Workers' Federation of Chile
The Workers' Federation of Chile was a Chilean anarchist trade union federation. It was established in 1906 by a number of resistance societies, which had grown in strength during the early 1900s. It coordinated strikes, solidarity actions and mutual aid, while prohibiting any political activism within its ranks. In mid-1907, the FTCh called a general strike in solidarity with striking rail workers, but it ultimately collapsed due to a lack of coordination between different industries. Crackdowns against union activity by employers and the government caused many unions to break up, leading to the dissolution of the FTCh in mid-1908. Resistance socities were later re-established in the 1910s, culminating with the establishment of a Chilean branch of the Industrial Workers of the World.
Background
The organized labor movement in Chile grew rapidly during the early 1900s, with anarchists establishing numerous resistance societies to bring together skilled workers in the cities of Santiago and Valparaíso. These resistance societies were organized by industry, with no separation between trades, so strike actions were capable of completely halting industrial operations. Successfully strikes for higher wages and better working conditions were carried out in 1902 and 1903. After the strikes were completed, the resistance societies often dissolved, as many were formed only temporarily for the purposes of coordinating the strike. By 1904, most resistance societies had disappeared, either due to repression or a lack of interest among the membership, and the organized anarchist movement went into a period of decline.Establishment
Resistance societies were revived again in late 1905, with the growth of the organized labor movement culminating in a wave of strikes for higher wages. The growth of the resistance societies was bolstered by a split in the Democratic Party, as its radical faction led by Luis Emilio Recabarren threw its support behind the anarchist organizations. A series of successful strikes also drove increased levels of unionization, with the creation of a carpenters' federation preceding the formation of resistance societies by several other trades. In June 1906, a number of the resistance societies in Santiago came together to establish the Federation of Workers of Chile, which sought to coordinate existing unions and foment the creation of new workers' organizations. It quickly gained influence in the capital, and by the following year, it had united 24 of the city's 33 resistance societies. In its newspaper El Alba, the FTCh argued that the 1906 [Valparaíso earthquake] had exacerbated divisions between the working class and the ruling class. At its peak in mid-1907, it counted as many as 10,000 members. Although it was established with the intention of becoming a national trade union federation, it remained largely confined to Santiago.The nascent FTCh, which prohibited political activity and agitated against voting in elections, was opposed by the Doctrinaire faction of the Democratic Party; the latter supported the government of Pedro Montt, denounced the nascent FTCh as a "wolf in sheep's clothing" and attacked anarchists in its publication La Reforma. However, over time the Doctrinaires increasingly aligned themselves with the resistance societies, supporting their strikes and providing them with organizational support.
Organization
Unions that counted more than 20 members, and which agreed not to participate in any political or religious activities, were eligible to join the FTCh. Union dues were 10 cents per month for men and 5 cents per month for women. The FTCh also rejected dual unionism and recognized only one union per craft. With individual unions providing mutual aid was provided to their members, the FTCh itself coordinated strike actions, provided strike funds and encouraged solidarity actions. Although unions were required to submit their employers with a petition and obtain the consent of the FTCh before going on strike, they were also required to immediately go on strike if their employers refused to uphold agreed-upon contracts. Due to the decentralized structure of the federation, no one individual was able to dominate the labor movement. Most union leaders, who were not paid for their organizing efforts, did not aspire to political office or hold any permanent power within the movement. By mid-1907, the Chilean organized labor movement had peaked with the establishment of several resistance socities by both skilled and unskilled workers in Santiago and Valparaíso.General strike of 1907
In the year following the formation of the FTCh, 40 strike actions took place in Santiago, increasing the appeal of joining resistance societies among many workers. On 1 May 1907, the FTCh organized an International Workers' Day demonstration which was attended by 30,000 people, effectively shutting down the city's industry. Later that month, on 27 May, a pay dispute by shop workers at the State Railway Company led to a walkout, which by the beginning of June had escalated into a industry-wide strike, with almost all of the company's workers in several cities ceasing work. On 5 June, workers of the FTCh in several industries - including construction, metalworking, tanning and textiles - joined the strike in solidarity with the railworkers; this escalated the dispute in Santiago, where more than 15,000 workers had walked out. The government responded by deploying the military to protect rail lines from sabotage, maintain infrastructure and supply lines, and fill in for workers in essential industries. Police also arrested striking workers, which put greater pressure on civil servants and contract employees to return to work.President Montt also acceeded to some of the rail workers' demands, offering a 30% wage increase, future payments at a fixed exchange rate and shorter hours, while promising there would be no punishment for striking workers. But the workers continued to demand payment at a higher exchange rate than the one offered, as solidarity strikes had given them greater leverage. The strike continued to escalate, with resistance societies from various industries calling for the government to accept the rail workers' demands in full, while making no additional demands of their own. On 8 June, the reformist leadership of the strike committee accepted the government's offer and called an end to the strike. The newspapers El Heraldo and La Lei speculated that the committee's decision had been influenced by the increased recruitment of strikebreakers, which made them worried that workers would quit the strike to prevent their jobs from being taken; other papers, such as El Diario Ilustrado and La Reforma, accused the committee's leadership of "selling out" for higher wages or political favours from the Montt government.
The more libertarian rank-and-file of the union membership refused to abide by their leadership's decision. After the leadership refused to attend popular assemblies held by rank-and-file union members, on 9 June, the workers marched on the committee's headquarters, but they found the doors locked. With the position of the government having been strengthened by the strike committee's decision, on 10 June, many of the rail industry's workers returned to work. Having claimed to have reached a settlement, the government threatened all striking public employees with dismissal and mobilised more of the military as strikebreakers. On 12 June, the rail company began firing workers who had remained on strike. Nevertheless, over 10,000 workers continued the strike, aiming to press for the complete fulfillment of the rail workers' demands. On 13 June, the FTCh declared a general strike, which brought out 15,000 more workers from various industries and encouraged other unions to press for their own demands, alongside those of the rail workers. Employers responded by dismissing entire workforces and instituting lockouts, while police arrested strike leaders and shut down union premises and publishing houses. On 15 June, the last rail workers returned to work, hoping to avoid dismissal. By 18 June, most resistance societies in Santiago had ceased strike actions, with the last holdouts ending their strikes by the end of the month.
The decentralized structure of the general strike had ultimately prevented the unions from coordinating wider actions beyond the local and industrial levels, and many of the unions' demands were not met. One trade union leader commented that the rail strike had caught Chilean workers unprepared, and that they consequently had gone into the general strike "without any preparation, idea of what they were doing, organization, strike funds, or unity of purpose". This disorganization meant that, when the railworkers' strike ended, the other unions had been unable to coordinate their continued strike actions. As workers returned to work, strike leaders were blacklisted or dismissed and unions were broken up.