Unions

After the civil war, an era of industrialism began. This era was led by a partnership between government and big businesses. During this period of time Railroad systems, electronic devices, and other needs were invented or improved. To build and use the inventions and improvements much labor labor was needed. As a result of the desire for industrial growth from the government and businesses, workers were most of the time not taken into account. In response, the workers organized themselves into unions. These unions aimed to represent the interest of people at work and negotiate with employers for better terms and conditions for their members.
Various Unions were formed, each had different rules for admission, but all with a similar goal to protect and extend the rights of American workers. These unions were successful but not to a full extent. Organization was exceptional, they decided who could enter the union and who could not. However the achievement of their main goal was scarce.
Among the many unions was the National Labor Union (NLU). This was the first union and was formed right after the end of the Civil War. It included workers no matter race,gender, or skill level. Their main concern was not racial or gender equality, but they opted for higher wages and an appropriate amount of working hours. Their concern on working hours was solved, and eight hours of work were given for federal workers. Other unions were: The knights of Labor, whose concern was racial and gender equality as well as for an end to child labor; The American Federation of Labor (AFL), which only admitted skilled workers, thus making it more successful than any of the major labor unions. ; Last but not least, was the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) , which promoted worker solidarity to overthrow the employing class.
These strictly organized Unions also created strikes. These strikes were for the most part unsuccessful and often ended up with terrible consequences. Some strikes included the Railroad strike of 1877, the Homestead Act strike, the Pullman strike and the Haymarket square riot. In response, the government sent troops to maintain control. However in some strikes such as the Haymarket Square Riot in Chicago, the strikers opted for violence which ultimately caused the strikes to end without any kind of accomplishment and more importantly deaths.
The extreme, and fast growth of capitalism and industries in the post war era led to tension between capitalist and their employees. The unions formed as a result, all shared a common goal even though they had different conditions for admission. The unions excelled at organizing themselves, unfortunately, they could not accomplish most of their goals such as an increase in wages and the overthrowing of employers by the working class. Therefore they could not be very successful.