Labor History in 2:00

On this day in Labor History the year was 1996. That was the day that “Chainsaw”  Al Dunlap lived up to his nickname. Under his leadership, the Board of the Sunbeam Corporation agreed to eliminate half of the company's 6,000 employees and 87% of its products.  Dunlap had built a reputation for ruthlessly restructuring companies. His policy of implementing sweeping layoffs and plant closures earned him the nickname “Chainsaw Al.”

On this day in Labor History the year was 1887. That was a tragic day for the labor movement. Four men were hung in Chicago for their alleged role in the bombing at a labor rally at the city’s Haymarket Square a year earlier.  In a sensational trial a total of eight men were convicted for Haymarket.

On this day in Labor History the year was 1933. That was the day that Hormel plant workers in Austin, Minnesota began a sit-down strike. Company head, Jay Hormel, boasted that his company was a benevolent dictatorship. Workers agreed that the company was a dictatorship but not very benevolent.  

On this day in Labor History the year was 1935.The Committee for Industrial Organizations was created by eight unions, as part of the American Federation of Labor. United Mine Workers President John L. Lewis was the driving force behind this new committee

On this day in Labor History the year was 1892. That was the day that black and white workers in New Orleans began what is considered the first integrated general strike in United States history. The strike began when the New Orleans Board of Trade refused to enter into an agreement with the Teamsters Union because it included black members. 

On this day in Labor History the year was 1990. That was the day that Lemuel Ricketts Boulware died.  Boulware had a notorious reputation with labor leaders. He was the Vice President for employee relations for General Electric during the 1950s. 

On this day in Labor History the year was 1860. That was the day that Abraham Lincoln was elected sixteenth President of the United States. When Lincoln came to office the nation was deeply divided on the question of slavery. By December 20, South Carolina had seceded from the United States.  

On this day in Labor History the year was 1855. That was the day that Eugene Debs was born in Terre Haute, Indiana.  Debs was forced to leave school when he was just fourteen.  He worked as a railroad fireman.  

Got milk?  If you lived in Neillsville, Wisconsin the answer might have been NO. On this day in labor history the year was 1933.  Wisconsin is known as the dairy state.

On this day in Labor History the year was 1921. That was the day the New York Timesheadline proclaimed:  “Striker Rioting All Over the City, Dump Thousands of Gallons of Milk; Hylan Threatens to Seize plants.”  Hylan referred to New York City Mayor John Francis Hylan.