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13th Amendment
The 13th Amendment to the Constitution declared that "Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction." Formally abolishing slavery in the United States, the 13th Amendment was passed by the Congress on January 31, 1865, and ratified by the states on December 6, 1865. -
National Labor Union
The National Labor Union was founded in 1866 and was the first national labor federation in the United States. -
Knights of Labor
The Knights of Labor was founded on December 28, 1869 by Uriah Stephens. The Knights promoted the social and cultural uplift of the workingman, rejected socialism and anarchism, demanded the eight-hour work day, and promoted the producers ethic of republicanism. They were the largest and one of the most important labor organizations of the 1880's. -
Labor Unions and Federation of Organized Trades
In 1881 workers started creating labor unions and the Federation of Organized Trades was formed. This was the beginning of workers striking for better wages and hours. -
Labor Day Parade
The very first Labor Day was held on a Tuesday, September 5, 1882, in New York City when a man named Peter McGuire thought it was a good idea to celebrate a working man's holiday. The day was celebrated with a picnic, concert and speeches. Ten thousand workers marched in a parade from City Hall to Union Square. -
The Pullman Strike
The Pullman Strike was a nationwide railroad strike that pitted the American Railway Union against the Pullman Company, the main railroads, and the federal government of the United States under President Grover Cleveland. When Grover Cleveland send troops over to end the strike, violence began betweeen the workers and troops. A few workers ended up getting killed and people started to see Cleveland as a harsh president. This is thought to be the reason why Cleveland nationalized labor day. -
The 1st Labor Day
The first Labor Day parade was held in 1882. However, Labor Day was not a national holiday until Congress passed it in 1894, almost 12 years later and right after the Pullman strike. Now, we celebrate Labor Day on the first Tuesday of every September. -
Women's Labor Union League
The Women's Trade Union League was a U.S. organization of both working class and more well-off women formed in 1903 to support the efforts of women to organize labor unions and to eliminate sweatshop conditions. The WTUL played a very important role in supporting and organizing the massive strikes for female workers. -
The Wagner Act
The Wagner Act was signed into law by President Franklin Roosevelt and it established the National Labor Relations Board and addressed relations between unions and employers in the private sector. The intention of the act was to guarantee employees “the right to self-organization, to form, join, or assist labor organizations, to bargain collectively through representatives of their own choosing, and to engage in concerted activities for the purpose of collective bargaining or other mutual aid." -
The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938
The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 put into effect some of the most important labor laws and standards that workers have till this day. The FLSA introduced the forty-hour work week, established a national minimum wage, guaranteed "time-and-a-half" for overtime in certain jobs, and prohibited most employment of minors.
