Looking Back: This Time in Our Labor History - Malbone Street Subway Wreck and The New Orleans General Strike
November 18, 2024
Malbone Street Subway Wreck Shows Importance of Skilled, Union Labor
November 1, 1918 - Subway motormen from New York City’s Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company (BRT) initiated a strike due to the company’s refusal to recognize the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET).
Management used intimidation tactics on workers suspected of union organizing. When the BLET threatened a strike, the BRT responded by firing 40 drivers, accusing them of being “troublemakers” and “communists.” Fed up with these tactics, workers walked off the job on Nov. 1, 1918. Despite lacking skilled and trained conductors, the BRT continued running its rail service with strikebreakers and members of the company “union.” One such employee was a 25-year-old crew dispatcher named Antonio Edward Luciano who had no previous training or experience driving trains.
During the evening rush hour, Luciano hit a sharpmcurve while travelling over 30 mph on a portion ofmthe track that had a speed limit of only 6 mph. Of the 650 passengers on board, 93 people perished as a result.
Eventually the workers did win union recognition and the company-caused tragedy, resulting from their use of scab labor, led to new and needed subway regulations, such as the installation of speedometers, headlights, and automated safety measures on tracks and trains.
New Orleans General Strike Shows the Power of Cross-Racial, Cross-Trade Solidarity
November 8, 1892 - In an overwhelming show of cross-trade solidarity, nearly 25,000 workers backed by 49 unions walked off the job in a general strike consisted of half of New Orleans’ workforce and defied racial divisions.
Leading up to Nov. 8, the Teamsters, the Scalesmen, and the Packers unions – known as the Triple Alliance – were negotiating for shorter workdays, overtime pay, and respect on the job, but the New Orleans Board of Trade bosses failed to take them seriously. With no agreement reached, the three unions started a strike on Oct. 24. Shortly after, the Board of Trade announced agreements with the Scalesmen and Packers unions, but not with the predominantly Black Teamsters union. Using a racial slur, the Board of Trade said they would never enter into an agreement with the union.
Despite attempts by the Board and sensationalist newspapers to stoke racial divides, the Triple Alliance remained united and declared they wouldn’t end their strike until their employers signed agreements with all three unions. This was particularly notable given the infl amed racial tensions in America at the time. This event was no more than 30 years after the conclusion of the Civil War, which freed enslaved Blacks. Ready to turn up the pressure, five labor leaders organized a central body called the Workingmen’s Amalgamated Council to unite workers of multiple nationalities and trades, and escalate the Triple Alliance strike to a city-wide general strike.
In total, 49 unions demanded union recognition and closed shops. Manufacturing stopped, food and beverage deliveries ceased, street cars and street sweeping services ground to a halt, and electrical and gas workers walked out, sending the city into darkness at night.
The strike ended after four days when both sides agreed to arbitration, ultimately granting the Triple Alliance the wage increases and reduction in hours they had been seeking. By uniting in solidarity and withholding their labor, these unions were able to defy toxic racism and ultimately win the pay and protections they deserved at work.