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Dear Friend,
I hope you had a great Labor Day yesterday! While this day is widely celebrated with parades, BBQs, and festivities, I want to take a moment to pay homage to the unions that made this day, along with many other workers’ rights, possible.
Railroad workers for the Pullman Palace Car Company went on strike due to wage cuts and the firing of their union representation. Over 100,000 workers quit their jobs and joined the American Railway Union, rather than handle Pullman cars. This led to then President Glover Cleveland’s deployment of 2,000 Army troops to breakup the boycott and strikes.
13 union members were killed and 57 were wounded.
In an effort to restore a working relationship with labor workers, Congress approved, and Cleveland signed, an Act making Labor Day an official holiday in 1894.
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Since then, we have continued to rely on unions as the primary defense for collective bargaining rights, safe working conditions, child labor laws, and so much more. But we’ve also been witnessing a steady decline in union job, falling from roughly 35% at its peak in the 1950’s to just 6.5% membership today.
Unions were responsible for employing 40% of African American men and 25% of African American women, representing the largest membership of any racial or ethnic group and reducing the pay disparity that many faced outside of the union sector.
Many immigrants have relied on unions, specifically the International Ladies’ Garments Workers’ Union, to propel themselves into the middle-class and make vast contributions to the fabric of American society and our workforce.
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And yet, the last time Congress passed any meaningful legislation to help unions was back in 1935, with the passage of the Wagner Act. Since then, Congress has continued to grant more power to business owners, diminishing the power of unions and their ability to organize.
We need leadership that will stand up for our working families to ensure the passage of bills like the Employee Free Choice Act and take on the deep pockets of lobbyist like the Workforce Fairness Institute, which effectively helped kill the bill in 2009.
Fighting for a just and equitable economy starts with fighting for everyone’s right to unionize and demand fair wages.
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Gratefully yours, |
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Lorena Garcia
P.S. For further information and fact-checking, please access the links below: http://theconversation.com/the-rise-and-fall-of-us-labor-unions-and-why-they-still-matter-38263 https://www.unionplus.org/page/labor-day-history |
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Paid for by Lorena for Colorado |
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You are receiving this email so you can help power the grassroots campaign to elect Lorena Garcia to U.S. Senate in 2020.
Our mailing address is: Lorena for Senate PO Box 11428 Denver, CO 80211-0428 |
