A Timeline of Labor History up to 1875

1. A Timeline of Labor History up to 1875

2. FROM LOCAL TO NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS • 1866-National Labor Union: • Lasted only six years • Established precedent for labor movement by uniting diverse unions into single federation. • Emphasized political activity to bring about legal reform. • Campaigned for 8 hour workday, currency & banking reform. • Women’s suffrage • National labor political party

3. A Timeline of Labor History between 1875 and 1925 • INSERT BOX 4.3.

4. THE GREAT UPRISING OF 1877 • The Great Uprising of 1877 is more notable for what it represented than what it accomplished: • Strikes clearly reflected pent-up grievances of workers • Represented the growing struggle between industrialism, labor and capital • Shared concerns of workers • Laid the foundation of for future labor-management conflict, not cooperation. • Social implications. • With use of Federal troops, big business was more likely to confront rather than bargain with labor.

5. UPLIFT UNIONISM • Knights of Labor: • Federation of local assemblies • Concern for moral worth, not material wealth • Emphasized education and cooperation over conflict • Broadly inclusive membership • Emphasized the solidarity of all producers-including African-Americans & women • Replace capitalism with producer cooperatives • Producers-not bankers and absentee owners-own and control • End labor conflict by harmonizing interests of capital and labor

6. “PURE AND SIMPLE” CRAFT UNIONISM • American Federation of Labor (AFL): • Response to failure of KoL to address everyday working issues. • A federation, not a labor union. • Member unions pursued primary labor relations functions, AFL provided support. • Endorsed craft unionism. • Openly hostile towards unskilled workers-only represented skilled workers. • Guided by principle of exclusive jurisdiction.

7. WORKERS OF THE WORLD UNITE! • Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) U.S. example of revolutionary unionism: • Both inclusive and radical • Goal was to form “One Big Union” • Skilled and unskilled, young and old • Native-born and immigrant • White and non-white • Male and female • Radicalism increased employer hostility towards unions

8. THE OPEN SHOP MOVEMENT AND WELFARE CAPITALISM • The open shop movement was concerted drive by employers and their associations to create and maintain union-free workplaces. • Emphasized an ideology of individual freedom • Unions were portrayed as violating individual liberties by denying workers the right to choose • Equated with “liberty and independence” of the employer’s “natural and constitutional rights” • Entailed well-orchestrated collectiveactivity by business

9. THE OPEN SHOP MOVEMENT AND WELFARE CAPITALISM • Welfare capitalism- more positive approach to employer resistance to unionization: • Improving supervisory practices. • Offering protective insurance benefits. • Implementing orderly hiring practices. • Improving physical work environment and safety. • Providing employee voice through nonunion employee representation plans (“company unions”).

10. A Timeline of Labor History since 1925

11. A NEW DEAL FOR WORKERS: LEGAL PROTECTION & INDUSTRIAL UNIONS • Passage of Norris-LaGuardia Act in 1932 began new era in U.S. labor-mngt relations (see ch. 5) • “Yellow dog” contracts made unenforceable • Limited use of injunctions in labor disputes

12. A NEW DEAL FOR WORKERS: LEGAL PROTECTION & INDUSTRIAL UNIONS • In 1933 Congress passed National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA): • Encouraged and emboldened workers to form unions. • Employers established company unions to avoid independent unionization. • In 1934, weakness of NIRA resulted in tremendous strikes where workers clashed with employers who refused to recognize independent unions. • Minneapolis Teamsters Strike • San Francisco General Strike • East Coast Textile Strike

13. A NEW DEAL FOR WORKERS: LEGAL PROTECTION & INDUSTRIAL UNIONS • NIRA ruled unconstitutional in 1935 • Same year, 1935, Congress passed the National Labor Relations Act (Wagner Act). • Encouraged unionization • Enacted legal protections for workers • Outlawed company unions • Established the National Labor Relations Board • By 1935, conflict between craft unionism and industrial unionism lead to the formation of the Committee for Industrial Organization (CIO). • By 1941, union membership tripled to about 8.4M, or 23 percent of workers.

14. A NEW DEAL FOR WORKERS: LEGAL PROTECTION & INDUSTRIAL UNIONS • General Motors Sit-Down Strike (December 1936-February 1937) was watershed event for both organized labor and the CIO. • Workers in Flint, Michigan took over two GM plants. • After the strike spread to other cities and several battles between strikers and police, General Motors finally agreed to recognize the United Auto Workers (UAW). • Industrial unionism further spread to steel and other manufacturing industries. • Though not without some intense battles, such as the Memorial Day Massacre during the Little Steel Strike.

15. WARTIME AND POSTWAR LABOR RELATIONS • 1947-Taft-Hartley Act. • 1955-AFL-CIO merger. • 1959-Landrum-Griffin Act. • Private sector union density peaked at around 35 percent. • Public sector union membership dramatically increased, beginning in 1960s. • 1981-Air traffic controllers fired during the illegal PATCO strike; replacement workers hired. • Number of bitter strikes in the 1980s and 1990s involved management use of permanent replacement workers. • Labor practices became more divergent -- some relationships became more adversarial, while others tried to create stronger union-management partnerships.

16. WARTIME AND POSTWAR LABOR RELATIONS • The labor movement at beginning of 21st century is struggling, yet has pockets of vibrancy: • Globalization continues to undermine labor’s bargaining power. • Private sector union density has shrunk to <10 percent. • Public sector union density stable at 35+ percent. • Dunlop Commission (Clinton Administration) issued recommendations for reducing conflict and improving productivity. • General unionism has largely replaced craft unionism and industrial unionism. • 2005—disaffiliation of SEIU, Teamsters, UFCW, Unite Here from AFL-CIO (~1/3 of membership), formation of Change to Win Coalition (includes Laborers, UFW, Carpenters)