950, Mann served on the Special Constitution Committee which was instrumental in the development of the union. During those formative years, she was also a member of the union's Resolutions Committee.
Throughout her career, Mann was frequently recognized for her work on behalf of the union's programs and, in particular, her work on behalf of CWA members in Indiana. On the occasion of her retirement, CWA President Emeritus Glenn E. Watts (who was secretary- treasurer at the time) wrote that "the years have been good to us and the Union, and your contribution to the Union has made much of its accomplishments possible."
Mae Mann's survivors include two sons, John R. Mann of Elkhart, Ind., and Donald L. Mann of Mishawaka, Ind., and a daughter, Nancy E. Whiteman of Mishawaka, Ind. Mann's husband of 43 years, Don, passed away in 1980.