Today in Labor History: May 17
Twelve Starbucks baristas
in a mid-town Manhattan store, declaring they couldn’t live on $7.75 an hour,
signed cards demanding representation by the Industrial Workers of the World,
or Wobblies. Management roadblocks continue to deny the workers their union to
this day - 2004
Also on this
date:
First women’s anti-slavery conference…Supreme Court outlaws segregation in
public schools… click here for complete postings.
 Labor
Book: The Worst Children’s Jobs in History
The next time your children complain about having to help with the dishes or
mow the lawn, put this book in front of them. The Worst Children’s Jobs in History takes you
back to the days when being a kid was no excuse for getting
out of hard labor. This British book, nearly all of which will strike a chord
with youngsters around the world, tells the stories of all the children whose
work fed the nation, kept trains running, and put clothes on everyone’s backs
over the last few hundred years of Britain’s history. Their jobs ranged from
chimney sweep to cesspool cleaner, from tooth-donor(!) to turnip-picker, from
manure-shoveler to matchbox maker -- and much more. This book will tell you
things you probably didn’t want to know about the back-breaking realities of
being a child in the past.
Labor
Humor: Failed Experiment
You enter a school laboratory and see an experiment. How do you know which
class you're in? If it's green and wiggles, it's biology. If it stinks, it's
chemistry. If it doesn't work…click here
for the punchline.
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