The Labor Movement of the 1960s: Embedded within Civil Rights and Feminism

Margo Squire

AP US History

Mr. Cooper

May 18, 2017

 1

The United States in the 1960s was a decade of massive change, as groups of oppressed and

minority people sought out better protection and government recognition of their rights. The

African-American Civil Rights Movements growing support and legislative successes inspired other

groups. These groups, such as the Feminist movement, were able to achieve great successes of their

own in the 1960s and continuing into the 70s. The labor movement was able to join in on these

successes, combining forces with other key movements in order to reach goals that pertained to both.

The absorption of the labor movement by the Civil Rights and Feminist Movements led to a great peak in

labor progress, resulting in political efforts to pass legislation, however the legislation did not sufficiently

accomplish the goals of these group, as discrimination in labor persisted for both blacks and women.

Prominent civil rights leaders revived the labor movement in an effort to further their own

agenda, simultaneously promoting an end to racial prejudice and the enforcement of racial equality in

labor. A common tactic was the use of rhetoric to link civil rights and racial discrimination in the

workplace. One of the key leaders of the Civil Rights movement, Martin Luther King Jr., constantly

intertwined the two ideas in his speeches. King called for a special and enduring alliance between

African Americans and organized labor.1 In his speech, If the Negro wins, Labor wins King devoted his

attention to forming such an alliance by emphasizing the need for equality in the workplace and

equating to the experiences of the African American people. Negroes in the United States read this

history of labor and find that it mirrors their own experience.2 Kings ability to intertwine key aspects of

the labor movement into his speeches brought the American labor movement back to national

attention. His popularity and the impact of his speeches allowed King to influence the public and sway

opinion towards supporting the labor movement, as he explained that labor cannot stand still long or it

will slip backward.3 The two movements further associated with each other, as strikes during the 1960s

1
Michael K. Honey, introduction to All Labor Has Dignity, (Boston: Beacon Press, 2011), 31.
2
Martin L. King, Jr., All Labor Has Dignity, ed. Michael K. Honey (Boston: Beacon Press, 2011), 37.
3
Ibid., 111.
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were connected to and supported by the Civil Rights cause. The Memphis Sanitation Strike was the

culmination of the two such movements. The city of Memphis neglected its black employees and on

February 12, 1968, some thirteen hundred black men4 went on strike. The AFL-CIO, a white led labor

organization, and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) came

together to support the strike, as once again, Martin Luther King Jr. spoke on behalf of both causes.

Kings call for an adequate income [to become] a reality for all of Gods children5 encompassed both

goals - an end to racial inequality and income inequality. The strike essentially endorsed the promises of

both movements, further unifying them. This unified effort continued on, as seen in the strike by the

International Lady Garment Workers Union against the Wentworth Manufacturing Co. Workers who

went on strike stayed unified between racial divides, consisting of half black and half white6 workers.

This was great progress for both movements, as civil rights and labor activists commended the ability to

stay integrated and focus not on racial superiority but [the fight for] a decent paycheck.7 Groups began

to form exclusively focused on both the labor and civil rights movements. A. Philip Randolph created the

Negro American Labor Council in response to a lack of civil rights efforts by the AFL-CIO. His greatest

efforts were put into what became the famous March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.8 This was

the key goal of the NALC, an attempt to make the struggle for racial equality in unions as militant9 as

the main civil rights movement. Randolphs creation of the NALC was one of the most direct attempts to

tie the two groups together. Although not all civil rights leaders so definitively connected the two

movements as Randolph did, their battle for racial justice helped promote the racial-labor movement.

Feminists and labor women were able to bring attention to womens rights in the workplace

through their already present influence in other unions, the formation of their own groups, and the

4
Michael K. Honey, introduction to All Labor Has Dignity, (Boston: Beacon Press, 2011), 167.
5
Martin L. King, Jr., All Labor Has Dignity, ed. Michael K. Honey (Boston: Beacon Press, 2011), 176.
6
Gerald C. Lubenow, Negroes Aid Southern Labor Moves, The Washington Post (Washington D.C.), Jan. 26, 1969.
7
Ibid.
8
Negro American Labor Council, The King Center, Accessed May 18, 2017,
http://www.thekingcenter.org/archive/theme/472.
9
A.H. Raskins, Negro Labor Unit Maps Rights Fight, The New York Times (New York, N.Y.), May 29, 1960.
 3

growing interest of the general public. The 60s led to the rise and prominence of labor feminists,10

those who emphasized working class womens rights and dominated the labor movement. Esther

Peterson was one of the most influential of these labor feminists, as the first woman lobbyist for the

AFL-CIO and high ranking woman during the Kennedy Administration.11 Petersons powerful positions

allowed her to shape the labor movement at its core, influencing both unions themselves into better

supporting women and advocating womens rights in the workplace directly to the President of the

United States. Other women such as Myra Wolfgang and Addie Wyatt became leaders of the unions

they were members of, frequently leading mostly men, and because of this, were able to link union

goals with those of women. This inside influence on unions forced the unions to have an active role in

fighting for the rights of working women. Due to this newfound union attention, the labor feminists

earned a larger role on the national stage. With this larger role came a responsibility and necessity for a

group solely devoted to womens rights in labor. Wolfgang took over this responsibility, creating the

Coalition of Labor Union Women (CLUW). CLUW joined with other feminist groups to promote womens

issues within union issues. The groups popularity and success in sparking new demands for womens

rights12 firmly united the feminist and labor movements. This unity brought attention to CLUW, as

people began to correlate the labor and feminist movements. As these groups gained prominence, the

general public began to take an interest in womens equality in the workplace. A growing number of

newspaper articles began to write about the uphill fight13 of women, and the successes and failures

that they have seen. Articles writing about it in itself was a key success for labor feminists, as the general

public came to acknowledge, support, and learn about the movement. Average women not part of these

groups were able to stay informed about the occurrences of the labor movement and better invest

10
Dorothy Sue Cobble, The Other Womens Movement (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2004), 21, iBook
Edition.
11
Ibid., 67
12
Eileen Boris and Annelise Orleck, Feminism and the Labor Movement: A Century of Collaboration and Conflict,
New Labor Forum 20, no. 1 (2011): 37, Accessed May 18, 2017, http://www.jstor.org/stable/27920539.
13
A Womans Place, New York Times, June 2, 1963, Proquest Historical Newspapers.
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themselves in it. As the general public became more interested, more and more news articles came

about commenting on the movement, creating a cycle resulting in Labor Feminists success on the

national stage. The growth of such a movement ultimately caused the government itself to become

involved in the movements matters.

Although not always successful, the push for labor reforms by these two key movements forced

politicians to acknowledge and attempt to bring change to the racial and gender problems in the

workforce. The platforms of the Democratic and Republican parties at each election cycle during the 60s

show the changes the parties made overtime due to pressures by the public for labor and racial reforms.

In 1960, the Democratic platform argued in a small section of its platform that prejudice against these

workers [minorities groups, young people, and women] must be wiped out.14 There was a great shift

from this basic anti-discrimination statement to a much stronger stance in 1964. The newer platform has

a large section boasting of the successes in labor of the past four years, demonstrating the solid track

record the Democrats have and a desire to continue those efforts. The 1964 platform talks of both full

equality of opportunity for women and ending discrimination based on race[through]the

opportunity to be equal.15 This changing commitment to the labor and civil rights cause was a direct

result of the efforts and pressures made by civil rights leaders between 1960 and 1964. The Republicans,

on the other hand, did not properly address the rising movements, ultimately hurting them in the 1964

election. The Republican 1960 platform briefly mentioned a need to end discriminatory labor practices

of some labor union locals, unless such practices are eradicated promptly by the labor unions

themselves.16 The Republicans were essentially saying that it is necessary to end labor discrimination,

but to give it time because labor unions can handle it themselves. They did not acknowledge the turmoil

14
1960 Democratic Party Platform, The American Presidency Project, July 11, 1960,
http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=29602.
15
1964 Democratic Party Platform, The American Presidency Project, Aug. 24, 1964,
http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=29603.
16
Republican Party Platform of 1960, The American Presidency Project, July 25, 1960,
http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=25839.
 5

and rising labor movement in the country, and instead ignored the need for legislation. In their 1964

platform, the Republicans then criticized the acts passed by the Democrats in previous years, referring

to them as disorderly and lawless elements and exploiting racial tensions.17 They do not really

change their stance from one election cycle to the next, diminishing the labor movements goals and

achievements. The support by the Democratic party, however, finally allowed actual legislation to be

passed promoting the advancement of the labor, civil rights, and womens movements. This change in

attitude was gradual over the course of the early 60s, but once fully supported, many committees were

formed, and ultimately legislation was passed. Pressures from these groups initially convinced President

Kennedy to create the Committee on Equal Employment Opportunity, to promote equal opportunity in

employment by the government or its contractors,18 and the Commission on the Status of Women, as

womens conditions of employment take on new significance.19 These were steps by the government

in acknowledging the earlier stages of the labor movement within the two other movements. As the

movement grew larger, the government was forced to not only have commissions promoting equality in

the workforce, but take actual legislative steps enforcing these values. The magnitude of both the civil

rights and womens movements gave politicians the ability to support both the Equal Pay and Civil Rights

Acts, big wins for both those movements as well as the labor movement. The Equal Pay Acts

prevention of wage differentials based on sex20 and Article VII of the Civil Rights Act were huge

successes as they legally ended gender and racial discrimination in the workforce. This legislation had to

be passed and supported by Congress, but without the pressures and growth of the movements

themselves, there would not have been such support. The success in government regarding the labor

17
Republican Party Platform of 1964, The American Presidency Project, July 13, 1964,
http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=25840.
18
Presidents Committee on Equal Employment Opportunity: General, Presidential Papers, March 6-July 31 1961,
https://www.jfklibrary.org/Asset-Viewer/Archives/JFKWHSFHW-008-001.aspx.
19
Remarks at presentation of final report of Presidents Commission on the Status of Women, Presidential
Papers, Oct. 11, 1963, https://www.jfklibrary.org/Asset-Viewer/Archives/JFKPOF-047-023.aspx.
20
Equal Pay Act of 1963, Monthly Labor Review 86, no. 8 (1963): 947, http://www.jstor.org/stable/41835388.
 6

movement would not have been possible without the push by the two large movements, Civil Rights

and Feminism, backing.

Although the Civil Rights Act sought to end workplace discrimination, labor and civil rights

activists feared it did not do its duty, as both unions and employers pushed back against the act and

discrimination persisted. Employers and unions alike worried about the aftereffects of the Civil Rights

Act. The U.S. Department of Labor addressed these worries, focusing on the debate over preferential

treatment. The practice of preferential treatment is usually condemned by employers, union leaders,

and most Government agencies." 21 Proponents of the act felt that without such treatment, non-whites

would not be hired more than in the past, particularly in construction unions.22 Because the employers

and unions did not support preferential treatment, the key way of integrating labor, progress was

halted. Although the Department of Labor mapped out ways to better integrate while not enacting

preferential treatment, it acknowledged that the persistence of discriminatory attitudes23 continued

to be a major barrier for blacks. The act did attempt to end this discrimination, yet racial prejudice was

still prevalent. Although the AFL-CIO supported the Civil Rights Act, afterwards, there was tension as the

acts impinged upon established union privileges.24 Unions avoided government attempts to include

greater numbers of black workers, insulating themselves from efforts such as the Philadelphia Plan.25

This pushback against the act was not seen only within unions, but directly with employers as well. As

employers further defied the acts, labor and civil rights activists worried about enforcement. However,

the National Labor Relations Board began to enforce the Civil Rights Act, making it easier to use the

board as it was quicker and less expensive.26 The NLRB utilized its power to crack down on those that

21
Ray Marshall, Prospects for Equal Employment: Conflicting Portents, Monthly Labor Review 88, no. 6 (1965):
651, accessed May 18, 2017, http://www.jstor.org/stable/41836124.
22
Ibid.
23
Ibid., 652
24
Paul Moreno, Unions and Discrimination, The Cato Journal 30, no. 1 (2010), accessed May 18, 2017,
https://www.questiaschool.com/library/journal/1G1-228660782/unions-and-discrimination.
25
Ibid.
26
John D. Pomfrets, Union Race Discrimination is ruled an unfair practice, New York Times, July 3, 1964, Proquest
Historical Newspapers.
 7

ignored the Civil Rights Act, helping ease the fears that it was not succeeding. Pushback against the Civil

Rights Act sparked worries within the Labor movement, and while the power and enforcement of the act

helped suppress these fears, discrimination continued.

The Equal Pay Act of 1963s inadequate results in labor and gender reforms led feminists to push

for further actions and greater change, but because of their failures to do so, the wage gap continues to

be an issue today. The act did have its initial successes and by 1970, 50,000 employees, nearly all of the

women27 used the power of the act to obtain equal pay. The Supreme Court, however, did not actually

enforce and deem the act constitutional until 1973, in the case Corning Glass Works v. Brennan.28 The

case solidified the act and demonstrated the Supreme Courts willingness to uphold it. Despite these

achievements for the the Equal Pay Act, the wage gap and gender equality were not fully resolved. An

unequal wage structure continued to exist and flourish. 29 Feminists then focused their efforts on the

Equal Rights Amendment, which demonstrated a continued dissatisfaction with the extent of equality in

labor. The ERA was intended to raise women to the level of men in society. Although technically equal,

because of the structure of society, women were not. There was a greater concentration of women in

lower paying, menial, unrewarding jobs and their incredible scarcity in the upper level jobs.30 Unlike to

the idea of preferential treatment, the ERA did not intend to provide special opportunities for women so

they had the same chances as men. Instead it attempted to reform the workplace so that there was

strict equality and an end to discrimination based on gender. Once again though, the attempts of

feminists at passing the ERA amendment failed. The problem of the wage gap continued to exist, and is

still prominently discussed today. This battle continues to unify the feminist and labor organizations, but

27
Robert D. Moran, Reducing Discrimination: Role of the Equal Pay Act, Monthly Labor Review 93, no. 6 (1970):
32, http://www.jstor.org/stable/41838010.
28
Brian D. Baird, Interpreting the Equal Pay Act: Corning Glass Works v. Brennan, 10 Tulsa L. J. 681 (1974),
http://digitalcommons.law.utulsa.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1297&context=tlr.
29
Ibid., 684
30
Shirley Chisholm, Equal Rights for Women. Speech, Washington D.C., May 21, 1969, Info Please,
http://www.infoplease.com/t/hist/equal-rights-for-women/.
 8

a new group has joined their ranks, religious based social justice organizations.31 These three key

groups fund, research, and lead32 the wage movement, keeping it alive and continuing to fight for

womens equality in the workforce. This present day fight to reduce the wage gap is a continuation of

the fight for the Equal Pay Act, the Equal Rights Amendment, and their respective failures.

The progress made by the Civil Rights and Feminist movements for labor, while momentous, did

not fully eliminate problems they set out to fix. In the 1970s and 80s, instead of the labor movement

continuing this fight and furthering reforms, it slowly declined as it combatted the rise of conservatism.

The labor movements gradual buildup and success, beginning in the Progressive era and culminating in

the 60s, ultimately had to end. The more obvious decline and reversal of past actions occurred during

the Reagan era. However, the labor movement has not died out, and in recent years it has become more

prominent and influential. The successes of labor in the 60s outweigh the decline it faces afterwards, as

the 60s set a precedent of true equality and an end to discrimination in the workplace. This question is

beginning to arise again, as people in the past decade have debated the ability to discriminate against

members of the LGBTQ community. Article VII of the Civil Rights Act could act as a precedent for that

sensitive topic, an ever growing legacy that the labor movement of the 1960s has created.

31
Melissa C. Snarr, Womens Working Poverty: Feminist and Religious Alliances in the Living Wage Movement,
Journal of Feminist Studies in Religion 27, no. 1 (2011): 75-76, accessed May 18, 2017.
http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2979/jfemistudreli.27.1.75.
32
Ibid 75
 9

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