The rise of modern trade unionism in America - Essay Example

Introduction A labor union or a trade union refers to a body that represents workers. Through the leadership of the union, negotiations and bargainstake place with the employer on behalf of the employees who in this case are the members of the union. The negotiations are mainly on rules that govern the employee, working conditions; bargain on wages and workplace policy on employee safety among others, (Fine, Sidney, 1996). The trade unions over the past centuries have been developing into various forms. The main objectives of trade union many generally include; Collective bargaining Providing the union members with benefits Politicking among the members of the union over the national politics Organizing strikes or industrial action The Gilded Age In the history of America, the gilded age is a term used to refer to the exceptional polarization of wealth and wastage of the same by the upper class of people in the US after the civil war. This is precisely the period between the 1870s and the 1890s.This polarization of wealth resulted from the expansion of both the population and industries in the United States, (Arthur M. 2000). During this period, there was an extremely rapid growth in small factories mines, stores and other corporations. There was also diversity in race due to the increased immigration rates. The growth in businesses inflated immigration due to the availability of employment opportunities. The wealthy entrepreneurs established corporations, enterprises and major businesses. The gilded age was largely characterized by massive industrial growth. The productivity of American manufacturing was way beyond that of France, Germany, And the Great Britain. The mileage of Railroad grew three times more for the period between 1860 and 1880.The setting up of new areas for the purposes of business farming contributed to the creation of a marketplace that was national. It also inspired a boom in the mining of coal and production of steel. The large desire for capital made it possible for the consolidation of America's financial markets. By the year 1900, economic focus had spread to most of the other ranches of industrialization. Large corporates were dominant in the agriculture and industrial sectors of the economy. The steel industry was also up and coming. There was an increase in the mechanization of the industries and this largely marked the Gilded Age as a cheaper alternative to creating more products. At this time it was recommended that efficiency was sought through the use of machinery rather than workers in order to contribute to fewer motions in a shorter duration of time. The redesign lead to acceleration in the speed of the machinery in the various factories while at the same time increasing the output of the factories and reducing the factory requirements for labor that was skilled, (Fine, Sidney, 1996). The mechanization rendered the unskilled laborers not busy. They were commonly involved in the repetitive and simple tasks with the guidance of an engineer and a foreman who was skilled. The rates of wages increased by the day and so did the numbers of both the skilled and unskilled laborers. Colleges for engineering related courses were added I numbers to meet the demand of expertise and skilled labor force. This turn of events and the massive industrialization contributed to the setting up of a diverse working class that created the wealth that was amassed by the up coming financiers and industrialists. These wealthy industrialists more often than not influenced the business process or even carried out unethical financial manipulations. Due to their unbecoming behavior in financial manipulation, these wealthy industrialists were popularly known as the robber barons, (Smythe, Ted C.; 2003). During this time, there was a minor labor movement that was established by the name of American Federation of labor, (FLA).This movement was however politically involved and featured close associates of the democrats and republicans. Almost all the eligible people into this movement were members of political parties. This implied that the movement was politically manipulated and influenced. The Rise of Modern Unions in the US Before the raise of the first trade unions, the Order of the Knights of St. Crispin represented the workers in America back in the year 1867.With a staggering 50, 000 number of members, it was historically the largest union. This movement was characterized by poor organization structures that led to its decline and later collapse. This movement fought for the rights of the unskilled laborers who were being replaced by skilled workers and mechanization, (Arthur M. 2000). The efforts of this movement did not succeed since the unskilled and semiskilled workers could not be able to run the new machinery and neither could they work faster than the machines could. This then lead to the establishment of the first union in the US. The initial local trade union in the US was formed way back in the 18th Century. This union however only stood on its own during the period that followed the civil war. The movement was known as the National Labor Union (NLU).It was the pioneer labor union in the history of America's trade unions, (Morgan, Wayne H., 1995). The union did not last long. After the fall of this union, the Knights of Labor came up. It had a slightly longer life than the former but its demise came during the Haymarket Riot. This movement was formed in the wake of the year 1869.The movement had a firm believe in unifying all the interest of the members. Due to this notion, the union grew explosively especially after the year 1880.The strikes that were organized by this union collapsed and the movement died after the Haymarket Riot in the year 1886.The main reason was confusion between the riots of this movement with anarchists who were making bombs. The collapsed labor movement was then quickly followed by the American Federation of Labor (AFL); way back in the year 1886.The union was a federation that represented the unskilled laborers. The members of this movement came from different representative unions. The AFL had every intention of encouraging the formation of labor unions and get legislation. The union wanted to enforce the removal of practices like child labor, legalization of an eight hour working day nationally, as well as the removal of foreign laborers who were on contract, (Morgan, Wayne H., 1995). This movement made a lot of effort to get legislation that was favorable. However there was little success in the organization of the union. The relationship between the knits of labor and this union was not working out. In the year 1886, a convention was held in Ohio that saw all the unions under The Federation of Organized Traders (FLO) merge with AFL. Other unions were formed later with time. For instance, the Congress Industrial Organizations (CIO) formed in the year 1938.The union later merged with AFL. In America today, there are to umbrella organizations namely, The Change to Win Federation or The American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO). Majority of the unions have membership in either one of the umbrella organizations. The Pullman Strike The figure below shows hundreds of workers at the Pullman factory leaving for the homes owned by George Pullman after work. Source, (Smythe, Ted C.; 2003). Also popularly known as the Pullman strike, it begun in the year 1894 0n May the 11th.The strike took place as a reaction towards a car company by the name Pullman that had cut the wages of its workers by 28%.The over 4000 workers of the company went on a wildcat strike. This historically brought the traffic to a halt in western Chicago. George Pullman the owner and founder of the company was a renowned capitalist precisely in welfare, (Josephson, Matthew, 1934). He had a firm believe in the fact that strikes and industrial actions were the result of lack of a decent wage and improper living conditions for the workers. This gentleman had always paid exceptional wages to his employees and even set up a company in Illinois. The employees of this company did not live under the utilitarian residence like the common workers of that time. Instead, they dwelled in very attractive companies that were owned by the company that were fully furnished with luxurious facilities like sewer systems and gas. Their children also had free education up to the eighth grade and a free library stocked up by Pullman. The employees of this company had their residence in the company's town in the same manner that slaves in coffee plantations lived at their work place. These workers were in constant fear of Pullman, their employer. They could not air any complaints about the town for the fear of loosing their jobs or being reprimanded. They lived anonymously and did not want to be known to Pullman, (Ann., 1999). These workers were dehumanized and humiliated. The town which initially had been established to solve and minimize labor complications turned out to be the source of tension and eventually the historic strike. The town residents were convinced that the company had taken control over their lives not to mention the identity of these people. At that time, personal identity and independence was equated to wealth. Cutting of the workers wages was humiliating. George Pullman stood with the word that he was improving his workers lives. This was just because he provided them with shopping, housing, as well as entertainment close to their place of work. He therefore saw the sense in reducing the workers salaries. However, these workers did not just want money from their wages but also independence which unfortunately Pullman could not provide nor give to his workers, (Jensen, Richard, 2003). The Pullman Company and the corporations that operated and owned it assumed that the workers would plan their expenditure such that they would not live beyond their means and that they would have a prudent budget. Unfortunately, some laborers found themselves trapped in debt slavery. They had debts that exceeded their earnings; these debts were owed to the company and the sister companies. The debts were thereafter deducted automatically from the employee's paychecks. Any worker who had spent more than the earnings from the company did not receive any earnings. This was the main contributing factor towards the Pullman strike. In addition, the company was reigning in the town. It had rule over the town similar to a baron. Pullman prohibited the supply and distribution of independent papers, town meetings, public speeches or even any open discussion. As if that was not enough, inspectors were regularly send to check for cleanliness in the homes in town, any one who did not follow this requirement could have his lease terminated within ten days. The strike was propagated by the 1893 economic panic. During this time, Pullman Company slashed the workers wages due to a drop in the company's revenue. The workers raised complaints that their rents were not decreased with the reduced wages. Majority of the workers at this time were members of the trade union. This was the American Railway Union (ARU).This union supported the strike and showed solidarity to its members, (Fine, Sidney, 1996). They boycotted on all cars belonging to the Pullman Company. The strike was effectively able to stop production at the factories and this contributed to a lockout. The people that were working at the railroad stopped working. This became worse when more workers were hired to replace those who had quit at the railroad. The African American workers feared that they would be discriminated on the grounds of racism and cut them off from the American Railway Union decided to stop the strike, (Cohen, N. 2002). This brought a conflict between the American workers and the African American Workers. In the year 1894, a peaceful demonstration was held seeking support for the strike from other railroad workers from the Blue Illinois company. The crowd was so charged that it set ablaze the neighboring buildings. The rest of the people who sympathized with the strikers thwarted the movement of goods, threatened the workers who were not participating in the strike, and even blocked the tracks of the rail road. This made the strike very pronounced and called for a federal action. The figure here below shows an artistic representation of the violence between the Pullman workers on strike and the federal troops. Source, (Alan B., 2004). In the year 1894, a court injunction was obtained declaring the strike illegal. The striking workers did not heed to this call and never reported to work the day after the declaration. The Cleveland President commanded the federal troops to intervene. This only made matters worse as the strikers took to the streets with riots. They prevented trains from passing by, smashed switches and set ablaze all materials that were inflammable, (Peter H., 1992). This very serious strike was the terminated by the federal troops from Chicago on order by the President. The Troop had approximately 12, 000 army members in number. The US Marshals also intervened. The strike was said to interfere with mail delivery and was a threat to public safety. However, the intervention of the Army officers only caused more violence. It was reported that property worth $340,000 was ruthlessly damaged, 13 of the striking workers were killed and 57 others wounded. Most of the workers on the railroad reported back to work and their wages were not added. Some of them were even blacklisted such that no other company could hire them. The reputation that George Pullman had as an employer who was enlightened diminished. The man who thought he had been generous to his workers felt offended. He latter died in the year 1897, (Smythe, Ted C.2003). Conclusion Trade Unions are bodies meant to collectively bargain for the welfare of the members. Before the unions came to being in the Gilded Age in America, the industrialists and investors had become fraudulent and manipulated the corporations. The Pullman strike discussed later in details was initiated to free the workers from the humiliation and injustices of the Pullman Company. References Alan B. (2004): A Concise History of the American People, McGraw Hill Ann W., (1999): Democracy, Republicanism and Efficiency: The Values of American Politics Cohen, N. (2002): The Reconstruction of American Liberalism, University of North Carolina Press. Fine, Sidney, (1996): A Study of Conflict in American Thought 1865-1901. University of Michigan Press, Josephson, Matthew, (1934): The Robber Barons: The Great American Capitalists, 1861- 1901 business history from the Left, University of Michigan Press, Morgan, Wayne H., (1995): The Gilded Age: A Reappraisal, Syracuse University Press Nevins, Allan. (1933): The Emergence of Modern America, 1865-1878 Schlesinger, Arthur M. (2000): The Rise of the City: McGraw Hill Peter H. (1992): Essays in American Trade Union History, University of Michigan Press, Smythe, Ted C.; (2003). The Gilded Age Syracuse University Press Read More