1938 New York City truckers strike

1938 NYC truckers strike
1938 NYC truckers strike
Date	September 15, 1938 – October 2, 1938
Location	United States
Caused by	Contract expiration
Goals	40 Hr. Week; No reduction in weekly pay;
Resulted in	Union Victory: Reduction to 44-hour week; All previous benefits & protections;
Parties
Teamsters (IBT) Union ; Initial: NYC Teamsters Local 807; Local 282; Local 816; ; ; Later (Sept 26): Teamsters' Joint Council No. 18 of New Jersey Local 560; Local 641; Local 617; Local 136; Local 478; Local 469; ; Motor & Bus Terminal Checker Platform & Office Workers Local 21; Local 512; ; ; Allies: Sailor's Union of the Pacific; International Longshoremen's Association; C.I.O; Atlantic City Trucker Union; Philadelphia Joint Council 53 of the Brotherhood of Teamsters 7 locals; ; Gasoline Station's Attendents' Union Local 20408; ; Newark Teamster Local 863; ; ;	NYC Government: Mayor La Guardia; Acting Mayor; Newbold Morris; NYPD Lewis J. Valentine; Mediators: Anna M. Rosenberg; Arthur S. Meyer; ; Corporate groups: Highway Transport Association; Merchant Truckmen's Bureau; Merchant Associations of NY; Publishers Association Associated Express and Truck Owners of New Jersey;
Number
30,000–35,000 Strikers
	Previous contract: 47 hour week, $56.50 a week

The NYC truckers strike started on September 15, 1938, as an unsanctioned strike by some of NYC's Teamsters members, with union leadership initially opposing it.^[1] It was caused by a contract expiration, demanding lower hours at the same weekly pay and by its end somewhere between 30,000 and 35,000 strikers were directly involved.^[2]

On September 25, it was officially sanctioned by a union vote at the Mecca Temple by union Locals 807, 282, and 816.^[3] According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, it was one of the largest US strikes of 1938.^[2]

The strike ended in October as a partial union victory, they won lower hours at the same weekly pay & benefits, but it was not lowered to the demanded maximum 40-hour week but instead to a maximum 44-hour week limit.^[4]

^ "TRUCKING IS TIED UP BY 'OUTLAW' STRIKE; Insurgent Members of A. F. L. Union Halt Most Interstate Shipments in City Food Shipments Affected Limited to One Local". The New York Times. September 16, 1938. Retrieved 2023-06-08.
^ ^a ^b Peterson, Florence (May 1939). "ANALYSIS OF STRIKES IN 1938" (PDF). Monthly Labor Review. Bureau of Labor Statistics, United States Department of Labor: 4, 5–6, 11.
^ "Drivers accept terms while strike goes on" (PDF). Socialist Appeal. October 1, 1938.
^ Cite error: The named reference :22 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[:0-1] "TRUCKING IS TIED UP BY 'OUTLAW' STRIKE; Insurgent Members of A. F. L. Union Halt Most Interstate Shipments in City Food Shipments Affected Limited to One Local". The New York Times. September 16, 1938. Retrieved 2023-06-08.

[Labor-2] Peterson, Florence (May 1939). "ANALYSIS OF STRIKES IN 1938" (PDF). Monthly Labor Review. Bureau of Labor Statistics, United States Department of Labor: 4, 5–6, 11.

[bulletin-3] "Drivers accept terms while strike goes on" (PDF). Socialist Appeal. October 1, 1938.

[:22-4] Cite error: The named reference :22 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]