not sure what you mean by 'well, sure' is that akin to *duh*...
'at will' doctrine has, by and large, been basis of labor 'law' throughout u.s. since end of 19th century...
origins are generally traced to essay written by guy named horace wood, his title, _treatise on the law of master and servant_, pretty much gives away his perspective on matter, wood essentially argued that burden is on employee to keep a job...
may have been historical coincidence that wood's treatise was published in 1877, year of the great rail strike that newly elected president rutherford hayes ('his fraudulency' as result of 'corrupt bargain' that settled contested 1876 prez election) broke by calling out the military...
nevertheless, 'at will' proved quite useful to employers fighting unionization during indusrial revolution era (and since) in that it allowed them to fire workers for any or without any reason (oh, say, for trying to organize fellow workers)...
judges increasingly relied upon 'at will' in labor litigation rulings favorable to corporations, 'supremely' political court of 'laissez-faire' era routinely struck down legislation (most of which was state-level) intended to provide some protection for workers...
new deal era legislation, and subsequent court decisions uhholding such laws, would preclude employer use of 'at will' where collective bargaining contract exists (or when individual employee has written contract with employer)...
unlkely that emergence of employer- initiated 'right to work' in early 1940s was historical coincidence, rather, it was intended to sustain 'at will' doctrine giving employers decided advantage over employees...
don't think i'd describe organized labor as 'incredibly weak' in time period cited above, although i'd suggest that it was never as strong as some people have believed/claimed...
dixiecrats are important part of story, in post-ww2 period, southern members of congress who had voted for labor 'reform' in '30s were voting to overturn/weaken legislation that their votes had previously helped pass...
conservative congressional coalition, red scare, corporate campaign, weak-kneed liberal allies, all related...
check out: patricia cayo sexton's _the war on labor and the left_ and elizabeth fones-wolf's _selling free enterprise: the business assault on labor and liberalism_... michael hoover
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