Today in Labor History: April 23

April 23, 1918--A General Strike ended conscription of Irish men into the British army during WWI. (From the Daily Bleed)

 

April 23, 1993 - United Farm Workers founder Cesar Chavez died at age 66.

Today in Labor History—March 31

March 31, 1927: Birth of Cesar Chavez.

March 31, 1941: Wisconsin state troopers attack striking auto workers in Milwaukee. The strikers succeed in holding off scabs.

March 31, 1949 – Last great strike of the Canadian Seaman's Union.

March 31, 1966: Two day boycott of Seattle schools protesting de facto segregation.

(Sources: Daily Bleed, and Workaday Minnesota).

Today in Labor History—March 17

During the mid-1800s, thousands of Irish emigrated to the U.S., fleeing religious and political persecution and poverty in their native country. Once here, they faced severe discrimination, including employment notices stating “No Irish Need Apply.” Many Irish workers turned to the labor movement for support and union membership grew thanks to Irish leadership and determination. (From Workday Minnesota)

Stop! Whoever Proceeds Will Be Shot. (From Wikipedia)

March 17, 1920 – A General Strike  in Germany help defeat the Kapp Putsch. (From the Daily Bleed)

Bolshevik Assault On Kronstadt Mutineers (from Wikipedia)

March 17, 1921 – The Kronstadt mutiny was defeated by the Bolshevik’s on this date under the direction of Trotsky, who boasted he would "shoot them like pigeons." He was not exaggerating, resulting in a terrible slaughter. (From the Daily Bleed)

March 17, 1966 – César Chávez & the National Farm Workers Association marched from Delano to Sacramento, California, from March 17 to April 11, arriving on Easter Sunday. (From the Daily Bleed)

March 17, 1996 – 30,000 marched in Villahermosa, Mexico, in support of a campaign to blockade state-owned oil wells that displace thousands of poor people. (From the Daily Bleed)

Today in Labor History—March 10

March 10, 1906 - France- Coal dust exploded at the Courrieres mine, killing 1,000 miners, in the worst mining disaster of the 20th century. 45,000 miners went on strike in the aftermath to protest the ongoing unsafe working conditions. They were ultimately suppressed by the military. (From the Daily Bleed)

March 10, 1921 - Suppression of the Kronstadt rebellion by the Bolsheviks continued.
(From the Daily Bleed)

March 10, 1941 - New York City bus drivers in the Transport Workers Union went on strike. After 12 days without bus service and a large show of support by Irish-American strikers at the St. Patrick’s Day parade the mayor ordered arbitration. (From Workday Minnesota)

March 10, 1942 - Workers won union recognition at the Brooklyn Union Gas Company. (From the Daily Bleed)

March 10, 1968 - Cesar Chavez officially broke his fast at a mass in Delano, California, with Robert Kennedy by his side.  (From the Daily Bleed)

Labor History Timeline--The 1960s and 70s

1962    Federal Workers Granted Right to Unionize. (Sources:UHWO)

1964    Civil Rights Act Bans Workplace Discrimination. (Sources:UHWO)

1965    Delano Grape Strike: The predominantly Filipino Agricultural Workers Organizing Committee launched the strike, but it was soon joined by Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta’s Mexican-American National Farmworkers Association. The two groups eventually united to form the United Farmworkers (UFW). The union also initiated a nationwide grape boycott that lasted five years and ended with the first union contract for U.S. farm workers outside of Hawaii. (Sources: UHWO, Workday Minnesota)

1968    78 Miners Killed at Consolidated Coal Mines, West Virginia. (Sources: UHWO)

1968    Martin Luther King Assassinated while supporting the AFSCME Sanitation Strike, Memphis. (Sources: UHWO,Wikipedia)

1970    Postal Strike:  The first mass postal strike in U.S. history began when carriers in Manhattan and Brooklyn walked off the job, but quickly spread to 210,000 of the nation’s 750,000 mail carriers. (Sources: UHWO, AFGE)

Trailer for “Harlan County, USA”

1972    Bloody Coal Strike (Again) in Harlan County: Miners struck the Duke Power Company in Harlan County, Kentucky, the sight of numerous bloody strikes in the past (including the Battle of Evarts, 1931). (Sources: UHWO, Wikipedia, The Atlantic)

1974    Karen Silkwood Killed: Oil, Chemical and Atomic Workers union activist Karen Silkwood was assassinated during her investigation of a Kerr-McGee nuclear plant in Oklahoma. Her car was run off the road while she attempted to deliver documents to a New York Times reporter. (Sources: UHWO,Workday Minnesota)

1975    Jimmy Hoffa Disappears: (Sources: UHWO)        

Today in Labor History—December 4

December 4, 1906 – The National Federation of Postal Clerks was chartered on this date. (from the Daily Bleed)

December 4, 1951 - Walter Reuther, President of the United Auto Workers, was elected head of the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO). Four years later, he led the merger of the CIO and the American Federation of Labor to form the AFL-CIO. (From Workday Minnesota)

December 4, 1969--Chicago Black Panthers Fred Hampton and Mark Clark and 2 others were murdered by police, with assistance from the FBI.

December 4, 1970--Cesar Chavez was jailed for 20 days for refusing to call off the Salinas lettuce boycott. (from the Daily Bleed)

Today in Labor History—September 30

September 30, 1885 – The Knights of Labor won their strike on the Wabash Railroad. (from the Daily Bleed)

Public Enemy #1 in 1892, Henry Clay Frick, Responsible for the Homestead Massacre

September 30, 1892 – Strike leaders were prosecuted for the crime of treason for the first time in U.S. history. Henry C. Frick, chairman of the Carnegie Steel Company, convinced the chief justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court to issue warrants for the arrests of every member of the advisory board of the striking steel union for treason against the state. The 29 strike leaders were ultimately charged with plotting "to incite insurrection, rebellion & war against the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania." (from the Daily Bleed)

Illustration from the Industrial Worker, 1911

 September 30, 1909 -- The "Industrial Worker," mouthpiece of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), issued its first call for footloose hoboes and Wobblies to hop the freights for Missoula, to join in the free speech fight taking place there. From 1907-1917 the IWW carried out more than 30 Free Speech fights across the US, generally to demand the right to organize workers in public places and to agitate from street corners. As police arrested one Wobbly for public speaking, another would take his or her place, resulting in thousands of arrests, as well as mass beatings by vigilantes. However, their civil disobedience often succeeded in clogging the jails and court systems to the point that cities were forced to back down and allow public speaking and agitation.  (from the Daily Bleed)

Militiamen Surround Peaceful Textile Strikers, Lawrence, 1912

 September 30, 1912 – The Lawrence, Massachusetts “Bread and Roses” textile strike was in full swing. On this date, 12,000 textile workers walked out of mills to protest the arrests of two leaders of the strike. Police clubbed strikers and arrested many, while the bosses fired 1,500. IWW co-founder Big Bill Haywood threatened another general strike to get the workers reinstated. Strike leaders Arturo Giovannitti and Joe Ettor were eventually acquitted 58 days later. (From Workday Minnesota)

September 30, 1916 – IWW headquarters were raided in Australia and union leaders were arrested because of their opposition to World War I. In December, seven Wobblies were sentenced to 15 years in prison for anti-war activism. Others received five and ten year sentences. In August, 1917, the IWW was made illegal. Nevertheless, the IWW still helped lead the General Strike of 1917. (from the Daily Bleed)

September 30, 1962 -- The National Farm Workers Association (predecessor to the United Farm Workers) was created during a convention called by Cesar Chavez in Fresno, California. (from the Daily Bleed)

Today in Labor History—September 8

Bulleton of the Modern School (1st published in 1901)

September 8, 1901 – Francisco Ferrer, Spanish anarchist educator, opened the libertarian Escuela Moderna in Barcelona, Spain. Modern schools eventually popped up all over Spain and other countries, including several in the U.S. (See History of the Modern School)--(From the Daily Bleed)

Bread Line During the McKees Rock Strike (from the Historical Society of PA)

 September 8, 1909 – The bosses bent to the demands of striking Wobblies (members of the Industrial Workers of the World, IWW) in McKees Rock, Pa. They agreed to improved working conditions, a raise of 15%,  and an end to the “pool system” that gave foremen control over each worker’s pay. It was the Wobbly’s biggest victory to date. (From Workday Minnesota)

September 8, 1911 – The founding congress of the Confederacion Nacional del Trabajo (C.N.T.) occurred on this date in Barcelona. Nearly 100 delegates created the framework for this anarcho-syndicalist organization. (From theDaily Bleed)

September 8, 1965 - Cesar Chavez led farm workers in California on their first grape boycott. The nationwide protest lasted five years and ended with the first union contract for U.S. farm workers outside of Hawaii. In 1966, Chavez’s organization officially became the United Farm Workers. (From Workday Minnesota)

Today in Labor History—August 11

August 11, 1828 – The first American labor party formed in Philadelphia. (From the Daily Bleed)

Coxey's army leaving the capital

 August 11, 1894 – Federal troops drove over 1,000 jobless workers from the nation's capital. Led by Charles "Hobo" Kelley, an unemployed activist from California, and Jacob Coxey, they camped in Washington D.C. starting in July. Kelley's Hobo Army included a young journalist named Jack London and a young miner-cowboy named Big Bill Haywood. Frank Baum was an observer of the protest and some say it influenced his Wizard of Oz, with the Scarecrow representing the American farmer, the tin man representing industrial workers and the Cowardly Lion representing William Jennings Bryan, all marching on Washington (Oz) to demand redress from the president (the Wizard). 650 miners, led by a "General" Hogan, captured a Northern Pacific train at Butte, Montana, en route to the protest. The Feds caught up with them at Billings, forcing a surrender, but a few eventually made it to Washington. (From the Daily Bleed and Wikipedia)

Homestead strike

Terrorist as a Teenager: Carnegie, 16, Teaching his kid bro how to milk workers

August 11, 1919 - Andrew Carnegie, the richest and most successful late-19th century capitalist, died in New York (and Good Riddance!) Carnegie was a notorious union-buster and slave driver and was infamous for his role in crushing the Homestead strike of 1892. Carnegie mills produced one-quarter of the nation's steel by the earlier 20^th century, and his annual profits were $25 million. (From Workday Minnesota)

 

 August 11, 1945 – Striking Mexican American film workers blocked distribution of American films. (From the Daily Bleed)

Burning buildings, Watts

 August 11, 1965 – The Watts Riots began in LA when a white cop stopped a black driver, Marquette Frye, for drunkenness. By the time the riots subsided five days later, there were 34 dead, 800 wounded, 3,000 arrested and $200 million worth of property destroyed. (From the Daily Bleed)

August 11, 1970 – United Farm Workers leader Cesar Chavez launched a hunger strike to protest harassment by Teamsters officials. (From the Daily Bleed)

Today in Labor History—July 29

July 29, 1900 – King Umberto of Italy was assassinated by Italian anarchist Gaetano Bresci, as revenge for the army's crushing of the worker's insurrection in Milan, May 1898, in which they killed hundreds of workers. Bresci was arrested and later found strangled in his cell at Santo Stefano Prison, on May 22nd, 1901.

July 29, 1903 – The first delegation from Mother Jones’ March of the Mill Children arrived at Teddy Roosevelt's summer home in Oyster Bay, Long Island, to publicize the harsh conditions of child labor. They weren’t allowed through the gates. (From the Daily Bleed)

July 29, 1970 – After five years on strike, the United Farm Workers finally won a contract with California grape growers. (From Workday Minnesota)

Today in Labor History: April 23

April 23, 1918--A General Strike ended conscription of Irish men into the British army during WWI. (From the Daily Bleed)

 

April 23, 1993 - United Farm Workers founder Cesar Chavez died at age 66.

Today in Labor History—March 31

March 31, 1927: Birth of Cesar Chavez.

March 31, 1941: Wisconsin state troopers attack striking auto workers in Milwaukee. The strikers succeed in holding off scabs.

March 31, 1949 – Last great strike of the Canadian Seaman's Union.

March 31, 1966: Two day boycott of Seattle schools protesting de facto segregation.

(Sources: Daily Bleed, and Workaday Minnesota).

Today in Labor History—March 17

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

During the mid-1800s, thousands of Irish emigrated to the U.S., fleeing religious and political persecution and poverty in their native country. Once here, they faced severe discrimination, including employment notices stating “No Irish Need Apply.” Many Irish workers turned to the labor movement for support and union membership grew thanks to Irish leadership and determination. (From Workday Minnesota)

Stop! Whoever Proceeds Will Be Shot. (From Wikipedia)

March 17, 1920 – A General Strike  in Germany help defeat the Kapp Putsch. (From the Daily Bleed)

Bolshevik Assault On Kronstadt Mutineers (from Wikipedia)

March 17, 1921 – The Kronstadt mutiny was defeated by the Bolshevik’s on this date under the direction of Trotsky, who boasted he would "shoot them like pigeons." He was not exaggerating, resulting in a terrible slaughter. (From the Daily Bleed)

March 17, 1966 – César Chávez & the National Farm Workers Association marched from Delano to Sacramento, California, from March 17 to April 11, arriving on Easter Sunday. (From the Daily Bleed)

March 17, 1996 – 30,000 marched in Villahermosa, Mexico, in support of a campaign to blockade state-owned oil wells that displace thousands of poor people. (From the Daily Bleed)

Today in Labor History—September 30

September 30, 1885 – The Knights of Labor won their strike on the Wabash Railroad. (from the Daily Bleed)

Public Enemy #1 in 1892, Henry Clay Frick, Responsible for the Homestead Massacre

September 30, 1892 – Strike leaders were prosecuted for the crime of treason for the first time in U.S. history. Henry C. Frick, chairman of the Carnegie Steel Company, convinced the chief justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court to issue warrants for the arrests of every member of the advisory board of the striking steel union for treason against the state. The 29 strike leaders were ultimately charged with plotting "to incite insurrection, rebellion & war against the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania." (from the Daily Bleed)

Illustration from the Industrial Worker, 1911

 September 30, 1909 -- The "Industrial Worker," mouthpiece of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), issued its first call for footloose hoboes and Wobblies to hop the freights for Missoula, to join in the free speech fight taking place there. From 1907-1917 the IWW carried out more than 30 Free Speech fights across the US, generally to demand the right to organize workers in public places and to agitate from street corners. As police arrested one Wobbly for public speaking, another would take his or her place, resulting in thousands of arrests, as well as mass beatings by vigilantes. However, their civil disobedience often succeeded in clogging the jails and court systems to the point that cities were forced to back down and allow public speaking and agitation.  (from the Daily Bleed)

Militiamen Surround Peaceful Textile Strikers, Lawrence, 1912

 September 30, 1912 – The Lawrence, Massachusetts “Bread and Roses” textile strike was in full swing. On this date, 12,000 textile workers walked out of mills to protest the arrests of two leaders of the strike. Police clubbed strikers and arrested many, while the bosses fired 1,500. IWW co-founder Big Bill Haywood threatened another general strike to get the workers reinstated. Strike leaders Arturo Giovannitti and Joe Ettor were eventually acquitted 58 days later. (From Workday Minnesota)

September 30, 1916 – IWW headquarters were raided in Australia and union leaders were arrested because of their opposition to World War I. In December, seven Wobblies were sentenced to 15 years in prison for anti-war activism. Others received five and ten year sentences. In August, 1917, the IWW was made illegal. Nevertheless, the IWW still helped lead the General Strike of 1917. (from the Daily Bleed)

September 30, 1962 -- The National Farm Workers Association (predecessor to the United Farm Workers) was created during a convention called by Cesar Chavez in Fresno, California. (from the Daily Bleed)