The Development of Labor Unions

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During the Victorian age, and up until about the 20s, labor unions were new developments. They had existed before, but on a much smaller scale. The labor unions that did exist were all vastly different. Some were conservative, while others were extremely radical. The Industrial Workers of the World are an example of a more radical group, while the American Federation of Labor is more conservative. The two unions had contrasting opinions to the point of conflict between the groups. As well as having differing opinions, the groups had differing motives and ways of achieving their goals. The Industrial Workers of the World and the American Federation of Labor are two labor unions that existed at the same time, but could not be any more different.

The Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) was formed in the early 1900s because they were trying to combat the American Federation of Labor (AFL). The IWW were angered over the views the AFL had. Disagreeing with their conservatism was one of the largest problems the group had. The IWW was open to every type of worker -- skilled or unskilled, women, and people of other races. The group was radical, and based their philosophy on being radical as a whole. One of the biggest goals of the group was destroying capitalism. Although the group did not affiliate itself with any political party, many of the members were part of the communist or socialist party. As for strategies to advance the destruction of capitalism, large strikes and sabotage were popular. The strikes were often so large and powerful that it could put cities to standstills. These strikes and sabotages were in favor of the workers because they happened in order to benefit workers and the community. One of the principles of the I...

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...d the Industrial Workers of the World had similar motives -- create shorter workdays, increase salary, and create a safe environment to work in -- but had immensely different ways of making those dreams a reality. The IWW were very successful, in ways they did not expect. They created an agricultural union that organized many workers in the midwest and west of America. The group even had an extremely successful strike on mining. Although their goals were not immediately successful, they had accomplishments in other ways. The American Federation of Labor was similar in their success. As a group they successfully organized a group of immigrants in sweatshops, and women in the clothing industry. Despite the conflicts between the labor unions, they both were hugely important in the history of unions, and they outlasted the test of time, as they still exist today.

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