Episodes
Monday May 15, 2023
May 15 - Library Workers Unite!
Monday May 15, 2023
Monday May 15, 2023
On this day in Labor History the year was 1917. That was the day of the founding that the Library Employees Union of Greater New York. This was the first public library workers’ union in the United States. From its beginning, one of the key efforts of the union was to fight for “equal rights of women and men in the library field.”
Sunday May 14, 2023
May 14 - Fighting for BEER!
Sunday May 14, 2023
Sunday May 14, 2023
Do you ever enjoy a cold beer after a long day’s work? Well if you were worker in the United States from 1920 to 1933, you would have to break the law to down a brew. On this day in Labor History the year was 1932. That was the day that massive demonstrations for the re-legalization of beer were held in New York City and Detroit. Prohibition had lasted for more than a decade.
Saturday May 13, 2023
May 13 - Parisian Workers Join the General Strike
Saturday May 13, 2023
Saturday May 13, 2023
On this day in Labor History the year was the 1968. That was the day at the workers across Paris joined students in a city-wide general strike. College students had begun an occupation at the famed Sorbonne University earlier that May.
Friday May 12, 2023
May 12 - Fighting and Winning the Eight Hour Day
Friday May 12, 2023
Friday May 12, 2023
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.
Thursday May 11, 2023
May 11 - The Historic Pullman Strike Begins
Thursday May 11, 2023
Thursday May 11, 2023
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.
Wednesday May 10, 2023
May 10 - Fighting for Equality
Wednesday May 10, 2023
Wednesday May 10, 2023
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.
Tuesday May 09, 2023
May 9 - Fighting Exploitation
Tuesday May 09, 2023
Tuesday May 09, 2023
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.
Monday May 08, 2023
May 8 - Organizing the Rails
Monday May 08, 2023
Monday May 08, 2023
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.
Sunday May 07, 2023
May 7 - Bloody Tuesday
Sunday May 07, 2023
Sunday May 07, 2023
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.
Saturday May 06, 2023
May 6 - Taking an Ac to Poverty Wages
Saturday May 06, 2023
Saturday May 06, 2023
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.