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Picture it: you're a poorly-paid factory worker doing a repetitive, possibly dangerous, job. [A girl and a boy watch television]

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You don't have much of an education and you're tired all the time, thanks to your endless workday.

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You also live with the worry that one of the machines will get hungry someday and chomp your arm off. [A worker dreams]

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This is your boss. He's rich. [The boss sailing in a ship]

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He's so rich, in fact, that his kids can afford to build massive 70-room mansions. [A boy walks on the lawn of a huge mansion]

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Yep, that's mansions with an "s".

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In exclusive East Coast resort towns you'll never see. [A boy enjoys on the beach]

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Your boss’ favorite hobby is buying politicians

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and he doesn’t care that he makes as much money as he does

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because the working conditions you labor in, quite frankly, suck. [The boss offers money to the politician]

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So how do you—itty-bitty you—wrestle a better life for yourself from this jerk?

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Well, you hope to be bitten by a radioactive spider and get yourself some sweet super powers and... [A hand tries to grab a spider]

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Well, okay, that never happens.

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So, what do you actually do?

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Well, you unionize.

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A union is a group of people who come together to bargain collectively with management.

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No individual has enough power to squeeze concessions out of the big boss-man. [Two guys arm wrestle]

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But all the individuals in a factory or an industry?

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Well, that's another story. [A man runs away leaving his hand behind]

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The Labor Movement in the United States got its start

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in 1866 with the foundation of the National Labor Union.

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While this organization sought to bring all of labor together under one big umbrella, it wasn’t the most inclusive of groups. [A guy holds umbrella]

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Chinese workers weren’t invited to the clubhouse,

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and the National Labor Union was reluctant to help African Americans and women in the workplace.

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While the National Labor Union did achieve its goal of getting [pregnant woman in labor]

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an eight-hour workday for government workers signed into law,

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government agencies pushed back by reducing pay.

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When the organization’s leadership decided that

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electoral politics was its tool—its only tool—of choice, [boss gives presentation]

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the group’s membership jumped ship and left for the Knights of Labor.

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The Knights of Labor were dreamers.

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They wanted life to be better for everybody, not just workers. [Knights of Labor logo]

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Unfortunately, in 1886, the Knights of Labor were blamed

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when someone threw a bomb during a peaceful [demonstration at Hay market Square in Chicago]

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demonstration at Haymarket Square in Chicago.

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While the organization struggled along for several more decades, it was a ghost of its former self.

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No one likes a bomb thrower.

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1886 was a busy year for labor.

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While the Knights of Labor were going under, [The criminals are hanged]

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the American Federation of Labor was rising up.

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This particular umbrella organization was made up of craft unions, [workers work in the office]

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or groups organized around a trade, with the members in each group ranked by skill level.

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We're assuming "bead-stringing" was the lowest level. [A girl holds a bead]

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Led by Samuel Gompers, an English-born cigar maker,

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the AFL became the most powerful pro-labor force [The photo of Samuel Gompers appears on screen]

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in the U.S. and kept its position well into the 20th century.

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The AFL merged with the Congress of Industrial Organizations [women protests against the government]

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in 1955,

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and the AFL-CIO still exists today, with millions of members.

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The International Workers of the World, [logo of Industrial Workers of the World]

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or IWW, got its start in 1905.

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The IWW wanted to bring all workers together into one big, happy union. And we do mean all workers. [various skilled laborers gather]

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The IWW didn’t give a toss for racism, sexism, or prejudice against the employees of particular industries.

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The method of collective bargaining

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employed by all these unions

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led to a number of improvements for the working class. [various improvements in labor rules]

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Wages got better.

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Hours got better.

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Working conditions improved.

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But, even as the Labor Movement chipped away at the power of big business, big business fought back, often violently.

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For example, the Great Railroad Strike of 1877

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began when the B&O, or Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, [image of Great Railroad strike]

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cut wages for the third time in a year.

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And yes, some people did call the B&O railroad, the Body Odor Railroad. Yeah, but, c'mon, they were asking for it. [boy cries beside a train]

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Railroad workers in West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Illinois, and Missouri consequently walked off the job. [markers placed on the map]

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Soldiers were called out to put down the strike and a number of people on both sides of the issue were injured or killed.

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Even today, unions and industry continue to duke it out over issues like [A girl walks away from a non union worker to a union worker group]

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whether or not government workers who choose not to join

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unions should be required to help pay for collective bargaining.

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And ethically, it's a big problem because America's competing with non-union labor from other countries [empty customer care call center]

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who work for a dollar a day and well, union workers here aren't too happy about that.

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But then the big businesses they work for go bankrupt. [worker protest against outsourcing of jobs]

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It's a tussle that isn't ending anytime soon. [A businessman stands near protesting workers and declares himself bankrupt]

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