To make the difference, rail way companies raised rates and cut wages by 10%. Three years prior to this , they had been hit very heavily with a 35% wage decrease, irregular employment schedules, etc After the 10% dip in wages, workers in Maryland began to strike- the effort spread West. State militias were called but approximately out in several cases. The strike lasted approximately 20 days-and there were 100+ people killed-and hundreds more were injured. This strike marked the first time in labor movement history that there was a national strike. This "embryonic- labor movement realized failure, largely due to lack of organization.
What was the role of Eugene Debs in the Pullman Strike? How does the Sherman Antitrust Act relate to the strike?.
Debs worked to help establish the American Railway Union---a new type of industrial Union that placed all railway workers into one organization "not many, as had previously been the case. The Pullan Strike of 1894 was in reaction to the demand for wages to be restored to previous levels and rent lowered. Their demands were refused. Debs stepped into action at this point. The strike itself was peaceful. The Sherman Antitrust Act was put into action when the courts made the move to make workers go back to work. The 1890 act declared that contracts, combinations, and conspiracies found in restraint of trade and commerce illegal. Debs was sentenced to six months in prison.
That is the history/goals of the AFL, and who founded it?.
-The AFL formed in 1866 under the leadership of Samuel Gompers. It was formed to improve the position of skilled labor. This includes standard hourly wages, fair working conditions, collective bargaining, and the accumulation of funds for union emergencies. They introduced: business unionism. This led to decentralization of authority and the autonomy necessary for trade unions to make their own decisions. Goals: participation in decision-making process.
