Topic: Causes of the American Revolution Standard: SS8H3 EQ: What was the American Revolution?
Topic 5-unions-Industrial-Revolution
description
Transcript of Topic 5-unions-Industrial-Revolution
II. The Second Industrial Revolution
1860–1920
Topic 5: The Rise of Unions
Workers Organize
ObjectiveWrite:Explain the major social and economic effects of industrialization and the influence of the growth of organized labor following Reconstruction in the United States.
Read:The rise of industrialization led to a rapidly expanding workforce. Labor organizations grew amidst unregulated working conditions and violence toward supporters of organized labor.
Because of the rise of industrialization, what need
did companies have?
Find the answer:The rise of industrialization in the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries increased the demand (need) for workers.
With this demand, immigrants came from other countries and Americans migrated from other parts of the United States to take jobs in industrial centers.
Write:It is a part of capitalism/market economyIt calls for the complete non-involvement of government in the economy. The approach is one of “hands-off”, in which prices, quality and competitive practices are solely determined by competition.
Read:This approach was advocated by the English economist Adam Smith in his work The Wealth of Nations and followed by the US government up until the late 1800’s, early 1900’s
Define: Laissez-Faire
What type of demands did workers make concerning
work issues? Write: Some members of the working class formed labor organizations (e.g., American Railway Union, American Federation of Labor, Industrial Workers of the World, United Mine Workers of America) to protect their rights.
Write:Workers sought to address issues such as working conditions, wages and terms of employment.
Write: The government had little concern for workers.
What was the laissez-faire climate concerning the government in the late 1800s?
Note the sword is titled “legislation”Write:
Because of a
laissez-faire
climate
Why did workers organize
?
How did the lack of government regulation affect the working conditions of the laborers?
Write: Laissez-faire resulted in business being allowed to have unsafe, unsanitary, working conditions. Businesses could pay their workers as little as they wanted. This resulted in many abuses being committed against workers.
What was the response of workersConcerning Laissez-faire?
Write: Because the U.S. government allowed such conditions to develop, it later led to the growth of labor unions to correct abuses against workers
The lack of government regulation affected the working conditions of the laborers.
Laissez-faire
ClimateLaissez-faire climate of the
late 1800s, the government had little concern for welfare of
workers
Many industrial workers were scraping by on less
than $500 per year.
Because of corporations political influence on
government, the government grew uneasy
about the power of corporations.
The rich were VERY rich!!!!1890 an estimated 10% of the population held 75% of
the nation’s wealth creating a HUGE inequality
between the classes.
1890 Congress passed the Sherman Antitrust Act. It
made it illegal to form trusts that interfered with
free trade.The act wasn’t very powerful because the
government only prosecuted a few
companies, but it was a first move away from the government’s policy of
laissez-faire.
Cartoon Explanation: Monopoly the ship on the right, blasts Competition the sinking ship. Uncle Sam, far left, readies to fire a tiny cannon from Fort Legislation.
What does the cartoon imply concerning the effectiveness of
the Sherman Antitrust Act?Write: The act was ineffective because the government prosecuted only a few companies.
Write: Workers had low wages; long hours; unsafe working conditions; no benefits
What conditions prompted workers to organize in the late 1800s?
Write:During industrialization, the U.S. government took a laissez-faire approach to business; the government allowed the market to regulate itself without much government interference. Many businesses allowed unsafe working practices in order to achieve higher profits.
OGT Review:
Write:As a result of unsafe working conditions, low wages and long working hours, labor unions formed to fight for federal regulation of working conditions
Write:Many industry owners felt threatened by the growth of unions in the late 1800’s. They rightly feared that union growth could force them into conceding higher wages, improved conditions and shorter work hours. In the late 1800’s they were successful in suppressing strong union growth.
Did industry owners want unions to organize? Why or why not?
Unions kept on organizing.
In 1886 a group of workers led by Samuel Gompers formed the American Federation of Labor (AFL).
The AFL won wage increases and shorter workweeks.
What was the response to factory owners’ fight against unions?
OGT Review: union demands
Write:Industrialization changed the way people worked in United States: Workers organized unions to collectively bargain for various rights within the workplace, such as: regulated pay and hours, and improved sanitary and safety conditions.
Write:eight hour work day; end of child labor; equal pay for equal work
What were the goals of the Knights of Labor Union?
Workers Organize:
The American Workforce
Many factory workers were European immigrants
Others were rural Americans who left the
farm because farm machines replaced them
Workers often worked 12-16 hours a day, worked 6
days a week.
African-Americans generally held lower
paying jobs as laborers or household help
The workplace was unhealthy, poor sanitation, unsafe working conditions,
etc.
No paid vacation, no paid holidays, no sick leave
WorkersWorking Conditio
ns
May industrial workers were children. By 1900
about 1 in 6 children ages 10-15 held a job outside
the home.
No compensation for work injuries, which were
common
Workers Organize:
Workers protest against cut in wages
1877 The Great Railroad Strike:
The fi rst major rail strike
Workers from two railroad companies blocked the
movement of trainsThe strike spread to other
Railroad companies stopping most freight traffic for over a
weekViolent clashes between workers
and militia led to numerous deaths
Mob violence in Pittsburgh caused millions of dollars in
damage
The Army was dispatched to end the strike
Why did labor organizations (unions) grow in spite of the violence
against them?
Write:Unions grew because workers responded to the violence against supporters of organized labor (e.g., Great Railroad Strike, Haymarket Riot, Homestead Strike, Pullman Strike).
Write:Someone threw a bomb, and people panicked; 11 people dead; more than 100 injured.
What was the Haymarket Riot ?Who were blamed for it?
Write:People immediately blamed foreign-born unionists for the violence.
1. The American workforce
e.) The Haymarket Riot
Selected Events in Labor History
Based on this time line, what was one way workers responded to their working conditions between 1869 and 1902?Write:Based on this time line, what was one way workers responded to their working conditions between 1869 and 1902?