the$election$of1936,$the$ …election$of1936,$the$ courtpackingscheme,$ andthe$impact$oflabor$...

THE ELECTION OF 1936, THE COURT PACKING SCHEME, AND THE IMPACT OF LABOR

UNIONS By: Angelica Narvaez

Election of 1936 v  Franklin D. Roosevelt (Democratic Party) vs. Alf Landon (Republican Party)

v Because of the Election of 1932, in which Hoover overwhelmingly lost to FDR, the Republicans wanted to have the most popular candidate

v There were third parties like Union and Socialist Party but they did poorly

Reasons for Choosing Candidates Why FDR?

v  Incumbent for the presidency

v Great reputation due to his New Deal policies

v Well-‐liked by the people

v Reputation for being the champion of the common man

v In touch with the people (poor Americans)

v Attacked wealth and corporations

v No opposition

Why Landon?

v One of 7 Republicans to be elected governor for a consecutive term

v Reputation for progressive

v Most importantly, he had no association with Hoover

Issues and Stance Issues Republicans Democrats

New Deal Thought New Deal destroying country and causing further social unrest

In favor of New Deal policies

Role of federal Government In support of the idea that it was the role of the states to help dig US out of depression

In support of the idea that recovery must be a joint effort with the lead of federal government

Taxation and spending Reduce spending and lower taxes

Taxation and spending depends on the current demands of the nation

Foreign policy Avoid turmoil in Europe and Asia; no League of Nations and World Court

Avoid turmoil in Europe and Asia; no League of Nations and World Court

Prohibition Pro-prohibition Repeal prohibition

Campaign

v Being too critical of New Deal policies made Landon seem pro-‐business but being too supportive of New Deal would make him seem weak and unoriginal v Landon did both which made him look like a flip flop candidate

v FDR only had to defend his policies v Was already very popular with the public

v Landon was predicted to win by Literary Digest based on telephone polling v Did not factor in democratic voters who did not own a telephone

Results

v FDR 523 electoral votes

v Landon 8 electoral votes

v FDR won by a landslide both in the popular vote and the Electoral College

v One of the biggest landslide elections in US history

Electoral Map

(Political) Changes After 1936 v New Deal coalition made Democratic Party majority party as House and Senate representatives also gained seats

v New Deal coalition were an alliance of voters from different regions of the country and from racial, religious and ethnic groups. v Included women, labor union members, small farmers, African-‐Americans. Jews, liberals, Catholics, etc.

v Democratic power stayed in power for 30 years (mainly because of the coalition)

v Legislative Changes v FDR Tried to undermine the power of various conservative Congressmen who opposed his New Deal policies by supporting their liberal opponents

(Political & Economic) Changes After 1936 v Judicial Changes

v Court packing plan

v Executive Changes v FDR’s 1937 plan for executive reorganization

v Six full-‐time executive assistants v A single administrator to replace the three-‐member Civil Service Commission v President and his staff gain more responsibility in budget planning v Every executive agency to come under the control of one of the cabinet departments

v Congress passed 1939 reorganization bill that created Executive Office of the President and modernized the presidency

v Economic Changes v Recession of 1937-‐1938

Works Progress Administration (WPA) v FDR wanted a federal program that would actually create honest jobs instead of simply giving out temporary jobs or handing out relief/welfare to the needy v Wanted to boost morale, but WPA jobs were made to look unattractive to encourage people to return to public sector jobs

v Later renamed Work Projects Administration after being integrated as part of the Federal Works Agency

v New Deal policy that employed millions of unemployed people in public works projects

v Comprised of many divisions and agencies (construction, arts, railroads, etc.)

v Executive order by FDR

WPA (Continued)

v Superseded “failed” programs like the Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA) or Emergency Relief Administration (ERA) and the Civil Works Administrations (CWA) v Aimed to lend loans to states in order to create jobs for the unemployed

v Provided jobs not only for those working in construction (manual labor), but also artists and writers

v Emergency Relief Appropriation Act, passed April 8, 1935, provided $5 billion for WPA

v Directed and structured by Harry Hopkins

WPA (Continued)

v Infrastructure was built: roads, bridges, schools, waterworks, libraries, parks, etc.

v 40,000 new and 85,000 improved buildings constructed

v Many are still used to this day

WPA and African-‐Americans v Better WPA opportunities in the North

v South was extremely discriminatory despite orders from FDR and WPA directors not to discriminate

v Magazine Opportunity credited WPA for giving African-‐Americans opportunities at white-‐collar jobs

v Many African-‐American artistic groups were funded by the WPA

v Educational programs cut illiteracy by 5%

WPA and Women

v Many women (single, married, and of various age groups) were unemployed and relied on federal welfare

v Offered women clerical jobs

v Most were employed under sewing projects

v Provided women opportunities for helping provide with their families

v Many participated in the Federal Project Number One (Arts Project)

National Youth Administration v Created jobs for Americans 16-‐25 years of age

v Headed by Audrey Willis Williams

v Created to prevent high school and university students from dropping out of school and falling under harsh financial times

v Provided grants to youths in exchange for part time jobs in cafeterias, janitors, administration

v Provided work experience through training in construction, arts, education, etc.

v Helped over 4.5 million American youths find jobs, receive vocational training, and afford higher standards of education

WPA Criticism v Project funding often politically motivated; swing states funded more than others

v Perception that WPA workers were lazy and do poor work

v Pay was poor ($55 per month)

v No guarantee that checks would arrive on time

v Some thought WPA projects were not useful

v The skills of manual laborers did not match up with his skill

v Never provided work for most of the unemployed

Federal Project Number One

v Comprised of: v Federal Art Project v Federal Music Project v Federal Theatre Project v Federal Writers Project v Historical Records Survey

Federal Art Project v Largest section of Federal One

v Enforced to create jobs for artists in which they create art in public spaces (public murals)

v Not enforced for cultural growth, but rather economic ones

v Directed by Holger Cahill

v Artists received a basic wage of $23.50 per week and were expected to complete art pieces in certain number of weeks

v Employed more than 5,000 artists and created thousands of art pieces

Federal Music Project

v Employed musicians, directors, conductors

v Dr. Nikolai Sokoloff was the director

v Created musical programs for adults and children

v Allowed people to attend low cost/ free concerts

v Employed over 16,000 musicians

Federal Theatre Project

v Employed over 12,000 people

v Director was the educator and playwright Hallie Flanagan.

v Harder to expand since sound motion pictures had already replaced theatre

v Gave publicity to many playwrights and actors

Federal Writers Project v Directed by Henry G. Alsberg

v Employed over 6,600 people

v Created guidebooks for towns and historic sites

v Compiled local histories, oral histories, ethnographies, children's books and other works

v Most writers were apolitical, but some opposed FDR administration or supported left-‐leaning ideologies

v One of the most famous works was Slave Narrative Collection

Historical Records Survey

v Smallest and least controversial division

v Employed 4,400 people

v Director Luther H. Evans

v Goal was to preserve the history of the US

Impact of Labor Unions v There was a pro-‐business environment in the 1920s

v Was not until the early 1930s that labor unions started to gain more influence

v FDR supported labor unions and was anti-‐business after New Deal v Often regulated big businesses

v CIO and AFL were most powerful labor unions v United Steel Workers of America, United Mine Workers of America, United Automobile Workers also had influence

v The 1935 National Labor Relations Act (Wagner Act) v Allowed for collective bargaining; legalized for unions to organize and strike or boycott v Strengthened the power of labor unions; gave them legally recognized rights v Created the National Labor Relations Board (US agency that often favors the union side)

Pro-‐Union Legislations v Unions started gaining more power on a state and national level

v National Industrial Recovery Act v Allowed for collective bargaining v Required employers to sign a "President's Reemployment Agreement" which forced them to "limit work weeks to 40 hours, to pay a minimum wage of $12-‐$15 per week (at least 30 cents/hour) and to not hire children under 16," even though this agreement was later gotten rid of

v New York State Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) v Prevents public employees from striking but protects their rights to form and join unions and collectively bargain

v  Public Employment Relations Act (PERA) v Grants all public employees within the state of Michigan the right to organize and join labor unions

v New Jersey Employer-‐Employee Relations Act v Gave workers the right to strike and the right to be represented by a union

Labor Union Strikes v In addition to pro-‐labor unions legislation, strikes also showed the influence of labor unions

v General Motors sit-‐down strike v United Automobile Workers strike against General Motors by sitting down in the factory to prevent strikebreakers from interfering

v San Francisco General Strikes v Different unions came together to support dockworkers and in support of the two workers killed in 1934 West Coast Longshoremen's Strike

v Akron Rubber Strike of 1936 v United Rubber Workers strike against Akron rubber factories for better wages, hours, and conditions

v 1st great strike of CIO

American Federation of Labor

v National federation of unions that became an outgrowth of Knights of Labor

v Largest union in the US for the first half of the century

v Wanted to gain collective bargaining powers for its member unions to fight for better wages, hours and working conditions for skilled workers

v Initially only skilled working white men had representation

v Enforced craft unionism (union organization based on specific skill)

v Started to gain power during the early 1930s

v AFL leaders started to call for organization of unskilled workers which caused a rift

Labor Union Discontent v The pro-‐union FDR administration saw the passing of many pro-‐union legislations that increased the influence of labor unions

v Many business were angered by the influence and power of labor unions

v Anti-‐union sentiment spurred the passage of the Smith-‐Connally Anti-‐Strike Act (1943) and the Taft-‐Hartley Act (1947), which placed new restrictions on labor unions

Committee for Industrial Organization/ Congress of Industrial Organizations v Federation of industrial labor unions in US and Canada

v Created by John L. Lewis

v Originally named Committee for Industrial Organization, but renamed it after it broke away from American Federation of Labor (AFL)

v Created after many AFL leaders opposed craft unionism (unions organized by skill)

v Those AFL leaders wanted industrial unionism (all workers in automobile or steel industry organized into one union)

v AFL strikes were not successful or aggressive enough, so previous AFL leader created CIO factions for industrial unions

Committee for Industrial Organization/ Congress of Industrial Organizations v On November 1935, representatives of eight unions announced the formation of the Committee for Industrial Organization (CIO) as part of AFL (not opposition to it)

v AFL attempted to dissolve the factions

v But, CIO built momentum by organizing the key steel, rubber, and automobile industries, reaching agreements with such large corporations as U.S. Steel and General Motors

v Grew enough and gained enough power to challenge the AFL’s dominance in American labor space

v More aggressive and militant policies than the AFL

v In the 1955, the anti-‐union policies of Pres. Eisenhower drove AFL and CIO to merge in order to gain more control; became AFL-‐CIO

John Llewellyn Lewis v Born Feb 12, 1880 in Lucas, Iowa; died June 11, 1969

v President of the United Mine Workers of America (1920–1960) and chief founder and first president of the Congress of Industrial Organizations (1936–1940)

v Worked at mines by the age of 15

v Led national coal strike in 1919

v National Industrial Recovery Act (1933) guaranteed labor the right to bargain collectively v Lewis to launch new organizing that tripled the UMWA’s membership within a few years v Before that membership was low due to unemployment

v By the time he was president of UMWA had become the largest trade union in the US

John L. Lewis v Lewis and several other AFL union leaders formed the CIO with the intention of organizing workers in mass-‐production industries

v (1935-‐1936) Presided over violent struggles to integrate unionism into initially unorganized industries such as steel, automobile, tire, rubber, and electrical products

v Organized the first successful sit-‐down strike against General Motors in 1937

v Was initially a Republican, but ended up as Democrat to support FDR for 2 terms v Opposed FDR’s 3rd term; resigned as president of CIO after FDR won

v In the 1950s, he worked closely with mine operators to mechanize the industry to increase productivity and expand the union benefits for miners.

v Served as chairman of the board of trustees of the UMWA’s welfare and retirement fund after retiring

Eugene Victor Debs

v Labor organizer and Socialist Party candidate for U.S. president five times between 1900 and 1920

v Became president of American Railway Union in 1893 and united the first industrial union in the US

v Went to prison after leading Pullman Strike v Was inspired by the works of Karl Marx v Started to oppose capitalism

v Led the Pullman Strike v ARU against Pullman Company (railroad car makers) v Though it failed, it was one of the largest strike in US history

v Helped found Industrial Workers of the World (IWW)

Eugene V. Debs v Considered the father of American socialism

v Led/president of American Socialist Party

v Socialist Party candidate for president in 1908, 1912, and 1920 (he refused the nomination in 1916)

v At its peak, Socialist Party had about 100,000 active members v Much of its support came from IWW workers

v Not intelligent, but warm and sincere enough to gain to support

v IWW believed that compromise with owners was no solution v Led hundreds of strikes across America, calling for the overthrow of the capitalist system v Members were called “wobblies”

Supreme Court Judges

Front row: Justices Brandeis and Van Devanter, Chief Justice Hughes, and Justices McReynolds and Sutherland. Back row: Justices Roberts, Butler, Stone, and Cardozo.

Court Packing Scheme v Judicial branch was the only branch with a Republican majority

v Due to four justices who firmly opposed to New Deal programs and 2 swing justices who sided with the “four horsemen” New Deal laws almost always overturned by court v Acts such as National Industrial Recovery Act, Railroad Retirement Act, and Agricultural Retirement Act were opposed by the courts

v Therefore, FDR initiated to “pack” the court with liberal judges in order to easily pass New Deal legislation

v On February 5, 1937, confident FDR sends Judicial Reorganization Bill to Democratic dominated Congress v For every justice over age seventy who refused to retire, the president would appoint one new justice until the Supreme Court had a total of fifteen justices

Court Packing Scheme (Continued) v In 1937, 6 justices already were older than seventy

v Number of justices could change from nine to fifteen v With three liberals already on the Court, the president hoped that six new appointees would ensure a liberal majority and support the New Deal programs

v FDR justified the plan by saying court needed “younger blood” for it to be fully efficient

v Republicans were enraged to the obvious power grab

v Democrats opposed due to the belief of an independent court (separation of powers and checks and balances) v Feared dictatorship v Undermined the Constitution

v Senate Judiciary Committee held meetings to discuss FDR’s plan v Few months of deliberation v Heard arguments on both sides

Court Packing Scheme (Continued)

v Before the bill came to a vote 2 two Supreme Court justices shifted to the liberal side v Court upheld Washington minimum wage law similar to the one it struck down earlier v Later upheld the National Labor Relations Act, Social Security, and other New Deal acts

v Even though the bill was never passed, FDR lost many supporters v Expended much of his political capital

v Court scheme united Republican party v Common enemy: FDR and his administration

v Formed coalition between Republicans and Southern Democrats v Blocked most liberal legislations from 1937 onwards

OPCVL

v Origin v Columbus, Ohio Dispatch v February 10, 1937 v From FDR library

OPCVL (Purpose) v To show President Roosevelt in a negative light due to his court packing plan v He seems to be threatening the judge due to his confrontational stance

v He is shown as being unsportsmanlike and as being an aggressive bully

v “MY WAY” in the text shows that he is uncompromising and dictatorial

v The quotations around “decision” devalues the Supreme Court’s decision and by extension, the Judicial branch

v That various bats on the ground that represent New Deal laws reflects FDR’s neglect of the Court’s decisions

OPCVL (Value)

v Created days after the plan was proposed which means the cartoon reflects the initial attitude of most politicians at the time in regards to the plan v Many politicians from both parties opposed the court packing plan

v Many saw FDR as an authoritarian

OPCVL (Limitation)

v Only shows the court packing plan from a negative light v Fails to show FDR’s perspective and rationale

v The format of a cartoon means that it was created to instantly grab the viewers attention v Includes exaggeration to gain attention

Recession of 1937-‐1938 v To many Americans, it seemed recovery had been achieved

v Production above 1929 levels v Stock prices and profits were up v Even if unemployment was 14%, public had a “I can live with it” attitude

v FDR cut WPA rolls after his reelection; by August people part of WPA were cut in half which left 1.5 million Americans unemployed

v Federal Reserve tightened credit

v Recession within the depression; US was just recovering from the depression; not fully healed, unemployment was still high

v Public Works Administration (PWA) projects which provided jobs for the unemployed ceased

v 2 billion dollars of social security tax that never returned to the economy was used for pension fund

Recession of 1937-‐1938

v FDR and his administration wanted to balance the unbalanced budget, so they started to increase taxes and reduce government spending (WPA, federal programs) v Many economists assign blame to cuts in federal spending and increases in taxes at the insistence of the US Treasury

v By August 1937, stock market collapsed v Production, sales, and employment greatly declined (unemployment went up to 20%) v Businessmen were refusing to invest to undermine FDR’s support v Lack of business confidence and business desires to discredit New Deal efforts may have played small part in recession

v But FDR’s sharp cutback in spending clearly drove it

US Unemployment

Recession of 1937-‐1938 v As unemployment continued to grow and the market continued to collapse, FDR knew he had to take action v Asked Congress for $3 billion for WPA, PWA, and other agencies v Congress granted him $3.75 billion v After this economic indicators were on the rise again; economy continued to grow v Deficit spending advocates known as Keynesians

v FDR tried to curb monopolies v Public was pleased v Provided false economic hopes since FDR was still unsure of his economic policy v Temporary Economic Committee investigated the economy for 3 years but did not provide solid recommendations

v Two reasons that prevented public anger towards recession v Discontent was directed towards labor unions v FDR still talked like the champion of the common man

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•  "American Federation of Labor." American Federation of Labor -‐ Ohio History Central. Web. 08 Jan. 2017. http://www.ohiohistorycentral.org/w/American_Federation_of_Labor

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