In the late 1800s, the focus of the american federation of labor was work hours, safety, and the right to organize.
The American Federation of Labor (AFL) constituted a national federation of labor unions existing in the United States founded in Columbus, Ohio, in December 1886 by an alliance of craft unions disaffected from a national labor union known as the Knights of Labor. It was the largest union grouping in the United States for the first half of the 20th century.