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13th amendment
The Thirteenth Amendment (Amendment XIII) to the United States Constitution abolished slavery and involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime. In Congress, it was passed by the Senate on April 8, 1864, and by the House on January 31, 1865. -
Knights of labor
Knights of Labor (K of L), officially Noble and Holy Order of the Knights of Labor, was an American labor federation active in the late 19th century, especially the 1880s. Its most important leaders were Terence V. Powderly and step-brother Joseph Bath. -
The first Labor Day
The first Labor Day holiday was celebrated on Tuesday, September 5, 1882, in New York City, in accordance with the plans of the Central Labor Union. The Central Labor Union held its second Labor Day holiday just a year later, on September 5, 1883. -
Samuel Gompers
DescriptionSamuel Gompers was an English-born American labor union leader and a key figure in American labor history. Gompers founded the American Federation of Labor, and served as the organization's president from 1886 to 1894, and from 1895 until his death in 1924. -
Haymarket riot
DescriptionThe Haymarket affair was the aftermath of a bombing that took place at a labor demonstration on May 4, 1886, at Haymarket Square in Chicago. It began as a peaceful rally in support of workers striking for an eight-hour work day, the day after police killed eight workers. -
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Homestead strike
The Homestead strike, also known as the Homestead steel strike or Homestead massacre, was an industrial lockout and strike which began on July 1, 1892, culminating in a battle between strikers and private security agents on July 6, 1892. The battle was a pivotal event in U.S. labor history. -
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Textile workers strike of 1934
Today in Labor History: 1934 textile workers strike begins. ... The United Textile Workers (UTW), which had 15,000 members in February 1933, grew to 250,000 members by June of 1934, about half cotton mill workers. Issues involved deplorable working conditions, low wages, and lack of union recognition. -
The Wagner act
It was instrumental in preventing employers from interfering with workers' unions and protests in the private sector. The act established the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to protect the rights of workers to organize, bargain collectively, and strike. -
Taft-Hartley
The Labor Management Relations Act of 1947, better known as the Taft–Hartley Act, is a United States federal law that restricts the activities and power of labor unions. It was enacted by the 80th United States Congress over the veto of President Harry S. Truman, becoming law on June 23, 1947. -
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Steel strike of 1959
The steel strike of 1959 was a 116-day labor union strike (July 15 – November 7, 1959) by members of the United Steelworkers of America (USWA) that idled the steel industry throughout the United States. ... The strike remained the longest work stoppage in the American steel industry until the steel strike of 1986.
