The story was the same across the entire economy, and stoked discontent among jobseekers and workers alike. Those who did keep their jobs tolerated abysmal working conditions, afraid to speak up lest they be laid off, too. ![]() Automakers slashed jobs, axing thousands of employees with no regard for seniority. Car sales collapsed, and the industry’s production levels sagged. For many auto workers, unions simply weren’t worth risking their jobs-pay was relatively good, and when workers were laid off they were often rehired at higher rates once a company’s profits rose.īut then the Great Depression hit in 1929. Lynch, General Motors invested $1 million in surveillance between 19. Workers knew they could lose their jobs for trying to organize, and faced corporate spies who reported any pro-union activity back to management. The automobile industry had long discouraged unions. Instead, craft unions that organized workers across specialties were the norm. Unions had long struggled to create unions across industries. Though unions often formed in response to dangerous working conditions, going on strike exposed workers to the danger of physical violence from hired thugs or police that served as companies’ strong-arms. Historically, striking workers had risked their lives on the picket lines. ![]() It was a major victory and the sit-down spread to other areas. ![]() In Flint, Michigan, the United Auto Workers staged the first successful sit-down, forcing General Motors to come to terms.
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