Will Moore's
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The National Labor Relations Board or NLRB is an independent agency of the United States Government. As an agency, they conduct elections for labor union representation as well as investigate any rumors of unfair labor practices. Formed in July of 1935, the NLRB is still active today and represents one of the more successful programs enacted by Franklin Rosevelt in the New Deal.(NLRB.Gov) Located in Washington DC, the agency is governed by a 5 person board all of which are handpicked by the President.
The original purpose of the agency was to hold regional hearings and settle labor disputes, they were intended to lessen some of the stress on other agencies such as the NRA.("Wagner Act") It wasn't until a few months after the formation of the agency that FDR issued additional executive powers that they could hold representative elections.
National Labor Relations Board
The NLRB was revolutionary at the time as it empowered laborers. Specifically, it allowed workers to form unions and bargain collectively with the employers; it also gave workers the choice of belonging to a union or not.("National Labor Relations Board") One of the more important accomplishments of the agency was the fact that it ended labor disputes peacefully and avoided strikes such as the Homestead Strike. The board brought a surge in union membership and made labor a force both politically and economically; the surge in union membership resulted well for women too as by the end of the 1930's there were over 800,000 women belonging to labor unions. (Brinkley Alan)
The NLRB implented by FDR in his new deal greatly benefitted everyday Americans. Those who were overlooked during the Industrial Revolution were now given a powerful voice that they needed; the right to form a labor union. No longer were workers forced to work in unsafe factories for ungodly hours.(Ashton, T.S.) In fact, the NLRB enforced and implented fees for unsafe labor practices. Conversly the program affected buisness owners who employed large amounts of workers, now they were forced to pay them more reasonable wages and cooperate with unions. The new union membership surge also affected politics and econimcs. Overall I would argue that the National Labor Relations Board was a success, it changed the labor force forverer and ended the rule of big wealthy buisness owners over everyday Americans. I would say that it was more of an immediate relief than long term; I say that becuase labor conditions and forces were much worse back then. The board provided immediate relief to undervalued workers that needed a larger voice which they found in the form of unions. I think that the act was more liberal than conservative in nature; big buisness and money had always dominated American economy but this act and agency distributed the power and gave lower and middle class workers a leg to stand on.
