[3] Her father owned a grocery store there, but due to the depression of the 1890s he returned to his old trade as a machinist in Chicago, Illinois.

In 1902 Nestor stepped forward as leader in a strike of women workers at the Eisendrath Glove Company (encouraged and supported by the unionised men), which lasted ten days.

[1] Nestor was also an active member of the Women's Trading Center (WTUL) of Chicago beginning in 1904,[3] and served as its president from 1913 to 1948.

[6][1][7] The Women's Trade Union League seal exhibits the phrases "The Eight Hour Day," "A Living Wage," and "To Guard the Home," thereby conveying the message that the WTUL believed that in advocating for reduced work hours, and raising wages, women workers would be able to better attend domestic responsibilities at home.

For many years attempts were made by various labor groups to enact legislation to protect women workers from overlong working hours, from the dangers of unprotected machinery, and sweatshop conditions.

[3] The IESA passed giving Illinois women limited suffrage, but the ability to vote for President and local offices.

[1] Even with such setback, Nestor continued her work as a labor leader and spent a lot of time fundraising for the unions.

[3] In the last decade of her life, Nestor never retired, rather she spent her remaining years recruiting unorganized glove workers, and preventing the relaxation of labor laws during World War II.