The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1940-08-26
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New Book Tells Story OF
"Lsbor's Civil" War
History OF Union Move
menf Is Recalled
Printers Once Struck for
Six Dollars a Week
Samuel Gompers. Strong
Man of Labor
MEETING Of representatives Of
WI United Automobile Workers
in the gold and crystal ballroom
of a st. Louis hotel and the inter-
est they represented gave Herb
ert Harris the inspiration for a
book on sLabor's Civil War"
The automobile workers union,
which in four years has grown
from $4,000 to 300. 900 members.
is credited with being the back
bone of the CLIO movement The
CLIO policies are blamed for the
split In organized labor. On John
L. Lewis is laid responsibility for
failure of negotiations to end the
civil war that is taking a heavy
toll from both labor and capital.
There are, of course. as the
author admits, two sides TO the
question. but that does not
minify the damage. The cessation
of hostilities between the two
branches of organized labor is
possible is shown by the authors
references to specific cases where
CLIO and AF'L unions work to-
gether in harmony, adjusting jur-
isdictional differences by nego-
tiation.
Back of 'Iabor's Civil War" is
a former work dealing with the
history of labor unions and
strikes a most interesting
study. The New York Bakers
union. organized in 1740. is cred
tied with the first strike in
America. The bakers quit work
as a protest against an ordinance
regulating the price of bread.
The first strike for higher
wages took place in 1856
when the Philadelphia print
ers quit work rs a means of
enforcing their demands for
a weekly wage of six dollars.
They worked IL to ID hours
n day, six days a week.
First sympathetic strike in
America occurred when the shoe.
makers belonging TO an organi-
cation known as the Federal So
ciety of Cordwainers walked out.
The cordwainers, workers in cor
devain leather, laid down their
tools to help the bootmakers OBJ
tain an increase in wages.
First successful strike to
establish a ten hour day was
made by the unions of Phila-
delphia in 1885. F'ifty-one
years later came the most
revolutionary strike of the
ages. an organized effort to
establish the eight hour day.
Though there were several
previous attempts to organize
labor unions nationally. most
successful of the early attempts
was the Noble Order of the
knights of Labor in 1869. 1t be-
gan as a secret society and bar
red from membership bartenders
and lawyers. The policy Of Sc
crecy was abandoned in 1878 and
the order gained its greatest
growth under the administration
of T. V. Powderly.
Some of the earliest union
members in Tacoma were af-
filiates of the Knights of La
Dor. Discussions over the indus
trial plan of organization advo-
Gated by the Knights of Labor
brought the American Fedora
ton Of Labor into being. Samuel
Gompers assisted in the organ
ization and became the national
president in 1882, a position he
held for Al years.
Labor enjoyed it's greatest
advancement during the
Gompers regime. He ruled
with a firm hand. opposed
political organization of la
Dor but urged labor's sup
port of any candidates ia
vorable to the cause. he was
responsible for most of the
fundamental legislation ben
eficiaI to the iaboring man.
Labor suffered when he
passed away.
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