pullman strike 1894
when did the pullman strike occur
1894
with governor of illinois helping employees, what did the railroad operators do?
asked the federal government for help and they sent troops using the pretext that the strike was preventing movement of mail on trains
what do capitalists not want?
government intervention
what does Pullman do during the depression?
in 1893 to 1894 slashed wages by about 25% without reducing the rent it charged its employees
what do capitalists prefer
laissez-faire because they claimed that the government was doing nothing for capitalism
what did the Pullman Palace Car Company manufacture?
manufactured railroad sleeping and parlor cars at a plant near chicago
what did the governor of Illinois do?
sympathized workers so refused to call out the militia to protect company owners
what happened in 1893
the first major great depression hit and unemployment skyrocketed to 20% and homelessness becomes the norm
what were the problems that the Pullman workers had against the company?
the owner George M. Pullman, constructed a 600-acre company town that workers had to live in and pay high rents in addition to having to use pullman coins/cash, and only shopping at expensive company stores
what did the strikers try to do?
they got the American Railway Union led by Eugene Debs to support them by refusing to handle Pullman cars and equipments
with the pullman strike was did the government do
they were laissez faire regarding labor but not capital
what was the conditions of the Pullman workers like?
they were paid a decent salary and had skills & status
how many strikers participated in the pullman strike?
thousands of railroad workers in 27 states were on strike
with the help of the ARU what happened?
transportation from chicago to the pacific coast stopped