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International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers
| International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers | |
 | |
| Basic facts | |
| Location: | Washington, D.C. |
| Type: | 501(c)(5) |
| Top official: | Kenneth Cooper, president |
| Year founded: | 1891 |
| Website: | Official website |
The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) is a 501(c)(5) nonprofit labor union. As of August 2025, their website says they represent "approximately 860,000 active members and retirees who work in a wide variety of fields, including utilities, construction, telecommunications, broadcasting, manufacturing, railroads and government."[1]
Background
The IBEW was established in 1891, when the American Federation of Labor, now a part of the AFL-CIO granted the union a charter with jurisdiction over electrical workers.[2] As of August 2025, their website has a Code of Excellence which says the following:[3]
| “ | "The IBEW Code of Excellence (COE) for the electrical industry is designed to ensure the highest standards of excellence on each and every IBEW workplace. Leaders and members commit to demonstrating the IBEW’s core values in everything they do. Those core values are known as SPARQ:
|
” |
Leadership
As of August 2025, the following are listed as part of the organization's executive leadership team:[5]
- Kenneth W. Cooper , International President
- Paul A. Noble, International Secretary-Treasurer
Work and activities
The IBEW engages in collective bargaining for the electrical workers who compose its membership. Its members come from a variety of fields such as: utilities, construction, telecommunications, broadcasting, manufacturing, railroads and government.[2]
With its political and legislative affairs department, the IBEW "maintains liaison with the legislative branch of the U.S. government and coordinates all efforts toward presenting the IBEW’s views and desires for the benefit of all the workers of the United States to Congress and regulatory agencies." Beyond lobbying efforts, the IBEW aims to educate and register voters. It also maintains a political fund, which reports to the Federal Election Commission and makes political contributions.[2]
The IBEW publishes a monthly magazine, the IBEW Journal, which is sent around North America and aims to keep members informed about things happening around the union and major developments in labor and government affairs.[2]
The Electrical Worker
Since 1893, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers publishes a monthly newspaper called the The Electrical Worker. IBEW's website says the newspaper "is the official publication of the IBEW and seeks to capture the courage and spirit that motivated the founders of the Brotherhood and continue to inspire the union’s members today."[6]
Lobbying
The IBEW is a registered lobbyist with the United States House of Representatives.[7]
Notable endorsements
This section displays endorsements this organization made in elections within Ballotpedia's coverage scope.
Affiliations
The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers is affiliated with the AFL-CIO and the Canadian Labour Congress.[2]
Finances
The following is a breakdown of International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers' revenues and expenses from 2015 to 2024. The information comes from ProPublica
| Year | Revenue | Expenses |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | $160,008,698 | $144,543,285 |
| 2016 | $161,107,546 | $147,945,526 |
| 2017 | $178,849,741 | $169,431,822 |
| 2018 | $167,355,897 | $162,683,835 |
| 2019 | $181,699,506 | $153,759,468 |
| 2020 | $172,196,984 | $170,980,542 |
| 2021 | $193,937,204 | $162,232,835 |
| 2022 | $183,160,321 | $170,205,670 |
| 2023 | $190,787,364 | $169,153,436 |
| 2024 | $204,406,935 | $183,116,309 |
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms IBEW International Brotherhood Electrical Workers. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, "Homepage," accessed August 6, 2025
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 IBEW, "History & Structure," accessed January 26, 2016
- ↑ International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, "Code of Excellence," accessed August 6, 2025
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, "Our Leadership," accessed August 6, 2025
- ↑ International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, "The Electrical Worker," accessed August 6, 2025
- ↑ U.S. House of Representatives, Office of the Clerk, "Lobbying Disclosure," accessed January 26, 2016
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