On this date in 1927, six miners striking for better working conditions under the IWW banner were killed and many wounded in the Columbine Massacre at Lafayette, Colorado. Out of this struggle Colorado coal miners gained lasting union contracts…
In 1945, the United Auto Workers Union struck 92 General Motors plants in 50 cities to back up worker demands for a 30 percent raise. 200,000 workers went out… In 1980, a fire at the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas killed 85 hotel workers and guests and sent 650 injured people, including 14 firefighters, to the hospital… And on this date in 1993, Congress approved the North American Free Trade Agreement, or NAFTA; it took effect January 1 of the following year. Today’s labor quote is by Joseph Farrell, an apprentice Ironworker on the Verrazano Narrows Bridge, completed on this date in 1964. The Verrazano, linking Staten Island and Brooklyn, was the longest suspension bridge in the world at the time and is still the longest in the U.S. Three workers died over the course of the five year project. Joseph Farrell, who told radio station WNYC: "The way the wind blows over this water it would blow you right off the iron. That was to me and still is the most treacherous part of this business. When the wind grabs you on the open iron, it can be very dangerous." Union City Radio is supported by our friends at Union Plus. Visit unionplus.org to find out how union members might take advantage of a limited-time wireless offer from AT&T.
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