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History Of Labor Unions

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The first traces of labor unions in the United States began as early as the 1700’s. In 1770, the first union was formed for craft laborers. The Knights of Labor, founded in 1869, was the first national union that sought to represent workers from different occupations. The group's radical politics and violent tactics led to its disappearance by 1900. Founded in 1886, the American Federation of Labor (AFL) was another national group representing various trades but it did not have the political agenda of the Knights of Labor. It focused on working conditions and pay. Also, the American Federation of Labor was an umbrella group, with workers joining the unions that made up the American Federation of Labor. After the demise of the Knights of Labor, …show more content…

The Congress of Industrial Organizations was founded in the late 1930s and it focused on organizing employees by industry rather than by craft. This allowed the CIO to expand in size more rapidly than any other union. In 1955 the AFL and the CIO merged, to create the AFL-CIO, the largest union in the United States today. The modern AFL-CIO is an umbrella group representing a variety of trades. Labor unions have evolved throughout history. Even in today’s society, they are relied upon to serve for their original intended purpose, to improve working conditions. Had it not been for the pioneers who started it all, members of our society would still be facing the challenges that our predecessors underwent just to earn the right to have collective bargaining and participate in organized labor …show more content…

However, there are various negative effects of labor unions. Decreased growth, Labor unions bring in the increased salaries and benefits package for all the workers. However, due to this, the costs for the company per year increases and reaches above market levels. This way, the company is not able to utilize that money for the firm’s growth and new projects and hence it reduces the growth. Also, it effects the hiring process by slowing it down. People in labor unions tend to stay until they can retire and promotes laziness because they are protected and cannot be let go. For some jobs constant change and different perspectives are required to grow a position and modernly change. However, that cannot happen if the same people who have been doing the said job have been doing it for an x amount of years, people tend to get comfortable and are not open to change the way that they have been doing something for years. The loss in business value, the reduced funds, left after allocating money to the labor union’s demands, are not able to get allocated to the new projects and expansion of the firm's operations as per their goals. This results in loss of business value and market leadership as compared to the competitors. Employment, the labor unions try to lower the supply of workers by limiting the number of eligible workers for the higher benefits which are above market standards. This leads to higher

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There are many simmaleritys and differences between the Knights of labor and the AFL this will explain only a few. The Knights were established in 1869 vs the AFL established in 1886 a few years later. This means the Knights are the predisesors of the AFL. Some made compromises others started boycotts, and the following explanes all. Both the AFL and the Knights had labor unions involved with them.

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Uriah Stephens formed the Knights of Labor in 1869, but the union gained a national following when Terence Powderly assumed leadership. The Knights of Labor were founded in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania by Uriah Stephens and six other tailors in 1869.”The Main goal for Knights of Labor was “To combat this dismal situation for workers, unions of the Gilded Age pursued two broad strategies.

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Most trade or labor unions were initially formed to bring workers together to petition and receive work environments more favorable to the workers. Their strength lied in numbers as the management was unlikely to fight against the masses. However, these days, many major unions such as the AFL-CIO, today work to create and make available the top benefits for members of a company. Some of this include includes the areas of positive work environments, job security, pay and benefits, and the capacity to go on strike if certain conditions are not met. Meanwhile, larger unions additionally work politically to influence legislation that will continue to create benefits for the companies that are represented along with its employees.

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They ensure that all people who work receive the correct rewards for their labor. They fight for all workers to have respect and fair treatment from the companies they work for. Unions are needed to help workers and laborers get the respect they

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The National Labor Union and the Noble Order of the Knights of Labor gave the laboring class ideas about how they could improve their lives and the lives of generations to come. Looking at this through the lens of someone in the twenty-first century the demands were logical. However in that day and age, company owners saw asking for any civil rights was seen as being lazy or troublesome. Just by getting these organization up and running was huge accomplishment, much to the dismay of big

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In 1881, Samuel Gompers (1850–1924) organized the Federation of Organized Trades and Labor Unions of the United States of America and Canada. Samuel Gompers and Adolph Strasser (1843-1939) established the American Federation of Labor (AFL) in Columbus, Ohio, in May 1886. Federation of Organized Trades, established in 1881, was the precursor of the American Federation of Labor. The American Federation of Labor emerged as a result of a conflict between trade unions and the Knights of Labor (Mancall et al., 5: 13). AFL was the first federation of labor unions in the United States.

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These events caused the influence of the Knights of Labor to immensely decline. Many members of the union were left unsatisfied. This lead to the foster of the establishment of the American Federation of Labor (AFL) whose primary focus was to captivate economic benefits through collective bargaining. In this same year, there was an estimated amount of 700,000 members in the Knights of Labor union. In 1888, a significant event on the Knights of Labor timeline included the reconciliation between the KOL and the Catholic church.

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Founded by Uriah S. Stephens, the Knights of Labor was a relatively selective labor union, excluding doctors, bankers, and lawyers, for they were “unproductive members of society”. The Knights of Labor met in local assemblies and had a loose organization. The Knights of Labor were in favor of many of the same things as the National Labor Union: they wanted an 8-hour workday and better working conditions. They also advocated for income taxes, paper money (as opposed to gold), and cooperative ownership of factories. Though what made the Knights of Labor unique was that it not only supported the reforms of the workplace, but it also promoted change in social issues.

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The early labor unions were created to protect the workers of the industrial revolution. Prior to this union being created workers had virtually no rights (Schultz, 2014). There were very little safety concerns for the workers, nor concern for their well-being as humans at all. As of today, we have FMLA, workman’s comp, job security, and human resource departments to protects all our rights. These people had none of this.

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I believe that unions were created for a reason. They were created to help be a voice for the workers in the workplace. We need to keep unions because otherwise the problems unions have solved would find their way back and history will repeat itself. Some people may argue that the Wagner and Taft-Hartley Acts conflict with some of our Core Democratic Values, including Liberty and Justice. “Liberty is the power to act as one pleases (source: merriam-webster.com).”

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Labor unions arose from the outcry of the working class after being subjected to borderline dehumanizing conditions of the workforce. Workers were treated as disposable waste capable of performing tasks and lacked the respect they deserved. There was a general disregard for the working man, woman, and child, and it was evident through their pay, working hours, unsafe working conditions, sexism, racism, or age. Take note, as well, that many of these conditions were tolerated first out of desperation and pressure from incoming immigrants. Otherwise, surely strikes and unions would have risen sooner.

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In the past, the treatment of workers was unfair and frequently cruel. Labor unions changed that. Pushing for better working environments, union laborers arduously fought for justice in the workplace, resulting in the passing of many laws and Federal acts protecting workers and improving life for the average working man. In an article from the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) illustrating the benefits of unions for everyday people, authors Walters and Mishel state: “Unions make a substantial and measurable difference in the implementation of labor laws.” A variety of necessary laws were passed, including child labor laws and acts granting compensation for employees injured in the workplace.

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In 1866, the skilled and unskilled workers merged and formed a union. Many people don’t understand the significance of the act. Not only people gained rights, but they also held power. The railway strike in 1877 was the first evidence of how powerful the union can be. The next protest in 1894 when workers in Illinois organized and with the help of the federal government achieved their goals was significant.

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The topic of Labor Unions has been the focus of many political debates in recent years, with these discussions having people advocate for and against the unions. Labor Unions are an organization that represent a collective group of employees to protect and further theirs rights and interests. Labor Unions were first introduced in the eighteenth century with increasing numbers around the United States and the world, but unfortunately during the past decade these numbers have drastically decreased, resulting in less education and achievement of solidarity among employees. Solidarity is the unity or agreement of feeling or action, especially among individuals with a common interest. Workers in the United States would benefit more through labor

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The following section discusses the decline in trade union membership, reasons of decline union in membership and the solution of the declines, advantages and disadvantages of trade unions membership in any employment. Trade union is an organization who have come together to achieve common goals such as protecting the integrity of its trade, improving safety standards, achieving higher pay and benefits such as health care and retirement, increasing the number of employees an employer assigns to complete the work and better working conditions. Most trade unions are independent of any employer. However, trade unions try to develop close working relationships with employers. This can sometimes take the form of a partnership agreement between the employer and the trade union which identifies their

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