When the Right to Strike Met the Power of the Union
An 1885 editorial examines the evolution of labor relations in Seattle, as workers shift from individual bargaining to collective power that forces employers to the table.
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.
The strike has recently been used by the laboring classes, and has stopped the necessity for the present labor trouble. While the original cause of the strike is said to have been a refusal on the part of the mill officials to meet committees appointed by the Knights of Labor, it is safe to say that the main cause of the strike was not the wages received, but the difficulties which made the appointment of such a committee a necessity. The refusal to meet the men was looked upon by the workmen as a refusal to hear a statement of their grievances, and the strike was accordingly ordered. The workman has realized the tremendous power which organization and united action place in their hands. They have found the key of the situation, and they at once proceeded to fit it in the lock. Trades unions were organized, and in spite of all, the unions lived and flourished. For many years the unionists held the most tenable position. No one would think of denying the right of a workman to refuse to work if the wages did not suit him. Now, we lay down the principle that if a union as generally an obnoxious to us and we refuse to work side by side with these men when our employers insist upon our doing so, we simply stop working. And that is a strike.
“The workman has realized the tremendous power which organization and united action place in their hands. They have found the key of the situation, and they at once proceeded to fit it in the lock.”
This 1885 editorial captures a pivotal moment when the 'labor problem' transitioned from individual dissatisfaction to organized collective action. It mirrors current debates in Seattle, where modern workers in tech, service, and gig sectors are rediscovering that the 'key to the situation' remains the same: the ability to act in concert when standard bargaining channels fail.
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