The 2nd Industrial Revolution14.3 Workers Organize

“Workers united can never be defeated!”

Focus Your Thoughts . . .

What were some of the problems associated with the rise of big business? Specifically - what do you

imagine working conditions were like?

How do you think workers responded to unsatisfactory environments/pay? Why might they continue to work

even under difficult circumstances?

Are working conditions better today?

Government and BusinessIn the late 1800’s the government maintained a “hands

off” mentality when it came to business

Most politicians believed that regulating business would harm the economy

Nevertheless, the government grew uneasy about the power of these giants (corporations)

The Sherman Anti-Trust ActIn 1890 Congress passed an act making it illegal to form

trusts that interfered with free trade; it also prohibited monopolies and other activities which hindered competition

Government and WorkersThe government paid very little attention to business, but

it paid even less attention to workers

While industrialization was raising the standard of living for everyone; inequality continued to rise as wellThe discrepancies between the “haves” an d the “have nots”

lifestyles were vastBy 1890 just ten percent of the population controlled

seventy-five percent of the nation’s wealth What does this mean? The rich are continuing to get rich, while

the industrial workers are barely scraping by earning less than $500 a year!

How much of the nation’s wealth do you think the richest ten percent of the population controls today? Do you think it’s

more or less?

Industrial Workers

The Workforce Many factory workers were immigrants or rural Americans The best factory jobs tended to go to native-born whites or

European immigrants; African Americans found more opportunities as laborers or household help, but were often paid less

Many industrial workers were children between the ages of ten and fifteen; even children as young as five sometimes worked to help make ends meet

Working Conditions

Unskilled laborers usually worked about ten hours a day six days a week; they had no vacation, no sick leave, and no compensation for work-related injuries

Employees were pressured to work as fast as possible, which often led to lots of accidents ; rather than help injured workers, employers often replaced them

Sweatshops The scene of the worst exploitation often occurred in these cramped

workshops found in tenement buildings“In [the tenements] the child works unchallenged from the day he is old enough to pull a thread. There is no such thing as a dinner hour; men and women eat while

they work, and the ‘day’ is lengthened at both ends far into the night. Factory hands take their work with them at the close of the lawful day to eke out their

scanty earnings by working overtime at home.”- Jacob Riis

Workers Seek Changes Why organize??

By the late 1800’s working conditions were so poor, workers felt their only option was to band together and pressure employers to address their concerns

National Unions The National Labor Union (NLU)

Organized in 1866 as a federation of small, local unions

Fought for an eight hour work day Folded unsuccessfully in 1872

The Knights of Labor Founded in Philadelphia in 1869 Led by Terence V. Powderly By 1886, they had nearly 700,000

members Also pushed for an eight hour work

day; in addition, they wanted to put an end of child labor and demanded equal pay for equal work

Early on, strikes were discouraged; instead, they preferred boycotts and negotiations

The Great Railroad Strike In 1877 several northern railroads had cut wages because times were tough

Workers for the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad protested by walking off the job and blocking several freight trains

Pennsylvania workers followed suit and blocked the movement of all trains on their lines

The strikes continued to spread, stopping most freight traffic for more than a week

Several governors called out their state militias to put down the strikes; in Baltimore the militia fired into the crowd and killed ten people and troops in Pittsburgh killed twenty, including three children

Led to more protesting Mobs of people in Pittsburgh set train engines, buildings, and equipment on fire;

four million dollars worth of damages

U.S. Army troops put an end to the strike but, by the time it was all over, over a hundred people had died

The Haymarket RiotIn 1886, wage cuts in many industries caused workers

across the country to go on strike

Haymarket Square – Chicago, ILCrowds gathered to protest violent police action at a strike

the day beforeSuddenly, someone threw a bomb into the crowdPeople panicked and gunfire ensued; eleven people were

killed and over a hundred were woundedPeople blamed foreign-born unionists for the violence and the

press fanned the flames of xenophobia (fear of foreigners) and police arrested eight men all of whom had foreign names and none of whom could be connected to the crimes Four were hanged, one killed himself in prison, and the rest were

pardoned by Illinois’s new governor

The American Federation of Labor Following the Haymarket Riot,

employers struck back at organized labor forcing employees to sign documents saying they would not join unions

Employers made blacklists – lists of people perceived as troublemakers – whom they refused to hire

When workers protested, they were replaced by “scabs” (strikebreakers)

The American Federation of Labor (AFL) Formed in spite of employer

resistance; led by Samuel Gompers The AFL won wage increases and

shorter work weeks

The Homestead StrikeWhile unions made some gains, conflicts with employers

continued

In 1892, workers at the Carnegie Steel Company in Homestead, Pennsylvania protested when the manager wanted to step up production; they refused to work faster, and the manager tried to lock them out

Workers seized the plant and days later, gunfire erupted when private guards hired by the company tried to take controlA fierce battle raged for fourteen hours, leaving sixteen people

dead

The governor called out the state militia to restore order and within months the steelworkers’ union dissolved

The Pullman Strike In 1893, the Pullman Company laid off a third of its employees and cut the

wages of the remaining employees an average of twenty-five percent but did not lower rents

The workers went on strike under the direction of Eugene V. Debs, leader of the American Railway Union He urged the members of the ARU not to work on any trains that included

Pullman cars

The government ordered the union to call off the strike because it was interfering with the delivery of mail and when ARU officials refused, many of them were jailed

President Grover Cleveland called in federal troops once again and the strikes dissolved; workers who would not quit the ARU wound up fired or blacklisted

For the next several decades, unions struggled for progress

Assignment – Examining Social Issues: Child Labor & Sweatshops How Far Have We Really Come?

Organize into groups of three or four

Read the articles you’ve been handed about sweatshops and labor laws Forever 21 sweatshops Child labor in India Factory abuse in China

Discuss your opinions

Return to your seats and complete a one page write- up What are your thoughts? How far have we really come in our

two hundred year quest to ensure workers are being protected both in the United States and abroad? Are we doing enough? If not, what more should we be doing? What can YOU do?