Strike!: How the Furniture Workers Strike of 1911 Changed Grand Rapids
Jeffrey D. Kleiman
Grand Rapids Historical Commission
In the early 1900s, furniture factories dominated the physical and economic landscape of Grand Rapids. More than 60 factories employed over 5,000 workers, making it the nation’s “Furniture Capital.” In mid-April 1911, growing tensions between furniture manufacturers and factory workers erupted in a citywide strike that affected nearly every company and lasted throughout the summer, bringing much of the city to a standstill for four months. Strike! recounts the events of 1911 to bring this important chapter in Grand Rapids’ history to light for additional research and debate.
By 1910, the furniture industry was essential to the economic health of Grand Rapids. Furniture factories employed one-third of the city’s wage earners and turned out more than a third of the total value of the city’s manufactured goods. Furniture manufacturers also worked together to maximize their profits by stifling competition from other local manufacturers, distancing themselves from regional and national banks by using local banking institutions, and uniting in a series of mutually advantageous groups to control productivity, costs, and labor. Although worker unrest had been growing for some time, furniture factory workers were divided along fault lines of religion, class, and ethnicity and did not strike until 1911.
In enduring the four-month work stoppage, however, workers began to overcome past loyalties to act collectively and achieve many important political victories with manufacturers and city government.
Strike! is a well-written survey of the furniture workers strike and its impact on the political and economic life of Grand Rapids. Local historians and those interested in labor studies will enjoy this volume.
Jeffrey Kleiman is associate professor of history at the University of Wisconsin–Marshfield.