What does this tell you about the writers’ attitudes toward the different people involved in the conflict?ģ. For example, in the Victory newsletter dated August 22, the employer is depicted as a portly man in a suit and top hat, while the worker is dressed in overalls and appears young and very strong. Think about how various characters are depicted and whom they represent. Look at the illustrations on the front pages of The Organizer. How do you think the economic situation might have played a role in the working conditions that led the truckers to strike?Ģ. Unemployment in the United States at the time was over twenty percent. The Truckers’ Strike in Minneapolis occurred in 1934 at the height of the Great Depression. Olson, Minnesota’s first Farmer-Labor Party Governorġ. Haas, Special Mediator from the National Labor Relations Board Dunne, organizer and leader in Teamsters Local 574 Alexander Bainbridge, Mayor of Minneapolis.Significant people related to the Teamsters Strike: The Organizer, the daily strike bulletin of General Drivers Local 574, was the first daily newsletter of its kind. The Minnesota Digital Library has the entire collection of The Organizer, published from June 25 through October 17, 1934. This victory for General Drivers Local 574 helped to create an environment for union support in Minneapolis, and paved the way for legislation such as the National Labor Relations Act of 1935, also known as the Wagner Act. The agreement secured for the Union a minimum wage, Union recognition, and the right of the Union to represent all of its members. A settlement was finally reached on August 22, 1934, one month after the second strike began. The Guard later raided the headquarters of the Citizens’ Alliance, confiscating evidence of plans to obstruct mediation. In early August the National Guard raided the headquarters of Local 574 and arrested several Union leaders. Governor Olson declared martial law and called in the National Guard to keep peace in the city. On July 20, a day known as “Bloody Friday,” police opened fire on strikers, wounding 67 and killing two. Employers used police escorts to move a truck convoy under the guise of delivering hospital supplies. Olson secured a truce, and an agreement between employers and Local 574 was signed on May 31.īy mid-June, Local 574 complained that employers were not abiding by the May 31 agreement, and on June 16 the workers agreed to another strike. Special deputies were enlisted and on May 22, in a conflict known as the “Battle of Deputies Run,” two deputies were killed. Violent clashes occurred between strikers and police in the Market District. Employers refused to recognize the union and Local 574 called a strike. Local business leaders had been successful in keeping unions at bay by uniting under the Citizens’ Alliance, an organization committed to an “open shop” that would not require union membership as a condition of employment.īy May of 1934, General Drivers Local 574 of the international Brotherhood of Teamsters had organized members of the trucking industry into a union with 3000 members. Unions were gaining strength and numbers across the nation, but not in Minneapolis. Minneapolis at the time was largely a non-union city. The Minneapolis Teamsters Strike of 1934, also known as the Minneapolis Truckers' Strike, was a pivotal event in both local and national labor history. By Beth Goodrich, Assistant Program Coordinator, Minitex
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