Operation Dixie
Encyclopedia
Operation Dixie was the name of the post-war
campaign by the Congress of Industrial Organizations
to union
ize industry in the Southern United States
, particularly the textile
industry. The campaign ran from 1946 to 1953 in 12 Southern states and was undertaken in order to consolidate gains made by the trade union movement in the Northern United States
during the war and block the status of the South as a "non-union" low-wage haven to which businesses could relocate.Whites moved from the north to visit African Americans in the west that created the AFL.
Operation Dixie failed largely because of Jim Crow laws
and the deep-seated racial strife in the South which supported them and made it difficult for black workers and poor whites to engage in the solidarity needed for a union drive to succeed. As well, the passage of the Taft-Hartley Act
made it easier for southern US states in particular to obstruct union drives by hampering the right to strike and allowing states to ban closed shop
s. The Cold War
Red Scare also hurt the union movement throughout the United States by increasing hostility to the left in general and unions in particular.
The CIO's defeat in Operation Dixie was a contributing factor in the decision of the traditionally more radical trade union federation to merge with the conservative American Federation of Labor
and form the AFL-CIO
in 1955 - a move that signified a long-term trend away from radical social unionism towards the more conservative business unionism
strategy long favored by the AFL. In the long-term, the failure of Operation Dixie to end the South's status as a low-wage, non-union haven impeded the ability of the union movement to maintain its strength in North and was a contributing factor in the decline of the American union movement in the second half of the twentieth century as unions were unable to prevent businesses from holding back wage increases by either moving to the South or threatening to do so.
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
campaign by the Congress of Industrial Organizations
Congress of Industrial Organizations
The Congress of Industrial Organizations, or CIO, proposed by John L. Lewis in 1932, was a federation of unions that organized workers in industrial unions in the United States and Canada from 1935 to 1955. The Taft-Hartley Act of 1947 required union leaders to swear that they were not...
to union
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
ize industry in the Southern United States
Southern United States
The Southern United States—commonly referred to as the American South, Dixie, or simply the South—constitutes a large distinctive area in the southeastern and south-central United States...
, particularly the textile
Textile
A textile or cloth is a flexible woven material consisting of a network of natural or artificial fibres often referred to as thread or yarn. Yarn is produced by spinning raw fibres of wool, flax, cotton, or other material to produce long strands...
industry. The campaign ran from 1946 to 1953 in 12 Southern states and was undertaken in order to consolidate gains made by the trade union movement in the Northern United States
Northern United States
Northern United States, also sometimes the North, may refer to:* A particular grouping of states or regions of the United States of America. The United States Census Bureau divides some of the northernmost United States into the Midwest Region and the Northeast Region...
during the war and block the status of the South as a "non-union" low-wage haven to which businesses could relocate.Whites moved from the north to visit African Americans in the west that created the AFL.
Operation Dixie failed largely because of Jim Crow laws
Jim Crow laws
The Jim Crow laws were state and local laws in the United States enacted between 1876 and 1965. They mandated de jure racial segregation in all public facilities, with a supposedly "separate but equal" status for black Americans...
and the deep-seated racial strife in the South which supported them and made it difficult for black workers and poor whites to engage in the solidarity needed for a union drive to succeed. As well, the passage of the Taft-Hartley Act
Taft-Hartley Act
The Labor–Management Relations Act is a United States federal law that monitors the activities and power of labor unions. The act, still effective, was sponsored by Senator Robert Taft and Representative Fred A. Hartley, Jr. and became law by overriding U.S. President Harry S...
made it easier for southern US states in particular to obstruct union drives by hampering the right to strike and allowing states to ban closed shop
Closed shop
A closed shop is a form of union security agreement under which the employer agrees to hire union members only, and employees must remain members of the union at all times in order to remain employed....
s. The Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
Red Scare also hurt the union movement throughout the United States by increasing hostility to the left in general and unions in particular.
The CIO's defeat in Operation Dixie was a contributing factor in the decision of the traditionally more radical trade union federation to merge with the conservative American Federation of Labor
American Federation of Labor
The American Federation of Labor was one of the first federations of labor unions in the United States. It was founded in 1886 by an alliance of craft unions disaffected from the Knights of Labor, a national labor association. Samuel Gompers was elected president of the Federation at its...
and form the AFL-CIO
AFL-CIO
The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations, commonly AFL–CIO, is a national trade union center, the largest federation of unions in the United States, made up of 56 national and international unions, together representing more than 11 million workers...
in 1955 - a move that signified a long-term trend away from radical social unionism towards the more conservative business unionism
Business unionism
A business union is a description of a particular type of trade union, or of a trade union with particular characteristics. The meaning of business unionism has changed over a period of time. The term is believed to be of American derivation, and has been applied in particular to phenomena...
strategy long favored by the AFL. In the long-term, the failure of Operation Dixie to end the South's status as a low-wage, non-union haven impeded the ability of the union movement to maintain its strength in North and was a contributing factor in the decline of the American union movement in the second half of the twentieth century as unions were unable to prevent businesses from holding back wage increases by either moving to the South or threatening to do so.