Today in Labor History: August 27
Some 14,000 Chicago teachers who have gone without pay for several months finally collect about $1,400 each – 1934
President Truman orders the U.S. Army to seize all the nation’s railroads to prevent a general strike. The railroads were not returned to their owners until two years later – 1950
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Labor Quiz: The Truth About Walter Reuther
This Week’s Quiz: Which of the following is NOT true of United Auto Workers leader Walter Reuther (born Sept 1, 1907)? He was a Communist; he was called a “more dangerous menace than the Sputnik”; he played a role in the historic “Chicken War.” Click here and you could be next week’s winner!
Last Week’s Quiz: The National Association of Letter Carriers was founded in the meeting room above Schaefer’s Saloon in Milwaukee, WI in 1889 (the IBEW was founded in Stolley’s Dance Hall in St. Louis, MO in 1890 and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters were formed at a joint convention in Niagara Falls, NY in August 1903). Congrats to David Allison of IBEW Local 1634, Coralville, IA, this week’s quiz winner!
Labor Quote: Human “Animals”?
“As human beings are also animals, to manage one million animals gives me a headache.”
– Terry Gou, Chairman of Foxconn, China’s largest private sector employer, as quoted in the New York Times August 19, 2012. The company has more than 1 million employees worldwide and reportedly manufactures 40 percent of the world’s consumer electronic products. Following 14 suicides in 2010, a report by twenty Chinese universities described Foxconn factories as labor camps with widespread worker abuse and illegal overtime. GOT QUOTE? Click Here to send us your favorite labor quote and we’ll consider it for future posts!
