On this day in Labor History the year was 1931.
That was the day that came to be known as the Invergordon Mutiny in Scotland.
The global Great Depression had begun its sweep across Europe.
In response to the economic crisis, the British government began cutting the pay of public sector workers.
This included those in the armed forces.
This came at a time when more workers were joining the armed forces because of the rising unemployment that ravaged the private sector.
For those in the Navy the proposed pay cuts were ten percent for officers and as high as twenty-five percent for those under the rank of petty officer.
As news of the pay cuts spread, sailors at Invergordon held meetings to discuss their response.
Invergordon, Scotland had become an important harbor for the British fleet during World War One.
The sailors decided to strike.
On the day of the strike, several ships were scheduled to participate in exercises.
But the sailors on four vessels refused to take their ships out of the harbor.
Many men did not report for duty.
Naval leaders gave in quickly, reducing the severity of the pay cut.
But many of the leaders of the strike faced reprisals.
Some were jailed and others were drummed out of the Navy.
Spies for the Admiralty went below decks to monitor the sailors and report those who might cause future trouble.
Government leaders tried to keep news of the strike out of the news.
But workers’ rallies against public sector cuts spread to cities like Glasgow and London.
The strike also caused a panic at the London Stock Exchange
February 27 - The 1937 Woolworth Sit-Down
February 26 - The Battle at Bethlehem
February 25 - The Paterson Silk Strike Begins
February 24 - Muller v Oregon Decided
February 23 - Black Workers Lead Historic Strike at UNC
February 22 - Labelling Teachers as Terrorists
February 21 - The First Female Telephone Operator
February 20 - Angelina Grimke is Born
February 19 - Philly Street Car Workers Spark General Strike
February 18 - Anti-Slavery Begins in America
February 17 - Standing Up By Sitting Down
February 16 - The Wisconsin Uprising Begins
February 15 - The Uprising of the 20,000 Comes to a Close
February 14 - Kansas City Laundresses Walk Off the Job
February 13 - Martial Law Declared to Crush the UAW
February 12 - The NAACP is Founded
February 11 - Cutting Corners on Safety at Sequoyah I
February 10 - Forty-Three Workers Buried Alive
February 9 - Organizing Bloody Harlan
February 8 - Butte Copper Miners Join the 1919 Strike Wave
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