The Rise of organised labour Flashcards
When was there a railroad strike and what was it called?
Who announced the pay cut?
- National Railroad Strike 1877
- Owners of Baltimore and Ohio Railroad announced a pay cut
National Railroad Strike
What happened as a result of the announced pay cut?
- workers walked off the job and were joined by workers from other railroads and other industries
- Mass of workers attacked railroad yards, burning trains and tearing up tracks
The National Railroad Strike
What happened in pittsburgh? -fc
- 5,000 workers fought 650 federal troops
- Workers burnt 500 cars, 104 locomotives and 39 buildings
- 25 people killed and the troops were firing into the crowd
- Military force restore order after $10 million worth of property damage
The National Railroad Strike
What are the key effects of the railroad strikes?
- Worker resolve to organise
- Employers resolve to suppress
The Knights of Labour
When was it founded? -fc
- 1869
The Knights of Labour
What did the knights of labour campaign for ?
- Campaigned for the referendum and sought to build more cooperative labour-management relations
- Lobbied for an 8 hour day and child labour restrictions
The knights of labour - Wabash Railroad strike
What did Wabash Railroad try to do and what did the Knights do in response?
Consequences?
- When Wabash Railroad tried to break a local union, the Knights walked out in sympathy
- The entire Southwest System was paralysed and Wabash was forced to negotiate
- Within a year of of this, Knights had ¾ million members
Describe the decline of the knights of labour
2 points
- Lots of newly joined members attempted industrial action but were rarely supported by others
- Haymarket Bomb Outrage was blamed on the Knights. Within a year, membership halved. Within a decade, all but extinct.
When was the Haymarket Bomb Outrage?
1886
Haymarket Bomb Outrage
What was the haymarket bomb outrage?
What happened on May 3rd?
What happened on May 4th?
Strike at McCormick Harvester Works, Chicago, May 1886
- Police fired into crowd
- Several killed, many injured
- Black International organised rally in Haymarket Square
- Was meant to be peaceful
- Someone threw a bomb
- one police men killed instantly, 60+ injured (6 of whom died later)
- Police retaliated, firing into crowd, some fatalities
Who was persecuted for Haymarket bomb outrage? + consequence
- Seven arrested, all found guilty, several executed
- Contributed to the failure of the 1886 eight-hour day movement
American Federation of Labour
Who was it set up by? when?
Who involved etc
- Set up by Samuel Gompers
- In 1885
- Only skilled white men
- Limited objectives
How did they learn from the knights mistakes?
- Recognised the autonomy of each trade
- Executive Council could not interfere in the internal affairs of union members
- Taxed members of the unions to create a strike fund and maintain a secretariat
- Formed central and state federations
