Just briefly crossing the picket line! - 1946
Members of the Washington Telephone Traffic Union briefly cross a Western Electric workers’ picket line at 14th & R Streets NW January 12 1946 to pick up their paychecks.
The operators were also on strike since January 10th during a “continuous union meeting” to put an end to dictatorial management practices like requiring a supervisor present before changing a headset from one ear to another or having to call a supervisor before taking an aspirin.
The “continuous meeting” last eight days.
The operators union led by Mary Gannon would stage over 200 strikes—many only hours long—from 1944-49.
The Washington Telephone Traffic Union’s militant tactics were to help form what became the Communications Workers of America after a failed nationwide strike in 1947.
The Western Electric strike involved a 62-day strike at the Kearny, N.J. manufacturing plan and 22 other facilities in the New York-New Jersey area. Many Western Electric local unions walked out in sympathy.
For more information and related images, see flic.kr/s/aHsmbnHJap
For a blog post on the Washington Telephone Traffic Union, see washingtonareaspark.com/2022/02/08/the-washington-telepho...
The photographer is unknown. The image is courtesy of the D.C. Public Library Washington Star Collection © Washington Post.
Just briefly crossing the picket line! - 1946
Members of the Washington Telephone Traffic Union briefly cross a Western Electric workers’ picket line at 14th & R Streets NW January 12 1946 to pick up their paychecks.
The operators were also on strike since January 10th during a “continuous union meeting” to put an end to dictatorial management practices like requiring a supervisor present before changing a headset from one ear to another or having to call a supervisor before taking an aspirin.
The “continuous meeting” last eight days.
The operators union led by Mary Gannon would stage over 200 strikes—many only hours long—from 1944-49.
The Washington Telephone Traffic Union’s militant tactics were to help form what became the Communications Workers of America after a failed nationwide strike in 1947.
The Western Electric strike involved a 62-day strike at the Kearny, N.J. manufacturing plan and 22 other facilities in the New York-New Jersey area. Many Western Electric local unions walked out in sympathy.
For more information and related images, see flic.kr/s/aHsmbnHJap
For a blog post on the Washington Telephone Traffic Union, see washingtonareaspark.com/2022/02/08/the-washington-telepho...
The photographer is unknown. The image is courtesy of the D.C. Public Library Washington Star Collection © Washington Post.