Federal Writers' Project – Life Histories/2021/Fall/Section018/Loyd Wesley Lewis

Overview
Loyd Wesley Lewis was interviewed for Federal Writers' Project by Edward F. Harper in September, 1938.

Biography
Loyd Wesley Lewis, interviewed by Edward F. Harper, was an employer at Tennessee Coal, Iron & RR. Co. Blacksmith division for 8 years. He married Edna Burke in July 1935. He has a totally different temperament from his wife. He was carefree and spendthrifty while his wife did not like dancing and lively parties, but fulfilled her duties as a wife. He started out as a helper, and most of their jobs are repair work on the company’s locomotives. After his wife saves enough out of his earnings, they rent a new house where they set up housekeeping. He started out as a helper, and most of their jobs are repair work on the company’s locomotives.

Steel Industry During Great Depression
The Great Depression reduced the country's total steel production by 75% and steelworkers took wage cuts and faced reduced hours. A few strikes occurred, but they were unsuccessful. While the relative production of general alloys fell off during the depression, the corrosion-resistant alloys increased their share of total steel production. Total steel production fell 76 percent in the period from 1929 to 1932, while corrosion-resistant steel production declined only about 45 percent. The causes of the declines in these countries were similar to the United Kingdom's: foreign competition (primarily against each other), overcapacity resulting from the construction of mills during the post-war boom and integration of markets, and productivity gains. Although foreign competition played a notable role in the decline of American steel employment, productivity gains have played an even larger role. By 1980, it was estimated that nearly one-fourth of American steel manufacturing was using outdated and inefficient methods and machinery. The number of man-hours required to produce one ton of finished steel was 10.1 hours in 1980; this declined to just 1.5 hours by 2017, with some mini-mills requiring just 0.5 man-hours. In addition, the strong dollar policy of the U.S. Federal Reserve and the development of new management strategies such as just-in-time manufacturing that call for major workforce reductions also played important roles in hampering U.S. manufacturing competitiveness and reducing employment.

"The Steelworkers are under more extreme pressure than almost any other union in the country." -- Audrey Freedman

The Labor Market
A labor market analysis of the Great Depression finds that many workers were unemployed for much longer than one year. Of those fortunate to have jobs, many experienced cutbacks in hours (i.e., involuntary part-time employment). Men typically were more adversely affected than women. This was especially true for older and black men at a time when age- and race-based job discrimination were not unlawful and when occupational shifts in labor demand were operating against them. Higher-skilled workers fared better than lower-skilled workers. Those who toiled on farms and in factories were displaced in very large numbers. States whose economies were dependent on agriculture and manufacturing reported high unemployment rates.

"Today, the Steelworkers have 130 full-time organizers in the United States and Canada, more than at any time since the late 1940s, and basic steel now accounts for only 18% of its membership.Anybody that wants to join a union and relays that interest to us, no matter what field they are in, we’re there.” --- Scotty McGarry