The Homestead Strike
July 6, 1892---pg. 103-125
July 6, 1892
-Two barges floated towards Carnegie
Homestead Steel plant with Pinkertons
-300 strikers and families fought the
Pinkertons
-12 hour long fight resulted in a battle
win for the strikers
Industrial Revolution
-Shift from man-made to factory
produced products
-Created tension between
management and workers
-Workers feel they are cogs on a
wheel
-1877 Railway Strikes
-1896 Chicago Haymarket Affair
-Businesses fear power of unions
Andrew Carnegie
-Immigrated to U.S. son of impoverished
parents
-Climbed the industrial pyramid
-Business- kept prices low to drive
competitors out of business, own all
components of business
-Claimed to be friendly of labor
-Ruthless businessman
-Donated much profits to charities after
selling business
Henry Frick
-Henry Frick-managed the Homestead plant
-June 1892 announces that plant won't
recognize the unions and would sign
individual contracts with workers
-Frick surrounded mill with barbed wire fence
-June 29th--closed down the mill, locked out
3,800 workers
-Union starts "watch" over town, fear of
"scabs"
The Pinkertons are Coming!
-Early morning July 6, watchmen alerts town of
Pinkterons
-Goal: Try to keep Pinkertons on barges
-Pinkertons had better weapons, workers had
numbers
-Workers attempts...
1. Cannon
2. Railroad car on fire
3. Oil to light the water
4. Dynamite on barge roofs
-Pinkertons surrendered
-3 Pinkertons 7 workers dead
Different Views of Control
-Future of workplace held with outcome of July 6
-Workers believed...
1. Community control of a factory
2. Participate as equals in decisions at work and
community
3. equal footing as employers
-Corporate managers believed...
1.promote efficiency and increase profits
2. clear divisions between management and workers
-July 7th Carnegie tells Fick, "All anxiety gone since
you stand firm. Never employ one of those rioters"
Economic Transformation During Revolution
1. Growing population
2. Development of new inventions
3. Expansion of the railroads
4. emergence of national marketplace
5. Consumer demand
-favorable environment for entrepreneurs
-major changes to American workers
-labor moved from agriculture to
manufacturing, small shops to large factories
-Robbed workers of "independence"
Scientific Management
-Imposed "new" factory life
-allowed companies to lower costs and
increase profits by subdividing
manufacturing into small tasks
-find simplest and cheapest way to
perform a job
-standardization of work procedures-monotonous, one man makes one part
-tighter system of discipline
Reason for Confrontation
-Carnegie's efforts to streamline his
process and cut labor costs
-Henry Bessemer: developed new
methods of mass producing high-grade
steel
-Increased production, needed less
workers
-"Sliding Scale" introduced (pay cuts)
Days leading up to the "battle"
-June 29: Mill shut down
-July 2: Notices posted,
"company won't
recognize current
contracts"
-July 5: Allegheny
County police officers
arrive at Homestead-they leave
Homestead After Effects
-National Guard sent out, side with
Carnegie
-Mid-August mill back in full swing
-Frick shot, sympathy for unions
fades "I will never recognize the
Union!"
-Workers forced to sign document
saying they weren't involved
-Any hope of creating working class
democracy died