Growth and Development of the Labor Movement

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Growth and Development of the Labor Movement
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Labor Movement

• Discuss how the perception of organized labor has
  changed in America from the period of the
  mid-1800s to the 1960s.

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APUSH Labor Union Review
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Labor Union Organizations

• Shoemakers in PA (1790s)
• Mechanics Union (1820s)
• Molly Maguire's in PA (1860s)
• Freemasons (1700s)

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Knights of Labor (1869)

• Org. 9 tailors in PA
• Secret society
• Uriah S. Stephens
• Gained influence during Great RR Strike 1877
• 1880s dropped secrecy became public
• Terrence Powderlynew leader of KOL
• Included everyone w/ a jobexcept bankers,
  lawyers, gamblers liquor producers

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Aims of the KOL

• An eight-hour work day
• Termination of child labor
• Termination of the convict contract labor system
  (the concern was not for the prisoners the
  Knights opposed competition from this cheap
  source of labor)
• Establishment of cooperatives to replace the
  traditional wage system and help tame
  capitalism's excesses
• Equal pay for equal work
• Government ownership of telegraph facilities and
  the railroads
• A public land policy designed to aid settlers and
  not speculators
• A graduated income tax.

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Influence of KOL

• Main strategystrikes
• Successful in Union Pacific strike (1884)
  Wabash RR Strike (1885)
• Membership rose to over 700,000 in 1880s
• Haymarket Square Riot (1886)
• KOL implicated
• union anarchism
• Membership declines to 100,000
• Too large, too many differing ideologies (some
  radical)

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American Federation of Labor (AFL) 1886

• Rise of AFL
• Led by Samuel Gompers
• Rejected Radical Unionization
• Promoted union for skilled laborers
• Used collective bargaining strikes as last
  resorts
• Wanted much of the same as KOL
• Focused on higher wages, better workplace
  environ, shortened work week
• Left out minorities and unskilled laborers

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Minorities Labor Unions

• African Americans
• Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters
• Women
• Womens Trade Union League
• International Ladies Garment Workers Union (after
  Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire-1911)

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Success of AFL

• AFL becomes the largest and most powerful union
  in late 1800s early 1900s
• Combating the ideology of union anarchism
• Most strikes are unsuccessfulput down by police,
  state or national guard

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Radical Labor Organizations

• WobbliesInternational Workers of the World
• Big Bill Haywood
• Socialists

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WWI

• Labor Unions benefit from WWI
• Fed. Govt regulates unionspromise to keep union
  demandspay, hours, workplace conditions, end of
  child labor in return for not striking
• Women AA also receive benefits
• End of WWIreturn to labor problems

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Roaring 20s

• Labor unions are hurt due to assembly line
  (unskilled laborers)
• Open shopsrefused to give work to members of a
  union
• welfare capitalisminternal workplace unions
• Booming economy
• Bull market
• Rampant immigration

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Great Depression Unions

• FDR favors Unions
• New Deal Legislation
• NIRA blanket codeunconstitutionalsick
  chicken
• NRAcreation of National Labor Boardemployers
  must negotiate with legitimate unions
• CIO (Committee of Industrial Organization)
• Makes unions industry specific
• United Auto Workers
• SWOC