The Sheet Metal Workers International Association (SWMIA) chartered Local 312 as a contract local union in September 1900 and as a building trade local in October 1934. We have greatly expanded our work on behalf of sheet metal craftsmen over the years, adding an apprenticeship training program in 1945, a federal credit union in 1950, the first negotiated health and welfare plan in 1953, and a defined benefit pension plan in 1964. Workers who are part of a union, on average, make 30% more in wages, are 63% more likely to have employer-provided health benefits, and are four times as likely to have pensions than non-union workers.