Voluntarism and Factional Disputes in the AFL: The Painters' Split in 1894–1900

Some students of the AFL's internal structure have argued that the concept of voluntarism evolved over the years into an ideology used to justify, among other things, the stifling of rank-and-file protest within federation affiliates. This paper tests that interpretation of voluntarism by examining the behavior of Samuel Gompers and other AFL leaders in the face of a rank-and-file movement against the leadership of the Brotherhood of Painters and Decorators during the years 1894 to 1900. The authors show that voluntaristic principles actually afforded AFL leaders a good deal of flexibility in dealing with this factional dispute, allowing the dissident group to grow while Gompers worked to obtain a negotiated settlement between the two factions. Those efforts culminated in a federation-sponsored unity conference in 1900 that set the stage for the dissident faction to assume control of the Painters' union. The authors therefore conclude that on this issue the critics of the AFL have overstated their case.