Stevedores Strike for Higher Wages
Dockworkers loading the 'Benj. F. Packard' walk off the job when their request for higher Sunday pay is denied.
Yesterday morning a strike occurred among the stevedores who were loading wheat onto the ship 'Benj. F. Packard'. On work days, the men are paid 40 cents per hour. When they were ready to go to work yesterday, they informed their boss that they must have 60 cents per hour for Sunday work or they would quit. The boss would not accede to their demands and consequently no wheat was loaded in the 'Packard' yesterday. Captain Libby, the stevedore, proceeded to Seattle and this morning returned with another crew of men with whom he will finish loading the ship.
“The boss would not accede to their demands and consequently no wheat was loaded.”
This 1885 strike over premium Sunday wages highlights the persistent tension between the Seattle maritime labor force and capital. Even as the specific machinery of shipping has changed, the struggle over 'hazard' or 'weekend' pay remains a central theme in Seattle’s labor history.
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