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| This brief article first appeared in issue 19 of Buttons and Ballots, in Fall 1998. |
The next page has a story featuring the history of a hitherto unidentified labor-cause pin. The item is a beautiful gold and purple cello that reads, "Save 28 Innocent Union Men," and has the logo of the ILA, or International Longshoreman Association. I thought I would add a few introductory words for those who are not familiar with the big Pacific coast waterfront strike of 1934.
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The strike began in San Francisco, where a radical ILA local was led by Australian-born Harry Bridges. The ILA local's biggest complaint was that the companies had complete control over hiring, while claiming to encourage unionism (within a "company union"). The daily hiring ritual was called the "shape-up," a sort of roll-call where company foremen chose the men who would work that day. In the depths of the depression the men knew two things. First, a bribe or kick-back to the foreman could help secure employment for the day. And second, any outspoken ILA leader was unlikely to be selected for work.
The union demanded union control of the daily work assignments, in the union hall, and an end to the "fink hall" where companies held the daily shape-ups.
The strike soon spread to many maritime crafts, including pilots, cooks, and sailors. It also spread from San Francisco to other California ports, and to Washington and Oregon. The strike involved byzantine politics, as Bridges' radicals squared off against the conservative national union leadership, and as Franklin Roosevelt, Frances Perkins, and the three state governors all added their own subtle leadership. The final agreement called for a sort of joint control of the hiring hall, with both the local ILA and the companies playing a role. Given this joint control, further disagreements in the future seemed likely.
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Eventually Harry Bridges left the AFL's International Longshoreman Association, and formed a CIO affiliate called the International Longshoremen and Warehousemen's Union (ILWU).
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| © 1998 by Stephen Cresswell |