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Samuel Gompers
Samuel Gompers was an English-born, American labor union leader and a key figure in American labor history. Gompers founded the American Federation of Labor (AFL), and served as the organization's president from 1886 to 1894 and from 1895 until his death in 1924. -
National Labor Union
The National Labor Union (NLU) was the first national labor federation in the United States. Founded in 1866 and dissolved in 1873, it paved the way for other organizations, such as the Knights of Labor and the AFL (American Federation of Labor). It was led by William H. Sylvis. -
Knights of Labor
Knights of Labor (KOL), the first important national labor organization in the United States, founded in 1869. Named the Noble Order of the Knights of Labor by its first leader, Uriah Smith Stephens, it originated as a secret organization meant to protect its members from employer retaliations. -
The 1st Labor day
The first Labor Day holiday was celebrated on Tuesday, September 5, 1882, in New York City, in accordance with the plans of the Central Labor Union. The day was celebrated with a picnic, concert and speeches. Ten thousand workers marched in a parade from City Hall to Union Square. -
AFL (American Federation of Labor)
A labor organization or union formed in the United States under the leadership of Samuel Gompers in 1886. The American Federation of Labor provided an "umbrella" organization, the purpose of which was to represent to management the interests of workers in various trades, crafts, and other skilled disciplines related to manufacturing and construction. -
Shirtwaist Factory Fire
The fire at the Triangle Waist Company in New York City, which claimed the lives of 146 young immigrant workers, is one of the worst disasters since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. This incident has had great significance to this day because it highlights the inhumane working conditions to which industrial workers can be subjected. To many, its horrors epitomize the extremes of industrialism. -
Textile Workers Strike of 1934
The textile workers' strike of 1934 was the largest strike in the labor history of the United States at the time, involving 400,000 textile workers from New England, the Mid-Atlantic states and the U.S. Southern states, lasting twenty-two days. Issues involved deplorable working conditions, low wages, and lack of union recognition. -
The Wagner Act (1935)
Also known as the National Labor Relations Act of 1935, is the most important piece of labor legislation enacted in U.S. history. Its main purpose was to establish the legal right of most workers to organize or join labor unions and to bargain collectively with their employers. -
Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938
The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) establishes minimum wage, overtime pay, recordkeeping, and youth employment standards affecting full-time and part-time workers in the private sector and in Federal, State, and local governments. -
Homestead Strike
A violent labor dispute between the Carnegie Steel Company and many of its workers that occurred on July 6, 1892, in Homestead, Pennsylvania. The strike pitted the company’s management, the strikebreakers who had been hired, and the Pinkerton National Detective Agency against members of the Amalgamated Association of Iron and Steel Workers, who worked for the company. A gun battle resulted in which a number of Pinkerton agents and strikers were killed and many were injured.
