Labor Quotes

Labor is prior to, and independent of, capital. Capital is the only fruit of labor, and could never have existed if labor had not first existed. Labor is superior to capital, and deserves the higher consideration.

Abraham Lincoln


The labor movement was the principal force that transformed misery and despair into hope and progress.

Martin Luther King Jr.


Power goes to two poles: to those who’ve got the money and those who’ve got the people.

Saul Alinsky


We must guard against being fooled by false slogans, such as ‘right to work.’ It is a law to rob us of our civil rights and job rights. Its purpose is to destroy labor unions and the freedom of collective bargaining by which unions have improved wages and working conditions of everyone…Wherever these laws have been passed, wages are lower, job opportunities are fewer and there are no civil rights. We do not intend to let them do this to us. We demand this fraud be stopped.

Martin Luther King Jr.


All labor that uplifts humanity has dignity and importance and should be undertaken with painstaking excellence.

Martin Luther King Jr.


Our needs are identical with labor’s needs. Decent wages, fair working conditions, livable housing, old-age security, health and welfare measures, conditions in which families can grow, have education for their children and respect in the community.

Martin Luther King Jr.


All that serves labor serves the nation. All that harms labor is treason. If a man tells you he loves America, yet he hates labor, he is a liar. There is no American without labor, and to rob one is to fleece the other.

Abraham Lincoln


Our labor unions are not narrow, self-seeking groups. They have raised wages, shortened hours and provided benefits. Through collective bargaining and grievance procedures, unions have brought justice and democracy to the workplace.

John F. Kennedy


Unions lift wages for non-union members by creating a higher prevailing wage. Even if you aren’t a union member, your pay is influenced by the strength or weakness of organized labor. The presence of unions sets off a wage race to the top. Their absence sets off a race to the bottom.

Eric Lu