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The Civil War - April 12, 1861-April 8, 1865
The Civil War caused manufacturing to expand which meant there were more jobs. Working conditions were low wages and dangerous. The Post-Civil War economy caused unions to form to protect the workers that were needed. -
The Great Railroad Strike - July of 1877-August of 1877
The Great Railroad strike spread throughout multiple states. Banks closed so it lead to lower wages which meant angry workers. Workers joined unions within those unions were spies for the company leaders that reported any strike information back to leaders. Workers were then fired for union activities. The president had sent in the Federal Army to stop the strike that turned violent. After the strike was over, railroad companies still didn’t have a good relationship with unions. -
Haymarket Square Riot - May of 1886
Workers in the Knights of Labor, which was a union, were on strike because of low wage and working conditions when a worker got killed so the next day they protested against police brutality. Toward the end of the strike at Haymarket Square police showed up to disperse the protested when someone threw a bomb at police. The bomb caused police to open fire. The riot left employers suspicious of union activity associating it with violence and the public opinion turned against unions. -
American Federation of Labor founded
The American Federation of Labor was founded by Samuel Gompers. AFL was a union for skilled laborers that fought for workers’ rights in a non-violent ways. It fought for the rights such as shorter worker days, safer working conditions, and higher wages. -
Homestead Strike - July of 1892
When Carnegie Steel’s contract with the Amalgamated Association of Iron and Steel Workers contract expired Carnegie wanted the union gone. He told his plant manager then he locked out members from the plant which led to a strike.The plant manager hired Pinkertons to break up the strike. Strikers didn’t let the Pinkertons land and opened fire on them. Governor ordered militia to take control to protect the replacement workers and the union was destroyed. -
Pullman Strike - May of 1894
Pullman Palace Car Company laid off 1/3 of the workers and cut the wages of the rest of the workers but didn’t lower the price of company housing. The American Railway Union refused to use Pullman Cars until they negotiated and raised wages. Federal Government had to intervene because even though it was centered in Chicago, it affected railroad traffic nationwide. Government issued an injunction to stop the boycotting and soldiers were dispatched there to enforce it. -
The Great Depression - 1929-1939
The Great Depression was when the stock market crashed which caused a downfall of the economy. Unemployment rates were high and wages were cut which encouraged workers to join unions. During this time, the government started passing laws to help protect unions. -
The Norris-LaGuardia Act - Signed March 23, 1932
The Norris-LaGuardia Act made yellow dog contracts illegal. Yellow dog contracts were when employers made employees sign an agreement forbidding them to join the union. The law made it so employees could join the union without the threat that they could get fired for joining it. It is named after Senator George Norris and Fiorello H. LaGuardia who were the sponsors of the act. -
The New Deal - 1932-1938
The New Deal was a series of laws that were made by President Roosevelt during his first term. Some laws in the New Deal were made to help unions. Some of the laws involving unions were the Norris-LaGuardia Act, The Wagner Act, and The Fair Labor Standards Act. -
The Fair Labor Standards Act - Signed June 25, 1938
The Fair Labor Standards Act established a federal minimum wage. The minimum wage in that time was $0.25. The law also regulated overtime pay and child labor. The union protects these rights that the act gave to employees. -
The Landrum-Griffin Act - Signed on September 14, 1959
The Landrum-Griffin Act is also known as the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act. The Act assures that union members are protected from improper actions by union leaders. It protects them by allowing the members of the union to vote for the leaders. It also made Labor officials responsible for the union's’ financial affairs. The act is named after its sponsors Representative Phillip Landrum of Georgia and Senator Robert Griffin of Michigan.
