Knights Of Labor Essay

The Knights of Labors descent would eventually lead to the rise and development of the American Federation of Labor. Where the American Federation of Labor differed from the Knights of Labor was in their goals and recruitment. The American Federation of Labor was much tolerate of capitalism as a whole, even going so far as to not oppose monopolies. The main purpose of the American Federation of Labor and unionizing in general, according to one of the organization's founders Samuel Gompers, was “Through its whole history the trade union movement has been a movement whose only purpose was to satisfy the hungers and the needs of those who toil. It is today no different than it has been. Its character and its aims are as always. The needs which

To avoid the ability of potential of strike being circumvented by corporations, the American Federation of Labor employed only skilled laborers, whom were harder to replace and therefore had more negotiating power when it came to strikes. The American Federation Labor and their selective recruitment would also lead to some controversial decisions. The union supported the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, prohibiting all immigration of Chinese laborers under the pretense that immigration was a way for corporations to undermine unionization. The union also was slow to include women and people of color within their ranks. While they were much more exclusive compared to their predecessor, the American Federation of labor would go on to achieve many of the goals of the Knights of

The law would set standards for the minimum wage, work week, and health regulations in all aspect of labor. However, the law only came to be through a conjoined effort from unions such as the American Federation of Labor. Prior to the law passing, the United States government had been actively ruling in favor of limiting the rights of laborers. In the 1905 case of Lochner v. New York, the supreme court ruled that laws limiting the work week of laborers to 60 hours a week was unconstitutional violating the nation's economic liberty. Rulings like that of Lochner v. New York made the idea of the Fair Labor Standards Act seem nearly impossible to pass. It took the Great Depression of the 1930s to really bolster the American federation of Labor efforts to pass regulations on employer power. With an increase in demand for jobs and the populace working for long hours with little pay, The American federation Labor had gained a substantial backing that the government was in no shape to ignore. The signing of the Fair Labor Standards Act was not universally supported, with many critics drawing the common opposition that the law was a step towards communism, such as the National Association of Manufacturers stating the law “constitutes a step in the direction of