Metal Workers Strike Over Non-Union Hire
A labor dispute at Spokane’s Union Iron Works threatens to shut down the entire facility as unions demand the discharge of a non-union blacksmith.
A strike of the metal crafts, which already involves thirty-five machinists, blacksmiths, and boilermakers at the Union Iron Works at Spokane, has been declared on refusal of the company to discharge a non-union blacksmith. It is expected that when the matter is taken up by the central labor bodies, the patternmakers and moulders will be called out and a general strike ordered, involving the entire force of 125 men.
“A strike... has been declared on refusal of the company to discharge a non-union blacksmith.”
Spokane's industrial labor history reflects the volatile growth of the Pacific Northwest's early 20th-century economy. Today's labor disputes frequently echo these same foundational tensions regarding union security and collective bargaining power.
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