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strike. Between that date and the Civil War many unions were formed, and some federations established. Some of them were influenced by the communistic ideas of Owen and Fourier, or by the prevailing humanitarian and democratic doctrines of the period. Hence they advocated wide social, economic, and political reforms, such as free schools, land reform, co-operation, and the establishment of model communistic villages. All this activity, however, was small in its sum total, for America really had no industrial problem of any size until after the Civil War. The country was still primarily agrarian, and except in a few urban occupations capitalism had not developed to any great extent. The wage-earner need not feel that the road to independence was closed for him, for at the worst he could go west and secure land cheaply. Hence he need not worry much about unionism or the solidarity of his class; rather he looked forward to the time when he would be able to treat his own workpeople as his employer was now treating him.

The years following the Civil War saw the beginning of the real industrialization of the United States. Oil, coal, and metals were now exploited, manufactures sprang up, machinery became all-important, the business unit increased in size, transcontinental lines multiplied, and the whole market grew with every extension of the bounds of settlement further west. With these new developments the road to freedom grew gradually narrower and more steep, and the American worker grew nearer to the stage of once a wage-earner always a wage-earner. Real trade union effort, therefore, began during the industrial revolution which followed the war.

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The Knights of Labour. Of the many varieties of organizations— local and national, craft and trades-which emerged in the next twenty years the most interesting was the Knights of Labour. The Noble Order of the Knights of Labour was founded in 1869 by a handful of Philadelphia garment-cutters. In its structure and functions it resembled the allembracing unions formed in England under the influence of Owen. aim was to unite in one big body those engaged in all branches of honourable toil, whether wage-earners or independent, regardless of occupation, sex, creed, colour, or nationality. Farmers were thus eligible for membership, but publicans, lawyers, bankers, stock-brokers, and professional gamblers were excluded, because they were the representatives of the "money power, and their occupations were regarded as dishonourable and anti-social. At first the meetings were full of elaborate ceremony and ritual, carried on in secret. The officers included Master Workmen, Worthy Farmers, Venerable Sages, Worthy Inspectors, etc. The Order laid great stress upon the dignity of labour and upon the need for helping its members to better their condition morally, socially, and financially. When in 1881 it abandoned its policy of secrecy its membership grew, and in 1886 there were at least 600,000 names on the roll. Branches were formed in England and elsewhere, and for a time the Order was a powerful force. It attempted to influence legislation, demanding an eight-hour day, protective laws for factory and mine workers, compensation for accidents, arbitration, state and federal labour bureaux, the single tax, etc. It succeeded in securing the establishment of the Federal Bureau of Labour, the passage of some factory acts, the stoppage of Chinese immigration and of contract labour, and similar reforms. But whilst giving great attention to political activity, it did not shun strikes, some of which it brought to a successful issue. After 1886 its influence declined, and to-day its membership is less than 10,000. Its failure was

due to an over-ambitious political programme, to defeat in important strikes, to a lack of uniform ideas and interests among its members, and to its attempted centralization of control.

Craft Unionism and the American Federation of Labour. As the Knights of Labour declined and the big union idea lost its charm, American skilled workers grouped themselves in less spectacular craft organizations. Local unions were formed for each occupation, and there are probably 30,000 local craft bodies in existence to-day. In some instances these local units grouped together to form state or national craft unions, some of which described themselves as international on the ground that they had branches in Canada or Mexico. These local, national, and international unions united in 1886 to form the American Federation of Labour, and since that time almost all the unions, except the railway brotherhoods and one or two other bodies, have joined the Federation. In 1916 the bodies affiliated to the Federation had over 2,000,000 members.

The Federation was formed primarily to link up craft unions. Gradually, however, it allowed industrial unions to come in, and gave recognition to the need for a bigger unit than the craft by establishing within itself departments for the building trade, railways, metal trades, mining, etc.; in these it federated the various craft unions involved in each big industry. The Federation itself operates through its annual convention and its executive officers. It has little actual influence over the constituent unions, and takes care not to interfere with local craft autonomy. Only matters of general interest come before the Federation executive, which spends its time seeking further affiliations, settling demarcation disputes, encouraging the labour press and the use of the union label, giving financial and moral assistance in strikes, and safeguarding the rights of wage-earners by legislative and political action. Since 1886 Samuel Gompers has been its President (except for one year), and during most of that time has dominated the general policy, though, as will be seen later, his power has been challenged successfully in recent years.

Aims and Methods. The functions of most American unions, especially those in the Federation of Labour, have been business rather than revolutionary. The capitalist system is accepted, and the unions have aimed at getting the usual improved conditions inside that system. Hence the fights of the last forty years have been concerned with demands for reduced hours, increased pay, “recognition,” the adoption of the trade union label, friendly society work, and improved labour legislation. On each of these points some success can be recorded. Hours of labour have been reduced to eight or nine in most skilled industries, but, since unskilled workers have been left out of the trade union scheme of things, the hours for unskilled workers are still in many cases much longer. The struggle for higher wages helped in securing an increase of 60 per cent. between 1860 and 1890, and a further increase of 60 per cent. per hour between 1890 and 1907. In some parts of the mining industry sliding scales have been introduced, by which the wages rate varies with the selling price of the product. Throughout the unions the demand for a minimum wage is general, and in many instances strong opposition is advanced to piece rates and premium bonus systems. The struggle for recognition has been long, and in some important industries is not yet won. Where recognition has been gained the road is open for the establishment of that important feature of American unionist policy, the closed shop. Unionism can only be fully effective when it has a virtual

monopoly of the labour market. This can be obtained either by bringing all the workers in any craft into a union, or by preventing non-union men from being employed. American workers, faced with the incessant influx of immigrants, would be in danger of being swamped by newcomers unless they can secure some safeguard. This is sought in the closed shop-i.e., the shop or firm which employs unionists only-as opposed to the open shop, in which unionists and non-unionists work at the same trade. The closed shop has been secured in many skilled occupations, and employees must be able to produce their union card or badge when required. This exclusive policy is strengthened in some instances by limiting the number of apprentices to be employed, by demanding the full period of apprenticeship, by opposing the introduction of machinery which might break down the skilled men's monopoly, or by imposing stringent conditions and high fees for entrance to the union. When these last conditions prevail we get a closed shop and a closed union.

The trade union label has long been a subject of union activity. Its use enables a purchaser to distinguish between union-made goods, manufactured presumably under decent conditions of employment, and those made by non-union, child, sweated, or convict labour. It is an appeal to the conscience of the whole community, and the Federation of Labour does its utmost to persuade its members to purchase union products only. The label was first used by the- cigar-makers in 1874; by 1907 it was protected ander the trade-mark law of 43 states, and at present over 40 labels are in general use.

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Friendly society work has not played so great a part in American as in British labour organizations, though since 1900 greater stress has been placed on the provision of benefits to meet sickness, old age, unemployment, etc. The Cigar Makers' Union led in this work, and now has strike, sickness, death, travelling, and unemployment provisions. At the same time, the older school of American unionists is strongly opposed to the introduction of compulsory wages regulation, national insurance, and old age provisions, such as exist in England and Germany. Such schemes are described as 'social welfare taffy," which will neither remove nor prevent poverty, because they do not go down to the roots of social injustice; because they hand germs of power to the government, which will grow and eventually establish autocratic control over every aspect of the worker's life, so that when the government passes at any time into the hands of the enemies of labour the control will be used in a harmful manner. The whole policy of state interference is condemned, because it is based on the idea that the organized workers are unable to look after their own interests. In this attitude towards social legislation we see the strong individualistic tone, the reliance on voluntary institutions, and the demand for freedom of action which still characterize most American workers.

Difficulties and Opposition. In 1913 only about one in forty Americans was a member of a union, compared with one in fifteen in the United Kingdom. This seems a poor record after forty years' effort, but in order to examine it we must examine the chief difficulties and obstacles which have been encountered.

First and foremost is the opposition of the employers, which has been much stronger than any met with in Western Europe. Recognition was slowly granted, and in many important firms is still refused. The demand for the closed shop often induced the employer to close his shop-against

unionists. After the big coal strike of 1902 employers began to organize for mutual defence, and unions were soon met by strong employers' associations. Some of these bodies frankly recognize unionism, and collective bargaining operates through elaborate conciliation or arbitration machinery in some branches of industry. But most employers' associations, and also the big trusts, refuse to treat with labour organizations, and fight them at every point. Professor Hoxie enumerates twenty lines of attack used by employers, ranging from the blacklisting of unionist employees, the bribery of officials, and the use of spies, to the organization of rival "yellow" unions, the employment of strike-breakers, the control of the press and the government, appeals to the courts, attractive welfare schemes, etc. Under such conditions strikes almost inevitably produce violent scenes, provoked by the introduction of strike-breakers, police, and troops. The 1892 strike at Carnegie's works at Homestead was a typical encounter; Pinkerton's private police, 1,000 blacklegs, and 8,000 militia were called upon, and finally succeeded in breaking the strike. Nay, more, they broke the back of unionism in the iron and steel trades. From that time till 1918 unionism was dead in the industry, and Gary, head of the Steel Corporation, still refuses to grant recognition to any union officered by men who are not his own employees.

Second comes the opposition of the law. American law is still under the influence of the doctrines of individualism and laissez-faire which were fashionable when the American constitution was framed. As such it centres on the individual and ignores social groups; it places private property rights above personal and social rights; it assumes that the individual employer and the individual employee are on an equal footing in making a labour contract, and that free contract and free competition are very desirable. Hence it frowns on anything which is in restraint of trade or of personal liberty. Now unions can be regarded as acting in restraint of trade, and therefore under the common law and under the Sherman AntiTrust Law of 1890 they might be condemned as illegal. They were partially exempted from the scope of the Sherman Act in 1906, but since they were still taking steps which interfered with the liberty of individuals--employers or employees-their position was legally weak. Their existence was lawful; but almost any action which they committed might be proved unlawful. They were, and are still, in much the same position as British unions after the Taff Vale decision; in the light of some judgments they seem to be almost where British unions were after 1825. Every judge in every court in every state is his own interpreter of the law; hence there is great uncertainty. The chief legal weapon used against unions has been the injunction; this is an order by a court of equity to prevent injury to property. In practice it can be used even to forbid the strike altogether, and as such it is a powerful weapon against labour organizations which refuse to relinquish the right to strike. The law, the police, and the troops play a big part in American labour disputes, and at almost every trade union convention resolutions are passed demanding the abolition of "government by injunction.'

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The third difficulty lies in the changing technique of industry. Unionism can best safeguard the advantages it has won when conditions of production are stable and unchanging. The arrival of new methods, machines, or ideas may so revolutionize production as to cut the ground from under the feet of labour organizations, especially those of skilled workers. American

industry during the last thirty years has been characterized by the coming of standardized large-scale production, carried on by means of automatic or semi-automatic machinery, with a minute sub-division of labour. Europe invented machinery, but America simplified its control, so that an unskilled or semi-skilled worker could easily be trained to feed and watch it. This development meant an end to the old many-sided skill acquired by long years of apprenticeship, and threatened to smash the monopoly of the craftsman, since almost any sort of labourer could now take charge of the work.

The "any sort of labourer'' came at the same time as the machine, first as an immigrant from Eastern Europe, and more recently as a negro from the southern states. Until about 1880 immigration was confined chiefly to people from the United Kingdom, Germany, and the Scandinavian countries. These brought a degree of skill and a standard of living not much below that of the native American, and were therefore quickly assimilated and Americanized. After 1880 this stream of "desirables'' decreased in volume, and a new one began to flow, thanks largely to cheap passage rates, from Austria, Hungary, Russia, Poland, Italy, and the Balkans. The new immigrants herded together in new or old cities, and there retained the standard of life to which they had formerly been accustomed. Wages which to the American were sweated rates, to them seemed untold wealth; hours and conditions which the old population would not tolerate were to them idyllic. Here then was the labour force required for the new machinery, and it was absorbed in mine, factory, and steelworks as quickly as it arrived. Here also was a terrible problem for the old craft unions. Difficulties of language-there were fourteen different nationalities in the Pennsylvania coal mines in 1898-made organization of the new arrivals difficult, especially as unionism was almost unknown in the lands from which they came. The Federation of Labour made little effort to organize these unskilled workers, and the attempts of the I.W.W. to enrol them met with spasmodic success. When the war stopped the flow of immigration American employers had to look elsewhere for their supply of new labour, and found it in the negro population of the cotton states. Up to 1916 negroes who went north had been socially ostracized, and had been confined to certain kinds of employment, such as domestic service. In 1916 agents went south and began to enlist negroes in thousands, in much the same way as poor-law children were enrolled a century before for the cotton factories of Lancashire. In the north the negro did railroad work at first, but soon began to get into the factories. By the end of 1917 at least 500,000 were employed in various industries, and at times attempts to use them as strikebreakers caused riots and lynchings. Soon the negroes expressed a desire to enter the unions, but the Federation refused this, and some active spirits therefore organized negro unions of their own. Eventually, in June, 1919, the Federation accepted the inevitable, and opened its doors unconditionally to the entry of negro workers into the white men's unions.

Since the early nineties, when F. W. Taylor began to preach scientific management, American unions have waged relentless war on the Taylor creed, especially its advocacy of time and motion studies and premium bonus plans of payment. In 1914 the Government appointed a special commission, headed by Professor Hoxie, to inquire into the whole relationship between scientific management and labour conditions, and the investigations of this commission revealed clearly the reasons for labour antagonism to new

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