Labor – History – Flashcards

def: a person who works while workers are on strike; "strikebreakers" signif: Strikebreaking often plays a central role in accounts of the violence in the struggles between labor and capital in American history. Striking workers had to keep "scabs" out to shut down production, and they resorted to a range of persuasive and coercive tactics to do so. Employers, for their part, sought out strikebreakers who would be resistant to persuasion or coercion, and who could give as good as they got.

def: The first large scale national organization of laborers:The union consisted of about 300 local unions from 13 states. Their motto was "An injury to one is the concern of all" and they appealed that they were trying to protect workers signif: After the NLU was formed, many Labor Unions started to emerge, such as the Knights of Labor. As labor activism spreads, factions within the union movement emerged.

def: american industrial imperialism and mark twain complained about problems, labor movement, women rights, third political party. signif: The desire for power and money that made local politics corrupt in the Industrial Age also infected national politics.

def: A United States government agency established during WWI to coordinate the purchase of war supplies. signif: The organization encouraged companies to use mass-production techniques to increase efficiency and eliminate waste by standardizing products. The WIB increased industrial production by 20% in the US

The NWLB generally supported and strengthened the position of labor. It supported an eight-hours a day of work for workers, equal pay for women, and the right to organize unions. They opposed the disruption of war production by strikes.

This committee was an independent agency of the US government that was created to influence the public opinion regarding WW1. During this time period CPI controlled a huge part of the media to control what was printed and every war story that was put out to media had a missing piece

Group of people who tried to support the laborers during the industrial revolution. Many Americans believed labor unions fostered communism and membership in Unions declined because: -work force consisted of immigrants who had no choice but to work in awful conditions -immigrants spoke many different languages, so hard to organize them -farmers hard to Unionize because they were used to relying on themselves

Baltimore and Ohio Railroads went on strike because of a wage cut- it quickly spread to every railroad line east of the Mississippi & then to the Missouri pacific and other western lines: mass movement The industrialists feared a social revolution- President Hayes was told to stop the strikers so he ordered troops to clear the way. The strikers stopped and by the next month the trains were running again. Showed power of the government and how the government weren't on the workers' side.

an alignment of diverse groups dedicated to supporting the Democratic Party. federal govt takes on larger role for well-being of citizens. Gave jobs to many: three Rs: Relief, Recovery, Reform Organized labor was a big factor to the New Deal Coalition. Got the labor unions involved in presidential elections- Labor Unions donated their profits to the presidential elections for President Roosevelt and workers promised to vote for him.

-conditions in steel industry were dangerous and difficult -demanded the right as organized workers to bargain with their employer for shorter working hours and a living wage. Out of the many strikes at the time, it was the conflict that most held the nation's attention. More than 350,000 walked out, crippling most of the steel industry. "In iron and steel, where men work together in big bunches, we can get everybody to strike even though we have only ten percent" The unskilled immigrants from southern and eastern Europe, who made up the great majority of the steelworkers, formed the backbone of the strike. Some of the skilled, predominantly native-born workers, long favored by the employers, joined the strike; others continued to go to work. In some places, even office workers joined the strike.

an early-20th-century reform movement seeking to return control of the government to the people, to restore economic opportunities, and to correct injustices in American life. (costs down profits high in competitive mrket) 1)Protecting social welfare 2)Promoting moral improvement 3)Creating economic reform 4)Fostering efficiency The Progressive Era was a period of social activism and political reform in the United States that flourished from the 1890s to the 1920s. One main goal of the Progressive movement was eliminating corruption in government by exposing political machines and their bosses and establishing further means of direct democracy.

Instead of workers walking away from their jobs they sat inside the plant, but didn't do any work. Preventing factory owners to continue production with strikebreakers. Not every american approved of the strike and a called it a huge violation of private property. This proved as an effective bargaining tool.

An act that prohibited child labor and limited women's working hours in Illinois. Ended child labor and reduced working hours for women.

An advocate for improving the lives of women and children. She was appointed chief inspector of factories for Illinois after she had helped to win the passage of factory acts of 1893 One of the first reformers to recognize that strategy for social change must address the prevention of social ills and injustices.

This was filled with revolutionary folks songs that were collected from Industrial Workers of the World. This was filled with tunes, hymns, and songs to build morale and help promote the rebel against working conditions for the Labor Movement. 36 editions of The Little Red Songbook between 1909 & 1995

The Woman's Christian Temperance Union was the first large organization among women devoted to social reform that linked the religious and the secular by applying Christianity. It promoted the goal of prohibition. Members advanced their cause by entering saloons, singing, praying, and urging saloon keepers to stop selling alcohol.

an administration that during World War 1 was the agency responsible for the admin of the allies' food reserves. They initiated the stabilization for the price of wheat on the US market. In 1 year of US furnished 18,500,000 tons of food to Allies. This administration kept our ties with allies strong so we'd have support from other countries and also to help keep us out of the war while we wanted to not be involved. They saved lives by making sure people skimped on food.

one of the magazine journalists who exposed corrupt business practices in the early 1900s. They fought the government and corporate corruption, other reformers tried to increase the efficiency of American society.

during the panic of 1893 the pullman company laid off 3,000 of its 5,800 workers and cut wages of the rest by 25%-40% but they were still charging the same amount of employee housing it affected much of the country and it had a great influence on the public opinions of rights of workers, the role of management and the role of the government in mediating labor unions.

1925: A. Philip Randolph founded the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters to help African Americans gain their fair wage. -independent union of sleeping car porters and maids -the first labor organization led by African Americans to receive a charter in the American Federation of Labor (AFL)

-evening of May 4, 1886 1,200 people gathered at Chicago's Haymarket square to protest the killing of a striker by the police the day before at a plant, but someone tossed a bomb into the police line 7 police officers died with other pedestrians -8 men were convicted The public started to turn against the labor movement and started to relate it with violence

1914 a man named Henry Ford started an automobile company and paid workers $5 per day which was unheard of at the time prevented strikes and Unions against him -also, the workers could afford the models they were making, significantly increasing his output

founded to advocate for every every wage worker no matter religion, skin color, or home country. Wanted capitalism to disappear -worried economic progress could produce unequal distribution of wealth that could only be cured by taxes The IWW promoted the concept of "One Big Union", and contended that all workers should be united as a social class to get rid of capitalism and wage labor with industrial democracy

Stated you couldn't discriminate voting to races in attempt to promote segregation and amendments had been passed to abolish slavery and provide citizenship and equal protection under the laws States added literacy tests to vote (to prevent many illiterate African Americans from voting) as well as poll taxes (to keep the non-rich, white men out of the voting centers, and many immigrants had no money)

A party that commented on the uneven balance among big business government and ordinary people under the free market system of capitalism. Helped create economic reform It drew significant support from many different groups, including trade unionists, progressive social reformers, populist farmers, and immigrant communities

group of workers who come together with common goals: protecting the integrity of its trade improving safety standards achieving higher pay and benefits better working conditions The trade union negotiates with employers for many problems that arise such as decent wages, better working conditions, and the safety of workers. Advocate for these workers who don't really have any say.

Popularized the concept of scientific management and aimed to improve efficiency in the workplace by applying scientific principles to make tasks simpler and easier. Workers got little breaks and longer hours in order to increase output of goods- Taylorism spread to schools with the main principles of rigid rules and supervision to heighten productivity.

Ford Motor Company introduced an assembly line where automobile parts moved on a chain at continuous speed. Resulted in high worker turnover often due to worker injuries and became the most common system in factories.

comes from a time when the govt. was offing workers, started during bad recession which reduced the demand for railways and lead to a strike. The U.S. Department of Labor's page on the history of Labor Day notes the holiday "is a creation of the labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers

"You can make a speech: people forget it the next day. You put the information in a leaflet: people hold onto it for a week and throw it away. But if you write a song and put that information in a song, people hear it, remember it, and sing it: it lives on." 1930s famous artists supported Union efforts around the country by writing many songs and singing at rallies and union balls- He believed music speaks louder than words

president of AFL, focused on collective bargaining (group negotiations) to reach written agreements between workers and employers "Show me the country in which there are no strikes, and I will show you that country in which there is no liberty." He promoted harmony among the different craft Unions that comprised the AFL, his belief led to the development of procedures for collective bargaining and contracts between labor and management which are still in use today.

was an American union leader, one of the founding members of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW or the Wobblies), and five times the candidate of the Socialist Party of America for President of the United States Through his presidential candidacies, as well as his work with labor movements, Debs eventually became one of the best-known socialists living in the United States.

An economic and political system that features government control of business and property and equal distribution of wealth. Eugene V. Debs and some other labor activists came to believe the the problems faced by workers were symptoms of an underlying problem with the American capitalist system- wanted America to become socialist. Socialism had obvious appeal for the downtrodden workers, whom it would empower. But it threatened the wealthy, whose wealth it would confiscate.

The daughter of an Irish union activist and someone who supported the Great Strike. "the most dangerous woman in America". "one of the most forceful and picturesque figures of the American labor movement" -worked as a teacher, got married and had 4 kids, then her husband and all her kids died in the yellow fever epidemic. -Mary became a dressmaker, but her shop burnt down in the Chicago fire. -then became increasingly active in the union movement -She endured death threats and jail with the coal miners who gave her the nickname "mother" Jones -Her life is in some ways a history of the labour movement in the United States. Organized and led many strikes

first female organizer of the International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union (ILGWU) Newman also joined the Women's Trade Union League and supported the "Uprising of the 20000". This strike won labor agreement for some strikers but did nothing to change their deplorable working conditions.

was a landmark United States Supreme Court decision upholding the constitutionality of state laws requiring racial segregation in public facilities under the doctrine of "separate but equal." Plessy legitimized the state laws establishing racial segregation in the South and provided an impetus for further segregation laws.

Encouraged many African Americans to act on and have values that would benefit them in the current economy. Since Washington himself was born into slavery, he became an advocate for those who were oppressed and suffered under the harsh conditions of slavery. His lynching speech made him famous: "called for black progress through education and entrepreneurship."

was a Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruling on the subject of labor unions. Chief Justice Lemuel Shaw ruled that labor combinations were legal provided that they were organized for a legal purpose and used legal means to achieve their goals. With Commonwealth, individuals had been given the right to organize into trade unions. Previous to this case, unions were seen as conspiracy organizations. However, Shaw's ruling made it clear that they were in fact legal.Unions were now seen as a necessary offshoot of capitalism.

Enabled people to buy goods over an extended period of time with down payments and monthly payments. This allowed people, for the first time ever, to buy property and goods without paying full price on the spot- which increased automobile and housing industries worldwide and productive levels skyrocketed.

In 1936 the AFL suspended all 10 CIO unions. In 1938, these unions formed the Congress of Industrial Organizations as a rival labor federation. In 1955, the CIO rejoined the AFL creating AFL-CIO The CIO supported Franklin D. Roosevelt and the New Deal Coalition, and was open to African Americans. Both the CIO and its rival the AFL grew rapidly during the Great Depression. The rivalry for dominance was bitter and sometimes violent.

1800s: Many people were forced to do harsh labor under hard conditions and that was when the labor unions emerge. In 1882 and average of 675 laborers were killed in work related accidents each week. Workers were often put to work in factories that were dirty, poorly ventilated, and poorly lit. Workers had to work under these dangerous conditions -After the NLU was formed, many Labor Unions started to emerge, such as the Knights of Labor -Their motto was "An injury to one is the concern of all" and they appealed that they were trying to protect workers As labor activism spreads, it diversified, and factions within the union movement emerged.

Between 1890-1910, the number of women working for wages doubled from 4 million to more than 8 million. This was due to the fact that majority of the working force (men) were out fighting the war, and the industries were falling apart without them. Women were found in unfamiliar social roles by filling more jobs such as nurses, coal miners, drivers, and working for the peace movements. WCTU: first large organization among women devoted to social reform that linked the religious and the secular by applying Christianity

Paid workers almost $5 a day to prevent Unions and his workers had enough money to purchase the cars they were making- significantly increasing his output Ford Motor Company introduced an assembly line where automobile parts moved on a chain at continuous speed: resulted in high worker turnover often due to worker injuries and became the most common system in factories.