One Union Of Skilled And Unskilled Workers example essay topic

Labor Day is a dedication to the social and economic achievements of American workers. It constitutes a yearly national acknowledgment to the contributions that workers have made to the strength, prosperity and well-being of our country. It has evolved from a purely labor union celebration into a general "last fling of summer" festival. The origin and deeper meaning of the day has been forgotten, or never actually known to many. The beginnings of the American Labor Movement started with the Industrial Revolution. Once factory systems began to grow, a demand for workers increased.

They hired large amounts of young women and children who were expected to do the same work as men for less wages. New immigrants were also employed and called 'free workers' because they were unskilled. Child labor in the factories was not only common, but necessary for a family's income. Children as young as five or six manned machines or did jobs such as sweeping floors to earn money.

No laws prevented the factories from using these children, so they continued to do so. 'Sweatshops' were created in crowded, unsanitary tenements. These were makeshift construction houses, dirty and unbearably hot. The United States had the highest job-related fatality rate of any other industrialized nation in the world.

Men and women earned twenty to forty percent less than the minimum deemed necessary for a decent life. People lived and worked in unhealthy environments in poverty with little food. The country was growing and its economy was rising, but its people were miserable. The first large national labor organization to become popular was the Noble and Holy Order of the Knights of Labor. It was founded in 1869 by garment workers in Philadelphia who believed that one union of skilled and unskilled workers should exist. The union was originally a secret, but later was open to all workers, including blacks, women and farmers.

Five hundred thousand workers joined in a year. Their goals were an eight-hour work day, a minimum wage, arbitration rather than strikes, health and safety laws, equal pay for equal work, no child labor under the age of fourteen, and government ownership of railroads, telegraphs and telephones. However, the Knights of Labor was a relatively weak organization, and eventually fell apart. In 1886, the American Federation of Labor (AF of L) was formed and replaced the Knights of Labor. Its leader was former cigar union official Samuel Gompers who only wanted to focus on skilled workers. The AF of L was a conglomeration of twenty-five unions that included three hundred thousand workers working for increasing wages, reducing hours, and improving working conditions.

Gompers believed that everyone should receive equal pay for equal work, and that everyone's rights should be protected. He also thought the unions should be primarily concerned with the day-to-day welfare of the members and should not become involved with politics. He also thought that socialism would not succeed in the United States. 'Bread and butter' unionism was the term given to his philosophies that higher wages and fewer working hours could achieve the goal of a better life for the working people. A Department of Labor in the president's Cabinet was established. Congress also passed the extremely important Clayton Act in 1914, which ceased the use of antitrust laws and court injunctions against unions.

The federal government created the War Labor Board during World War I to settle disputes by arbitration. The board made advances in wage increases, the eight-hour work day, and collective bargaining. They favored unions, and this led to a huge increase in the union membership. By January of 1917, the AFL had 2,370,000 members.

The number increased, and two years later they had 3,260,000. Throughout the twentieth century, union struggles increased and decreased. The Great Depression in the 1930's was a time of hardship and poverty for many workers. The Wagner Act was passed which guaranteed workers the right to join unions and bargain collectively.

The National Labor Relations Board (NRL B) was formed. The board could hold elections so that workers could vote for the union they wanted to represent them. The board could also stop unfair practices used by employers against unions. America was developing into the country it is today. The Knights of Labor held the first parade to recognize the achievements of American workers on Tuesday, September 5, 1882, on New York City streets.

The group welcomed all American works to celebrate except bankers, lawyers, gamblers, and stockholders. Labor Day was not made an official holiday until twelve years later.