Joe Ibarra thanked the membership of Local 6 for their support during the 1968 Thrifty strike.
Former ILWU International Secretary Treasurer and Local 26 President, Joe Ibarra, passed away on February 11th. He was 69 years old. Joe’s life was celebrated at a memorial service on March 4th in San Pedro, CA by family, friends, and his union brothers and sisters. Joe was remembered for a lifetime of outstanding service to workers and for his dedication to social and economic justice for all people.
Joe was born on January 23, 1942 in Agua Caliente, Mexico. He immigrated to San Pedro with his family at a young age. He enrolled at Barton Hill grammar school in San Pedro at the age of 6 and at that time he could not yet speak English. He would go on to graduate from high school and attend classes at Harbor College.
Brother Ibarra began his nearly 40-year career representing ILWU members in 1964 when he was elected to the Local 26 Max Factor negotiating committee. This was the first of many negotiating committees on which he would eventually serve. While serving on the Watchmen’s negotiating committee in 1966, Joe would help establish the first pension plan in that industry.
The membership of Local 26 recognized Joe’s commitment and leadership qualities in 1965 when he was elected as a delegate to the International Convention. In 1969, he was elected Local 26 President and then in 1975, Joe was elected to the International Executive Board (IEB) along with Rudy Rubio. They were the first two Mexican-Americans to serve on the IEB. Joe continued to serve on the IEB until 1982 when he was appointed Southern California Regional Director, a position he held until 1994 when he was elected International Secretary-Treasurer.
Joe Ibarra (center) being sworn in as Local 26 President by Jack Hall, ILWU Vice President
Joe was committed to organizing new workers into the ILWU. He ventured into the Imperial Valley where he organized cotton compress workers such as those at CalCot. Joe also organized workers at Great Lakes Carbon Corp., Kerr Steamships and several off dock container stuffing operations. Joe was instrumental in organizing office clerical workers into the OCU unit of Local 63. In the 70s, and early 80s Joe had the difficult responsibility of negotiating severance packages for many Local 26 members whose employers either closed up their union shops or moved to the “right to work for less” states.
Joe understood the importance of solidarity. He worked closely with Local 6, which had many employers in common with Local 26. Joe served as the ILWU representative at many Teamster meetings and conferences and he worked closely with the International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine, and General Workers Union (ICEM).
He was also politically active in his community. Joe worked with the Watts Community Labor Action Council and he was appointed to the Board of Social Service Commissioners by Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley. Later, Mayor Bradley would appoint him to the Police Commission.
As International Secretary Treasurer, Joe put a lot of energy into the International’s education program. He believed strongly that ILWU members needed education about the history, traditions and policies of the ILWU. To address this, he helped initiate the highly regarded Leadership, Educations and Development Institute (LEAD).
Joe was also committed to organizing and as Secretary Treasurer; he helped refocus international resources on organizing. He closely watched over the finances of the International union and upon his retirement in 2003, the ILWU was left in the best financial shape in over a decade. Joe is survived by his wife Elsa, sons Gary and David, daughters, Monica and Angel, nine brothers and sisters, 10 grandchildren and 6 great grandchildren.