Dealing with Class Conflict

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses solutions for dealing with class conflict namely revolutionary change, the status quo and the worker's responsibility to make their conditions better. The paper also explains that a combination of these solutions is a very effective tool as they would collectively protect workers.

From the Paper:

," Foster, Stow, Wingate, and Howard all advocate radical change to the "labor question," and suggest solutions that demonstrate this. Gompers notes that workers are forced to revolt as he says "strikes are not the result of a condition, and are not, as is generally or frequently understood, the cause" (554). It can be inferred that he saw a lack of truth in Carnegie's philosophy of the self made man; there is no promise of success for hard work. Gompers argument reminds me of Harry Black and Bellamy's coach analogy, demonstrating the idea that those who rise to the top become detached from those below them. His solution to the labor question would be for the employers to work more closely with their employees; he implies that the absence of the emotional connection leads to lower wages, and ultimately strikes. This emotional connection would make it harder for employers to subject workers to such poor conditions for unlivable wages. Gompers holds a position in society that aligns him closely with the working class, identifying with their aims and struggles. He was inspired to become the leader of this organization because both he and his father had experiences as working class individuals who endured many of the hardships associated with the lower class life. He knows the kind of struggles his family faced, and is still aware of them because his position in society necessitates his understanding of the situation. Foster also acknowledges the need for change. He recognizes the flaw in capitalism to be the neglect of the individual worker, and notes that they were exploited, as in the case of the Florida System of Peonage (591). Through the story of Harry Black, he demonstrates the corruption of power, and how capitalism encourages this corruption. When Foster says, "we struck whereupon Black denounced the union like any other capitalist . . . "

Sample of Sources Used:

• Bellamy, Edward. "Looking Backward." Negotiating Difference. Boston: Bedford, 1996. 477-500
• Carnegie, Andrew. "Wealth." Negotiating Difference. Boston: Bedford, 1996. 450-460.
• Councill, William H. "The Negro Laborer: A Word to Him." Negotiating Difference. Boston: Bedford, 1996. 461-466.
• Fielding, N.R. "Testimony before the Senate Committee on the Relations Between Capital and Labor."Negotiating Difference. Boston: Bedford, 1996. 573-575.
• Foster, William Z. "Pages from a Worker's Life." Negotiating Difference. Boston: Bedford, 1996. 588-596.

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