Worker by Russian Avant-garde Painter, Pyotr Subbotin-Permyak (1921)
Cross-Links
- AP United States History Key Concept 8.2: Civil Rights and Expanding Roles for Government
General History of the Labor Movement
Click here for a history.com article on the history of the labor movement.
"The labor movement led efforts to stop child labor, give health benefits and provide aid to workers who were injured or retired."
The earliest recorded strike occurred in 1768 when New York journeymen tailors protested a wage reduction
The New Fight for Worker Rights
- Only one tenth of all workers belong in a union today.
Click here for a brief Drunk history video on the importance of Labor Day.
• 3 Influential Labor Strikes in US History
Migrant Farm Workers Movement
- Cesar dropped out of school in the 8th grade to help his family work in the fields and then
joined the navy. After the Navy, he became a grassroots organizer and formed the National Farmworkers Association with the goal of unionizing farmworkers.
- Most people were poor and didn't have access to healthcare or education. Chavez decided to use only nonviolent tactics to negotiate. He started the boycott of all California table grapes.
- Cesar moved the fight from the fields to the cities, where the farmworkers had a chance of success. The boycott lasted for a few years, but resulted in increased pay and the right to unionize.
- In the 1960s, Chavez was a vocal opponent of the Vietnam War and an open supporter of gay rights.
See Special Topic Page: the Latino Civil Rights Movement
Click here for an article on the story of Cesar Chavez.
Click here for an NPR feature on Cesar Chavez.
Click here for a video on fast facts on Cesar Chavez
Click here for a TedTalk on the Black Power and Farmworker Movements
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Influential Literature page: The Grapes of Wrath
- Has material on the Delano Grape Strike and Boycott
Women's Rights in the Workplace Movement
Today, women earn on average 78 cents for every male dollar, which is only a 17 cent increase since the Equal Pay Act of 1963. The gap gets even wider for women of color, who make 62 cents for every dollar.
Workplace Protections Against Discrimination have been described on this ACLU webpage.
"The ACLU works to end wage discrimination in the workplace and ensure that all workers—regardless of sex, race, national origin, age, or disability—are able to bring home every dollar they rightfully earn. As a result of discrimination, including employers’ reliance on gender stereotypes, women lack parity with men in earnings."
The Center for American Progress strives to combat sexual harassment in the workplace.
Here is a biography on Anita Hill, who spoke in front of the Supreme Court with her experiences of sexual harassment by Clarence Thomas.
Click here for an excerpt of Anita Hill's Opening Statement.
Here is a video on women vs men in the workplace.
Here is a TedTalk on taking back women's pregnancy rights.
Learning Plans
Here is a lesson plan on what gets in the way of equal rights for women meant for secondary schools.
Here is a lesson plan on women's rights in the United States
Here is a lesson plan on the Farm Workers Rights Movement.
Here is a lesson plan on the realities of life and work for farm workers.