Curated OER
Roll the Union On: the National Labor Relations Act and the Rise of the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO)
Students examine the many different programs Roosevelt created as a result of the Great Depression. They research the National Labor Relations Act and explore what working conditions were like during that time.
Other
Ohio's Steel Mill War: The Little Steel Strike of 1937
A several page article about the labor unrest in the steel industries in 1937. Find out about what the union activists were fighting for, martial law that was declared in Ohio, and the final results of the strike.
Hartford Web Publishing
World History Archives: Indispensable Ally: Black Workers, Formation of the Cio
This article relates the history of African Americans in the union movement during the Great Depression. Read about the importance of black membership in the CIO, the ILA, and the steel industry.
New Deal Network
New Deal Network: The Nation: It's War in Youngstown
A contemporary article from the magazine, The Nation, which describes the steel strike in Youngstown, Ohio, in June 1937. Read about the background of the strike, and follow the author's ordeal as she was arrested, despite her press...
Other
American Federation of Labor: John Lewis (1880 1969)
Biographical information on John L. Lewis, who was president of the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA), and also the founding president of the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO).
Ohio History Central
Ohio History Central: American Federation of Labor
A history of the American Federation of Labor and its organization in 1881 by Samuel Gompers. Read about its growth and eventual combining with the Congress of Industrial Organization to become the AFL-CIO.
Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Comission
Explore Pa History: Founding Convention of the Cio Historical Marker
Read about the formation of the Congress of Industrial Organizations, a union that represented steel workers, among many other factoy workers. Find out about their tactics used in strikes during the Great Depression.
Social Studies Help Center
Social Studies Help Center: The Labor Union Movement in America
Discusses the Labor Union Movement in America from its origins in the 1700's.
Other
United Mine Workers of America: Umwa History: Cio
Here's a brief history of the Congress of Industrial Organizations, the brainchild of John L. Lewis. Read about why he thought it was important for several unions to join together to press their ideas.