THE MEMPHIS SANITATION WORKERS STRIKE OF 1968

The 1968 Memphis Sanitation Workers Strike involved both public sector labor and civil rights issues which were joined to form a protest mov ement that encompassed the city's black community. The legal framework and economic, social, and political conditions in Memphis strongly in fluenced the strike's course. Contrasting personalities, the city's in experience with labor relations, and misjudgments by the union added t o the difficulties encountered in trying to settle the dispute. The la ck of a recognized process to contain the dispute to a labor issue con tributed to the broadening of the conflict to other constituencies. Th e strike was finally resolved because of local and national pressures on the parties resulting from the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther K ing.