Post on 30-Dec-2015
Corporate Giants
• Carnegie Steel – Andrew Carnegie
• Standard Oil – John D Rockefeller
• Railroad – Cornelius Vanderbilt
Monopoly Tactics
• Vertical integration: the control of resources from the raw materials to the final product
• Horizontal integration: owning companies that made similar products, thus eliminating any competition
Robber Barons
• Term applied to the industrialists because they made huge profits at the expense of the “little guy” and used tactics that were harsh and illegal.
• Laissez-faire: our governments approach. “hands off:
Sherman Anti Trust Act
• Made it illegal to form a trust that interfered with free trade
• Gave the government limited power to regulate monopolies
• Supreme court through out most cases against corporations
Ida Tarbell
• Journalist who wrote about the illegal practices of Standard Oil, which helped bring about reform
Philanthropists
• Carnegie, Rockefeller, Vanderbilt
• Gave away millions of dollars for various causes
• University of Chicago (Rockefeller)
• Medical institute – cured yellow fever
Poor working conditions
• Dangerous
• Low wages
• Gave rise to Unions
• Unions: viewed the huge profits of the industrialists as unacceptable when the laborer made hardly enough to live on
• Conflict between corporations and the unions
Problems
• 1882 – 675 workers were killed or injured each week in job related accidents
• 6 days a week 12 hours a day
• Dirty, poor ventilated workplaces
• No vacation or sick leave
• Children worked - as young 5yrs old
• Sweat shops were the same as factories
Knights of Labor - union
• Uriah Stephens
• “An injury to one is a concern to all”
• Supported the 8 hour workday
• Equal play equal work
• 1886- 700,000 members
American Federation of Labor
• 1886
• Samuel Gompers
• AFL organized skilled workers
• Carpenters
• Plumbers
• Used STRIKE to force management to accept union demands
Effect of Unions
• 1890 -1915 the average wage of union trade workers rose from $17.50 to 24:00
• Hours per week declined from 54 to 49 hours per week.
Haymarket Riot• 1866• Striking workers at McCormick Harvester Works
in Chicago• Fight between police and workers• Six workers killed • Protest on police brutality followed• Bomb tossed into police line• 7 policemen and 4 civilians killed• Knights of Labor blamed• Union membership declined
Homestead Strike
• Striking workers at Carnegie Steel Mill
• Violence erupted between security and striking workers
• 12 people died
• Pennsylvania National Guard had to be called in