The End of the Strike

The front page of the August-September 1971 issue of the UIU Journal. The relevant article is in the upper-right-hand corner. Click to see the rest of the article in the upper-left-hand corner of the second page.

On September 9, 1971, the Economy Furniture Company Strike came to an end. In the UIU Journal, the article titled "UIU Local 456 Strike Settled; Economy Negotiates Contract" describes the long-awaited settlement of the strike. After 31 months, the workers, established members of the UIU Local 456 union, agreed to end their strike after being guaranteed a three-and-a-half-year period of "wage increases each year, an additional paid holiday, improved vacation, seniority, arbitration and many other provisions". James J. John, Victor Ruiz, Lencho Hernandez, and Frank Ramirez (among others) participated in the two-month long negotiations with the company.

Father Reyes, a supporter of the strike, wrote that the strike "was a real awakening of the potential of the Austin Mexican-American community" (Riley 225). The Chicano movement was already in progress elsewhere across the southwestern United States, and the Economy Furniture Company strike was a pivotal moment for the movement in Austin.