4. A series of armed conflicts lasting for four decades, the Coal Wars was an attempt by coal operators to oppose worker’s rights in their facilities with extreme force including murdering their employees
Occurring chiefly in the Eastern United States, specifically in Appalachia, the Coal Wars were a succession of violent conflicts between 1890 and 1930. Inspired by the perceived economic exploitation of workers by coal operators, who, from the 1870s onward, would routinely hire private detectives to ensure union organizations did not penetrate their sites and encourage worker’s rights, these coal miners at various locations sought to advance protections. Responding with extreme violence, coal operators sought to combat disruptive employees by any means necessary including excessive uses of force against their striking workers.
Of particular note, the Paint Creek-Cabin Creek strike of 1912 saw some of the worst examples of corporate violence inflicted upon American workers. Lasting from April 1912 through July 1913, the demands by employees were not dramatic, amounting to just fifteen cents per worker per day. Unrelenting, the coal companies instead employed professional strikebreakers to end the resistance and fired anyone joining a union. On February 9, 1913, these hired thugs even drove a heavily armored train fitted with a machine gun through the tents of the miners and their families, killing at least fifty and injuring scores more. Ultimately unsuccessful, the legacy of the conflict can be seen even today, with the United States enjoying among the worst employee rights of any developed nation.