Labor and Strikes

• 1919– Thousands of strikes, millions of strikers– Wages did not keep pace with prices

• A major reason why there were numerous strikes during 1919

A)Overproduction of goods created a work shortageB)Workers wanted higher wages to keep pace with

higher pricesC) Workers were unhappy with the outcome of World

War ID)Factory owners were offering benefits

John L. Lewis

“no right to strike against public safety”- Calvin Coolidge, governor of

Massachusetts

• When a future president said – “There is no right to strike against the public safety by anyone, anywhere, anytime” – he was responding to the

A) coal mine strikeB) steel mill strikeC) city-wide Seattle strikeD) Boston police strike

Seattle General Strike

Seattle's Skinner & Eddy shipyard, "ground zero" for the Seattle General Strike

The 1926 General Strike in the U.K.

Government attempted to reduce the wages and benefits of UK coal miners. In response, an unsuccessful strike by over 1.5 million workers from many industries lasted for nine days.

Decline of Labor Movement

• Unions = communism– Red Scare turned public against workers

• Hard to organize immigrants• Economy improved• Rise of benefits – “welfare capitalism”– Sick days, vacation time, tuition reimbursement

• African-Americans excluded– A. Philip Randolph

• Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters

• The labor movement lost momentum as the 20s progressed because

A) The pubic was persuaded that unions were a communistic threatB) African-Americans refused to join unionsC) immigrants worked in higher paying jobsD) industrial and mass-production workers were no longer part of the economy

• During the 1920s, some employers adopted a system known as “welfare capitalism,” which

A)all of the answers below B)strengthened the growth of unions C) subsidized housing costs for the poor D)provided workers with shorter workweeks and

retirement pensions

• Seattle General Strikehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=efM5EsZPfbA stop at 3:03

• Boston Police and Air Traffic Controller Strikes– http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kMS_p-fj5y4 1:10

• The Tulsa Race Riot of 1921– http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQ-

vFlEZU6s&feature=related 0:00 – 1:18; 3:30 – 4:15

• Marcus Garvey– http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EAI_xHY6yWo

stop at 3:02