A broad battle: public opinion and the 1945–1946 General Motors strike

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article explores the 1945–1946 strike at General Motors, a massive dispute involving 320,000 workers. The 113-day walkout was the longest of the 1945–1946 strike wave, which saw over three million U.S. workers mobilize. A key feature of the strike – and one particularly overlooked – is public reaction. The strike secured widespread press coverage, and much of the United Automobile Workers’ (UAW) strategy revolved around appealing for public support. Drawing on under-utilized strike records, this article argues that reaction to the dispute highlights why labour would be on the defensive in succeeding decades. While many citizens were supportive, seeing this as an emblematic dispute, opponents were vociferous. In a rich body of letters, they outlined key arguments that were used later to justify attacks on unions – that their demands were selfish and excessive, that they caused strikes and violence, that they hurt business competitiveness, and that their leaders were ‘union bosses’ and ‘racketeers’.’ Opponents particularly opposed UAW calls for GM to ‘open its books’ to prove they could not afford big wage increases. Overall, the strike set the stage for post-war labour relations, where unions made economic gains but were unable to impinge on executives’ ‘right to manage’.