Chapter 6: The Search for Stability: Labor in WWI Era

The agreement initially brought relative stability through formalized five-year contracts and the creation of the Dock and Cotton Council, which granted longshoremen and screwmen unprecedented influence over working conditions and hiring practices while providing employers with cost predictability and reduced disruptions. However, the economic and social upheaval of the First World War destabilized this carefully constructed system. Mechanization initiatives, particularly the development of the Public Belt Railroad and modernization schemes by the Dock Board, threatened established job classifications and traditional work arrangements, sparking fierce union resistance. Simultaneously, radical labor elements, including figures like Covington Hall and organizations aligned with the Industrial Workers of the World, challenged conservative union leadership by accusing them of abandoning militant principles in favor of bureaucratic accommodation. Federal involvement through the National Adjustment Commission reflected wartime priorities to maintain continuous production and prevent labor stoppages, yet this regulatory apparatus often marginalized workers' autonomy. The chapter details successive strike waves between 1917 and 1919 as workers responded to inflation that eroded wage gains, irregular employment patterns, and labor shortages exacerbated by the Great Migration. While skilled dockworkers in racially integrated unions negotiated improved compensation and maintained half-and-half hiring agreements that balanced racial employment, less organized workers including freight handlers, teamsters, and car loaders remained vulnerable to wage suppression and arbitrary discipline. The postwar period witnessed the erosion of labor power through open shop campaigns and political realignment under Governor John Parker's administration, ultimately revealing the fragility of biracial working-class solidarity when confronted by coordinated employer offensives and structural economic changes.