Was the rise of industry good for American workers?

Describe a time when you were unhappy with certain conditions- at home, work, or at school. How did you try to change these conditions? Were you successful? Why or Why not?

Children

Triangle Shirt Waist Factory Fire

Children As young as six 15 hours a day in coal mines, garment factories Back deformities, asthma, Death from poisons, being mangled by machines

Immigrant workers Accepted the lowest pay and toughest schedule (7 days a week) Were hired over native born workers who wanted more pay

Women 70% of all Jewish girls worked Paid less then men 146 women killed in the triangle shirt waist factory fire

The working class needed help

Workers fight back

Workers unite to form unions to gain more rights

Workers seek better wages, hours and working conditions

Unions uses strikes and boycotts to gain more rights

The American Federation of Labor or AFL was one of the first organized unions

Eugene Debs organized the International Workers of the World Union and ran for President

New York Newsies Picture 1

Did Unions achieve any success against the owners?

Why was it difficult for Unions to make gains? Workers did not always come together The gov’t and courts sided with owners

Worker feared being labeled or attacked for their political beliefs.

People who reject all forms of government Anarchist Socialist People who reject all forms of government Supported the idea that everything in society would be owned by everybody and not just by a wealthy few

Owners forced workers to sign yellow dog contracts in which they promised not to join unions or lose their job

Owners hired “scabs” and immigrants to replace striking workers and put striking worker’s on blacklists

The Government usually sided with the owners leading to violent clashes with the military and police

Railroad Strike of 1877 Violent clashes between railroad workers and the Army. 100 people killed

Homestead Strike of 1892 Steel workers strike at the Carnegie Steel Plant in Pa. Carnegie security guards shoot nine strikers National Guard called in to end the strike

Injunctions or court orders jailed union workers who went on strike

Gains Wages improved steadily Hours per week fell slowly Power to the working class Most gains came during WWI, the Depression and World War II

Industry has improved life tremendously Industry has improved life tremendously. There are plenty of new jobs that pay well and new products for consumers like the light bulb and the sewing machine, not to mention millions for me. But I have donated a lot of it to charity