1. The Industrial Revolution in the 19 th Century “The man who has his millions will want everything he can lay his hands on and then raise his voice against the poor devil who wants ten cents more a day.” – Samuel Gompers

2. Industrial Revolution Samuel Slater textile millsIntroduced textile mills to the NE in 1790 Semiskilled and unskilled workers were the primary workforce, including women Eli Whitney Developed idea of interchangeable parts, increasing efficiency and cutting cost

3. Lowell Textile Mills Lowell Textile Mill (1822) Milltown where young, single women were the majority of the workforce Lived in dorms, and worked 12 hour days, 6 days a week. Gave women a sense of independence Eventually replaced by immigrants Labor Unions Factory Girls AssociationThe Factory Girls Association grouped together in the 1830s to protect their interests (shorter work days, wages, and working conditions).

4. Commonwealth v. Hunt Commonwealth v. Hunt Commonwealth v. Hunt (1842) Labor unions were originally considered illegal and seen as groups conspiring against industry This case ruled that unions were legal and had the right to organize a strike as long as their actions were not violent or illegal.

5. Knights of Labor The Knights of Labor The Knights of Labor (1869) Included skilled and unskilled workers, blacks, and women Aims of the Knights of Labor: –An 8-hour work day –End of child labor –End convict contract labor system –Equal pay for equal work –A graduated income tax Haymarket Square RiotSupported strikes, but lost it’s influence when strikes became violent ( Haymarket Square Riot ). Unions began to be associated with radicalism and anarchism.

6. Great Railroad Strike The Great Railroad Strike of 1877 Due to Panic of 1873, railroad companies began to cut wages & work-weeks In response, workers went on strike and blockaded rail lines and destroyed trains and tracks in cities around the country Violence erupted between strikers and state militia President Rutherford B Hayes sent federal troops to stop the strike

7. Haymarket Square Riot Haymarket Square Riot (1886) Thousands of people in Chicago protested for an 8- hour workday A bomb exploded and gun fire erupted killing 11 (7 police officers) Eight men, with foreign sounding names, were arrested Despite no evidence men were sentenced to death - 4 hung, one committed suicide Knights of Labor became associated with radicalism and disbanded

8. American Federation of Labor The American Federation of Labor The American Federation of Labor (1886) Founded by Samuel Gompers skilled workersExcluded unskilled workers, blacks and women. They believed that skilled workers could not be easily replaced, and therefore could more easily bargain Aims included: –8-hour workday –Higher wages –Better working conditions –Right of workers to organize –Labor legislation

9. Sherman Anti-Trust Act Sherman Antitrust Act Sherman Antitrust Act (1890) Economic power was in the hands of large corporations Federal government prohibited trusts (monopolies) based on their ability to control interstate commerce Many unions were charged with breaking the anti-trust acts for having strikes that “restricted interstate trade” (railroad strikes)

10. Homestead Strike Homestead Strike Homestead Strike (1892) Henry Clay Frick, a manager for Carnegie Steel, proposed a wage cut When negotiations broke down Frick shut down the mill, installed three-miles of fencing, and hired 300 Pinkerton Detectives Armed confrontations erupted between workers and the Pinkerton Detectives National Guard took control of the plant Plant later re-opened as a non- union plant w/African American and eastern European workers; union leaders blacklisted

11. Pullman Strike Pullman Strike Pullman Strike (1894) George Pullman laid off workers, cut wages, and failed to reduce rent in the company town American Railway Union led a nation-wide strike Violence erupted after Grover Cleveland dispatched troops to stop the strike –Labor leader, Eugene V. Debs arrested and later founded the Socialist party AFL rejected Debs’ call for a general strike to protest federal government’s support of management