Today in Labor History Dec 4 FDR announces the end of the WPA 8.5 million jobs, Cesar Chavez & more

[Omaha Steve]

December 4

President Roosevelt announces the end of the Work Projects Administration (WPA), concluding the four-year run of one of the American government's most ambitious public works programs. It helped create jobs for roughly 8.5 million people during the Great Depression and left a legacy of highways and public buildings, among other public gains - 1943

UAW President Walter Reuther elected president of the Congress of Industrial Organizations - 1951

And this:
December 4, 1951 - United Auto Workers President Walter Reuther was elected president of the CIO, the Congress of Industrial Organizations. The CIO organized millions of workers in auto, steel, rubber and other major industries in the 1930s and 1940s. Four years later, Reuther led the CIO into a merger with the American Federation of Labor to form the AFL-CIO. He continued as president of the UAW and was an early leader in bringing together labor and the civil rights movement.

Cesar Chavez jailed for 20 days for refusing to end United Farm Workers' grape boycott - 1970

Labor history found here: http://www.unionist.com/today-in-labor-history & here: http://www.workdayminnesota.org/index.php?history_9_12_04_2010