The Gilded Age: Organized Labor Movement



The Gilded Age: Organized Labor Movement

Key Terms Study Guide

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1. 19th Century Factory Work: horrible labor conditions; workers fought for their rights; first American labor unions founded. Companies tried to stop workers from unifying but workers we determined to unite and revolt.

2. American Federation of Labor: first federation of labor unions in America; founded in Columbus, Ohio on May 1886 by an alliance of craft unions

3. Anarchist: a person who believes in and tries to bring about anarchy (a state of disorder due to absence or non-recognition of authority).

4. Child Labor: the use of children in industry or business (considered inhumane)

5. Collective Bargaining: process of negotiations between employers and a group of employees aimed at reaching agreements that regulate working conditions.

6. Company Town: a community that is dependent on their own infrastructure. 

7. Craft Union: A labor union with membership limited to workers of the same craft. (workers who share the same skill-set or perform identical tasks even if they work in different industries)

8. Eugene V. Debs (socialist): American Railway Union Leader who founded the Industrial Workers of the World. He went to jail for leading the Chicago Pullman Palace Car Company strike. 

9. Great Railroad Strike of 1877: America’s first major rail strike beginning on July 14, 1877 in Martinsburg, West Virginia caused by the cutting of wages for the second time.

10. Homestead Strike: amalgamated (united) association of iron and steel workers set a wage scale of 14-20 cents per hour for a worker in 1892. Carnegie’s successor Henry Frick cut down wages and shut plant down to keep workers out when they wanted to call a strike. Frick hired Pinkerton guards to protect but before they came, the Union forces were notified. During the guard's departure, the workers stroke (at night) and there were three guards, nine workers dead. Pennsylvania's governor sent in 8000 militia and at last, the workers returned to work with the same low wages (as decided by Frick)

11. Industrial Union: a labor union to which all the workers of a particular industry can belong regardless of their occupation or trade.

12. Knights of Labor: largest American labor force organization who proposed to organize skilled and unskilled workers to the union including blacks and women.  Their aim was to work 8 hours a day, terminate child labor and get equal pay for equal work.

13. Pullman strike: conflict begun by Pullman Company in response to the decrease of wages.

14. Samuel Gompers: English – born American cigar maker, who became a labor union leader. He also found the American Federation of Labor and promoted harmony among different craft unions.

15. Scab: a person who refuses to strike or to join a labor union or who takes over the job responsibilities of a striking worker.

16. Socialism: social and economic doctrine that calls for public rather than private ownership. Individuals do not live or work in isolation but live in cooperation with one another.

17. Strike: work stoppage caused by employees who refuse to work. They wanted to give government pressure and to change policies.

18. Sweatshop: A shop or factory in which employees work long hours at low wages under poor conditions. (Basic worker rights are not respected, important legislation including minimum wages, child labor laws, and health safety regulations emerged)

19. Haymarket Riot: A violent riot in Chicago’s Haymarket Square on May 4, 1886, which was demanding for an eight-hour working day.

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