Doyle Signs Nation’s First Labor History Law

Over fifty union leaders and activists applauded at the State Capitol, December 10, as Governor Jim Doyle signed a bill into law requiring the teaching of labor history in our schools.  The new law requires that the Superintendent of Public Instruction include the history of organized labor and collective bargaining in the state’s standards for public schools in Wisconsin. 

“Up until now, the key role that America’s labor unions played in building our country was the greatest story never told in history textbooks,” said Phil Neuenfeldt, secretary-treasurer of the Wisconsin State AFL-CIO. “This law corrects that glaring omission. Wisconsin youth will learn how the generations before them organized unions to improve working conditions and fight for the common good.”

“This is the first such legislation in the nation. It will help balance the overwhelming business bias found in textbooks,” remarked Wisconsin State AFL-CIO President David Newby. “Thanks to the new requirements, young people will be better prepared to make the continuing improvements necessary in today’s workplaces.”

“Wisconsin workers have been at the forefront of the struggle for a just workplace. Some lost their lives to establish working conditions that are now taken for granted,” said Governor Doyle. In Milwaukee in 1886, for example, several workers were killed by the state militia while marching to limit the workday to eight hours.

In Wisconsin, labor led the historic battle to create the first workers’ compensation and unemployment insurance systems in the entire nation. Whether it is opposing unfair trade agreements, raising the minimum wage, or fighting for health care for all, union members continue to be at the forefront of the movement for social and economic justice.

Sen. Dave Hansen (D-Green Bay) and Rep. Andy Jorgensen (D-Fort Atkinson) co-authored and shepherded passage of the legislation with most Democrats in support, along with a few Republican votes. Much of the work in developing the current bill was done in the Assembly's Committee on Labor, chaired by Rep. Christine Sinicki (D-Milwaukee).

The Wisconsin Labor History Society plans to continue in its role as a chief proponent of the effort. Since its founding in 1981, the WLHS has made the teaching of labor history in the schools one of its key objectives. As early as 1985, the organization worked with State Superintendent of Public Instruction Bert Grover to involve labor history in state instruction plans.

“We look forward to working with DPI on developing their materials for our public schools,” said WLHS President Steve Cupery.

The next WLHS conference held on April 17, 2010 in Milwaukee will focus on providing both community and teacher support for implementing the new law. The Wisconsin Labor History Society has a collection of excellent labor history materials on its website: www.wisconsinlaborhistory.org.

In addition, the American Labor Studies Center has a wealth of materials to help bring labor history to life in the schools. Its website includes “Lessons in Labor History,” which was developed by the Wisconsin State AFL-CIO, the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, the Wisconsin Labor History Society, the Wisconsin Federation of Teachers (now AFT-Wisconsin) and the Wisconsin Education Association Council (WEAC) to promote teaching of labor history in Wisconsin by linking labor history to required teaching standards. Visit the American Labor Studies Center at: www.labor-studies.org.