A daily, pocket-sized history of America's working people, brought to you by The Rick Smith Show team.
Episodes
Tuesday Aug 18, 2015
Tuesday Aug 18, 2015
On this day in Labor History the year was 1927. That was the day that a new radio station began to broadcast on the New York dial. The station’s call letters were WEVD. It stood for Eugene V. Debs. The radio station was founded to honor the recently deceased Socialist and labor leader.
Monday Aug 17, 2015
Monday Aug 17, 2015
On this day in Labor History the year 1918. That was the day that 101 leaders of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) or Wobblies were convicted in a Chicago Federal Court. Their alleged crime?
Sunday Aug 16, 2015
Sunday Aug 16, 2015
On this day in Labor History the year was 1894. That was the birthday of the long-time leader of the AFL-CIO.
George Meany grew up in the Bronx, with his Irish Catholic family.
Saturday Aug 15, 2015
Saturday Aug 15, 2015
On this day in Labor History the year was 1971. That Sunday, President Richard Nixon addressed the nation in a speech that preempted the popular television show, Bonanza. His subject? The state of the economy. The speech was timed before the stock markets opened on Monday morning.
Friday Aug 14, 2015
Friday Aug 14, 2015
On this day in Labor History the year was 1980. That was the day 17,000 workers took over the Lenin Shipyard in Gdansk, Poland. The Polish economy was struggling and worker unrest had been on the rise. The government hiked food prices, including doubling the price of meat in July.
Thursday Aug 13, 2015
Thursday Aug 13, 2015
On this day in Labor History the year was 1935. That was the day that thirty-five journalists of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer walked off the job. They represented about half of the paper’s news room staff at the time.
Wednesday Aug 12, 2015
Wednesday Aug 12, 2015
On this day in Labor History the year was 1881. That was the day that the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners passed their first constitution at a meeting in Chicago. The meeting was organized by Peter J. McGuire.
Tuesday Aug 11, 2015
Tuesday Aug 11, 2015
On this day in Labor History the year was 2013. That was the day a somewhat unexpected new union formed in Bangor, Maine. Local 207 of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace workers represents lobster fisherman. Lobster fisherman are known for being fiercely independent.
Monday Aug 10, 2015
Monday Aug 10, 2015
On this day in Labor History the year was 1954. That was the day of the groundbreaking ceremony of what would come to be known as “the greatest construction show on earth.” The show was the development of the Saint Lawrence Seaway.
Sunday Aug 09, 2015
Sunday Aug 09, 2015
On this day in Labor History the year was 1927. That was the day that the California School Employees Association was founded.
Today the union includes more than 215,000 members. But it all started with just nine men and one woman.