J.W. Giles oral history interview, September 11, 1995

Interviewed by Christine Lutz: Giles begins by talking about growing up with a legally blind father and a mother with tuberculosis during the Great Depression, and his early work experience as a ‘soda jerk.’ He served in the Navy during World War II and was stationed for a time in China. Giles discusses his family life and post-war employment at Georgia Power Company during which he became a member of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW). He says that while at Georgia Power, “What motivated [me] to get active in the union was the way we were being treated [by both union and employer].” Great-grandfather participated in the Civil War as a member of the Confederate Army. Giles talks about power struggles within IBEW’s staff and the Southeast Assistant Council; the William Stagier Act, which established OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration); the 1968 wildcat strike; Hosea Williams; and AFSCME (American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees). Giles also mentions Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and civil rights, as well as problems of race relations within IBEW. On his views concerning segregation and civil rights, Giles says, “How can you tell a man to go fight for his country and then come home and tell his kids that you can’t use this water fountain and you can’t use this restroom, you can’t go in this restaurant, but yet son, when you get eighteen, you have to fight for your country too.” He also discusses the United Appeal. Unions Represented: International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers; American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees