The birth of the CIO
explains how the deep setbacks for the U.S. labor movement in the 1920s were only the prelude for the mass unionization struggles of the 1930s.
June 3, 2011
Pennsylvania members of the Steel Workers Organizing Committee in front of their office
THE BIRTH of the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO) ushered in a period of labor militancy that transformed the American labor movement.
For a 10-year period, between 1936 and 1946, the struggles of U.S. workers were among the most dynamic of any industrially advanced countries.
The explosive nature of this growth in labor action can be seen in the number of strikes. Between 1923-32, there were 9,658 strikes involving 3,952,000 workers. Between 1936-45, there were 35,519 strikes involving 15,856,000 strikers.
Prior to this dramatic turnaround, the U.S. labor movement was on the skids. Not only were the craft unions of the American Federation of Labor (AFL) losing members at the rate of 7,00