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The National Trades Union
This was the first national union. -
Commonwealth v. Hunt
In this court case, a Massachusetts court ruled that unions were legal. -
American Federation of Labor
This was founded by Samuel Gompers, organized skilled workers by crafts. They fought for higher wages, shorter hours, amd improved working conditions through collective bargaining. -
Haymarket Riots
During Chicago's Haymarket Riots, in which striking McCormick Harvester Workers clashed with police, four strikers were kiled. -
United Mine Workers
This was founded to improve wages and working conditions of coal mine workers. -
The Homestead Strike
Steel workers in Homestead, Pennsylvania struck against the Carnegie Steel plant because the company had reduced waages. The Homestead strike became violent when the steel company hired private police to protect strike breakers. In the ensuing confrontation, nine strikers and seven police officers were killed. -
American Railway Union
Railroad fireman Eugene V. Debs founded the American Railway union. -
Pullman Company
Workers which manufactured sleeping and dining cars, went on strike because their wages had been cut. Acting out of sympathy for the Pullman workers, conductors and engineers of the American Railway union refused to handle trains with Pullman cars attatched. A federal judge ordered the strikers back to work, and when they refused, President Grover Cleveland sent in federal troops. The ensuing violence turned public opinion against the strikers, and their president, Eugene Debs, was jailed. -
Knights of labor
This first major union was founded in 1869 by Uriah Stephens, a Philadelphia tailor. By 1879, its membership of nine thousand included women, African Americans, and immigrants, both skilled and unskilled. By 1886, they boasted a membership of seven hundred thousand. They won several important strikes, but their influence declined after they were blamed for killing seven police officers who attempted to break up a meeting in Haymarket Square, Chicago. -
The International Workers of the World
This was organized for unskilled workers and immigrants, advocated one large national union that would use strikes and sabotage to achieve its goals as opposed to the more peaceful American Federation of Labor. -
Clayton Act
This allowed picketting and limited the use of injunctions in labor disputes. -
The Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters
A. Philip Randolph created this -
National Labor Relations Act
This protected the rights of workers to oraganize and elect representatives for collective bargaining. Also in this year, the CIO, Congress of Industrial Organization, was formed by several AFL unions to promote unionism in industry. -
Fair Labor Standards Act
This established a minimum wage (25 cents an hour) and time and a half for over forty hours of work a week. -
Fair Labor Act
An admendment to the Fair Labor Act prohibited child labor. -
AFL and CIO
They merged in 1955. -
air traffic controllers
President Ronald Reagan fired 11,500 air traffic controllers in 1981 for striking in violation of a no-strike clause in their contract.
