Social Darwinism Profit Motive Self-Adjusting Economy

Large factories replaced small “cottage “ industries because the workshops couldn’t compete with the factories. Bulk production in factories was cheaper, more efficient, and provided more goods to sell. Factories became larger and created monopolies.

In the workshops, craftsmen created the entire product from start to finish. Now in factories, workers only did one small step in an assembly line, and never saw the finished product. This meant workers were now unskilled, and could be easily replaced. Factory owners no longer cared about their employees.

Because workers were now unskilled, factory owners wanted to pay them as little as possible. Women and Children now worked in factories because they were even cheaper. They had to work for 16 hours per day, 6-7 days per week in order to make enough money to survive.

There was a lot of pressure to speed up. Even physical punishment. “Scientific Management” controlled every movement the workers made. Safety was not a concern for owners, so many workers were killed or maimed on the job.

Owners often built company towns, where workers would have to live. They offered cheap rent to go along with the low wages. They would have to shop at the company store. If they fell behind in rent, or ran a tab at the company store they would be trapped there with no hope of paying their way out.

The Garment Industry Poorly ventilated and poorly lit rooms. (Hot so threads wouldn’t break.) Workers would do piecework, never finishing a product. Workers would have to work into the night until the job was finished, or they wouldn’t get paid.

The boss locked workers into the sweatshop so they couldn’t leave. No fire escapes. A fire broke out and killed 114 workers.

Often hired children whose hands were small enough to fit into narrow openings to scrape coal. 16 hour days with poor ventilation, frequent cave- ins. Paid less than a dollar per day.