May 18

In what may have been baseball’s first labor strike, the Detroit Tigers

refuse to play after team leader Ty Cobb is suspended: he went into the

stands and beat a fan who had been heckling him. Cobb was reinstated and the

Tigers went back to work after the team manager’s failed attempt to replace

the players with a local college team: their pitcher gave up 24 runs - 1912

Amalgamated Meat Cutters union organizers launch a campaign in the nation’s

packinghouses, an effort that was to bring representation to 100,000 workers

over the following two years - 1917

Big Bill Haywood, a founding member and leader of the Industrial Workers of

the World (the Wobblies), dies in exile in the Soviet Union - 1928

Atlanta transit workers, objecting to a new city requirement that they be

fingerprinted as part of the employment process, go on strike. They relented

and returned to work six months later - 1950

Insurance Agents International Union and Insurance Workers of America merge

to become Insurance Workers International Union (later to merge into the

UFCW) - 1959

More info & ammo for unionists is available
online from Union Communication Services.

http://www.unionist.com/