-
First State Minimum Wage Law
Massachusetts adopts the first minimum wage law, giving better pay to women and minors. Other states will pass similar laws beginning the same year. -
Federal Department of Labor Established
The United States Department of Labor is established as a cabinet level agency. Though established under President Taft, he signs the law after his defeat in the 1912 election. The Department will mostly emphasize the pro-labor stance of the incoming president, Woodrow Wilson. -
Clayton Act
President Wilson, a friend of labor unions, signs the Clayton Act, which exempts unions from the Sherman Anti-Trust Act. In coming years, the new law will prove useless, as courts void many of its union protections. -
Davis-Bacon Act
The Davis-Bacon Act requires that federal contractors pay their workers the wages and benefits in the local market when working on a public works project. The law keeps employers from importing cheaper workers from outside the region. -
Social Security Act passed
Social security ensure that individuals are taken care of if a job cannot be found or their above a certain age. -
Smith-Connally Act
Congress passes the Smith-Connally Act to allow the government to take over critical industries hit by strikes. Enacted over President Roosevelt's veto, it is the first anti-union legislation to be implemented since the early 1930s. It also prevents unions from contributing to political campaigns. -
Landrum-Griffith Act
President Dwight D. Eisenhower signs the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act, also known as the Landrum-Griffith Act. The law addresses the union corruption uncovered by Senator John L. McClellan. It makes the labor leaders to a more strict standards in handling union funds and requires them to file annual reports. -
Civil Rights Act bans institutional forms of racial discrimination
This is important in the workplace so that individuals from other races can work in factories and get the same amount of benefits as the next person. -
"Right to Work"
27 states have banned union-security agreements by passing "right to work" laws. In these states, it is up to each employee at a workplace to decide whether or not to join the union and pay dues, even though all workers are protected by the collective bargaining agreement negotiated the union. -
