Labor History Nov 1 A scab motorman crashed a NYC subway train 97 dead, successful 172-day strike,

[Omaha Steve]

November 1

Nation's first general strike for 10 hour day; Philadelphia - 1835

Thirty-seven black striking Louisiana sugar workers were murdered when Louisiana militia, aided by bands of "prominent citizens," shot unarmed workers trying to get a dollar-per-day wage. Two strike leaders were lynched - 1887

Malbone tunnel disaster in New York City; inexperienced scab motorman crashes five-car train during strike, 97 killed, 255 injured - 1918

And this: November 1, 1918 - A scab motorman crashed a New York City subway train in the Malbone Tunnel, killing 97 and injuring 255. To erase the memory of the horrible accident and the infamous trial that followed, the name Malbone was removed from the subway station where the accident occurred. It is now called Prospect Park and Malbone St. is now Empire Blvd. Strikes by streetcar workers were among the major labor struggles in the early part of the 20th century.

Some 400,000 soft coal miners strike for higher wages and shorter hours - 1919

United Stone & Allied Products Workers of America merge with United Steelworkers of America - 1972


The UAW begins what was to become a successful 172-day strike against International Harvester. The union turned back company demands for weakened work rules, mandatory overtime - 1979

Honda assembles the first-ever Japanese car manufactured in a U.S. plant, in Marysville, Ohio. By 2009 the plant was making 440,000 cars a year and Honda – just one of the foreign manufacturers with multiple plants operating in the U.S. – said it had sold 20 million cars since its American operation launched - 1982

Labor history found here: http://www.unionist.com/big-labor/today-in-labor-history & here: http://www.workdayminnesota.org/index.php?history_9_11_1_2011