The Telegraph Strike That Wasn't
When Western Union messenger boys in Seattle attempted to organize for better pay, management crushed the effort in a single afternoon.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
There are seven messengers employed by the Western Union Telegraph Company in Seattle. Six of these work in the day and one at night. The boys work from 8 a.m. till 8 p.m., with 45 minutes for dinner and 45 minutes for supper. One night a week, each boy has to work till 10 o'clock. For this service, the boys receive $20 per month. Last night, one of the boys, George Williamson, was discovered by Mr. T. T. Turner in the act of circulating a petition among the boys calling for 10 hours work a day and $25 per month, or a strike. The paper was seized, and it was found to contain two signatures: that of Williamson and an outside boy. Williamson was discharged, the paper was torn up, and in this way what might have been a serious strike was happily averted.
“Williamson was discharged, the paper was torn up, and in this way what might have been a serious strike was happily averted.”
This 1889 account of a 'happily averted' strike among messenger boys highlights the long history of anti-union sentiment in Seattle’s tech and service sectors. The suppression of these boys' demands for a 10-hour day and higher wages mirrors the contemporary struggles of delivery and gig workers fighting for better conditions against powerful corporate interests.
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