Labor History in 2:00

June 26 - Have You Heard of Jennie Curtis?

On this day Labor History the year was 1894.  That was the day the American Railway union, led by Eugene Debs, voted to support the boycott of Chicago’s Pullman Palace Cars.  The nation was gripped by an economic depression. The Pullman workers were on strike, because the company had severely slashed wages.  But Pullman had not reduced the workers rent payments in his company town.  

June 25 - FDR Signs the Fair Labor Standards Act

On this day in Labor History the year was 1938.  That was the day the President Franklin Delano Roosevelt signed the Fair Labor Standards Act.  The night before he signed that landmark act, he addressed the nation in one his famous “fire side chats.”  

June 24 - Agnes Nestor

On this day in Labor History the year was 1880. Chicago labor leader Agnes Nestor was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Her father had been a machinist and member of the Knights of Labor. Like many others families, the Nestor family moved to Chicago during the depression that swept the country in the mid-1890s.  

June 23 - Brown Lung

Chances are you have heard of “black lung,” the deadly disease that threatens coal miners. But have you ever heard of “brown lung?” On this day in Labor History the year was 1978. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration or OSHA adopted standards to fight this workplace hazard.  

June 22 - United

On this day in Labor History the year was 1977. The eyes of the British Labor Movement were turned to the Grunwick Film Labor Processing Laboratories in northwest London.  Members of trade unions participated in a large demonstration at the factory.  

June 21 - The Day of the Rope

On this day in Labor History the year was 1877. It became known in Pennsylvania labor history as “The Day of the Rope.” 

Twenty Irish miners were hung for allegedly belonging to a secret group of labor radicals known as the Molly Maguires.

June 20 - ARU is Founded

On this day in Labor History the year was 1893.  That was the day that Eugene V. Debs founded the American Railway Union.  The goal of the union was to organize railroad workers from different job classifications.  Previous railroad unions have been based on job type.

June 19 - The Women’s Day Massacre

On this day in Labor History the year was 1937. That was the day that would go down in labor history as the “Woman’s Day Massacre.” 

The Steel Workers Organizing Committee were attempting to bring union recognition to the Steel Industry.  

June 18 - Executive Order 8802

On this day in Labor History the year was 1941. That was the day that an historic meeting took place at the White House. 

Black labor leader A. Philip Randolph, along with the head of the NAACP sat down to talk with President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. 

June 17 - March of the Mill Children

On this day in Labor History the year was 1903. Mary Harris  better known as “Mother” Jones held a rally in Philadelphia. 

The famous Irish-American labor leader had come to Pennsylvania to support a strike of textile workers. As many as one-hundred thousand workers were out on strike.