History of Labor
Conditions Before Unions
Why Unions Formed?
Examples of Unions
American Federation of Labor
Founded in 1886 by Samuel Gompers was the first union that was created for skilled workers. They supported strikes, 8 hour work-day, higher wages, and better working conditions ("The Rise of Organized Labor").
Knights of Labor
Created in 1869 by Uriah Stephens, and nine other Philadelphia workers, was one of the more successful unions (Boyer). By the mid-1800's, they held more then 700,000 memberships and were considered the first industrial union ("The Rise of Organized Labor").
National Labor Union
A union formed before the Civil War, was created after craft unions joined together in 1866. The union supported an 8 hour work-day, but did not support using strikes to get what it wanted ("The Rise of Organized Labor").
Conditions After Unions
After the first couple of unions in the late 1800's there was not much change of conditions with the employers fighting back. Conditions changed after many controversial strikes and tragedies. One strike involved miners who did not mine for an entire summer which made President Theodore Roosevelt intervene and make the owners increase the wages. A tragedy that happened in New York City, happened when a fire started and killed multiple different women because the safety doors were closed. After women and children were attacked by police men because they were strikers posed the AFL to urge the government to create the U.S. Department of Labor. Eventually a Children's Bureau was created to protect victims of job exploitation. Next, the LaFollette Seaman's Act was passed to improve the condition on ships of navy ships. "The labor of a human being is not a commodity or article of commerce" was written in the Clayton Act of 1914. Over the years the unions have given middle class workers a legal right to protest for better working conditions ("History of Labor Unions").
History of Wisconsin Unions
- 1848: Ships Carpenter, first successful strike in Milwaukee
- 1867: Union of shoemakers became the largest union in the nation, now no longer in existence
- 1886: 7 workers killed, worst labor violence
- 1932: First Workers Compensation Law in U.S. established in Wisconsin
- 1936-1939: Most heavily unionized state, after the passing of Wagner Act
- 1959: Public Employee Collective Bargaining Act passed, first of any state in the nation
- 2011: End of Collective Bargaining Rights (Germanson)
American Federation of Musicians
International Brotherhood of Teamsters
United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America
Current State of Unions in Wisconsin and United States of America
- 11.8 percent of union membership in the US
- About 14.8 million members all around the US
- 37 percent for unions of public-workers sections
- 36.8 percent for workers in education, and training
- New York with the highest union membership at 24.1 ("Union Members Summary)
- Wisconsin has 339,000 union members
- 13.3 percent are union workers of salary and wage earners
- Wisconsin has above average union membership in the US ("Union Membership in Wisconsin- 2011)
Works Cited
- Boyer, Paul S. "Labor Strives to Organize." Holt American Nation. Austin: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, 2005. 481-87. Print.
- CliffsNotes.com. The Rise of Organized Labor. 19 Dec 2012
<http://www.cliffsnotes.com/study_guide/topicArticleId-25238,articleId-25181.html>. - Germanson, Ken. "Milestones." Wisconsin Labor History Society RSS. Wisconsin Labor History Society, 2012. Web. 19 Dec. 2012.
- Google Images
- "History of Labor Unions." The Social Studies Help Center. N.p., 2001-2012. Web. 19 Dec. 2012.
- "The Struggles of Labor." United States History - The Struggles of Labor. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Dec. 2012.
- "Union Membership in Wisconsin- 2011." Bureau of Labor Statistics (2011): 1-5. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Web. 20 Dec. 2012. <http://www.bls.gov/ro5/unionwi.pdf>.
- "Union Members Summary." U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 27 Jan. 2012. Web. 20 Dec. 2012.