Did You Know? During the Pullman strike in July 1894, railroad workers in Chicago went on strike in sympathy with the employees of the Pullman Palace Car Company. Among the incidents of the strike, strikers burned 600 freight cars in the Chicago railroad yards. The Governor of Illinois, John Peter Altgeld, was a friend of labor unions and refused to call out the militia to stop the strike. Over the objections of Governor Altgeld, President Grover Cleveland and his attorney general ordered 2,000 troops to the Chicago area to end the Pullman strike
Sep 11­12:45 PM
• Working in the United States ﴾page 454﴿
Conditions for workers in industries were difficult. Work was monotonous
and repetitive. Workers often worked in unhealthy and unsafe environments.
However, industrialization brought people a higher standard of living.
The difference in the standard of living between the wealthy owners and
the working class was great. For this reason, workers often resented the
wealthy. Relations between workers and the employers grew worse in the late
1800s because of deflation. This is a rise in the value of money. This caused
prices to fall and it increased what workers could buy with their wages. As a
result, companies began cutting workers’ wages. Workers were getting less
money for the same work. Many workers decided that the best way to
improve their conditions was to organize into unions.
Sep 11­12:46 PM
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Discussion Question
How did deflation add to poor relations between workers and employers?
(Deflation caused prices to fall and increased the buying power of workers' wages. Companies cut workers' wages but prices fell even faster, so that wages were really still going up in buying power. Workers were angry, however, because they were being paid less for the same amount of work.)
Sep 11­12:47 PM
• Early Unions ﴾page 455﴿
There were two kinds of workers in industries in the 1800s. Craft workers
had special skills and training. They included machinists, shoemakers, and
carpenters. Common laborers had few skills. Craft workers generally received
higher wages for their work than common laborers did. In the 1830s, craft
workers began to form trade unions. These were unions that were limited to
people with specific skills. By 1873 there were 32 national trade unions in the
United States.
Employers had to deal with trade unions because they needed the skills the
workers in the unions had. However, they thought unions interfered with
property rights. Employers of large corporations particularly opposed industrial
unions. These unions represented all craft workers and common laborers
in a particular industry.
Employers tried to stop unions from forming in their companies in several
ways. They required workers to sign contracts promising not to join unions.
They hired detectives to point out union organizers. Those who tried to start a
union or strike were fired and placed on a blacklist—a list of “troublemakers.”
Once a worker was blacklisted, a person found it almost impossible to get
hired. If workers did form a union, companies often used a lockout to break it.
The employers locked workers out of the factory and refused to pay them. If
the union called a strike, employers would hire replacement workers.
Sep 11­12:48 PM
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Workers who wanted to organize unions faced several problems. No laws
gave them the right to organize. Some people thought that unions threatened
American institutions. Others believed that unions were influenced by
Marxism—the ideas of Karl Marx. Marx believed the basic force that shaped
society was the conflict between workers and owners. He believed that eventually
workers would revolt, take control of the factories, and overthrow the
government. He believed that then the government would take all private
property and distribute wealth evenly among everyone. Marxism greatly
influenced European unions.
Some workers supported anarchism. They believed that government was
not necessary. They believed a few violent acts could start a revolution and
get rid of governments. As Marxist ideas spread in Europe, thousands of
European immigrants began arriving in the United States. Some Americans
began associating European immigrants with anarchism. Because many workers
were European immigrants, these Americans also became suspicious of
unions.
Aug 31­8:53 AM
Discussion Question
How did companies try to prevent unions from forming?
(Companies would have workers take oaths or sign contracts promising not to join a union. They would also hire detectives to identify union organizers. Workers who tried to organize a union were fired and placed on a blacklist. If workers formed a union, companies used a lockout to break it.)
Sep 11­12:50 PM
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• The Struggle to Organize ﴾page 456﴿
Although many workers tried to organize unions, they were not often successful.
In 1873 a severe economic recession hit the nation. This forced many
companies to cut wages. In July 1877, several railroads cut wages again. This
started a nationwide workers’ protest. Railroad workers across the nation
walked off their jobs. Some workers turned to violence. Several state militias
were called out to stop the violence. Gun battles sometimes broke out
between the militia and the striking workers. President Hayes finally ordered
the army to open the railroads.
Many labor organizers now believed that workers across the nation needed
to be better organized. They organized the first nationwide industrial union,
the Knights of Labor. The Knights called for an eight­hour workday. They supported
equal pay for women, the end of child labor, and worker­owned
factories. At first, they opposed the use of strikes. The Knights’ leaders supported
the use of arbitration. This is a process in which an impartial third
party helps workers and management reach an agreement. However, in the
early 1880s, they began to use strikes. They were successful at first, and membership
in the union soared.
Sep 11­12:50 PM
In 1886 union organizers called for a nationwide strike on May 1 to show
support for the eight­hour workday. On May 3, a clash between strikers and
police at Haymarket Square in Chicago left a striker dead. The next day an
anarchist group organized a meeting to protest the killing. About 3,000 people
showed up. Someone threw a bomb, the police opened fire, and workers shot
back. Seven police officers and four workers died. The police arrested eight
men, who were German immigrants and supported anarchism. Many people
were upset about the arrest. Even though no one knew who threw the bomb,
the men were convicted and four of them were executed. One of the men who
was arrested was a member of the Knights of Labor. This hurt the union’s reputation,
and the union quickly lost members.
Another industrial union formed during the late 1800s was the American
Railway Union ﴾ARU﴿. Its leader was Eugene V. Debs. One company the ARU
unionized was the Pullman Palace Car Company in Illinois. The company had
built a town, named Pullman, near its factory. Workers in the company were
required to live there and to buy goods from the company stores. In 1893,
when a recession hit the United States, the Pullman Company cut wages.
Workers were unable to pay their rent or the high prices at the stores. In 1894
the company fired three workers who complained. A strike began in protest.
The strike tied up the railroads and threatened the nation’s economy. Railroad
managers attached U.S. mail cars to the Pullman cars. If the strikers refused to
go back to work now, they would be violating a federal law. President Grover
Cleveland sent in troops to keep the mail running. A federal court ordered the
union to stop the strike. Both the strike and the union ended.
Aug 31­8:55 AM
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Discussion Question
What did the railroad managers do to break the union boycott of Pullman cars? (They attached mail cars to the Pullman cars. If the strikers refused to handle the Pullman cars, they would be interfering with the United States mail.)
Sep 11­12:53 PM
• The American Federation of Labor ﴾page 458﴿
Although industrial unions were not very successful in the late 1800s, trade
unions were. Twenty of the nation’s trade unions organized the American
Federation of Labor ﴾AFL﴿. Samuel Gompers was the union’s first leader. He
believed that unions should stay out of politics. He believed that they should
fight for things such as higher wages and better working conditions. He preferred
negotiation over strikes. The AFL had three goals. It tried to convince
companies to recognize unions and to agree to negotiations. It pushed for
closed shops, in which companies hired only union members. It pushed for an
eight­hour workday.
By 1900 the AFL was the largest union in the country. However, by 1900
most workers in the nation were still not union members.
Sep 11­12:54 PM
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Discussion Question
What were some of Samuel Gompers's beliefs regarding unions?
(Gompers believed that unions should stay out of politics. He was against socialist and communist ideas, and he believed that the AFL should fight for small gains like higher wages and better working conditions. Although willing to use the strike, Gompers felt negotiation was better.)
Sep 11­12:56 PM
• Working Women ﴾page 459﴿
After the Civil War, the number of women who earned wages increased.
About one­third of these women worked as servants. Another third worked
as teachers, nurses, or secretaries. The final third were industrial workers.
Many of these women worked in clothing and food processing factories.
Women were paid less than men, and most unions did not include women.
As a result, in 1903 two women founded the Women’s Trade Union League
﴾WTUL﴿. This was the first union organized to address women’s labor issues.
Sep 11­12:56 PM
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Discussion Question
Why were women paid less than men were paid?
(It was assumed that a woman had a man who was supporting her. It was believed that men needed a higher wage because they had a family to support.)
Sep 11­12:57 PM
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