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The Growth Of Organized Labor. As it became clear that the government and business leaders were largely going to ignore working conditions and wages, workers began to take matters into their own hands. Thus, to begin to push for improvements, workers in American cities began to unionize.
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The Growth Of Organized Labor
As it became clear that the government and business leaders were largely going to ignore working conditions and wages, workers began to take matters into their own hands.
Thus, to begin to push for improvements, workers in American cities began to unionize.
The goal of labor unions was / is to use the collective strength of workers to push for change. How? • Closed shops (all workers must join the union) • Encourage public boycotts • Organized strikes • Informational picketing • “Wildcat” strikes
The first notable, national organization was the National Labor Union (NLU): - Founded by William Sylvis in 1866 - Attempted to link together numerous smaller unions of both skilled and unskilled workers. - Pushed for a standard 8 hr. work day. - Hoped to settle disputes with company owners through arbitration. - Excluded African Americans who then formed the CNLU
While the NLU was eventually successful in securing an 8 hour day for some government employees, it’s impact was limited by the economic downturn of the 1870’s.
A new organization quickly rose to pick up the cause. The Noble and Holy Order of the Knights of Labor.
Uriah Stephens Terence Powderly
An injury to one is the concern of all! • Eight-hour workday. • Workers’ cooperatives. • Abolition of child labor. • Increased circulation of greenbacks. • Equal pay for men and women. • Safety codes in the workplace. • Prohibition of contract foreign labor. • Open to ALL!
Organizations like the Knights found achieving change difficult, especially as they attempted to organized unskilled labor. Why?
To deal with that, some began to focus their efforts on skilled labor specifically. Samuel Gompers thus helped form the American Federation of Labor (AFL) in 1886.
Catered to the skilled worker. • Represented workers in matters of national legislation. • Maintained a national strike fund. • Evangelized the cause of unionism. • Prevented disputes among the many craft unions. • Mediated disputes between management and labor. • Pushed for closed shops.
Other unions began to call for even greater change to both American industry and America itself. The best example was the Industrial Workers of the World (I.W.W) led by William “Big Bill” Haywood in 1905.
The IWW began to call for socialist style reform to the capitalist American system.
Socialists argued that it was ridiculous for men like Carnegie and Rockefeller to earn so much more than their workers.
As such, Socialists like Eugene V. Debs began to call for a cap, a maximum, on how much any person could make in a year.
Once a person met that maximum, the government would take the excess income, the extra money, and give it to those who needed it.
Thus, at the same time, socialists argued there also needed to be a minimum income that everyone should get. To make sure that everyone got there, money would go from the rich to the poor.
Socialists did NOT argue that everyone should be equal. A person like Carnegie would still be able to make a lot more than his workers, just not as much as before.
Socialists also called for: - Government inspection of factories and minimum safety conditions. - Improvements in workers housing. - Government ownership of public utilities.
Another extremely important individual in organized labor history is Mary Harris Jones (AKA “Mother” Jones).
Organized for theUnited MineWorkers. • Founded the SocialDemocratic Party in 1898. • One of the founding members of the I. W. W. in 1905.
American businessmen were none too pleased with the growth of organized labor. Why?
How did they fight back? • “scabs” • P. R. campaign • Pinkertons • lockout • blacklisting • yellow-dog contracts • court injunctions • open shop • Sherman Anti-Trust Act
Organized Labor in action or Unions “Fightin’ the Man”
Great Strike of 1877 • July 1877 • Workers for the Baltimore and Ohio RR (B & O) went on strike protesting repeated wage cuts. • They prevented any freight from moving on lines owned or operated by the B & O.
Great Strike of 1877 • In states across the nation, governors dispatched the National Guard to restore the flow of freight across the rails. • As strikers and the Guard clashed, the strike grew increasingly brutal and violent.
Great Strike of 1877 To eventually restore order, President Hayes dispatched federal troops to suppress the strike. These soldiers finished their job approximately 45 days after the strike began.
Haymarket Affair • May 4, 1886 • 3,000 workers gathered in Haymarket Square in Chicago. • Organized to protest police brutality against striking workers. • As the demonstration was ending, the Chicago police arrived on the scene.
At that point, someone threw a bomb into the crowd. In the chaos and riot that followed the police opened fire on the workers.
Haymarket Affair • When all was said and done, 8 police officers and at least 4 workers were dead. • 8 “leaders” of the demonstration were arrested and put on trial for murder. • All were convicted, 4 were executed. • Hurt the labor movement’s public image. Killed the Knights.
Homestead Steel Strike • June 29, 1892 • Steelworkers at a Carnegie Steel plant in Homestead, PA went on strike to protest working conditions and wage cuts.
Homestead Steel Strike Company president Henry Clay Frick hired Pinkerton guards to protect the plant so he could hire scab workers to keep it operating.
The steelworkers successfully fought off the Pinkertons, forcing the mill to close, but at a cost of 11 dead.
The national guard arrived on July 12 and forcibly reopened the plant.
Homestead Steel Strike Frick proceeded to hire scabs, and the strike collapsed in November. Steel workers had been unsuccessful in securing any change.
Pullman Company Strike • Workers for the Pullman Company built railroad cars in Pullman, IL. • Pullman was a factory town, owned by the company. • Workers were forced to pay rent to the company out of their wages.
During the Panic of 1893, George Pullman cut wages and increased the rent for housing. When the Panic ended, he refused to return the wages and rents to normal.
Workers at the Pullman factory went out on strike in 1894. To support their fellow workers the American Railway Union (ARU), led by Eugene V. Debs went on strike as well. This effectively shut down the movement of freight in 27 states.
Pullman appealed to the government for help. What jurisdiction did the federal government have?
Pullman Company Strike Federal troops were dispatched by President Cleveland to restore order and get rail freight moving again. “If it takes the entire army and navy to deliver a postal card in Chicago, that card will be delivered!”
Throughout the Gilded Age, organized labor was largely ineffective at securing much change. Why? - Business owners had the power. They had connections in government and could call upon elected officials to help put strikes down. - The courts used their power to silence labor agitation focusing the Sherman Anti-trust Act on Unions as being restrictive of commerce. - The overwhelming number of workers made things difficult. Factory owners could always find someone willing to work in the conditions and for the wages Unions were fighting to improve.
Throughout the Gilded Age, organized labor was largely ineffective at securing much change. Why? - Public opinion began to turn against organized labor as they began to associate violence, anarchy, and socialism with the labor movement. - Others began to look at the success of men like Carnegie and Rockefeller and argued that if they could rise to power and wealth from humble backgrounds, why couldn’t everyone else? Thus, Unions were seen by some as incompatible with capitalistic competition. - Lastly , some people simply didn’t care.
