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Decline in Indentured Servitude
There was a sharp decline in the use of indentured servants during the mid 1800s until it became completely obsolete when it was outlawed in 1917. The drop was due to the increase in immigrants who paid for their own passage and sought factory jobs. Indentured servants cost money to care for, while German and Irish workers often had family members sending them sums of money from overseas and they paid for themselves. Slave labor was still prevalent in the South. -
First Child Labor Law
Previously, agrarian families had many kids to have more workers on the farm. When industrialization decreased the need for as many workers, children as young as five were put into factories to earn a small supplementary salary. Their jobs were dangerous, tedious, very poorly paying, and prevented them from getting an education. Massachusetts was the first state to enact a law to protect them to some extent, requiring kids fifteen and under to attend school for at least three months a year. -
Commonwealth v. Hunt
This landmark Supreme Court decision set the tone for the second half of the century and set the standard of Unions and worker's protests for labor reform throughout the next century. This case overturned the precedent and made the formation and participation in labor unions legal. Because there were no federal minimum wages nor workplace regulation, and individual action did very little, unions were the voice of the workers to demand better pay and safer conditions. -
National Labor Union
The NLU was the first national labor federation in the United States. They sought to create a coalition of all existing labor unions and unite to fight for an 8-hour day, labor reforms in areas where no labor unions existed, and a National Labor Party to replace the current bipartisan political system. Even though the group did not achieve what it sought after, it paved the way for other national federations to emerge. -
Knights of Labor
Unlike its other well-known predecessors, this labor union favored radical change to the American system, not only the workforce. They felt that the best way to make an impact was to include people from all vocations and classes, overlooking gender and race, trying to incorporate even women and African Americans. Unfortunately, the union was very disorganized and after a violent protest resulted in many deaths during the Haymarket Massacre, membership plummeted, eventually dissipating the KOL. -
American Federation of Labor
The AFL was an organization of various craft labor unions; all of the members were skilled workers, and the coalition made no attempt to include African Americans or women. The leader, Samuel Gompers, was an avid capitalist and did not share the same radical views as the KOL nor the desire to restructure American politics. His motto was "Keep It Simple", restricting the goals of the group to the improvement of wages and conditions, minimizing the amount of internal controversy. -
Labor Day Becomes a Federal Holiday
First celebrated nationally during the most tumultuous time of employer-employee relations, amid tense and often violent uprisings about wages and working conditions, Labor Day is a holiday to celebrate American workers. Made a holiday under President Cleveland, the day paid tribute to the laborers and their hardships. Twelve years earlier, on September 5th, 10,000 workers marched through New York City, marking the first Labor Day parade in history, a tradition that continues to be held today. -
The Pullman Strike
George Pullman, founder of the Pullman Car Company, imposed strict fees on his workers while subjecting them to wage cuts and unfair treatments.Thousands of Pullman workers and other railroad workers who operated Pullman cars went on strike, supported by the ARU. For the first time, a federal injunction declared the strike illegal because of its halt of railroad movement and federal troops were sent in. The protest became violent, a common characteristic of labor strikes at the time.
