On September 22, 1919, steel workers went on strike in Pittsburgh and other steel cities. One of the most epic strikes of the post-World War I period, it was also a complete failure, one that demonstr
On September 17, 2011, a group of activists started protesting in Zucotti Park in Lower Manhattan. Soon gaining the nation’s attention and spawning similar groups across the country, Occupy Wall
On August 19, 1987, the AFL-CIO called off its long-standing boycott against Coors beer, one of the more iconic boycotts in American history and one that reminds us what a loathsome family the Coors b
On August 18, 1823, slaves in what is today Guyana rose up in what became known as the Demerara Rebellion. This was brutally suppressed by the English colonialists, but also played a critical role in
On August 1, 1864, Nevada miners engaged in the first strike in western hardrock metal mining. This action would be successful, albeit for just a short time. It also laid the groundwork for a half-cen
Ten years ago today, new to this blog, I decided to start a series called “This Day in Labor History.” The first post was on the Homestead Strike in 1892. Intended to bring necessary knowl
On July 1, 1962, doctors in Saskatchewan went on strike to try and stop the province from creating a universal healthcare system. A reminder that not all strikes are inherently good, this attempt by e
On June 19, 1982, two Chrysler workers, a plant supervisor named Ronald Ebens and his laid-off stepson Michael Nitz, beat a Chinese-American draftsmen named Vincent Chin to death in the parking lot of