History 12

1. History 12 Term 2

2. How successful were efforts to organize a national labor movement in America during the late 19th century?

3. First Union • With increasing industrialization after the Civil War unionism became more and more important. The National Labor Union (NLU) a federation of national and local unions and of city federations, was founded in 1866. Was the first national union. Within two years it had more than 600,000 members. The NLU collapsed in in 1872 as the result of a national depression.

4. Union Membership picks up • The 1870's there was a period of widespread union activity, largely because of the terrible working conditions faced by workers. • In 1873 there was a disastrous economic crisis. This increased union membership and activity. • Many unions struck against pay cuts and the replacement of workers by machines.

5. Employers • Most employers strongly opposed unions. The struggle between workers and employers often took violent forms. When employers would refuse to increase wages workers would sometimes resort to violence. • This made it hard for workers to gain any ground. People looked down on workers for causing violence.

6. Examples of Violent Strikes • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ds4cHgzN-S8&playnext=1&list=PL74FD9CA564C11DD1&feature=results_video • Railroad strike of 1877 • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eFOBdHhnIj4 • Haymarket Square. Bombing leads to death of 4. Police shoot into the crowd. Called martyrs

8. Strikes • Strikes were the best tool the unions had. They could disrupt business by refusing to work. People who continued to work or who took jobs that strikers abandoned were called “strike breakers” it was suppose to be a derogatory thing. • During this time period the government ruled in the favor of the employers. Policy reflected support for business.

9. Policy to Reflect the Times • The courts used the Sherman Anti Trust Act which made illegal any "conspiracy in restraint of trade" to justify the injunctions. While the Sherman Act was not written with this use in mind the courts who sympathized with management interpreted unions to be a "conspiracy in restraint of trade."

10. Sherman Anti Trust • This was an act that was passed by congress in 1890 that tried to reduce trusts, but it had little to do with trusts. The goal was “to protect the consumers by preventing arrangements designed to advance the cost of goods to the consumer.” The law was set up to protect consumers from the market, but it was not used for the purpose until Roosevelt. • First time it was used was against a union.

11. Unions • Several Union organizations formed. Three examples: • Knights of Labor • American Federation of Labor (AFL) • Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) • American Railway Union (ARU)

12. Knights of Labor • The 1870's saw the creation of the Knights of Labor. The Knights of Labor were a true national union. They demanded the 8 hour work day. The Knights admitted both skilled and unskilled workers as well as those of each race. • The Knights declined after the Haymarket Square Riot. They were accused of violence.

13. AFL • In 1886 the American Federation of Labor (AFL) was founded by Samuel Gompers, president of the Cigar makers International Union. The initial membership of the AFL was estimated at about 140,000 workers grouped in 25 national unions. The AFL was a national federation of independent unions. The AFL concerned itself primarily with organizing skilled workers.

14. IWW • In 1905 the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), was organized in Chicago to represent unskilled workers. The IWW never had more than about 100,000 members, who were called Wobblies, but it conducted numerous strikes, many marked by bloodshed, and exerted a major influence on the American labor movement until the early 1920's.

15. ARU • This was the largest labor union of its time and one of the first industrial unions of the US. It was founded by railway workers and under the leadership of Eugene V. Debs. This included all railway workers regardless of craft or skill.

16. Federal Induction due to Strike • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fgX0PW0ij_w&feature=related • Pullman Strike Leads to Federal Court Case • In this case Eugene V. Debs, an American railway union officer and one of the leaders of the Pullman Railroad Car workers' strike in 1894, refused to honor a federal court "injunction" ordering him to halt the strike. Debs appealed his "contempt of courts conviction. At issue was whether the federal government has the constitutional authority to stop railroad workers from striking.

17. Court Decision • The Supreme Court of the United States, in a unanimous decision, upheld the authority of the federal government to halt the strike. The Court reasoned that the federal government has "enumerated powers" found in Article 1, Section 8, to "regulate commerce ... among the several states," and to establish post offices and post roads. When the American Railway Union struck, it interfered with the railroad's ability to carry commerce and mail which benefited the needs and "general welfare" of all Americans.

18. Court does not stop workers • While Debs lost the case he did not lose the support of the workers. In fact, Debs ran for President of the United States from his jail cell and millions voted for him!

19. Management Reacts • Workers efforts to form unions were strongly and often violently opposed by management. Factory owners used a variety of methods such as: • 1. Firing union organizers. • 2. Placing union organizers on what was known as a blacklist. The blacklist was circulated and those on it would not be hired by other factory owners. The blacklist was eventually made illegal.

20. Methods • 3. New hires were forced to sign a yellow dog contract. The yellow dog contract made a new employees promise he would never join a union as a term of employment. This was also eventually made illegal . • 4. Factory owners where granted injunctions by the courts. An injunction is a court order barring a certain activity. If the court granted an injunction against a unions activities then the union had to stop that activity.

21. Methods • 5. Striking workers where often fired and replaced with scabs. • 6. The police and hired thugs would use violence to break up strikes and union rallies. In the Great Railroad Strike 26 workers where killed. Most strikers were fired and wages were eventually restored.

22. Quiz 1 Term 2 • The railroad strike of 1877 involved what railroad company? • After the bomb went off at Haymarket square how did the police react? • The AFL represented what type of workers? • How did the government justify breaking up strikes? • Who was the leader of the ARU? • Name 3 techniques of management for dealing with unions?

23. Group Song Assignment • Similar to the example of the singing strike clip we watched. You need to tell a story of a historical event or situation in song. You will be separated into groups. Each group will be assigned an event they will need to recount. The criteria is: 1. All the facts need to be accurate. 2. You need pictures. (At least 20) It can be a video or Slides. 2 and a half mins minimum 3. Your song needs to be preformed with the pictures. It needs to be understood in story form. Every member of the group needs to sing a part.

24. Topics • Homestead Strike • Child Labor • Jim Crow Laws • The immigration experience in America • Farmers and the Populist party • The Gilded Age/Mark Twain • Captains of Industry

25. Presentations

26. Union Goals • Goals of unions: To negotiate a contract for their members that gain improved wages , benefits and working conditions. These contacts are known as collective bargaining agreements (CBA's)

27. Union Methods • Negotiation - Unions bargain and discuss their wished with management in an attempt to come to a peaceful agreement that they both can live with. This is the art of compromise. • Slow Down - If unions do not get what they want sometimes they tell workers to slow down production to "push" management to give them what they want. • Sick Out - One tactic that might be used is having numerous workers call in sick on one day. This temporarily stops production and is a show of force. • Picketing - Unions will protest outside of the place of work to gain public support and attention. • Strike - This is the last resort, walking out of work. If the workers can hold out long enough they may push management to give them what they want.

28. Government on Unions • Unions have been a very successful force in winning things for their members. Wages have gone up, hours have gone down and conditions have improved. This was not and easy road however. As we know management strongly opposed unions. What many people do not know, however, is that the government strongly opposed unions for many years as well.

29. 3 Time Periods • The government positions on unions can basically be broken into three time periods: • 1. Anti Union - 1830's – 1932 • 2. Pro Union - 1932 – 1945 • 3. Seeking a Balance -1945 - Present

30. Anti Union • 1. Anti Union - 1830's - 1932 - During this time the government sided with factory workers as it embraced the Laissez Faire/Rugged Individualist mentality. • This meant they did not want to interfere with business practices in any way. Otherwise they might stifle growth and development. Companies could do what was best for them.

31. Policy Reflecting Anti Union • Courts granted injunctions (court order stopping a certain activity) based upon the Sherman Antitrust Act to stop union activity. The Sherman Act declared any "conspiracy in restraint of trade" to be illegal and the courts felt that unions were such a conspiracy. • President Grover Cleveland sent federal troops to break up the great Railroad strike. 26 strikers were killed. • President Teddy Roosevelt sent in federal troops to break up the Great Anthracite (coal) strike. • In 1914 the Clayton Anti Trust Act made unions legal but courts continued to grant injunctions and favor management.

32. Pro Union • 2. Pro Union - 1932 - 1945 - During the time the government passed laws that supported union activity. The Depression changed the way people looked at government help and the way we viewed governments responsibility as a whole. The notion of rugged individualism died as did the laissez faire economic philosophy.

33. Examples of how Gov. was pro union • The National Labor Relations Act (Wagner Act) gave unions allot of bargaining power. It also created the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). The NLRB had the power to mediate in negotiations and assist unions in gaining fair negotiations. • The Wages and Hours Act was passed creating a 40 hour work day and a minimum wage. • The Social Security Act was passed providing for government run pensions for all workers.

34. 3 Seeking a balance • 3. Seeking a Balance -1945 - Present - Since the end of WWII the government has tried to find a fair balance between unions and management. The goal has been to keep a level playing field. Often the government (even the President himself) has acted as a mediator.

35. Examples Of Balance • In 1947 Congress passed the Taft-Hartley Act limiting the actions of Unions and balancing the trend begun by the Wagner Act.

36. The Gold Standard • In 1900 America went on the Gold Standard. What this meant was that every dollar was exchangeable for a dollar of gold. The US promised to have gold reserves equal to the amount of money in circulation. The problem with this is that is limits the amount of money in circulation and this raises the value of money. The effect of this on farmers was further deflation. Their loans on farm acreage remained but their income dropped...not a good combination.

37. Populist Platform • In response to their problems farmers formed a political party called the Populist Party. The elected William Jennings Bryan as their leader and first candidate for president. As a third party the Populists hoped to get their ideas and needs placed into the public arena

38. Platform • 1. Elimination of the gold standard. Populists supported the Silver Standards which would have made money cheaper and more available. This would have created inflationary pressure and raised prices. If a silver standard would not be accepted they would have settled for bimetallism.2. Passage of an income tax. • 3. The end of life tenure of Federal Judges. • 4. The end of the printing of paper currency by nationally chartered private banks.

39. Results • The Populist Party did not achieve all of their goals, the nation remained on the gold standard until 1933, but they did get considerable recognition as a viable political force. By 1911 the the new Federal Reserve System took over the printing of money. An income tax was indeed passed.

40. Quiz • What are 2 methods union members used to get results? • What does CBA stand for? • What is the Gold standard? • What event caused the public to view the government differently? • What did the populist party want to do with the gold standard?

42. Bi-Metallism Issue

43. The Panic of 1893

44. Causes of the 1893 Panic • Begun 10 days after Cleveland took office. • Several major corps. went bankrupt. • Over 16,000 businesses disappeared. • Triggered a stock market crash. • Over-extended investments. • Bank failures followed causing a contractionof credit [nearly 500 banks closed]. • By 1895, unemployment reached 3 million. • Americans cried out for relief, but the Govt.continued its laissez faire policies!!

45. Here Lies Prosperity

46. Written by a Farmer at the End of the 19c When the banker says he's brokeAnd the merchant’s up in smoke,They forget that it's the farmer who feeds them all.It would put them to the testIf the farmer took a rest;Then they'd know that it's the farmer feeds them all.

47. Gold / Silver Bug Campaign Pins

48. William Jennings Bryan (1860-1925) The “Great Commoner”

49. Bryant’s“Cross of Gold” Speech You shall not press down upon the brow of labor this crown of thorns; you shall not crucify mankind upon across of gold!

50. 1896 Election Results