General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: FDR Democrats, check in here! [View all]Jim Lane
(11,175 posts)First, the main impact of the Norris-LaGuardia Act was to prevent federal courts from issuing injunctions against strikes, which courts acting at the behest of employers had frequently done. Why should Roosevelt be faulted for not trying to repeal this law (which was in place before he took office)?
Then in 1935 came the Wagner Act (the National Labor Relations Act). It protected workers' right to organize. You're right that unions previously existed outside the government's purview -- which meant that management was free to fire someone for trying to organize a union. FDR is indeed responsible for the creation of the NLRB, without which employers would still be able to get away with firing organizers, establishing phony company unions, refusing to bargain with real unions, etc.
Your argument is to blame Roosevelt for the Taft-Hartley Act, which was enacted a few years after he died. Sorry, I'm not buying it.