History timelines for workers Flashcards
(24 cards)
1865-90 Federal Government Policy
Fed gov followed laissez faire & pro-employer policy, e.g. sent federal troops to put down Great Railroad Strike 1877
1890s Federal Government Policy
Fed gov used Sherman Anti-Trust Act 1890 against unions Maintained laissez faire policy, ignoring march by “Coxey’s army” 1894 Banned Pullman Strike 1894 & sent 12,000 troops to put it down, killing over 30 strikers
1900 - 33 Federal Government Policy
Theodore Roosevelt & Wilson passed laws to improve working conditions but Supreme Court hostile, e.g. Lochner case 1905 & overruling of Clayton Act 1921 Laissez faire temporarily abandoned during WW1when NWLB set up but resumed under Republican admins in 1920s
New Deal Federal Government Policy
For first time fed gov abandoned laissez faire in peacetime & favoured workers over employers: NRA 1933, NLRA 1935, FLSA 1938 NLRA set up NLRB which forced “Little Steel” to recognise unions 1941 FLSA established minimum wage But NRA & NLRA excluded agricultural workers & FDR refused to help sharecroppers
1941-80 Federal Government Policy
Fed gov favoured workers more during WW2 than at any other time; NWLB forced employers to make concessions to avoid strikes After war Congress became more hostile, passing Taft-Hartley Act 1947 & Landrum-Griffin Act 1959 Republican dominance in 1950s meant partial return to laissez faire but in 1960s New Frontier & Great Society extended minimum wage & improved welfare, working conditions & support for farmers; most interventionist programme since New Deal
1980s Federal Government Policy
“Reaganomics” meant return to laissez faire & pro-employer policies; Reagan threatened to sack PATCO strikers 1981 if they didn’t return to work & was only president not to raise minimum wage
1865-90 Economic Developments
General growth & industrialisation but wages cut during recessions, as in 1877
1890s Economic Developments
Industrial expansion continued but Panic 1893-7 (worst US depression before 1929) caused wage cuts & strikes, e.g. Pullman
1900-33 Economic Developments
Continued industrial expansion benefited workers, especially during WW1 & 1920s boom, enabling Ford to offer $5 day 1914 & 40 hour week 1926 But share prices & company profits rose faster than wages b/c of restrictions on union power Workers hit by Depression following Wall St Crash
New Deal Economic Developments
Despite sympathetic legislation high unemployment limited workers’ bargaining power; Depression ended by WW2 (when workers’ bargaining power reached all time high b/c of shortage of labour) rather than New Deal
1941-80 Economic Developments
Shortage of labour favoured workers during WW2 more than at any other time before or since; real wages rose by 70% Workers’ bargaining power never as strong again but postwar boom meant continued improvement in living standards: on average workers 35% better off 1960 than 1945 But shift from blue to white collar work & increased % of female & part time employees reduced union membership
1980s Economic Developments
New technology & economic globalisation led to switch from manufacturing & mining to services, finance, IT etc This & rise in unemployment in 1980s reduced union membership & bargaining power
1865-90 Social Policy / Welfare
Laissez faire meant long working hours & no regulation of child labour or health & safety Female, ethnic minority & unskilled workers suffered most
1890s Social Policy / Welfare
Laissez faire continued but Pullman allowed to dictate to workers where they could live & charge high rents & charges for gas & water Immigration weakened workers’ bargaining power
1900-33 Social Policy / Welfare
Triangle Shirtwaist Fire 1911 led to some regulation of working conditions but fundamentally laissez faire continued Workers’ bargaining power weakened by immigration from Europe until 1920 & black migration from South to North
New Deal Social Policy / Welfare
FLSA set minimum wage, limited working hours & banned child labour but much less protection for agricultural, domestic & retail workers (so women & blacks benefited least) Employers resisted union recognition, sometimes violently as in Memorial Day Massacre 1937; Ford & “Little Steel” didn’t recognise unions until 1941
1941-80 Social Policy / Welfare
Skilled white workers got generous fringe benefits like holiday & sickness pay & pensions but 35 million still lived in poverty 1960 with unskilled & black workers faring least well Major improvement in federally provided social protection resulted from New Frontier & Great Society in 1960s
1980s Social Policy / Welfare
Employers increasingly anti-union Welfare cuts hit working class generally but especially unskilled, single mothers & ethnic minotrities
1865-90s Trade Union Rights
Knights of Labor formed 1869 to include all skill levels races & genders; membership peaked at 700,000 1886 but then declined following Great South West Railroad Strike & Haymarket Incident; by 1890 had lost 90% of its members AFL formed 1886
1890s Trade Union Rights
Pennsylvania steelworkers lost right to join union after Homestead Strike 1892 & didn’t regain it until 1937-41 Pullman Strike undermined by divisions over race & skill levels Knights of Labor ceased to exist but AFL won most disputes b/c represented skilled workers; membership grew to 500,000 by 1900
1900-33 Trade Union Rights
IWOW formed 1905 but membership peaked at 150,000 1917 AFL continued to thrive but no legal right to union membership & especially difficult for unskilled, female or ethnic minority workers to join union Strikes violently put down, e.g. West Virginia “Coal Mine Wars” 1921
New Deal Trade Union Rights
For first time workers gained legal right to join union & have it recognised by employer Union membership trebled 1933-9 No. of strikes rose from 637 1930 to 4,470 1937, showing both worker assertiveness & employer resistance. CIO broke from AFL 1935 to give unskilled, female & black workers chance to join union Car & steel industry forced to recognise unions by 1941 but southern planters crushed STFU
1941-80s Trade Union Rights
During WW2 union membership rose to nearly 15 million including many black & female workers Economic prosperity led to generally good industrial relations with relative few strikes CIO merged with AFL 1955 to form mega union with 16 million members UFW won significant but temporary victory in Salad Bowl Strike 1970
1980s Trade Union Rights
Failure of PATCO strike 1981 marked decisive defeat for union power UFW declined in 1980s, undermined by immigration, increased unemployment & hostility from state govt. & employers White collar workers in private sector negotiated with employers individually rather than through unions Union membership in public sector rose but this didn’t compensate for decline of manufacturing
