Hoover Dam workers strike for better conditions, 1931

When the Hoover Dam first opened in 1935, it was the largest dam in the world. The 726 foot tall project was an engineering marvel of its time. Built to provide irrigation and water to surrounding areas, mainly Southern California, the dam was critical in the development of the Western United States. During the Great Depression, the project was also seen as a way to create jobs, both in its  construction and after its completion. 

While the project created thousands of jobs, the working conditions during construction were unforgiving. Temperatures in the Mojave Desert soared over 120F in the summer and fell well below freezing in the winter. At least twelve workers died from heat related issues, while heat prostration was a common occurrence for others. These issues stemmed from a number of factors at the construction site. Clean water was hard to come by, with most workers only drinking water from the Colorado River. Workers in the tunnels were given clean water, but the heat in the tunnels, sometimes reaching over 140 degrees, made the water too hot to drink. Six Companies, the group tasked with contracting the dam, created additional pressure by making workers stay for long hours in order to finish the project as quickly as possible. The workers, desperate for jobs at the time, had no option but to endure the conditions for as long as they could.

The reality of the conditions at Hoover Dam were well known by the public, and the radical union Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) tried to step in to help. Frank Anderson, a professional organizer for the union, was sent to Las Vegas to recruit workers and draw up demands for a better work environment. The workers, knowing that they could be replaced by the millions of unemployed men around the country, stayed away from Anderson. They believed that a connection to him or the union would likely  result in their termination. Indeed, Anderson was eventually jailed by the California government for “trumped up” vagrancy charges. 

On August 7, 1931, almost five months into construction, Six Companies reassigned 30 tunnel workers to lower paying jobs, mostly scooping broken rock into trucks. The other 130 tunnel workers immediately went on strike after hearing the news, making progress in the tunnel come to a halt for the day. The next day, the 160 strikers were joined by almost the entire crew at the dam. A total of 1,400 workers began a strike to protest the harsh conditions and minimal pay. The majority of the strikers were tunnel workers who were rerouting the river around the dam during its construction. The striking workers created a committee of eleven delegates to negotiate the groups’ demands with Frank Crowe, superintendent of Six Companies.

The demands of the strikers were clear. They wanted a raise in minimum wage to $5 per day, with tunnel workers making $5.50 and miners and construction workers making $6 per day. Workers also wanted sanitary conditions to improve, a reliable source of clean ice water at all times, a flat rate of $1.50 per day for housing, an eight hour work day, and a safety miner stationed at every tunnel entrance to expedite first aid. Finally, workers demanded that Six Companies abide by the mining laws of Nevada and Arizona, and that they ensure that all workers return to their jobs without facing discrimination. While developing their demands, strikers also voted to disassociate from the IWW for fear that any association would lead to their immediate termination. 

On 9 August, Frank Crowe refused all of the strikers' demands. He stated that the project was six months ahead of schedule and that the companies could afford to replace the striking workers. He also said the companies considered suspending work due to the summer heat, but decided against it. Many workers were told to leave the construction site immediately, receiving three days' pay on their way out. Only a few workers followed this instruction and the strike continued.

United States officials including Marshal J.H. Fulmer, U.S. District Attorney George Montrose, and construction manager Walker Young from the Bureau of Reclamation rushed to the dam to evaluate the situation. They declared that United States troops would be readily available at the first threat of violence from the workers. Commissioner Elwood of the Bureau of Reclamation stated that the government would maintain order at the dam and take no further action to meet the workers’ demands. 

In the next few days, strikers made a last-ditch appeal to the U.S. Secretary of Labor, William Doak. He refused to get involved, because he thought that the strikers were fighting a lost battle against the company. Strikers voted to return to their jobs, and Six Companies sustained the initial job reassignments to lower paying jobs, reassuring workers they would not cut pay for the rest of the construction. On 14 August, a week after the start of the strike, Walter Young notified contractors to continue construction. 

After the week of protest, hundreds of the protesting workers had their jobs terminated by Six Companies and  Six Companies made very few concessions. The company retained around 700 workers in total, primarily those who were constructing the railroad to Boulder City, as well as a small number of carpenters and an office force. Walker Young signed passes for reinstated workers, and those without passes were not allowed back to the site.

Despite the strike's general failure, some demands were met for future workers. The company added additional lighting to the tunnels as safety precautions. It added ice water stations around the site and expedited construction of living quarters in Boulder City. Dam construction continued as usual, eventually finishing in 1935, three years ahead of schedule.