The C.I.O. is organized along industrial lines, the A.F.L. is organized along trade lines.
The distinction may best be shown In the automobile industry, where, under a C.I.O. set up, all workers in an automobile plant, from porters up to the most skilled, are in one union; under an A.F.L. set up, the same workers would be organized as painters, glass workers, lathe hands, carpenters, etc.
The break between the two organizations occurred in February, 1936. The C.I.O. is headed by John L. Lewis, and the A.F.L. by William Green. Left VVing elements are in both unions, but they are stronger in the C.I.O.