The wageworker. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1904-????, 1908-08-29
Hub and Center of
Organized Labor

I.jWN a modern little brick struc-
I@M ture under the shadow OF
" SgM the monster pension build
- ing at Washington is locat-
n Tf& ed the nerve center of the
60 j organized lavor movement
the United States and I'm
Gle Sans new possessions, writes
Walden Fawcett. In these quar-
ters, which are none too COM
modious for the strenuous activi-
ties carried on therein, an executive
staff of upward of three dozen men
and women keeps in close touch with
an army of 100000 artisans in
every state and territory in the union.
This beehive is the national head
quarters of the American Federation
of Labor, that great central body that
exercises jurisdiction over the local
workingmen's organizations from one
end of the country to the other.
To appreciate the significance of the
work carried on at this place it is
necessary to know something of the
American Federation of Labor and it's
remarkable growth. The first move
toward the voluntary organization of
labor in America was made early in
the nineteenth century but it gained
almost no Roadway until score of
years later. The earliest known trade
union composed of journeymen was
the New York Society of Journeymen
Shipwrights, which was legally in
corporated in 1903. Unions of tailors
and carpenters were organized in the
mo in 1919 of hct
tiers came into existence in 1919.
The first crusade on the part of or
ganized labor was for ten-hour work
day. In the spring of 1910 President
Van Buren, issued a proclamation es-
tablishing the ten-hour day on all gov
eminent work, but it was several years
later ere anything approaching COM
plete victory was won in the private
establishments of the country. The
year 1851 saw another important adj
vance in the labor movement, namely
the formation of the first national
union by the banding together Of vari-
Gus local organizations. The printers
were the pioneers in this progressive
step and were shortly followed by the
iron molders. For some years these
| their advanced position but with the
| civil war and it's significant proclama-
! ton abolishing slavery spur was
| given to the cause of organized labor
and in 1864 the National Cigarmakers'
union was formed The Bricklayers
and Masons' International union came
into existence soon after and before
! many months had elapsed several 9th
| err classes of toilers had taken the de-
| cisive step of formulating national
bodies
| The great panic of 1873 gave some
| thing of a setback to organized labor
for the reason that with the shutting
down of manufactures and the suspen-
sion of work generally many toilers
were unable to pay their dues and in
some instances local unions were COM
PEELED to disband for lack of funds.
With the advent of somewhat better
times organized labor gradually took
a new lease of life and there was nur-
tured that spirit of expansion which
led up to the organization of the Amer
lean Federation of Labor in the year
1881.
In discussing the matter the other
day President Samuel Gompers, head
of the American Federation of Labor
and the most powerful labor leader
in the world, pointed out that the de
velopment of trades unionism in this
country may be classified, broadly
speaking, in three successive periods
The first of these intervals saw the
rise of the local unions of various
kinds; the second period was charac
terized by the inception of the idea
of the national union; and finally the
third era in which we are now living
has witnessed the amalgamation Of
these national unions into the all-pow
erful federated body. By this amalga
nation and Capitalization of power the
American working classes have pu
themselves in a position to hold theil
own with those immense aggregation:
Of capitalize trusts" of the indus
trial and commercial world.
| QAvS Toll IS DEMOCRATIC.