Origins of the Labor Movement: Ideologies and Impact

The Labor Movement: Working Conditions

Working conditions imposed by established entrepreneurs on workers were harsh and exploitative. These conditions included:

• Excessively long working hours (up to 16 hours daily).
• Lack of health and safety measures in the workplace.
• Widespread child labor.
• Low wages (especially for women).
• Free dismissal (at-will employment).
• Lack of holidays and social security.
• Prohibition of association, preventing workers from defending their rights.

The Beginnings of the Labor Movement

Early Reactions and Organizations

The initial reaction to poor working conditions emerged in the UK. Key early developments included:

Luddism

A movement featuring workers (sometimes called machine-breakers or maquinoclastas) who destroyed machinery in protest against industrial changes.

Trade Unions

Associations formed by workers of the same trade seeking to obtain better living and working conditions.

Chartism

A significant political movement named after the Letter to the People (1838), a document sent to Parliament by workers demanding political rights favorable to the working class.

Utopian Socialism

The ideological current known as Utopian Socialism sought state intervention in the economy to fundamentally improve conditions for workers.

Development and Expansion of the Workers' Movement

The movement developed through new forms of organization and the progress of trade unionism. Key developments included:

• The increasing participation of workers in the struggle.
• The adoption of the general strike as a means of pressure, despite often being considered illegal.
• The emergence and spread of influential ideologies: Marxism and Anarchism.
• The founding of the International Workers' Association (The International).

Core Ideologies: Marxism and Anarchism

Marxism

Marxism is a political and economic theory founded on the thought of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. This ideology advocated for fundamental economic, social, and political change achieved through the class struggle. Key tenets include:

• The working class (proletariat) must confront the bourgeoisie.
• Upon gaining power, they would dismantle the capitalist system.
• They would collectivize the means of production.
• The ultimate goal was to establish a classless society.

Anarchism

Anarchism is a political theory championed by figures like Pierre-Joseph Proudhon and Mikhail Bakunin. Anarchism fundamentally opposes any form of government and defends the absolute freedom of the individual and the disappearance of all authorities.

Their proposed social organization was based on self-sufficient communities—small, free groups of people where private property would not exist.