History of Labor Unions

Labor Union in the United States

The United States Labor Unions can be considered as an organized group that usually represent the workers from their employees , aimed to legally function as a representative in a legal manner , in the various field or industries . Their activities are centered in the collective bargaining for wage increase , the proper implementation of benefits good working conditions , and served as a representative if the company neglects or violates provisions from the contract . Aside from these focal points , the Labor Unions also served as a political influence (specifically

inside the Democratic Party ) through different coalitions with the same principle oriented activists and through strategic mobilization aimed at strengthening the numbers of their memberships

The evolution of Labor Union in the United States dated way back from the 18th Century . From the conception of the National Labor Union and the Knights of Labor- which were short-lived , followed by the rise of the American Federation of Labor in 1886 . The 1900 saw the emergence of the Industrial Workers of the World in 1905 , the eventual splitting of the AFL in 1938 and the birth of the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO , the merger of AFL and CIO in 1955 , and the founding of the Change to Win Federation which emerged after splitting from the AFL-CIO umbrella in 2005 . In general , the history of the United States Labor Union was categorized into four : The early Unions , the labor history from 1900-1932 , labor history from 1932- 1955 , the labor history from 1955 to 2005 , and the labor union at present

Within these periods , several unprecedented and relevant events happened such as the Pullman strike and the Haymarket riot (between 1886 and 1894 , the coal strikes (1900-1902 , Dual Unionism , Gompers and AFL Railroad Brotherhoods , the effect of World War 1 and 2 , the New Deal Labor Policy , New Deal Coalition and PAC , Taft-Hartley Act , issues of corruptions , civil rights movement , the rise of the Public Sector Unions , the decline of the private sector unions , the NAFTA and the International Trade threat

The first local labor union (the Early Unions , the of the Knights of St . Crispin , was established in 1867 having an approximate of around 50 ,000 members by year 1870 . The group resisted certain encroachments of several machineries and the matter of non-skilled labor regarding the autonomy of such skilled workers . Though considered the largest union at that time , the group was poorly disorganized that caused to its decline and eventual abolishment

After the abolishment of the of the Knights , the Knights of Labor was established in 1869 . It was considered the first functional and effective labor union or organization through an effort of enlisting not only the laborers in their ranks but also believed in protecting the common interests of all groups engaged in production . Their leader Terence Powderly , initiated several causes through the influence of politics or by cooperative tie-ups and ventures . Though he hoped towards achieving their causes , the Union collapsed on its first big...