American labor unions in recent years have made headlines by striking to demand better pay and working conditions. Teachers unions in at least seven states went on strike in 2018 and 2019. There are over half a million teachers union members, as teaching has one of the highest rates of union membership among professions. The largest of those strikes, which took place over six days in Arizona, resulted in 486,000 idle days for those on strike. In comparison, each of the 30 largest worker strikes in American history resulted at least 1 million idle days.
Unions were dealt a serious blow by the Supreme Court ruling in the case of Janus v. AFSCME. The court ruled in 2018 that public sector unions cannot require members to pay “agency fees,” which are similar to union dues. This means that non-union members can more easily reap the benefits of unions without paying into them. Many will likely choose not to pay, and experts predict certain unions, like those for firefighters and teachers, will lose money and political influence, even in states with strong pro-union laws.
Though union-ordered work stoppages occur at a fraction of the rate they once did, strikes remain a powerful bargaining tool for labor unions, and saw a noticeable uptick in the last year. There were 20 work stoppages of 1,000 or more workers in 2018, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. In 2017, there were just seven major stoppages. Strikes were much more common in the 20th century. Before 1982, there were well over 100 major strikes per year dating back to 1947, the first year for which data is available. In 1952, there were a record 470 major strikes.
In light of International Workers’ Day, 24/7 Wall St. identified the largest worker strikes ever held in the United States. The size of strikes is measured by the cumulative number of idle days (the number of workers involved multiplied by the duration of the strike), as is the Labor Department’s convention. Data for strikes that occurred between 1936 and 2018 was obtained from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Data for strikes that occurred before 1936 came from union websites, the Harry S. Truman Presidential Library archive, and other sources. The duration of a strike excludes weekend days and holidays.
Click here to see the 30 largest worker strikes in American history.
Source: Harper's Weekly / United States Library of Congress
30. Homestead Steel Strike
> Duration: July 2, 1892 to Nov. 20, 1892 (100 days)
> No. of strikers: 10,000
> Cumulative days off the job: 1,000,000
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Source: constantinopris / Getty Images
29. Detroit Newspapers
> Duration: July 13, 1995 to Feb. 19, 1997 (405 days)
> No. of strikers: 2,500
> Cumulative days off the job: 1,012,500
Source: Robert Giroux / Getty Images
28. Boeing Machinists Strike of 2008
> Duration: Sept. 7, 2008 to Nov. 1, 2008 (39 days)
> No. of strikers: 27,000
> Cumulative days off the job: 1,053,000
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Source: andresr / Getty Images
27. Wheeling Pittsburgh Steel Corp. strike
> Duration: Oct. 1, 1996 to Aug. 12, 1997 (238 days)
> No. of strikers: 4,800
> Cumulative days off the job: 1,142,400
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Source: shotbydave / Getty Images
26. International Brotherhood of Teamsters Trucker Strike
> Duration: Apr. 6, 1994 to Apr. 29, 1994 (17 days)
> No. of strikers: 71,000
> Cumulative days off the job: 1,180,500
Source: Cory Ryan / Getty Images
25. Northwest Airlines strike
> Duration: Aug. 20, 2005 to Nov. 6, 2006 (395 days)
> No. of strikers: 3,000
> Cumulative days off the job: 1,183,800
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Source: Leslie Leon / Keystone / Getty Images
24. The U.S. Postal Strike of 1970
> Duration: Mar. 18, 1970 to Mar. 25, 1970 (6 days)
> No. of strikers: 210,000
> Cumulative days off the job: 1,260,000
Source: U.S. National Archives and Records Administration / Wikimedia Commons
23. Kaiser Aluminum Corp. strike
> Duration: Oct. 1, 1998 to Sept. 18, 2000 (493 days)
> No. of strikers: 3,000
> Cumulative days off the job: 1,479,000
Source: rvolkan / Getty Images
22. Boeing strike
> Duration: Oct. 6, 1995 to Dec. 14, 1995 (47 days)
> No. of strikers: 33,000
> Cumulative days off the job: 1,551,000
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Source: General Photographic Agency / Getty Images
21. 1934 West Coast Waterfront Strike
> Duration: May 9, 1934 to July 17, 1934 (50 days)
> No. of strikers: 35,000
> Cumulative days off the job: 1,750,000
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Source: Bill Pugliano / Getty Images
20. United Auto Workers Strike
> Duration: March 5, 1996 to March 22, 1996 (14 days)
> No. of strikers: 136,000
> Cumulative days off the job: 1,904,000
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Source: andresr / Getty Images
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19. United Mine Workers strike
> Duration: May 10, 1993 to Dec. 14, 1993 (131 days)
> No. of strikers: 16,800
> Cumulative days off the job: 2,203,000
Source: Justin Sullivan / Getty Images
18. United Parcel Service Strike of 1997
> Duration: Aug. 4, 1997 to Aug. 19, 1997 (12 days)
> No. of strikers: 185,000
> Cumulative days off the job: 2,220,000
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Source: Library of Congress / Wikimedia Commons
17. 1913 Paterson Silk Strike
> Duration: Feb. 25, 1913 to July 28, 1913 (110 days)
> No. of strikers: 23,000
> Cumulative days off the job: 2,530,000
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Source: Spencer Platt / Getty Images
16. The New York City Tugboat Strike of 1988
> Duration: Feb. 16, 1988 to Dec. 20, 1993 (1,810 days)
> No. of strikers: 1,600
> Cumulative days off the job: 2,895,200
Source: Scott Olson / Getty Images
15. Caterpillar strike
> Duration: June 20, 1994 to Dec. 3, 1995 (290 days)
> No. of strikers: 14,000
> Cumulative days off the job: 4,063,000
Source: Wikimedia Commons
14. Passaic Textile Strike
> Duration: Jan. 25, 1926 to March 1, 1927 (281 days)
> No. of strikers: 15,000
> Cumulative days off the job:Â 4,215,000
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Source: Wikimedia Commons
13. The 1934 Textile Worker Strike
> Duration: Sep. 3, 1934 to Sep. 23, 1934 (14 days)
> No. of strikers: 400,000
> Cumulative days off the job:Â 5,600,000
Source: Bill Pugliano / Getty Images
12. 1998 United Auto Workers Strike
> Duration: June 5, 1998 to July 29, 1998 (38 days)
> No. of strikers: 152,200
> Cumulative days off the job: 5,783,600
Source: David McNew / Getty Images
11. Southern California Supermarket Strike of 2003-2004
> Duration: Oct. 12, 2003 to Feb. 29, 2004 (93 days)
> No. of strikers: 67,300
> Cumulative days off the job:Â 6,258,900
Source: Fox Photos / Getty Images
10. The 1946 Union of Electrical, Radio and Machinist Workers’ Strike
> Duration: Jan. 15, 1946 to March 14, 1946 (42 days)
> No. of strikers: 174,000
> Cumulative days off the job:Â 7,308,000
Source: Library of Congress / Wikimedia Commons
9. The Great Southwest Railroad Strike
> Duration: March 1, 1886 to May 4, 1886 (47 days)
> No. of strikers: 200,000
> Cumulative days off the job:Â 9,400,000
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Source: Wikimedia Commons
8. Pullman Strike
> Duration: May 11, 1894 to July 20, 1894 (51 days)
> No. of strikers: 260,000
> Cumulative days off the job:Â 13,260,000
Source: Wikimedia Commons
7. Anthracite Coal Strike of 1902
> Duration: June 2, 1902 to Oct. 23, 1902 (103 days)
> No. of strikers: 147,000
> Cumulative days off the job:Â 15,141,000
Source: David McNew / Getty Images
6. American Federation of Television and Radio Artists and Screen Actors Guild Strike
> Duration: May 1, 2000 to Oct. 30, 2000 (127 days)
> No. of strikers: 135,000
> Cumulative days off the job:Â 17,145,000
Source: William Vanderson / Getty Images
5. United Auto Workers Strike
> Duration: Nov. 21, 1945 to March 13, 1946 (77 days)
> No. of strikers: 225,500
> Cumulative days off the job:Â 17,363,500
Source: U.S. National Archives and Records Administration
4. The Railroad Shop Workers Strike
> Duration: July 1, 1922 to Sep. 1, 1922 (45 days)
> No. of strikers: 400,000
> Cumulative days off the job:Â 18,000,000
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Source: Calumet Regional Archives
3. The Steel Strike of 1959
> Duration: Sep. 22, 1919 to Jan. 8, 1920 (76 days)
> No. of strikers: 350,000
> Cumulative days off the job: 26,600,000
Source: Wikimedia Commons
2. The Steel Strike of 1919
> Duration: July 15, 1959 to Nov. 1, 1959 (76 days)
> No. of strikers: 500,000
> Cumulative days off the job:Â 38,000,000
Source: Wikimedia Commons
1. United Mine Workers of America Strike of 1946
> Duration: April 1, 1946 to Dec. 7, 1946 (176 days)
> No. of strikers: 400,000
> Cumulative days off the job:Â 70,400,000
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