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Womens trade Union League formed at the AFL convention.
The organization relied largely upon the resources of its own members , never reviving more than token financial support from the American Federation of Labor .
The WTUL came into existence as a result of 1903 Boston meeting of the AFL. -
1909 Upsring of the 20,000 female shirtwaist makers in New York strike against the sweashops working conditions.
The Triangle shirtwaist factory is best known four the unique fashion blouse they produced .
The horrible fire that killed 146 workers. -
1911 Triangle shirtwaist factory fire in New York kills nearly 150 workers.
The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory is best known for the unique fashion blouse they produced and the horrific fire that killed 146 workers, women who might have lived if the owners had been forced to ensure safety standards in the factory. Historically, the 1911 tragedy defined the Triangle workers as the victims of disaster. -
1912 Bread and Roses strike begun by immigrant women in Lawrence , Massachussetts.
The power looms that thundered inside the cotton weaving room of the Everett Mill in Lawrence, Massachusetts, suddenly fell silent on January 11, 1912. When a mill official demanded to know why workers were standing motionless next to their machines, the explanation was simple: “Not enough pay.” -
1933 Frances Perkins becomes the U.S. secretary of labor,the first woman.
She was the first woman to serve on the New York State Industrial Commission, as well as the first to hold a U.S. cabinet post with her appointment by Roosevelt in 1933. Perkins championed many of the policies that became part of the New Deal, and established the Social Security and Fair Labor Standards Acts. -
1963 Equal Pay Act bans wage discrimination based on gender.
he Equal Pay Act is a labor law that prohibits gender-based wage discrimination in the United States. Signed by President Kennedy in 1963 as an amendment to the Fair Labor Standards Act, the law mandates equal pay for equal work by forbidding employers from paying men and women different wages or benefits for doing jobs that require the same skills and responsibilities. -
1974 coalition of Labor Union Women Founded.
On March 24, 1974, over 3,000 determined labor union women and supportive feminists from across the United States convened in Chicago to create the Coalition of Labor Union Women (CLUW). Taking planes, trains and automobiles, the women gathered to outline a plan of action that would amplify their voices in the male-dominated labor movement of the time. -
2000 AFL-CIO Executive Council calls for reform in the nation’s immigration laws for undocumented workers.
In a dramatic reversal of its past policy, the AFL-CIO on February 16 forcefully called for an immediate amnesty for undocumented immigrants, and an end to sanctions on employers who hire them. "Sanctions...[have] failed and must be eliminated," the federation said. The federation's executive council acknowledged what immigrant rights groups have been saying for years--that immigration laws have enabled corporations to exploit undocumented workers, "thus denying labor rights for all workers." -
2006 The AFL-CIO and the National Day Laborer Organizing Network form a partnership to collaborate with local worker centers on immigration reform and other issues
Going to work, getting paid, coming home in one piece and walking your neighborhood with dignity is the goal of a new “watershed” partnership between the AFL-CIO and a network of 140 immigrant worker centers in 80 cities and towns. AFL-CIO President John Sweeney and Pablo Alvarado, executive director of the National Day Laborer Organizing Network, announced the collaboration in Chicago, Aug. 9. -
2009 President Barack Obama signs the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which restored the rights of working women to sue over pay discrimination.
On January 29, 2009, President Obama signed the first piece of legislation of his Administration: the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009 ("Act"). This law overturned the Supreme Court's decision in Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., Inc., 550 U.S. 618 (2007), which severely restricted the time period for filing complaints of employment discrimination concerning compensation.
