labor movement

American  

noun

1. labor unions collectively.

   The labor movement supported the bill.

2. the complex of organizations and individuals supporting and advocating improved conditions for labor.

3. the effort of organized labor and its supporters to bring about improved conditions for the worker, as through collective bargaining.

   Their activities proved more harmful than helpful to the labor movement.

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labor movement Cultural  

1. The movement of workers for better treatment by employers, particularly through the formation of labor unions.

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Etymology

Origin of labor movement

First recorded in 1865–70

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

labor movement

With roots in the labor movement, Ugarte said he was a community organizer for the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor and registered union members to vote by mail.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 1, 2026

State law also requires instruction on Chávez, the farm labor movement and the role of immigrants.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 23, 2026

One of his accusers, Dolores Huerta, was another UFW co-founder and a prominent figure in the Hispanic labor movement herself.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 18, 2026

Today, the U.S. labor movement is a shadow of its former self.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 15, 2025

It was this obscure need that had pulled me into the labor movement in the beginning and by exercising it I was but fulfilling what I felt to be the laws of my own growth.

From "Native Son" by Richard Wright