Menu
Log in


Labor Relations

Sympathetic to both business and labor, Roosevelt avoided labor strike, most notably negotiating a settlement to the great Coal Strike of 1902

The Coal strike of 1902 (also known as the anthracite coal strike)[1][2] was a strike by the United Mine Workers of America in the anthracite coalfields of eastern Pennsylvania. Miners struck for higher wages, shorter workdays, and the recognition of their union. The strike threatened to shut down the winter fuel supply to major American cities. At that time, residences were typically heated with anthracite or "hard" coal, which produces higher heat value and less smoke than "soft" or bituminous coal.

The strike never resumed, as the miners received a 10 percent wage increase and reduced workdays from ten to nine hours; the owners got a higher price for coal and did not recognize the trade union as a bargaining agent. It was the first labor dispute in which the U.S. federal government and President Theodore Roosevelt intervened as a neutral arbitrator.



Theodore Roosevelt teaches the childish coal barons a lesson; 1902 cartoon by Charles Lederer


Rough Rider Office - 813-248-1898 - 601 N 19th St . - Tampa, FL 33605  Email: office@tamparoughriders.org
© 1st U.S. Volunteer Cavalry Regiment - Rough Riders, Inc. 501(C)(3)  Non-Profit Charitable Organization. 
All rights reserved.  Site development by Robin Conn

Powered by Wild Apricot Membership Software