LABOR UNIONS
1. NLU: National Labor Union
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1866, William Sylvis, 200,000
workers
Members - skilled, unskilled,
farmers, Not African Americans
(racism)
Goals: higher wages, shorter hours,
Political: ban prison labor, currency
to improve farm prices
Failure: represent to many types of
workers (demands vary), Panic of
1873
2. Knights of Labor
Haymarket Square, Chicago, May 4, 1886
 1869, Uriah Stephens began as a secret
society
 1886, 750,000 worker members
 Members: all wage earners, even Women
and African Americans
(fight for class dispute override gender /
racial differences)
 Goals: higher wages, shorter hours, limit
immigration, child labor, government
ownership of
railroads/telegraphs/telephones
 May 1, 1886, International Workers Day
 Knights of Labor organized a strike for an 8
hour workday
 Demonstration grew violent when a bomb
was thrown into the crowd
 1 policeman died, injuries in crowd
 Terence Powderly, leader , condemned the
bombing
 Anarchism and Mob violence became
associated with demonstration -->
membership dropped
AFL
 Skilled Workers: group of varied craft
unions (masons, hatmakers,
cigarmakers)
 Formed Dec. 1886 (same year of
Haymarket Square Affair)
 Trades people had higher wages than
unskilled and had more
political/economic power
 Strikes and Boycotts carried out
successfully (larger power of AFL carry
influence over business)
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3. American Federation of Labor - AFL
Samuel Gompers:
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Born - 1850, London, Jewish cigarmakers
Move to Manhattan during Civil War
27 yrs old , organize local cigarmakers'
union
Simple Demands - higher wages, better
working conditions
NLA and Knight of Labor were too
diverse in goals = failure
President of AFL 1886-1924
Unofficial leader of labor world because
successfully got demands met and
survived as a union
Chapter37 a-e at http://www.ushistory.org/us/37.asp
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Supported by government/public
because avoided political issues - stayed
simple not radical
1900 - 500,000 trades people become
members
Unions Grow
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20,000 strikes between 1880-1900
Workers lose 1/2 of strikes, demands
often met if partially
AFL was the major national labor
organization until the Great Depression
when unskilled laborers better organized
Ms. Heading - APUSH: Labor Unions (Progressive Era)
LABOR UNIONS
4. Eugene V. Debs and American Socialism
Marxism and Labor:
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Radicalism grew as division between producers and nonproducers grew
Gap between rich and poor ever present
Capitalism exploit working class while a few got rich
Socialism - means of production owned by government, distribute wealth evenly to producers
Eugene V. Debs - Pullman Strike:
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Born 1855, Indiana, parents were French immigrants
1892, formed American Railway Union which organized Pullman strike
1894 - Pullman Strike: Pullman Car Company fired 5,000 employees who refused to take a pay cut
Debs jailed after court injunction deemed the strike illegal
President Grover Cleveland sent federal troops to end strike and arrest Debs
Presidential Candidate - 6 mos. jail term led Debs to run for President as a Socialist
1900 - 87,000 votes (ran 4 times, even from jail after anti-war actions during WWI)
1912 - 900,000 votes (never won an election, but Socialism grew)
Socialism: 1,000+ Socialist Party members fill city/state governments
Industrial Workers of the World - I.W.W. or Wobblies
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Founded 1905, William "Big Bill" Haywood
Radical group, led antiwar movement in WWI
Encouraged violence against employers, Goal to overthrow capitalism
Membership small, led strikes across US
Success in message that workers are being mistreated - awareness
Decline post WWI, but began radical American activism
Chapter37 a-e at http://www.ushistory.org/us/37.asp
Ms. Heading - APUSH: Labor Unions (Progressive Era)
National Labor Union
Knights of Labor
American Federation of Labor
Industrial Workers of the World
Membership
City trade assemblies, national
trade unions, reform
organizations
Men, women, whites, blacks,
skilled, unskilled, citizens,
immigrants
Skilled workers from many
industries,
Socialists and trade unions,
unskilled and exploited workers,
immigrants, minorities, women,
migrant farmers
Leadership
William Sylvis, David Davis
Uriah Stevens, Terence
Powderly, James Sovereign
Samuel Gompers, William
Greene
Bill Haywood, Eugene V. Debbs,
Mother Jones, Daniel De Leon
Goals
Tactics
Outcomes
Better working conditions, 8hour work day, equal pay for
equal work
Abolishing child labor, equal
pay for equal work, 8-hour work
day, creation of a Bureau of
Labor Statistics in the federal
government
Higher wages, shorter hours,
other economics issues
One big union to control the
means of production and
distribution (Marxist/communist
struggle), abolish divisions
among workers, achieve fair and
equal working conditions and
government support for labor
Legislative reform, lobbying, no
strikes
Arbitration, boycotts,
cooperatives, though they did
not support strikes they did use
strikes sometimes, legislative
pressure (used after
Haymarket)
Distanced itself from communist
and socialist organizations,
negotiated labor contracts,
strike only when necessary,
focused on day-to-day working
conditions instead of social or
business practices, collective
bargaining, closed shop
Direct action, strikes, (general
strike in the future to overthrow
the capitalistic system, smaller
strikes in the short term),
educational campaigns, songs,
graphics, speeches, literature,
sit-down strike, chain picketing,
car caravans
Second strike against Jay
Gould’s railroad empire and the
Haymarket Square Riot in May
1886 destroyed the reputation
and support of the union, most
members joined the AFL or
local trade unions comprised of
skilled workers
Congress passed labor laws,
but the Supreme Court
overruled some, merged with
the CIO (Congress of Industrial
Organizations) in 1955, did
achieve better working
conditions (minimum wage,
maximum working hours,
workers compensation, end to
child labor, all during the 1930s)
Civil rights advances, fought
against the government for
st
protection of 1 Amendment
rights, anti-military and anti-war
stance caused them to be
unpopular in WWI, legacy of
organizing tactics for groups, led
to the mass union of the CIO
and inclusion of women in labor
leadership and membership
Transformed into the National
Labor Reform Party, nominated
David Davis for president, lost
the 1872 election, was
disbanded in 1873
Chapter37 a-e at http://www.ushistory.org/us/37.asp
Ms. Heading - APUSH: Labor Unions (Progressive Era)
QUESTIONS:
1. How did membership in the National Labor Union, Knights of Labor, AFL and IWW differ?
2. What goals did these unions have in common?
Chapter37 a-e at http://www.ushistory.org/us/37.asp
Ms. Heading - APUSH: Labor Unions (Progressive Era)