1 / 33

The Growth of the American Labor Movement

The Growth of the American Labor Movement. The Worker – Immigrants. Farmers Depression, Debt, Crop Prices Irish and German (Pre 1880s ) “Old Immigrants” Potato Famine, Jobs, Instable Govt Eastern/Southern Europeans (Post 1880’s) “New Immigrants”

lucas
Download Presentation

The Growth of the American Labor Movement

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. The Growth of the American Labor Movement

  2. The Worker – Immigrants • Farmers • Depression, Debt, Crop Prices • Irish and German (Pre 1880s) • “Old Immigrants” • Potato Famine, Jobs, Instable Govt • Eastern/Southern Europeans (Post 1880’s) • “New Immigrants” • Religious, Racial, Political Persecution • Labor Contract Laws • Free Passage  Deducted from paycheck Why do Industrialists encourage Immigration? What is this going to lead to?

  3. The Worker – The Issues • Low Income • Avg. $450/yr  “Poor Line” $600/yr • Women paid 20% less than men • Harsh Conditions • 10-12hrs/6 days per week • Little to no safety regulations • Child Labor • 15% of kids between 10-15 yrs work • 60% in Agriculture • Early Child Labor Laws • Only set minimum of 12yrs • Usually Ignored

  4. Child Labor

  5. Child Labor

  6. Emerging Unionism • Little success in early 19th c. • Craft Unions • Grouped by specific skills • Too small and often isolated • National Unions • Often Trade Unions • Begin to grow in late 19th c. • Often lacked support due to violence

  7. The Molly Maguires (1875) • Secret organization of miners • Known for violent tactics against Industrialists and management • Exposed by James McParland JamesMcParland “Pinkerton”

  8. The Corporate “Bully-Boys”: Pinkerton Agents • Private “security” agency • Used as spies within labor groups • Often called in as “Strike Breakers”

  9. Management vs. Labor “Tools” of Management “Tools” of Labor • “scabs” • P. R. campaign • Pinkertons • lockout • blacklisting • yellow-dog contracts • court injunctions • open shop • boycotts • sympathy demonstrations • informational picketing • closed shops • organized strikes • “wildcat” strikes

  10. A Striker Confronts a SCAB!

  11. Knights of Labor Remember Me! Uriah Stephens Founder (1869) Terence V. Powderly Leader (1879-93)

  12. Knights of Labor (1869) • Originally a secret organization • Considered first “National” L. Union • 700,000 member at its peak (1886) • Rapidly declines due to violence and disorganization Knights of Labor trade card

  13. Goals of the Knights of Labor • Eight-hour workday. • Workers’ cooperatives. • - Worker-owned factories. • Abolition of child and prison labor. • Increased circulation of greenbacks. • Equal pay for men and women. • Safety codes in the workplace. • Prohibition of “contract labor”. • Supported Chinese Exclusion

  14. The American Federation of Labor: 1886 Remember Me Too! • Emerged out of dispute in K of L • Organization made up of Craft Unions • Focused on Wages, Hours, & Conditions • Also sees decline and lack of support due to violence but remained active until 1955 Samuel Gompers

  15. How the AF of L Would Help the Workers • 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.

  16. Major Labor Disputes and Violence • 1877 – Great Railroad Strike • 1886 – Haymarket Riot • 1892 – Homestead Strike • 1894 – Pullman Strike

  17. The Great Railroad Strike (1877) Legacy: First major national labor conflict

  18. The Great Railroad Strike of 1877 • Cause: 10% Wage Cuts • Strikes stretch from Baltimore to St. Louis • Rioting in major cities • Destroyed Equipment • Rutherford B Hayes forced to call on state and federal troops to suppress troops • Result: 100 people dead

  19. The Tournament of Today: A Set-to Between Labor and Monopoly

  20. Haymarket Riot (1886) Legacy: Negative/violent view on Labor Unions.

  21. Haymarket Riots • Cause: K of L and AFL Call for 8 Hour workday • Peaceful strike turned violent when police fired on the crowd killing 2 strikers • Next Day: Strikers and Anarchists rally to protest killings • 7 police officers killed and 67 wounded by dynamite bomb after harassing strikers • Several strikers killed in the following days • Result: Society demands retribution for killed Officers • 8 “anarchists” arrested for murders • - 4 executed, 1 suicide, 3 later pardoned • Anarchy and labor unions seen as similar – Red Scare?

  22. Homestead Steel Strike (1892) Homestead Steel Works Legacy: One of the largest labor disputes ever The Amalgamated Association of Iron & Steel Workers

  23. Homestead Strike • Cause: Carnegie Steel innovations put large number of skilled steel workers out of jobs • Carnegie orders Henry Clay Frick to cut wages in hope of forcing skilled workers to quit. • 300 Pinkertons called in to break strike • AA strikers refuse to let strike breakers through… Battle ensues • Result: After 3 agents and 10 strikers are killed, Pinkertons retreat • Soon after, Pennsylvania calls in state militia to end the strike (4 months) • AA gradually gives up.

  24. A “CompanyTown”: Pullman, IL

  25. Pullman Cars A Pullman porter

  26. The Pullman Strike of 1894 Legacy: Sets precedent of Federal Government involvement in breaking up strikes

  27. Pullman Strike • Cause: 25% wage cuts and high rent • Pullman Company gains support of American Railway Union (Led by Eugene Debs) • Strike centralized outside of Chicago but stretches across 27 states • Result: Debs and several strike leaders arrested after Federal troops are called in • Grover Cleveland claimed strike prevented the delivering of mail and was therefore a federal crime

  28. President Grover Cleveland If it takes the entire army and navy to deliver a postal card in Chicago, that card will be delivered!

  29. The Pullman Strike of 1894 Government by injunction!

  30. Legacy of 19th Century Labor Movement • Positives • 8 Hour workday for government workers • Abolition of Contract Labor • Some child labor laws • Some workers compensation

  31. Legacy of 19th Century Labor Movement • Negatives • Overall, little effectiveness • Many historians claim workers have less rights in 1900 than they did in 1860 • Labor Unions earn negative/violent name in middle and upper class America • Related to Anarchy and Socialism (Communism) • Why? • Majority of workers not in (not allowed in) major unions • Immigrants, African Americans, Children, Women • Growing Corporations = Too much $ and power

More Related