A Time of Labor Unrest

1. A Time of Labor Unrest • Why did conflict between labor and management increase after the war? • Why did the public turn against the strikers? • Why did labor union membership decline in the 1920s?

2. A Time of Labor Unrest • During WWI, the US Labor Administration prevented labor unions from striking. • In 1919, there were more than 3,000 strikes involving approximately 4 million workers • Workers wanted better wages and working conditions (wages had not kept pace with inflation)

3. The "American Plan" • the American Plan = anti-labor policy advocated by employers • it was un-American for a worker to “have” to join a union to get a job (a.k.a. no closed shop agreements) • by refusing to negotiate with unions, employers were “protecting” workers’ rights to work (a.k.a. no collective bargaining)

4. The "American Plan" • actions taken by “American Plan” companies: • offered benefits (higher wages, stock ownership, vacation time, etc.) • allowed formation of local company-based unions with no outside affiliations and little power • fired striking workers and union representatives • disseminated propaganda associating unions with communists, socialists, and anarchists

5. The Boston Police Strike • Boston police had not been given a raise since the start of WWI • Representatives who asked for a raise were fired • Remaining 1,117 officers went on strike in September 1919 • Fear for public safety generated national attention

6. The Boston Police Strike • MA governor, Calvin Coolidge, called out the National Guard • “There is no right to strike against public safety by anybody, anywhere, any time.”

7. The Boston Police Strike • After the strike ended, the striking officers were not allowed to return to work • New officers were hired and trained • Coolidge was praised for “saving Boston, if not the nation, from communism and anarchy”

8. The Steel Mill Strike • Steel workers wanted: • right to negotiate for shorter working hours and higher wages • union recognition with collective bargaining • U.S. Steel management refused to meet with workers (September 1919) • Over 300,000 workers went on strike

9. The Steel Mill Strike • Strikebreakers (employees who agreed to work during the strike) were hired • Striking workers were beaten by police, federal troops, and state militias • Management instituted a national propaganda campaign linking the strikers to communists

10. The Steel Mill Strike • Strike ended in January 1920 • In 1923, a report on the harsh working conditions was made public • In response, management agreed to an 8-hour day, though did not recognize the legitimacy of the union

11. The Coal Miners' Strike • United Mine Workers of America (led by John Lewis) called for a strike on November 1, 1919 • Union wanted to protest low wages and long workdays and workweeks • Attorney General Palmer obtained a court order sending the miners back to work

12. The Coal Miners' Strike • Mines stayed closed for a month beyond the court order • President Wilson ordered an arbitrator (judge) to settle the dispute • Workers received a 27% wage increase, but did not get the shorter workday nor the shorter workweek

13. Labor Movement Loses Appeal • Reasons for the decline: • unions were linked to Communists, socialists, and anarchists • much of the work force consisted of immigrants willing to work in poor conditions • immigrant workers were difficult to organize because they spoke many different languages (not English) • farmers who had migrated to the cities to find factory jobs were used to self-reliance • most unions excluded African-Americans