Who was on strike during the San Francisco general strike?

Who was on strike during the San Francisco general strike?

Between July 11 and 14, over 30,000 workers went out on strike, including teamsters, butchers, laundry workers, and more; by July 12th 21 unions had voted to strike, most of them unanimously. The newspapers coordinated a vitriolic attack on the strike.

What caused the general strike of 1934?

What began as an isolated longshoremen’s dispute developed in the spring and summer of 1934 into one of the most sweeping and violent industrial conflicts of the Great Depression.

What was the outcome of the San Francisco general strike?

The strike peaked with the death of two workers on “Bloody Thursday” and the San Francisco General Strike which stopped all work in the major port city for four days and led ultimately to the settlement of the West Coast Longshoremen’s Strike….

1934 West Coast waterfront strike
Date May 9, 1934 – July 31, 1934

What was the San Francisco strike?

The San Francisco General Strike developed as part of a West Coast maritime strike which, at its height, involved more than 130,000 workers in the Bay Area and about 200,000 coast-wide, bringing key sectors of the economy to a virtual standstill.

What happened to the Longshore men in San Francisco?

On May 9, 1934 West Coast longshoremen struck, shutting down docks along 2000 miles of coastline, including all its major ports: Seattle, Tacoma, Portland, San Francisco, San Pedro, San Diego. The issues included wages and hours: the longshoremen wanted $1 an hour, the six hour day and the thirty hour week.

What happened July 5th 1934?

As rumors flew that the National Guard were arriving in the evening, the workers made a last desperate push to seize the railway only to be repelled by police. On this Bloody Thursday (July 5, 1934) over a hundred people were wounded, and police bullets killed strikers Nicholas Bordoise and Howard Sperry.

Who won the strike in 1934 in Minneapolis?

Despite the violent reaction of the authorities, the 574 won on all these points. In the early 1930s, an employer advocacy group called the Citizens Alliance (CA) ensured that Minneapolis remained a non-union town.

What happened in San Francisco 1934?

San Francisco’s 1934 General Strike marked the first time a major US port city was completely shut down by a strike–a pivotal episode in the rise of organized labor in the United States.

Who led the TWLF?

The TWLF strike that began on November 6, 1968 was catalyzed by the suspension of graduate student and Black Panther Minister of Education George Mason Murray. There was an approximate 15% reduction in student attendance in November at the start of the strike, but police were called to campus anyway on that first day.

What day did the general strike begin?

The General Strike of 1926 was the largest industrial dispute in Britain’s history. The Trades Union Congress (TUC) called the strike to prevent wage reduction and worsening conditions for coal miners. It took place over nine days, from 4 May until 12 May 1926.

Why did the longshoremen go on strike?

The union’s goal was to secure employment, wages, and benefits in the face of increased mechanization, shrinking workforce, and the slowing economic climate of the early 1970s. The strike shut down all 56 West coast ports, and lasted 130 days, the longest strike in the ILWU’s history.

What happened during Bloody Thursday?

Bloody Thursday (July 5th, 1934) street fighting The members of both longshore and seafaring unions voted to strike in May 1934. In response, the employers mobilized private industry, state and local governments, and police agencies to smash the unions and their picket lines.

Who was involved in the West Coast waterfront strike?

The MWIU never made much headway on the West Coast, but it did attract a number of former IWW members and foreign-born militants. Harry Bridges, an Australian-born sailor who became a longshoreman after coming to the United States, was repeatedly accused for his acknowledged Communist party membership.

What was the significance of the San Francisco strike of 1934?

The San Francisco General Strike of 1934, along with the Toledo Auto-Lite Strike of 1934 led by the American Workers Party and the Minneapolis Teamsters Strike of 1934 led by the Communist League of America, were important catalysts for the rise of industrial unionism in the 1930s, much of which was organized through the Congress of Industrial

When did longshoremen on the west coast go on strike?

Longshoremen on the West Coast ports had either been unorganized or represented by company unions since the years immediately after World War I, when the shipping companies and stevedoring firms had imposed the open shop after a series of failed strikes.

Who was killed on the San Francisco waterfront in 1934?

Worker Shelvy Daffron was shot in the back and later died. When striking longshoremen surrounded a San Francisco police car and tried to tip it over, the police shot into the air, and then fired into the crowd, killing Nick Bordoise (originally named Nick Counderakis) and Howard Sperry.

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