The Thompson Library & Archives Blog

Labor History in Flint

With "hot labor summer" extending into the Fall, we're highlighting one of the most significant events in Flint history - the Sit-Down strike. Beginning on December 30, 1936 (following similar strikes in Atlanta, Kansas City, Cleveland, and Detroit) and ending on February 11, 1937, the 44 day strike was in response to General Motors refusing to bargaining with the U.A.W. about issues of safety and pay. The strike is called a sit-down because workers occupied the plants to completely stop work at multiple plants in and around Flint, notably the Fisher body plants along Chevrolet Avenue. Eventually the strike spread nation-wide, with over 100,000 workers on strike. The strike is also notable for several reasons including

• its length of time the workers occupied the factories - previous sit-down strikes hadn't lasted that long,
• the role played by the Women's Emergency Brigade which supported the GM workers and families throughout the strike by walking the picket line, creating a shared cafeteria, and most dramatically breaking factory windows to let out tear gas deployed to against the factory workers, and 
• GM recognized the U.A.W. as the sole bargaining representative for GM members, swelling the ranks of U.A.W. membership.

Want to learn more about the Sit-Down Strike? We have some suggestions.

Sit-Down by Sidney Fine

The Many and the Few by Henry Kraus

Midnight in Vehicle City by Edward McClelland