Many issues led to the labor disputes of the Gilded Age (the period following the American Civil War [1861–65] and Reconstruction, roughly
the last twenty-three years of the nineteenth century): prejudice against
immigrants; greed of big business owners versus the rights of workers;
and social class distinction. American and immigrant workers were willing to risk their lives to form labor unions (formally organized association of workers that advance their members’ views on wages, work hours,
and labor conditions). Without the unions, and sometimes even with
them, it was difficult to demand and enforce workers’ rights.
Pennsylvania saw particularly intense labor union efforts. As far
back as the 1790s, shoemakers in Philadelphia had joined efforts to fix
prices and keep out cheap competition. In the 1820s, a mechanics union
was formed. In 1869, one of the most powerful labor unions ever formed
was organized in Philadelphia. Under the leadership of Uriah S. Stephens
(1821–1882), nine tailors established the Noble Order of the Knights of
Labor (KOL). The KOL differed from previous unions in that it allowed
both unskilled and skilled laborers to join. Prior to the Industrial Revolution, a period of time during the late eighteenth and nineteenth
centuries when rapid industrial growth caused a shift in focus from agriculture to industry, most laborers were skilled craftsmen. But with the
invention of machinery that could do the work of many men, businesses
did not need to hire (or continue to pay the wages for) as many skilled
laborers. Much of the workforce of the late nineteenth century was unskilled. The KOL also welcomed women and African Americans into its
ranks. During its early years, the KOL met in secrecy. By the 1880s, it
had become a national force.
Among other goals, the KOL negotiated for an eight-hour work day
(ten- or twelve-hour shifts had been the norm), an end to child labor, equal pay for equal work (which meant that regardless of sex and race,
people who performed the same task would be paid the same wage), and
an income tax that would require higher taxes to be paid by those who
earned more. The KOL also pressed for the government to take control
of the telegraph and railroad industries to end price gouging (overcharging) by private businessmen.
Because the KOL was open to all workers, its membership grew rapidly. In 1884, fifty thousand laborers were members. By 1886, that number had jumped to seven hundred thousand. Membership was open to
all craft and trade occupations, such as machinist, blacksmith, and carpenter. Workers in the professional sector, such as lawyers and doctors, could not join. Membership in the KOL declined steadily after 1886 for various reasons. Labor strikes had become violent and mostly unsuccessful. In addition, other labor unions formed and took members away from the
KOL. By 1900, the KOL had almost completely disbanded.