Chapter 6, Section 3

III. Labor III. Labor OrganizationOrganization

A. Working ClassA. Working Class1. Because of the 2nd Industrial Revolution, demand for

labor soared.

2. a. IMMIGRANTS: By 1900, one-third of industrial workers were foreign born

b. AFRICAN AMERICANS: Some northern industries offered jobs to African Americans, but most southern industries barred them from holding factory jobs

c. WOMEN: There were 4 million women working by 1890. Most women worked because their families needed the income.

d. CHILDREN: By 1890, some 1.5 million children worked (ages 10 to 15).

e. While captains of industry like Vanderbilt, Carnegie, and Rockefeller prospered because of the cheap labor

available, workers faced poor conditions and no protection.

Home of Andrew Carnegie, built in 1903 in NYC

Tenement home for family of 7, NYC in 1908

B. Labor ConditionsB. Labor Conditions

1. People worked 10- to 14-hour days, 7 days a week.

2. Working conditions were dangerous and abusive.a. Miners breathed coal dust all day.b. Factory workers breathed sawdust,

stone dust, cotton dust, or toxic fumes.c. Heavy machinery caused high injury

rates.

3. Wages were low.a. Most industrial workers earned

between $400-$500 a year ($600 was the minimum annual income needed to maintain a decent standard of living.)

4. Children were often employed to move between these dangerous machines, as they were small enough to fit between tightly packed machinery. a. Some as young as six!b. Injuries and deaths were common

C. Labor UnionsC. Labor Unions1. In retaliation of working conditions and for

protection and reform, some workers joined labor unions.

2. Labor Union: An organization of workers formed for the purpose of advancing its members' interests in respect to wages, benefits, and working conditions

3. Unions used strikes to improve conditions that they felt were demeaning to the working class. These strikes were often peaceful, but sometimes they turned violent -Ex. The Railroad Strike of 1877

4. Two major unions of the time:

a. Knights of Labor (formed in 1869)

b. American Federation of Labor (1886)

a. Founded in 1869b. Uriah Stephens- Philadelphia tailor

and first elected officerc. Terence Powderly elected as the

Grand Master Workman in 1879 - membership peaked in 1886 under his leadership

5. Knights of Labor5. Knights of Labor

d. Membership in K.o.L.i. All-inclusive membership

• Grouped workers by industry – regardless of trade (accepted skilled & unskilled workers)

• Allowed employers• Bankers, lawyers, gamblers, stockholders, and

liquor manufacturers were excluded because they were considered unproductive members of society

ii. Accepting of (most) Minorities!• Allowed women• Allowed African-Americans (except Southern

branches of the Knights of Labor)• VERY discriminatory against Chinese-Americans!!!

e. The Knights of Labor used boycotts and peaceful negotiations. They opposed the use of strikes!f. They opposed:

Excessive hours

Child and prison labor

Unequal pay for men and women

Dangerous working conditions

Contract foreign labor

a. Founded in 1881/ 1886 (reorganized in ‘86)

b. Samuel Gompers – served as president

until his death in 1924i. Membership included skilled laborii. Union excluded women, African

Americans, and other racial minorities (this will change years later)

6. American Federation of 6. American Federation of LaborLabor

c. Organized workers into craft unions, unifying workers in an industry by their particular craft and by skill level. d. Merged with the Congress of Industrial Organizations in 1955, creating the AFL-CIO, which is the largest federation of unions in the U.S. today!

Samuel Gompers

e. How did the AFL help workers?

Catered to the skilled worker.

Represented workers in matters of national legislation.

Maintained a national strike fund.

Evangelized the cause of unionism.

Prevented disputes among the many craft unions.

Mediated disputes between management and labor.

Pushed for closed shops.

Labor Union MembershipLabor Union Membership

E. Labor UnrestE. Labor Unrest1. Labor unions were the only organizations which 1. Labor unions were the only organizations which

protested the working conditions during the protested the working conditions during the

Industrial RevolutionIndustrial Revolution

2.Labor Unions had difficulties organizing because:

a. Workers moved from job to job

b. Influx of immigrants with differences in language, religion, and customs were hard to unite.

c. Labor leaders had different goals

d. Lack of employer supporti. Some used blacklists- records of troublemakers- and would fire workers involved in union activity

ii. Lockouts- employers would shut down the factories, fire the workers, and replace them with scabs- replacement workers.

iii. Yellow-dog contracts- workers were forced to agree not to take part in any labor action (i.e. strike)

e. Management vs. Labor

““ToolsTools”” of of ManagementManagement

““ToolsTools”” of of LaborLabor

“scabs”

Pinkertons

lockout

blacklisting

yellow-dog contracts

open shop

boycotts

sympathy demonstrations

informational picketing

closed shops

organized strikes

“wildcat” strikes

2. Railroad Strike of 2. Railroad Strike of 18771877

a. Ignited by a 10% wage reduction on the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in July

b. The strike spread to New York, Pittsburgh, St. Louis, Kansas City, Chicago, and San Francisco.

c. Pittsburgh: Rioters torched Union Depot and Pennsylvania Railroad roundhouse

d. State militia were ineffective; President Hayes dispatched federal troops to stop the strike – first time federal troops have ever been used in a labor dispute!

e. By that point, 100 people had died, and two-thirds of the railroads were idle.

Railroad Strike of 1877Railroad Strike of 1877

f. The intervention of the federal government sank the strikers' spirits and bolstered those of management.

g. The strike of 1877 was the most violent labor-management confrontation to that point in American history. It was the starting signal for an era of strife between workers and owners.

Every morning at seven o'clockThere were twenty tarriers a workin' at the rockThe boss comes along and he says, "Keep stillAnd bear down heavy on the cast iron drill."

Chorus:And drill, ye tarriers, drill

Drill, ye tarriers, drillFor it's work all day for the sugar in your tay (tea)

Down beyond the railwayAnd drill, ye tarriers, drill

And blast and fire!

The foreman's name was John McCannBy gosh, he was a blamed mean manLast week a premature blast went offAnd a mile in the air went big Jim Goff.

And drill, ye tarriers, drill...

And when next payday it came aroundJim Goff a dollar short was found

When he asked, "What for?" came this reply"You were docked for the time you were up in the sky!"

And drill, ye tarriers, drill...

Drill Ye Tarriers, Drill (1888)Drill Ye Tarriers, Drill (1888)