1. Gilded Age Pt 5- Responses to Big Business

2. Problems with Big Business
Solution: Interstate Commerce Act
Made unfair RR practices illegal
Problem: Railroads
Railroads unfairly charged farmers more to ship food short distances than big businesses to ship goods long distances.
Solution: Interstate Commerce Act
Problem: Railroads
Railroads unfairly charged farmers more to ship food short distances than big businesses to ship goods long distances.
Solution: Interstate Commerce Act
Made unfair RR practices illegal
FIRST TIME CONGRESS REGULATED A BUSINESS
Problem: Railroads
Railroads unfairly charged farmers more to ship food short distances than big businesses to ship goods long distances.
Problem: Railroads
Problem: Railroads
Railroads unfairly charged farmers more to ship food short distances than big businesses to ship goods long distances.
Problem: Monopolies and Trusts
Solution: Sherman Antitrust Act
Gov't has the power to break up monopolies and trusts
Tried to stop actions that prevented unfair competition
Problem: Monopolies and Trusts
Monopolies unfairly eliminated their competition and influenced government
Solution: Sherman Antitrust Act
Gov't has the power to break up monopolies and trusts
Problem: Monopolies and Trusts
Monopolies unfairly eliminated their competition and influenced government
Problem: Monopolies and Trusts
Monopolies unfairly eliminated their competition and influenced government
Solution: Sherman Antitrust Act
Problem: Monopolies and Trusts
Monopolies unfairly eliminated their competition and influenced government
BIG CHANGE IN ATTITUDE
AGAINST BIG BUSINESS

3. Why are the Interstate Commerce Act and Sherman Antitrust Act significant? What did they show about the change in government?

7. Labor Problems with Big Business
Rights of workers were ignored by BB because employers cared more about profits
Working conditions:
-Bad Conditions
-Very little pay
-Long work hours
-Child Labor
-No job security
Problem: Labor
Workers formed LABOR UNIONS to cause change and make things better
Solution: Labor Unions
Rights of workers were ignored by BB because employers cared more about profits
Working conditions:
-Bad Conditions
-Very little pay
-Long work hours
-Child Labor
-No job security
Problem: Labor
Workers formed LABOR UNIONS to cause change and make things better
-Used collective bargaining (negotiate) to get better conditions
-All workers ask for the same thing together
Solution: Labor Unions
Rights of workers were ignored by BB because employers cared more about profits
Working conditions:
-Bad Conditions
-Very little pay
-Long work hours
-Child Labor
-No job security
Problem: Labor
Solution: Labor Unions
Rights of workers were ignored by BB because employers cared more about profits
Working conditions:
-Bad Conditions
-Very little pay
-Long work hours
-Child Labor
-No job security
Problem: Labor
Problem: Labor
Rights of workers were ignored by BB because employers cared more about profits
Problem: Labor
Rights of workers were ignored by BB because employers cared more about profits
Working conditions:
-Bad Conditions
-Very little pay
-Long work hours
-Child Labor
-No job security
Problem: Labor
Solution:

13. 5 years old- shrimp picker

15. Solution: Growth of Labor Unions
Some business owners would shut down factories instead of negotiate, fire union members
Types of Unions
Skilled and unskilled workers separated
Skilled- specially trained; Unskilled- anyone could do it
Many discriminated against black workers, women
National Labor Union- first union
American Federation of Labor- founded by Samuel Gompers
Large, national union for skilled workers ONLY
Wanted closed shops- factories with ONLY UNION WORKERS
What conditions led workers to form labor unions and were their goals?

16. Strike!
Unions held strikes to protest unfair treatment, sometimes they got violent
Strike- refusal to work until changes occur
Didn’t always work for unskilled workers, bc anyone could replace them
Scabs- people who worked while normal workers were on strike
Business owners would send “security” to handle strikers
Carnegie’s Homestead Plant
From : 23,000 strikes involving 6.6 million workers
Pullman Strike- RR workers went on strike, shut down transportation, eventually broken up by Pres

19. Why were labor unions formed?
What methods did labor unions use to achieve their goals?

20. Attitudes about Unions
Government leaders were anti-union
Thought unions would increase prices
Govt leaders got contributions from Big Business
Thought workers were greedy; Big Business was the good guy
Government leaders were anti-union
Govt leaders got contributions from Big Business
Thought workers were greedy; Big Business was the good guy
Government leaders were anti-union
Government leaders were
__________
Government leaders were anti-union
Thought workers were greedy; Big Business was the good guy

21. Attitudes about Unions
The government used Sherman Antitrust Act against the unions
Said they were restricting trade
Allowed gov to use troops to end strikes
Most Americans were anti-union-
supported LAISSEZ-FAIRE
Unions seen as violent- Haymarket Affair: bombing blamed on unions
How did the American people and the government respond to the actions of the labor movement?

24. STAAR Practice

25. STAAR Practice

26. Big Ideas
What change occurred with government attitude towards big business?
What conditions led workers to form labor unions? What were their major goals?