A daily, pocket-sized history of America's working people, brought to you by The Rick Smith Show team.
Episodes
Apr 30, 2015
Apr 30, 2015
1 min
On this day in Labor History the year was 1894. A group of 400-500 unemployed men marched down Pennsylvania Avenue toward the US Capitol. In a buggy at the front of the march rode Jacob Coxey.
Apr 29, 2015
Apr 29, 2015
1 min
When you stand up for Civil Rights and Workers Rights you never know how far the struggle may travel. This was the case on this day in Labor History the year was 1963.
Apr 28, 2015
Apr 28, 2015
1 min
On this day in Labor History the year was 1971. That was the day that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration was founded. Since then OSHA rules have become a powerful tool for the protection of workers health and safety.
Apr 27, 2015
Apr 27, 2015
1 min
You have probably heard about the Red Scare, when thousands of people lost their jobs in the 1950s for allegedly harboring Communist sympathies. But have you ever heard of the “Lavender Scare” that happened during those same years?
Apr 26, 2015
Apr 26, 2015
1 min
In 1948 gold was discovered at John Sutter’s Mill in California. As word spread, fortune seekers from all across the United States and across the world flocked to California in what came to be known as the Gold Rush.
Apr 25, 2015
Apr 25, 2015
2 min
On this day in Labor History the year was 1969.
The Governor of South Carolina sent 1,000 state troopers and National Guardsmen to Charleston.
They were sent there to deal with striking hospital workers who wanted union recognition.
Apr 24, 2015
Apr 24, 2015
1 min
On this day in Labor History the year was 2013.
That was the day of the deadliest workplace disaster in garment industry history.
More than 1,100 workers lost their lives when a factory complex building collapsed in Bangladesh.
Apr 23, 2015
Apr 23, 2015
1 min
On this day in Labor History the year was 1980. That was the day that Ida Mae Stull passed away.
She is widely considered to be the first woman coal miner in United States history.
Apr 22, 2015
Apr 22, 2015
1 min
On this day in Labor History the year was 2011.
That was the day the labor movement lost one of its most poignant voices.
Hazel Dickens was born in Mercer County, West Virginia in 1935. It was coal country.
Apr 20, 2015
Apr 20, 2015
1 min
On this day in Labor History the year was 1894. The nation was in the grip of deep depression.
Unemployment soared. Workers wages and hours were cut dramatically in virtually every industry.