Labor History in 2:00

May 12 - Fighting & Winning the Eight Hour Day

On this day in Labor History the year was 1856 workers of Melbourne, Australia marched to celebrate a victory in the campaign to win the eight-hour day. At the time it was common to work as long as twelve or fourteen hour days. 

May 11 - The 1894 Pullman Strike Begins

On this day in Labor History the year was 1894.  That was the first day of the Pullman Strike.  The strike started in the company of town of Pullman, on the south side of Chicago, where workers made luxury sleeping cars for passenger trains.

May 10 - The Fight for Equality

On this day in Labor History the year was 1980.  That was the day that as many as ninety thousand people rallied for the passage of the Equal Rights Amendment in Grant Park in Chicago, Illinois.  

May 9 - Fighting Exploitation

On this day in Labor History the year was 1972.  That was the day that employees at the Farah Manufacturing Company went out on strike.  The company was one of the top producers of men and boy’s pants in the country, and the second largest employer in El Paso.  

May 8 - Organizing the Rails

On this day in Labor History the year was 1863. That was the day that Division One of the Brotherhood of the Footboards was founded in Detroit, Michigan.  By the next year they had changed their name to the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers.  

May 7 - Bloody Tuesday

On this day in Labor History the year was 1907.  That was the day known in the San Francisco labor movement as “Bloody Tuesday”  In the early twentieth century, San Francisco was a city with a strong union movement.  In early May, the Carmen’s Union called a strike against United Railroads, the company that ran the city’s transit system.  

May 6 - Taking an Ax to Poverty Wages

On this day in Labor History the year was 1935. That was the day that began a strike of lumber workers across the Pacific Northwest.  Lumberman had enough of long hours, dangerous conditions, and low pay.  Plans for the strike began at a meeting of the Sawmill and Timber Workers Union in late March.  

May 5 - The Battle of Harlan

On this day in Labor History the year was 1931. That was the day that became known as the “Battle of Harlan” or the “Battle for Evarts.” Harlan County, Kentucky was coal country. Miners worked long hours underground and faced dangerous, and often deadly working conditions. 

May 4 - The Day that Changed the World

On this day in Labor History the year was 1886. That evening a worker’s rally in Chicago Illinois became known as the Haymarket Tragedy. On May 1, workers from across the city and country had held massive rallies for the eight-hour day. Two days later,the police had fired into a crowd of workers on strike outside of the McCormick Reaper plant in the Chicago neighborhood of Pilsen. 

May 3 - Voice of the Movement

On this day in Labor History the year was 1919. That was the birthday of folk musician Pete Seeger.  Seeger and his music would become staples of the US labor movement. He was born into a musical family.