Robert Koehler’s The Strike

Labor Unions became prominent after the Civil War, the first was the National Labor Union organized in 1866, unions fought for shorter work days, better conditions and higher wages for skilled and unskilled laborers. The image above shows a common strike led by a Union, expressing their feelings to their wealthy boss in his suit by men, women and children all dressed in rags and living in poverty. Middle and lower class women and children also had to take jobs in factories so they joined unions and fought for shorter days with higher pay along with their fathers and husbands. The man in the bottom right of the image foreshadows a violent strike, which was becoming very common, like the Haymarket Strike in 1886 where two strikers were killed and several were injured. For the most part, strikes were unsuccessful because the Management could hire scabs from the large supply of immigrants willing to work for low wages or they could go as far as to get courts or federal troops involved to put down strikes. (Jenna L.)

With the increase in industrialization after the Civil War, less emphasis was being placed on manual skills and the content of workers. Because of this, Labor Unions were given a great boost during this time period. The Factory system was depersonalized and workers were being left powerless and unable to singlehandedly battle large industry. The most prominent Unions during the Industrial Age were the National Labor Union, Knights of Labor, and the American Federation of Labor. Under these unions, workers were able to from together to participate in various forms of petition through strikes, boycotts, closed-shops, walkouts, and "war chests." The image above shows the anger portrayed by the working class during the industrial revolution in the U.S. Most were forced to work long hours, in unsanitary conditions, for little money. Life was difficult for the workers, many of whom were immigrants. In 1889 Labor disorder broke out in Haymarket Square, Chicago. A conspiracy bomb was thrown killing/injuring 8 people. The question of whether or not the unions were successful is largely debatable. If large enough, they could often accomplish their task, but most of the time the factory system was too powerful and wealthy to defeat. (Sarah B.)