National War Labor Board
United States 1918-1919
Synopsis
With growing labor unrest and incidents of strikes increasing throughout the United States during World War I, government advisors and labor leaders insisted that President Woodrow Wilson create a more direct national labor policy. Wilson instructed the Department of Labor to formulate a policy to address the nation's growing labor concerns. William B. Wilson, secretary of labor, created a War Labor Conference Board (WLCB) composed of representatives from business and labor interest. The WLCB was to recommend to the Department of Labor specific labor policies. The WLCB recommended the creation of a federal agency to enforce federal labor policy and formulate recommendations. In April 1918, with these recommendations in hand, President Wilson created the National War Labor Board (NWLB). Throughout its short life, the NWLB insisted that all strikes and lockouts cease until the end of the war. In addition, the agency supported the principles of collective bargaining, an eight-hour work day, and equal pay for men and women as well as encouraging union growth. Although the federal government believed that the NWLB was an effective avenue by which to curb labor unrest, the end of the war and demobilization made the NWLB obsolete.
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