Labor History in 2:00

On this day in Labor History the year was 1886. That was the day that workers throughout the United States walked off their jobs in a coordinated, planned effort and demanded the eight-hour day. What made the strike truly revolutionary, was that the workers were not asking for reduced pay for reduced hours. They wanted their pay-level to stay the same.  

On this day in Labor History the year was 2012. That was the day that updated National Labor Relations Board rules regarding the formation of new unions went into effect.  

The rules cut down the time between when workers announce they want to hold an election to form a union and when that election can actually take place.  The rule change was aimed at cutting down delaying tactics used by employers to stop unionization. 

On this day in Labor History the year was 1899. That was the day that Idaho miners detonated 50 cases of dynamite at the Bunker Hill & Sullivan Mine in Wardner.  For nearly a decade Idaho miners and owners had been locked in bitter battle in the Coeur d’Alene District. The mining companies fought against unionization.  

On this day in Labor History the year was 1965. That was the day that American Federation of Hosiery Workers merged with Textile Workers Union of America. Hosiery workers had begun organizing as early as 1909.  By 1923 the American Federation of Full Fashioned Hosiery Workers, as the union was originally called, had affiliated with the American Federation of Labor. 

On this day in Labor History the year was 1825. That was the day that saw what is widely considered the first strike for the ten-hour work day.  It happened in Boston.  Journeymen carpenters had grown tired of being required to work from sun up to sun down.  They decided it was time to make a stand.

On this day in Labor History the year was 1975.  That was the day the AFL-CIO held a “Jobs Now” rally in Washington, D.C. A painful recession had pushed unemployment in United States to nine percent. Many workers across the nation thought that the Ford administration was not doing enough to address the problems facing working families. 

On this day in Labor History the year was 1978. That was the day of an important victory for any woman in the United States with a pension. The Supreme Court handed down its decision in a case known as Los Angeles Water Department versus Manhart. Manhart and a group of current and past female employees at the department had sued. 

On this day in Labor History the year was 1999.  A headline from the Los Angeles Times declared, “Dock Crews to Halt Work in Support of Death Row Inmate.”  Up and down the west coast the ports stood silent.  The International Longshoreman and Warehouseman’s Union had called their members off the job for a one-day strike.  

On this day in Labor History the year was 1956. That was the day of the founding of the Canadian Labour Congress.  Today the Canadian Labour Congress is the largest labor organization in Canada representing some 3.3 million workers.  During the early 1950s, labor leaders in Canada were becoming increasingly uneasy about the rising influence of big business in the country.

On this day in Labor History the year was 1970. That was the first observation of Earth Day.  Across the United States, millions took to the streets and parks to demonstrate for clean air, water, a reduction in pollution and care for nature and the environment.