Today's Labor History

Click here to check out this week's Labor History Today podcast. On this week's show: racial justice activist Bill Fletcher reminds us of an 1893 strike in California by Chinese, Portuguese and Paiute Indians…Lauren Coodley, author of “Upton Sinclair: California Socialist, Celebrity Intellectual”… ATU’s Chris Townsend’s memories of Solidarity Day…our Labor History Object of the Week is original correspondence from the American Federation of Labor on expanding Social Security’s coverage. photo: ATU 689 at 1981 Solidarity Day, courtesy Washington Area Spark
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The Teamsters for a Democratic Union (TDU) is formally founded at an Ohio convention - 1978

Nine strikebreakers are killed in an explosion at Giant (gold) Mine near Yellowknife, in Canada’s Northwest Territories. Miner Roger Warren confessed that he planted the explosives that caused the deaths. He recanted the confession but later confessed once again - 1992

A 20-month illegal lockout of 2,900 Steelworkers members at Kaiser Aluminum plants in three states ends when an arbitrator orders a new contract. Kaiser was forced to firescabs and fork over tens of millions of dollars in back pay to union members - 1999

One week after the September 11, 2001, attacks, anthrax spores are mailed by an unknown party to several news media offices and two U.S. senators. Five people exposed to the spores died, including two workers at Washington, D.C.’s USPS Brentwood facility: Thomas Morris Jr. and Joseph Curseen (right), who were to die of their exposure within the month – 2001
Compiled/edited by Union Communication Services

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