1919 
WAS THE YEAR OF GENERAL STRIKES
 ACROSS THE WORLD

IN NORTH AMERICA THEY BEGAN WITH 
SEATTLE

Seattle General Strike - University of Washington

depts.washington.edu/labhist/strike/

The Seattle General Strike of February 1919 was the first twentieth century solidarity strike in the United States to be proclaimed a “general strike.” It led off a ...

‎Seattle General Strike: Video ... · ‎Seattle General Strike: News ... · ‎Map

Seattle General Strike: Industrial Workers of The World

depts.washington.edu/labhist/strike/anderson.shtml

The Seattle General Strike is an event very important in the history of the Pacific Northwest. On February 6, 1919 Seattle workers became the first workers in ...

Setting the record straight on the 1919 Seattle General Strike | The ...

https://www.seattletimes.com/.../setting-the-record-straight-on-the-1919-seattle-general-st...

Feb 6, 2019 - In 1919, Seattle's General Strike shut down the city for 6 days — but in the 100 years since, its stories have grown a little murky.

Why the Seattle General Strike of 1919 should inspire a new .

theconversation.com/why-the-seattle-general-strike-of-1919-should-inspire-a-new-ge...

Feb 6, 2019 - It was the Seattle General Strike of 1919, which began on Feb. 6 and lasted just five days. By many measures, the strike was a failure. It didn't ...

Seattle General Strike: Labor's Most Spectacular Revolt | Labor Notes

https://labornotes.org/2019/02/seattle-general-strike-labors-most-spectacular-revolt

Feb 6, 2019 - On February 6, 1919, Seattle's workers struck—all of them. In doing so they took control of the city. The strike was in support of 35000 shipyard ...

Seattle's 1919 General Strike Ignited a Labor Movement - CityLab

https://www.citylab.com/life/2019/02/seattle-general-strike-1919-labor.../582424/

Feb 8, 2019 - The Seattle General Strike paralyzed the city for six days. After 101 of 110 local unions affiliated with the Central Labor Council voted for the ...

What the Seattle General Strike can teach workers today | Opinion

https://crosscut.com/2019/01/what-seattle-general-strike-can-teach-workers-today

Jan 30, 2019 - As the 100th anniversary of the Seattle General Strike draws near at a time when present-day activists, advocates, everyday workers and civic ...

Seattle: The 1919 General Strike | International Socialist Review

https://isreview.org/issue/84/seattle-1919-general-strike

The United States has one of the richest histories of class struggle in the world. One of the best examples is the Seattle General Strike of 1919. Unfortunately for ...

Seattle General Strike, 1919 - HistoryLink.org

https://www.historylink.org/File/861

Feb 4, 1999 - The Seattle General Strike began at 10 a.m. on February 6, 1919, and paralyzed the city for five days. Never before had the nation seen a labor ...

How the Seattle General Strike of 1919 shut down the city

https://mynorthwest.com/1252370/seattle-general-strike-1919/

Jan 23, 2019 - More than 65000 workers walked off the job for the Seattle General Strike of 1919. But many history students don't hear anything about it.

[PDF]The Seattle General Strike of 1919 - America in Class

americainclass.org/sources/becomingmodern/prosperity/text6/seattlestrike.pdf

For six days in February 1919, the first “general strike” in American history paralyzed the port city of Seattle, Washington. Two weeks earlier, the shipyard ...

Everything You Need to Know About the General Strike that Shut ...

inthesetimes.com/working/.../1919_seattle_general_strike_anniversary_labor_unions

Feb 6, 2019 - On February 6, 1919, the city of Seattle ground to a halt as 60,000 workers walked off the job in a general strike that would last 6 days. Workers ...

Seattle, “the Soviet of Washington” - Jacobin

https://www.jacobinmag.com/2018/10/seattle-general-strike-iww-labor-revolution

Oct 3, 2018 - Decades before Amazon dominated the city, Seattle was the fiery site of labor unrest, radical action — and the US's only true general strike.

The Seattle General Strike: Robert L Friedheim: Amazon.com: Books

https://www.amazon.com/Seattle-General-Strike-Robert-Friedheim/.../B0007DFAXM

The Seattle General Strike [Robert L Friedheim] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers.

100 years after Seattle 1919: Is the general strike making a comeback ...

https://www.peoplesworld.org/.../100-years-after-seattle-1919-is-the-general-strike-ma...

Feb 7, 2019 - A new film, commemorating centennial of the Great Seattle General Strike of 1919, plus a panel of experts in worker history and rights, tackled ...

1919: The Seattle general strike - Libcom.org

https://libcom.org/history/1919-the-seattle-general-strike

Sep 10, 2006 - A general strike of 100,000 workers, which saw the city shut down and all essential services provided under workers' control. The First World ...

The Seattle General Strike of 1919 | Department of History

https://history.uoregon.edu/__trashed-2/

Feb 6, 2019 - This week marked the 100-year anniversary of the Seattle General Strike, a five-day period that saw nearly half of the city's workforce walking ...

What was socialism like during the Seattle General Strike? - Big Think

https://bigthink.com/politics-current-affairs/what-is-socialism-seattle-strike

Feb 25, 2019 - In February 1919, most of the various trade unions of Seattle voted to begin a general strike. Ostensibly in support of striking longshoremen, the ...

Seattle General Strike - Verso

https://www.versobooks.com/books/2913-seattle-general-strike

Seattle_general_strike. Seattle General Strike. The Forgotten History of Labor's Most Spectacular Revolt. by Cal Winslow. Paperback; Ebook; Hardback.

OPINION: 1919 Seattle General Strike Exemplified Solidarity | South ...

https://southseattleemerald.com/.../opinion-1919-seattle-general-strike-exemplified-sol...

Feb 7, 2019 - by Teresa Mosqueda and April Sims This week marks the 100-year anniversary of the Seattle General Strike, a five-day solidarity work ...

The Seattle Worker February 2019: Seattle General Strike Centennial ...

https://itsgoingdown.org › History

Feb 19, 2019 - The Seattle local of the IWW presents a new issue of their publication, celebrating the 100 year anniversary of the Seattle general strike.

What was socialism like during the Seattle General Strike? - Big Think

https://bigthink.com/politics-current-affairs/what-is-socialism-seattle-strike

Feb 25, 2019 - In February 1919, most of the various trade unions of Seattle voted to begin a general strike. Ostensibly in support of striking longshoremen, the ...

Seattle General Strike - Verso

https://www.versobooks.com/books/2913-seattle-general-strike

Seattle_general_strike. Seattle General Strike. The Forgotten History of Labor's Most Spectacular Revolt. by Cal Winslow. Paperback; Ebook; Hardback.

OPINION: 1919 Seattle General Strike Exemplified Solidarity | South ...

https://southseattleemerald.com/.../opinion-1919-seattle-general-strike-exemplified-sol...

Feb 7, 2019 - by Teresa Mosqueda and April Sims This week marks the 100-year anniversary of the Seattle General Strike, a five-day solidarity work ...

When Workers Ran the City: The 1919 Seattle General Strike https://www.academia.edu/38300593/When_Workers_Ran_the_City_The_1919_Seattle_General_Strike?source=swp_

Topic: Seattle General Strike - History Day at Special Collections ...

guides.lib.uw.edu/c.php?g=433486&p=4507882

Apr 12, 2019 - History Day at Special Collections: Topic: Seattle General Strike. Special Collections is a great resource for all your Pacific Northwest primary ...

Seattle workers general strike for fair wages, 1919 | Global Nonviolent ...

https://nvdatabase.swarthmore.edu/.../seattle-workers-general-strike-fair-wages-1919

The Seattle General Strike was the first general strike in the U.S. and marked the beginning of a post-WWI era of labor conflict. Conditions for a general strike in ...

Seattle General Strike, 1919: "Nothing moved but the tide" - Freedom ...

https://socialism.com/fs-article/seattle-general-strike-1919-nothing-moved-but-the-tide/

For six euphoric days a century ago, Seattle's workers took over and ran the city. Industry barons trembled. “All of Seattle was silenced as organized labor went ...

The Seattle General Strike and the "Great Red Scare" | AHA

https://www.historians.org/.../the-seattle-general-strike-and-the-great-red-scare

The first of these is on the Seattle General Strike of 1919. We begin with an archive of editorial cartoons at CUNY and two representative statements from public ...

When workers' power ran Seattle | SocialistWorker.org

https://socialistworker.org/2019/02/06/when-workers-power-ran-seattle

Feb 6, 2019 - ONE HUNDRED years ago, workers in Seattle not only shut their city down with a general strike, but they ran it for five days, from February 6-11 ...

Book Review: Labor History: The Seattle General Strike - Vernon H ...

journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/001979396501900115

Book Review: Labor History: The Seattle General Strike. Show all authors. Vernon H. Jensen · Vernon H. Jensen. Professor New York State School of Industrial ...

Seattle General Strike | The American Historical Review | Oxford ...

https://academic.oup.com/ahr/article-abstract/71/1/334/69611

by HG Gutman - ‎1965

Herbert G. Gutman; The Seattle General Strike, The American Historical Review, Volume 71, Issue 1, 1 October 1965, Pages 334, ...

Sunday Video: Seattle General Strike of 1919 | The Urbanist

https://www.theurbanist.org/2017/09/03/sunday-video-seattle-general-strike-1919/

Sep 3, 2017 - Seattle made history in 1919 with the first general strike in American history. The strike stemmed from the industrial boom of World War I during ...

Book Reviews : The Seattle General Strike. By ROBERT L ...

journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/106591296702000419

Book Reviews : The Seattle General Strike. By ROBERT L. FRIEDHEIM. (Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1964.) Show all authors. John E. Crow.

SEE OTD 100 YEARS AGO THE WINNIPEG GENERAL STRIKE BEGAN https://plawiuk.blogspot.com/2019/05/this-day-in-history-100-years-ago-today.html

Mine, steel, auto workers were involved in some of the biggest strikes in American history

Thomas C. Frohlich and John Harrington
24/7 Wall Street


The coronavirus pandemic’s devastating effect on the world’s economies has shined a harsh light on the value of labor – it is the most vulnerable commodity in our economic system. In the countless examples of workers' struggles in U.S. history, this power has been leveraged – with varying degrees of success – to negotiate and improve labor conditions across all manner of workplaces.

Many elements of gainful employment Americans may take for granted, such as health benefits, a living wage, and the 40-hour work week, were won by organized labor. Here are the best jobs in America.

Even though a wave of strikes hit the U.S. as recently as 2018, union membership has declined for decades. This pattern can be seen in our ranking of strikes by cumulative work stoppage days, with the nation’s largest worker actions tending to have occurred earlier than the less massive strikes. For a geographical perspective on union strength, here are the states with the strongest and weakest unions.

24/7 Wall St. reviewed data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics as well as media and archive reports on historic work stoppages to determine the largest worker strikes in American history.

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31. Detroit Newspapers Strike

• Duration: July 13, 1995 to Feb. 19, 1997

• No. of strikers: 2,500

• Cumulative days off the job: 1,012,500

Unions representing journalists, printers, truck drivers, maintenance workers, and other laborers went on strike over management's attempt to create a merit-based raise system and limit overtime. The newspapers hired replacement workers, and the union called off the strike.

30. Boeing Machinists Strike of 2008

• Duration: Sept. 6, 2008 to Nov. 1, 2008

• No. of strikers: 27,000

• Cumulative days off the job: 1,053,000

The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers ended an eight-week strike in November 2008 with an agreement that the union said protected factory jobs, prevented some outsourcing of posts at Boeing, and retained health care benefits. Boeing management said the accord gave the company more labor flexibility.

29. Wheeling Pittsburgh Steel Corp. Strike

• Duration: Oct. 1, 1996 to Aug. 12, 1997

• No. of strikers: 4,800

• Cumulative days off the job: 1,142,400

A 10-month strike involving steel workers at eight plants in three states ended in August 1997. The union said the agreement boosted pension benefits for the company's steel workers and provided for early retirements. The accord allowed Wheeling to reduce workforce by 20%. The company closed in 2012.

28. Trucking Strike of 1994

• Duration: April 6, 1994 to April 29, 1994

• No. of strikers: 71,000

• Cumulative days off the job: 1,180,500

The 23-day strike, the nation's longest trucker strike, ended on April 29, 1994. The agreement limited companies' ability to hire part-time workers, paving the way for more items to be shipped by rail instead of by truck.

27. Northwest Airlines Strike

• Duration: Aug. 20, 2005 to Nov. 6, 2006

• No. of strikers: 3,000

• Cumulative days off the job: 1,183,800

The mechanics' strike against Northwest Airlines proved to be a disaster for the striking workers and their union. Northwest replaced all of the strikers, and some of the strikers and laid-off workers crossed the picket line. The strike also failed because none of the other unions supported the picket lines.

26. UAW Strike of 1996

• Duration: March 8, 1996 to March 22, 1996

• No. of strikers: 136,000

• Cumulative days off the job: 1,260,000

The United Auto Workers strike ended on March 22, 1996, when union leaders agreed to allow General Motors to outsource parts operations in exchange for the company's promise to retain and add jobs at two plants.


25. The U.S. Postal Strike of 1970

• Duration: March 18, 1970 to March 25, 1970

• No. of strikers: 210,000

• Cumulative days off the job: 1,260,000

More than 200,000 employees in 30 cities participated in the U.S. Postal Strike of 1970. Comprising a significant share of the nation's 750,000 postal workers, activists halted mail service in New York, Detroit, and Philadelphia, triggering President Richard Nixon to declare a national emergency. Despite the military's efforts to quell the strikes, a deal was eventually struck resulting in higher pay and better labor conditions under the Postal Reorganization Act of 1970.

24. General Motors Strike

• Duration: Sept. 16, 2019 to Oct. 25, 2019

• No. of strikers: 46,000

• Cumulative days off the job: 1,334,000

The work stoppage by the United Auto Workers in the fall of 2019, the longest against General Motors in 49 years, cost GM about $4 billion, according to the automaker. Under terms of the four-year accord, pay for older workers will increase 6% each year. Hourly workers were to receive an $11,000 signing bonus. The union also thwarted a company demand for workers to pay a greater share of health-care expenses.

23. Kaiser Aluminum Corp. Strike

• Duration: Oct. 1, 1998 to Sept. 18, 2000

• No. of strikers: 3,000

• Cumulative days off the job: 1,479,000

After several round of negotiations, aluminum workers rejected Kaiser's proposal and went on strike on Sep 30, 1998. The union cited, among other issues, the company's failure to repay losses incurred during compensation cut agreements made in the 1980s that were made to stave off bankruptcy. After nearly two years of numerous failed negotiations and snags, a deal was finally agreed upon on Oct 1, 2000.

22. Boeing Strike of 1995

• Duration: Oct. 6, 1995 to Dec. 14, 1995

• No. of strikers: 33,000

• Cumulative days off the job: 1,551,000

Machinists and assembly line workers in 1995 won significant wage increases as a result of a strike that lasted over a month. Additionally, while Boeing would continue to increase its practice of contracting jobs overseas, the deal included the concession that any worker affected by subcontracting would be entitled to retraining for work elsewhere at the company.

21. Charter Communications Inc. Strike

• Duration: March 28, 2017 to ongoing

• No. of strikers: 1,800

• Cumulative days off the job: 1,578,600

Charter Communications workers started striking in March 2017 to fight changes to their retirement and health care benefits made after Charter acquired Time Warner and rebranded as Spectrum in 2016. Before the coronavirus outbreak hit the U.S., the strike was the longest ongoing strike in the United States.

20. 1934 West Coast Waterfront Strike

• Duration: May 9, 1934 to July 17, 1934

• No. of strikers: 35,000

• Cumulative days off the job: 1,750,000

Starting with 12,000 dock workers in the spring of 1934, the West Coast Waterfront Strike included at its peak 35,000 laborers across various marine industries and lasted for 83 days. Though not included in the tally for this particular strike, Teamsters and other unions showing solidarity with the longshoremen brought the total workers on strike during this time to 130,000. The strikers achieved their goals through arbitration in October 1934 after ending the strike in July.

19. United Parcel Service Strike of 1997

• Duration: Aug. 4, 1997 to Aug. 21, 1997

• No. of strikers: 180,000

• Cumulative days off the job: 2,032,500

UPS workers represented by the Teamsters went on strike against the delivery services company over pay and benefits. The Teamsters agreed to a five-year contract after originally asking for a shorter-term deal. UPS agreed to create 10,000 full-time jobs from part-time posts, an increase from its original offer of only 1,000. The workers' $8 an hour base pay was boosted by 50 cents an hour, and the average driver's pay was lifted by $3.10 an hour over the life of the contract. UPS wanted to change the pension plan, but that plan remained in place, a victory for the union.

18. Bituminous Coal Operators Association Strike

• Duration: May 10, 1993 to Dec. 14, 1993

• No. of strikers: 16,800

• Cumulative days off the job: 2,203,000

The United Mine Workers of America agreed in December 1993 to end a strike that affected miners in five states by extending the contract that had lapsed the previous February. The dispute was over companies with union workers creating nonunion subsidiaries and transferring work to them. That issue was deferred.

17. 1913 Paterson Silk Strike

• Duration: Feb. 25, 1913 to July 28, 1913

• No. of strikers: 23,000

• Cumulative days off the job: 2,530,000

Workers at silk mills in the New Jersey city that was one of the cradles of the Industrial Revolution went on strike over an increase in loom assignments to four from two that would have reduced the workforce. As the strike dragged on, sometimes turning violent, some strikers returned to work, while others who continued to strike were replaced. The strike succeeded in forcing the companies to delay the proposed workplace change.

16. The New York City Tugboat Strike of 1988

• Duration: Feb. 16, 1988 to Dec. 20, 1993

• No. of strikers: 1,600

• Cumulative days off the job: 2,895,200

Tugboat operators, whose ranks had been on the decline for many years, staged a failed strike that led to lower wages for many members of their union, The International Organization of Masters, Mates & Pilots.


15. General Motors Strike

• Duration: June 5, 1998 to July 29, 1998

• No. of strikers: 152,200

• Cumulative days off the job: 3,313,000

A bitter strike at General Motors in 1998 ended after the automaker said it would not shutter factories where the workers were on strike and agreed to invest $180 million in new equipment at one of the facilities. The United Auto Workers agreed to work-rule changes that would increase production.

14. Caterpillar Strike

• Duration: June 20, 1994 to Dec. 3, 1995

• No. of strikers: 14,000

• Cumulative days off the job: 4,063,000

Union members at Caterpillar, the world's largest heavy equipment manufacturer, returned to work in December 1995 after a failed long strike. Workers had gone on strike in June 1994, protesting unfair labor practices. They had been working without a contract since 1991. The new contract placed limits on job security and overtime pay, and gave Caterpillar leeway to lay off workers more frequently.

13. Passaic Textile Strike

• Duration: Jan. 25, 1926 to March 1, 1927

• No. of strikers: 15,000

• Cumulative days off the job: 4,215,000

The Passaic Textile Strike of 1926 involved more than 15,000 wool and silk workers in the Passaic, New Jersey, region. Workers reacted to a 10% pay cut and were galvanized later by police violence against demonstrators. Union demands included, among other items, time-and-a-half pay for overtime, a 40-hour workweek, sanitary working conditions, and no discrimination against union members.


The strike failed. Of the nine mills affected, even the few that settled disputes with workers broke their deals, firing many of the workers and rehiring them at lower wages.

12. The 1934 Textile Worker Strike

• Duration: Sept. 3, 1934 to Sept. 23, 1934

• No. of strikers: 400,000

• Cumulative days off the job: 5,600,000

Textile workers went on strike to protest a cut in pay as their workweeks were being reduced. The strike idled the textile industry in North Carolina. The workers, however, lacked the means to continue the struggle. Their cause was also undermined by a glut of textile inventory. In September, President Franklin Roosevelt personally intervened to ask the workers to return to the mills and they did so.

11. Southern California Supermarket Strike

• Duration: Oct. 12, 2003 to Feb. 29, 2004

• No. of strikers: 67,300

• Cumulative days off the job: 5,718,100

Workers represented by United Food and Commercial Workers went on strike against supermarket company Von's because management wanted to change the health benefits of workers, which under the expiring contract were paid by the company. Soon afterward, supermarket companies Ralphs and Albertson's, whose contracts with their unions were also terminating, locked out employees. After a nearly five-month strike, management succeeded in getting workers to pay more for their health care benefits.


10. The 1946 Union of Electrical, Radio and Machinist Workers' Strike

• Duration: Jan. 15, 1946 to March 14, 1946

• No. of strikers: 174,000

• Cumulative days off the job: 7,308,000

Accruing 7.3 million days of work stoppage at a time when unions had considerably more power than they do today, the 1946 strike by electrical workers is the 10th largest in U.S. history. Starting in mid-January, after months of negotiations for higher wages, about 174,000 employees of several large electrical manufacturing companies went on strike. The strike was part of several massive organized labor campaigns conducted in 1946.


The wave of strikes at the time led to President Harry Truman's Labor Management Relations Act of 1947, also known as the Taft-Hartley Act, which restricted the power of labor unions and is still in force today.

9. The Great Southwest Railroad Strike

• Duration: March 1, 1886 to May 4, 1886

• No. of strikers: 200,000

• Cumulative days off the job: 9,400,000

As railroads were rapidly expanding throughout the American West in the late 19th century, railroad workers went on strike in what is known as The Great Southwest Railroad Strike. Workers began protesting the grueling work hours and brutal conditions. The strike against the Union Pacific Railroad and the Missouri Pacific Railroad began after a railroad employee was fired for attending a union meeting in Texas. The job action spread to four other states and turned violent. The railroads hired replacement workers, and the strike faltered when other unions failed to support the strikers.

8. Pullman Strike

• Duration: May 11, 1894 to July 20, 1894

• No. of strikers: 260,000

• Cumulative days off the job: 13,260,000

Due in part to the fallout from the economic recession between September 1893 and May 1894, railroad car manufacturer Pullman Palace Car Company cut pay by about 25% for workers without reducing living expenses in the company town near Chicago, where they lived. When workers presented the problem to company president George M. Pullman – the possibility of starvation added to already poor living conditions, low wages, and a 16-hours workday – they were fired.

By mid-summer, hundreds of thousands of workers were on strike. A federal court-issued injunction and the military were needed to suppress the workers. President Grover Cleveland declared Labor Day a national holiday during the strike.

7. Anthracite Coal Strike of 1902

• Duration: May 12, 1902 to Oct. 23, 1902

• No. of strikers: 147,000

• Cumulative days off the job: 15,141,000

The Anthracite Coal Strike of 1902 pitted coal miners in Pennsylvania who wanted higher pay and shorter work hours against coal mine companies that claimed their operations were not that profitable. The strike led to the formation of a commission that arbitrated an agreement that included pay increases and reduced work hours. It marked the first time the federal government intervened as a neutral party and not on the side of employers. The job action also boosted the labor movement.

6. American Association of Advertising Agencies Strike

• Duration: May 1, 2000 to Oct. 30, 2000

• No. of strikers: 135,000

• Cumulative days off the job: 17,280,000

Actors belonging to the Screen Actors Guild and the American Federation of Television & Radio Artists ended their strike in October of 2000. The union defeated an attempt by the American Association of Advertising Agencies and the Association of National Advertisers to discontinue residuals paid to actors for television commercials.

5. United Auto Workers Strike of 1945

• Duration: Nov. 21, 1945 to March 13, 1946

• No. of strikers: 225,500

• Cumulative days off the job: 17,363,500

After abiding by a no-strike vow during WWII and deferring wage increase demands, organized labor asked for higher pay once the war ended, and the automobile sector was no exception. The United Auto Workers requested a 30% wage hike in November of 1945. GM countered with a 10% increase. Negotiations reached an impasse, and the laborer began work stoppage. The job action ended when GM said it would give workers a 17.5% pay hike, paid vacation, and overtime pay.

4. The Railroad Shop Workers Strike

• Duration: July 1, 1922 to Sept. 1, 1922

• No. of strikers: 400,000

• Cumulative days off the job: 18,000,000

In response to a 12% wage cut, about 400,000 railroad workers went on strike on July 1, 1922. While nearly the largest strike in U.S. history, the workers were ruthlessly broken by various violent measures, including the hiring of 16,000 gunmen, National Guard deployment, and targeted hits by private detectives.


The unrest demonstrated in the Railroad Shop Strike led to the passage of the Railway Labor Act, which provided the right for workers to organize and join unions.

3. The Steel Strike of 1919

• Duration: Sept. 22, 1919 to Jan. 8, 1920

• No. of strikers: 350,000

• Cumulative days off the job: 26,600,000

Disagreements between labor and management in the steel industry had been mediated by the War Labor Board during World War I. After the war ended, however, workers claimed companies refused to recognize unions. Postwar inflation was also eroding incomes. Steel workers went on strike in September 1919, but the job action was hampered by bad organization as well as ethnic and racial tensions within the steel union. Also, management exploited the public's fears of Bolshevism. Strikers crossed picket lines, and the strike ended unsuccessfully for the unionized steel workers.

2. The Steel Strike of 1959

• Duration: July 15, 1959 to Nov. 1, 1959

• No. of strikers: 500,000

• Cumulative days off the job: 38,000,000

In mid-July 1959, around 500,000 steel workers walked off the job in defiance of President Dwight D. Eisenhower's pleas to continue bargaining. The strikers' goal was to amend a clause in their union contract to give management more control over the number of workers assigned to a task, as well as the power to introduce new work rules or machinery that would affect how many employees or hours were needed.

The union ended up victorious, although the strike is considered to have led to increases in foreign steel imports – a trade pattern that would ultimately hurt American steel workers

.


1. United Mine Workers of America Strike of 1946

• Duration: April 1, 1946 to Dec. 7, 1946

• No. of strikers: 400,000

• Cumulative days off the job: 70,400,000

The United Mine Workers of America, under the leadership of legendary union boss John L. Lewis, went on strike in April 1946, seeking a health plan for workers and retirees. As the strike dragged on, President Harry Truman stepped in and placed the mines under the control of the federal government. Eventually, the government forged an agreement with the union that returned control of the mines to companies and provided for raises in pay and improvements in mine safety, as well as establishing a framework for creating a retirement fund.

UAW members vote on strike in case Ford, GM deal doesn’t happen

James Dornbrook - Kansas City Business Journal
Tue, August 22, 2023

With thousands of jobs and billions of dollars in economic impact at stake, negotiations over a new labor contract for United Auto Workers members are reaching a crucial phase for the Kansas City-area economy.

The UAW is trying to negotiate a new labor contract with Ford Motor Co. and General Motors Co., which have about 9,500 full-time-equivalent employees at their area production plants.

Mahomes, Kelce invest in popular Kansas City-area pickleball concept

Ford’s Kansas City Assembly Plant (7,250 employees) in Claycomo produces the Ford F-150 and the Ford Transit. GM’s Fairfax Assembly Plant (2,229 employees) in Kansas City, Kansas, produces the Chevrolet Malibu and the Cadillac XT4.

The UAW labor contract is set to expire Sept. 14, and the parties still haven’t reached an agreement.

Concerned about the pace of the negotiations, the union asked members to authorize a strike if the contract expires. The UAW needs to have strike authorization in hand by Thursday. That doesn’t mean a strike will happen; it simply gives UAW leadership authority to call a strike.

Can the UAW afford to strike all three Detroit automakers?

Jamie L. LaReau, Detroit Free Press
Wed, August 23, 2023

In 1998, about 9,200 union members at two General Motors components' plants in Flint went on strike. Flint Metal Center made sheet metal stampings used on most of GM's vehicles; Flint East made the electronics.

The strike at those two important plants forced production to stop at nearly 30 other GM assembly plants and 100 parts plants across North America. Nearly 193,000 GM hourly workers were then laid off and those nonstriking members collected unemployment benefits. The 9,200 strikers were paid from the union's then-$700 million strike fund.

Striking United Auto Workers union workers demonstrate in front of the General Motors Corp. Metal Fabricating Plant on June 10, 1998, in Flint, Mich., as an auto transport truck passes. Nearly 3,400 hourly UAW employees went on strike Friday, June 5, l998 forcing the various GM plants in North America to shut down due to a lack of parts.

That strategy of using key component plants to take down other plants meant the strike could last long (54 days in this case) and cost the union less compared with taking all 202,200 workers off the line and paying them from the strike fund. The strike and shutdowns cost GM about $2 billion in lost profits, according to an article in MLive.

"It was far less costly to the union, but inflicted considerable pain to General Motors, not as painful as a complete shutdown, but it worked," said Harley Shaiken, professor emeritus at the University of California, Berkeley.

That plan or something similar could be an option this year if the UAW decides to strike one or all of the Detroit automakers next month, experts said. If the tactic is employed, "It can bring down the system and ... this could be a very, very serious situation," said Marick Masters, a business professor and labor expert at Wayne State University.

A United Auto Workers flag flies on a truck outside General Motors' Flint Metal Center in Flint, Mich., on June 17, 1998. A rally was held at the plant where the workers walked out on June 5 in protest of staffing levels, health and safety issues and subcontracting issues.

Labor watchdogs list several tactics the union could take if it strikes. The key for union leaders would be to find the strategy that will inflict the most pain on the company while doing the least damage to the union's $825 million strike fund. For the automakers, it means being prepared to mitigate the damage from a number of scenarios.
Strike authorization vote: Turnout matters

The United Auto Workers declined to comment for this article. In a statement to the Detroit Free Press, President Shawn Fain said, "The UAW does not discuss strike strategy."

Fain also does not discuss the strike fund and how long it could support paying $500 a week to some 150,000 UAW members at GM, Ford Motor Co. and Stellantis, which owns Jeep, Ram, Chrysler, Dodge and Fiat, if it came to that. When asked about the strike fund's ability to fund such a strike at a rally Sunday, he told media that the workforce and the union are prepared to do what needs to be done to get a fair contract.

UAW President Shawn Fain speaks with media during the shift change at the GM Factory ZERO Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly Center in Detroit on July 12, 2023. The UAW will be starting contract talks with management this week.

This week, UAW members at the Detroit Three are being asked to give union leaders the OK to call for a strike. Bargainers continue to negotiate as they come up against the Detroit Three's contract expiration at 11:59 p.m. on Sept. 14.

The strike authorization vote is usually a formality but this year’s heated rhetoric adds more significance to the process. The automakers and the union leaders are watching the vote turnout as an indicator of strike enthusiasm, labor experts said.

"The rallies and the strike vote allow the UAW to collect data as to how willing the workers are to go on strike and that will be calibrated into the union's strike strategy," Masters said. "And, if there is reluctance, that will have an impact on how hard they push these bargaining demands."

The strike authorization results are expected later this week. If voter turnout is high for something that is considered a foregone conclusion, it means the membership is engaged and ready to walk, Shaiken said. That alone could be enough to win a good contract because the companies won't want a strike. For automakers, in today's competitive world, lost sales to imports or competitors like Tesla during a strike are sales they may never get back, he said.

Strike scenario No. 1: Total Conflict

If the automakers won't meet the demands of the UAW, which include wage raises, cost-of-living adjustments, shorter work weeks, pension benefits and more, here are a few strategies the union can deploy in the event of a strike: The first being the "total conflict" approach.

" 'We’re going out on strike across the board and nobody is going to make another automobile at our plants until this is resolved.' That’s maximum pain on both sides of the bargaining table," said Erik Gordon, a business professor at Ross School of Business at University of Michigan. "The idea is, 'We’re going to bring the industry to its knees.' "

Erik Gordon, University of Michigan Ross School of Business professor.

With that approach, Gordon said the automakers could probably last longer than the union because they have more money. But Shaiken added that the broader economic impact could hurt ancillary companies such as smaller suppliers to automakers who could be forced out of business in a prolonged strike against all three car companies.

If all of the nearly 150,000 U.S. union autoworkers at the Detroit Three went on strike, at $500 a week in strike pay, it would cost the union about $75 million a week and six weeks would eat up $450 million — about half the strike fund. That would not include the cost of paying for medical insurance, which is hard to calculate, Masters said, because some workers might be covered by a spouse's insurance. But he estimates medical could add another $100 million in costs over six weeks. The UAW website says the union will cover medical costs and prescription drugs during a strike if the automaker discontinues coverage.

Also, the union would lose a big part of its revenue because all those striking workers would not be paying dues while on strike.

"The cost is higher but they hope, by maximum impact, the strike would be shorter," Masters said of this strategy. "It’s a risk."

The other pain point, Gordon noted, is "although the UAW workers might say they want to strike and they might have saved up for a strike, after you go eight weeks on $500 a week, you realize that — apart from having trouble paying your bills — that new fishing boat you were going to buy, you’re not going to buy now. That vacation you were going to take, you're not going to take it."

Scenario No. 2: The traditional approach

The traditional approach means, about a week before the contract deadline, the UAW selects a target company, usually an automaker they believe will give way on the union's most important issues. If they have a strike, they strike that company only.

This is the tactic the UAW took in 2019 when it went on strike against GM for 40 days. The six-week work stoppage cost GM $3.6 billion and had broad impact across the industry. The UAW paid nearly $81 million in benefits to striking workers.

Strikers walk the line at GM Romulus Powertrain, Monday, Oct. 14, 2019.

Shaiken said even a traditional strike causes economic damage to both sides, but it is less costly than striking multiple companies. For example, if Ford were to be the target, the UAW would be funding 57,000 strikers at about $28.5 million a week (about $171 million over six weeks), not including health care costs. In 2019, GM cut off its health care coverage for strikers, putting those costs in the hands of the union. But the negative public image of doing so prompted GM to reinstate health care coverage about a week later.

Shaiken expects the union would go this route because if they don’t, "Lost sales go to nonunion carmakers and those sales may not be coming back. No. 2, it is far more costly to the UAW to be paying $500 to 150,000 workers, that’s $75 million a week. Third, (in a strike against all three) you're talking 2% of the gross domestic product because you’ve got suppliers who have to start laying off workers, you’ve got level two or level three suppliers that are more vulnerable to bankruptcies and you open the possibility to federal intervention.”

Finally, "Once you get the first company, then the others do fall in line," Shaiken said. "So doing a target is more effective."

A variation of scenario 2

But Gordon said this classic option above isn't consistent with Fain's messaging to date.

“Fain has positioned the contract bargaining as more of a class war than, ‘Just give us these economics,’ “ Gordon said. “It’s ‘Management is the enemy, management is greedy, look how much more management makes than you do.’ So if you pick one company, are you saying that GM’s management is more reviled than Stellantis’ management or Ford’s management is?”

Masters suggests a variation of the traditional approach could be in play, which could be striking one automaker completely and some key parts of the others — enough to hurt the other two, but not be as costly to the union.

"All of these scenarios have implications for solidarity and draining the strike fund so they’re going to take all these things and weight them and come up with an algorithm to devise a strategy that will work best for them," Masters said.
Scenario No. 3: Back to 1998

Labor experts said an "asymmetric" attack is another option. That's the 1998 model: Strike some key component plants across GM, Ford and Stellantis and fund those smaller strikes out of the strike fund as other employees continue to pay into the strike fund, keeping revenue flowing. Then, when other plants must be idled because they can't get key components, those workers get paid by unemployment and possibly sub pay by the company.

Fred Johnson, right, an automatic press operator at the Flint Metal Center, and Richard Stevens, left, a quality control technician, rally passing drivers to honk their horns outside the center in Flint, Mich., on July 13, 1998.

There is just one problem with that, Gordon said.

"Figuring out which key component plants of the automaker — because it can’t be a supplier — they will hit is complicated," Gordon said. “What is the part that is most common across the carmaker's line that you can’t get from a supplier? Engines? Maybe a stamping plant? You have to figure out what appears in an entire platform that would hurt them."

A more doable option would be to strike an automaker's plants that make its biggest sellers.

“Shut down the plants making the pickup trucks and stay on the line in the plants making the cars," Gordon said. "It’s good tactic, but not as good as the shutdown of selective components. But it might be easier to do because you know how to shut down the plants building the F-150, the Silverado or RAMs. That’s doable.”

Masters said Fain is keeping the automakers off balance by not following tradition so far. He forewent the traditional handshake, for example, when negotiations officially started last month.

“One of the things that’s impressed me most about Shawn Fain is he’s keeping all his options open, I don’t think they want the companies to know precisely what they’re going to do whereas in the past the companies kind of knew what they were going to do," Masters said.

UAW president Shawn Fain talks to Ford workers outside of Ford's Michigan Assembly Plant in Wayne on Wednesday, July 12, 2023.

He said striking key component plants or plants where the bestselling vehicles are made, might be the best options in terms of managing union costs and balancing impact, but "the question is how are the companies prepared to deal with that? You can easily imagine a scenario where key strikes at key locals could be very impactful.”

More: GM confirms future wage hike for UAW members, but other demands 'threaten' company health

More: 2 auto unions to bargain with the Detroit 3 at same time, each want a share of profits

Contact Jamie L. LaReau: jlareau@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @jlareauan. Read more on General Motors and sign up for our autos newsletter. Become a subscriber.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: How the UAW could strike the Detroit 3 without draining strike funds

Auto strike is now the longest in 25 years

By Chris Isidore, CNN
Wed October 25, 2023

A picket line outside the Stellantis Sterling Heights Assembly Plant on Monday, the day UAW union members at at the plant joined the union's strike. The strike is now the longest US auto strike since 1998.Emily Elconin/Bloomberg/Getty Images
New YorkCNN —

As of Wednesday, the unprecedented strike by the United Auto Workers union against General Motors, Ford and Stellantis is now also the longest American auto strike in 25 years.

The last time the union struck one of the automakers, with its 2019 strike at GM, the strike lasted 40 days. Wednesday is the 41st day of the strike that started on September 15.

It is also likely that the strike would continue at the other two companies while that ratification process takes place at whichever company is first to reach a deal with the union.

This strike is also the first time the union has walked out at all three automakers at the same time. But it didn’t flex its full muscle immediately, instead conducting a targeted strike, picking select factories and facilities for the strike to disrupt company operations and put escalating pressure on the companies.

The strike is likely to go on for at least a few weeks longer. Even if the union settled with one of the companies today, the tentative agreement would need to be ratified by rank-and-file members before it would take effect. In 2019, the ratification process took 10 days to the complete. And in the past, the union has stayed on strike during the ratification process.

It started the strike with one assembly plant at each automaker, but it has expanded the strike five times since then, including the addition of a Stellantis assembly plant in Sterling Heights, Michigan, on Monday and a GM assembly plant in Arlington, Texas on Tuesday.

Those are the largest plants in terms of vehicle output at those companies, respectively, and also among their most profitable. Ford’s largest plant, the Kentucky Truck Plant in Louisville, has been on strike since October 11.

The fact that the union has added those three massive plants to its strike targets means that is has now idled nearly 50% of the combined US output of the three companies, according to industry consultant GlobalData.

The plants shutdown by the strike at GM normally produce about 3,415 vehicles a day, or 51% of its US output, while it has halted production of 3,050 vehicles a day at Ford, and 2,165 vehicles a day at Stellantis, or 56% its output, according to GlobalData’s estimates.

The union has shutdown that much production with only 45,000 members on strike, or about 31% of the 145,000 who work at the three companies. Another 7,000, or about 5% of membership, were temporarily laid off by the companies due to the disruptions caused by the strike.

And the union has threatened to further expand the strike if it doesn’t see the progress it wants at the bargaining table. All three companies have offered pay increases totalling 23% through the end of the contract in 2028, including immediate 10% pay hikes, as well as cost-of-living adjustments to protect workers from rising prices and improved job guarantees and contributions to retirement accounts.

All the companies are on record saying they want to reach a deal to end the strike, as has the union.

Tuesday’s expansion of the strike came hours after GM reported stronger than forecast third quarter earnings, despite a $200 million hit it took from the strike in the last two weeks of the period. The UAW cited the strong earnings in its statement about wanting more from GM that it has thus far offered at the table.

Ford is due to report third quarter results after 4 pm Thursday, and it is expected to report improved earnings as well. The union would not comment on whether it will announce an expansion of the strike there if Ford’s results are strong, but it is on record saying all the companies should be offering more, while company executives are on record saying it has reached the limit of what it can offer.

Strike by security staff at most major German airports cancels hundreds of flights

Associated Press
Thu, February 1, 2024 





Germany Airport Strike
Gangways on the apron of the airport are empty in Cologne, Germany, Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2024. A union has called on security staff at most of Germany’s major airports to stage a one-day strike on Thursday as it steps up pressure on employers in a pay dispute. (Thomas Banneyer/dpa via AP)

BERLIN (AP) — Security workers at most of Germany's major airports walked off the job Thursday in a one-day strike to step up pressure in a pay dispute, prompting widespread flight cancellations.

The ver.di union, which announced the walkout on Tuesday afternoon, called on workers to strike at 11 airports: Frankfurt, Berlin, Cologne, Duesseldorf, Hamburg, Stuttgart, Leipzig, Hannover, Dresden, Bremen and Erfurt.

Airports in Bavaria — including Munich, the country's second-busiest — were not affected.


All departures for the day from Berlin, Hamburg and Stuttgart were canceled before the strike started. About four-fifths of flights in Cologne and one-third in Duesseldorf also were canceled.

In Frankfurt, the operator of Germany's busiest airport said security checkpoints outside the transit area would remain closed. It advised passengers planning to start their journeys there not to come to the airport. However, there were connections for transferring passengers; Lufthansa planned to operate much of its planned schedule, including intercontinental flights.

Airport operator group ADV estimated that about 1,100 flights in total would be canceled or delayed, affected some 200,000 passengers, German news agency dpa reported.

Three rounds of labor negotiations have failed to produce a pay agreement for some 25,000 security workers. Ver.di is seeking a raise of 2.80 euros per hour ($3.03) for all employees and calling for bonuses for overtime work to kick in from the first extra hour.

An employers’ association says it offered a 4% raise this year and 3% next year, as well as concessions on when overtime bonuses kick in. The talks are due to resume on Feb. 6.

Short “warning strikes” are a common tactic in German contract negotiations. In a separate dispute, ver.di has called for strikes Friday on local public transportation systems in much of the country.

A bitter dispute over working hours and pay resulted in full-scale strikes last month that affected Germany's passenger trains. The GDL union, which represents many of the country's train drivers, on Monday ended a five-day strike earlier than originally planned after agreeing to resume talks with the state-owned main railway operator, Deutsche Bahn.

Germany strikes: Local transport at a standstill with Hamburg airport also affected

Ruth Wright
Fri, February 2, 2024 

Germany strikes: Local transport at a standstill with Hamburg airport also affected


Local buses, trams and subway trains are cancelled in 80 cities across Germany today, as well as disrpution at Hamburg airport.

Off the back of a strike that downed planes yesterday, transport employees walked off the job in the country's third transport-related strike in two weeks.

Travellers will be impacted in different ways, depending on which city they are in.

In Berlin, workers with the local transport authority walked off the job until 10 am. In Hamburg, Cologne, Hannover and elsewhere, the strike was to last all day. Bavaria, where there are no negotiations at present, was the only region not affected.
Hamburg airport warns passengers to check before travelling to the airport

Hamburg airport announced: "The trade union Ver.di is calling for a full-day warning strike by ground handling services on Friday, 02.02.24. Passengers are asked to keep up to date with their flight status and to contact their airline, as possible disruptions cannot be ruled out."

The service providers Groundstars, Stars and Cats are affected. According to Ver.di, their employees are responsible for loading and unloading the aircraft, providing technical equipment, baggage handling, aircraft de-icing, and cleaning aircrafts’ interiors.

Verdi hopes the strike will emphasise the demands of the approximately 900 ground handling employees working at Hamburg airport. These include an inflation compensation bonus of €3,000 and an increase in wages.

Why is the strike happening?

The Ver.di service workers' union called for a “warning strike,” a common tactic in German contract negotiations, on Monday. Its deputy chair, Christine Behle, said that “the time has now come to exert more pressure on employers” as talks on new pay contracts for about 90,000 people employed by over 130 local transport operators have failed to make progress.

The dispute centres on demands for better working conditions, such as a shorter working week and extra compensation days for shift and night work.

Coinciding contract negotiations in the rail, airport and local transport sectors have made for a frustrating few weeks for German travellers and commuters.

The German railway system is involved in a separate dispute that centres on a train drivers' union's demand for a shorter working week.

Local transport in Germany hit by walkouts in a dispute over working conditions

Associated Press
Fri, February 2, 2024



Germany Public Transport Strike

(AP Photo/Michael Probst)


BERLIN (AP) — Local buses, trams and subway trains were canceled in much of Germany on Friday as transport employees walked off the job in the country's third transport-related strike in two weeks.

The Ver.di service workers' union called for a “warning strike,” a common tactic in German contract negotiations, on Monday. Its deputy chair, Christine Behle, said that “the time has now come to exert more pressure on employers” as talks on new pay contracts for about 90,000 people employed by over 130 local transport operators have failed to make progress.

The exact demands and the length of Friday's walkouts varied from place to place. In Berlin, workers with the local transport authority walked off the job until 10 a.m.; in Hamburg, Cologne, Hannover and elsewhere, the strike was to last all day. Bavaria, where there are no negotiations at present, was the only region not affected.

The dispute centers on demands for better working conditions, such as a shorter working week and extra compensation days for shift and night work.

Coinciding contract negotiations in the rail, airport and local transport sectors have made for a frustrating few weeks for German travers and commuters.

The German railway system is involved in a separate dispute that centers on a train drivers' union's demand for a shorter working week.

In an unrelated dispute that centers on pay demands, Ver.di on Thursday called security workers at most of Germany’s major airports out on a one-day strike that prompted widespread flight cancellations.


Ground staff strike at Hamburg airport begins over wage dispute
DPA
Thu, February 1, 2024 

A view of the deserted Hauptbahnhof Nord subway station due to a warning strike. Over 80 cities were called to go on a warning strike as part of the nationwide wage dispute in regional negotiations by the Verdi trade union. Rabea Gruber/dpa


A day after a one day strike by aviation security staff at many German airports, another strike has come into force at Hamburg Airport.

The Verdi union had called on ground handling staff to stop work from 3:00 am (0200 GMT) to 11:59 pm on Friday. According to the airport, the consequences for passengers should be limited.

Initially, five departures and three arrivals were cancelled in the morning, according to the airport's website. The majority of these were flights to and from Helsinki and Munich, the statement said.

Hamburg Airport had originally planned 135 departures and 132 arrivals with over 37,000 passengers for Friday.

At the airport, employees of the service providers Groundstars, Stars and Cats have been called out on strike.

According to the union, they are responsible for loading and unloading aircraft, providing technical equipment, pushing back aircraft, baggage handling, de-icing aircraft and cleaning the interiors of aircraft.

With the strike, Verdi wants to push for the demands of around 900 employees. These include an inflation compensation bonus of €3,000 and a wage increase of €200 plus a 5.5 % payrise with retroactive effect from January 1. The next negotiation date is scheduled for February 19.

A sign reading "Warning strike" hangs at a BVG bus depot in Müllerstrasse. Over 80 cities were called to go on a warning strike as part of the nationwide wage dispute in regional negotiations by the Verdi trade union. Sebastian Christoph Gollnow/dpa

A view of a closed subway station due to a warning strike. Over 80 cities were called to go on a warning strike as part of the nationwide wage dispute in regional negotiations by the Verdi trade union. Sebastian Christoph Gollnow/dpa


Hundreds of flights cancelled amid strikes at 11 German airports

DPA
Thu, February 1, 2024

Strikers stand in front of Berlin Brandenburg Airport BER, one of 11 major German airports that have started a one-day strike. Christophe Gateau/dpa


Hundreds of flights have been cancelled in Germany on Thursday amid a one-day strike by aviation security workers at 11 airports across the country.

The strike forced the closure of security checkpoints at all 11 affected airports, meaning no travellers could enter the airport and board flights.

But the impact of the strike on flight operations, which began in the early hours of Thursday at most of the airports, varied widely.

The airports hit by the strike are Frankfurt, Hamburg, Bremen, Berlin, Leipzig, Dusseldorf, Cologne, Hanover, Stuttgart, Erfurt and Dresden.

At Germany's busiest airport hub in Frankfurt, for instance, about 310 flights had been cancelled as of Thursday morning out of a schedule of 1,120 flights.

Lufthansa, which is based in Frankfurt, announced plans to continue flying a nearly full schedule for arriving and connecting passengers, although no travellers could begin their journey in Frankfurt due to the security strike.

In Berlin, all departures and many arrivals were cancelled and the terminal on Thursday morning appeared deserted. In Dusseldorf, around a third of take-offs and landings were cancelled, and in nearby Cologne - where the strikes began late on Wednesday evening - virtually all air traffic had ceased.

Other airports, such as Lufthansa's secondary hub in Munich, are not impacted by the strike and were operating on largely normal flight schedules.

Workers take part in a waring strike at Frankfurt airport, one of 11 major German airports that have started a one-day strike. Jörg Halisch/dpa

An airport employee walks through the closed and deserted security checkpoint at Hamburg Airport, one of 11 major German airports that have started a one-day strike. Christian Charisius/dpa

A display at the entrance to the closed and deserted security checkpoint at Hamburg Airport reads "Gate closed" in various languages, at Hamburg Airport, one of 11 major German airports that have started a one-day strike. Christian Charisius/dpa

Two passengers who were originally due to fly from Stuttgart to Mexico, but whose flight was canceled due to the strike, sit on a bench in a terminal at Stuttgart Airport. Marijan Murat/dpa

Passengers stand in front of the check-in counter area at Cologne Bonn Airport, one of 11 major German airports that have started a one-day strike. Thomas Banneyer/dpa

Striking airport security workers hold a banner reading "More pay? With security" at Cologne Bonn Airport, one of 11 major German airports that have started a one-day strike. Thomas Banneyer/dpa

Strikers and union representatives stick posters with the words "Warning strike!" on the windows at Terminal 2 of Hamburg Airport, one of 11 major German airports that have started a one-day strike. Bodo Marks/dpa

Travelers lie sleeping on the floor at Frankfurt Airport, one of 11 major German airports that have started a one-day strike. Andreas Arnold/dpa
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