Signs of a Strike
Following the Panic of 1893, the Pullman Car Company was forced to lower wages for its employees1. While wages dropped, the price of rent that the Pullman Company charged workers remained the exact same1. This was because George Pullman had made a massive investment in the town of Pullman, and sought to gain a return on it, regardless of prevailing instability2. Tensions began to rise as economic strife grew worse for Pullman Car workers, and they soon organized in hopes of negotiating with their employer.
Pullman initally responded to the Panic by laying off 3/4 of his employees, but in April 1894, 68% of these employees had returned to working with Pullman2. Still, they faced falling wages as the Pullman Company overproduced railcars2. Angered by the struggles they were facing, a group of employees met with Pullman Vice President Thomas Wickes on May 7 to advocate for either full wages or reduced rents. Three days after this meeting, three of the men who had met with Wickes were fired, without any apparent explanation from executives2.
This failure on behalf of the Pullman Palace Car Company to negotiate with its workers is what lit the flame necessary for a strike to take place in Pullman. Prior to this failure, many Pullman workers had joined the American Railway Union, the nation's largest labor union led by Eugene V. Debs2, which welcomed railroad workers from many different backgrounds.
In June of 1894, the ARU called for a boycott of any train that carried Pullman cars. The result was drastic, with rail traffic shut down in 27 states2. At this point, the strike was in full effect, leaving Pullman executives and government officials split as to how to respond to the strike.
1:“The History of Pullman.” Historic Pullman Foundation, July 21, 2021. https://www.pullmanil.org/the-history-of-pullman/.
2:“The Pullman Strike.” Northern Illinois University Digital Library. Accessed April 17, 2023. https://digital.lib.niu.edu/illinois/gildedage/pullman.