The Progressive Movement – Economic Issues
• Monopoly and Trusts:– Sherman Antitrust Act: 1890 – made trusts
illegal.• also addressed price fixing and restraint of trade
practices• not well enforced at first – but is important because
of the indication of government regulation of businesses
Child Labor• at first reduced – then eliminated
• marked the beginning of the creation of mandatory public schooling for children
Consumer Protection• Meat Inspection Act: set standards for
meat packing cleanliness and federal inspections
• Pure Food and Drug Act: prohibited the manufacture, sale, or shipment of impure or falsely labeled food and drugs
Working Conditions• Progressives had mixed results in attempts to
limit working hours at first:• Lochner v. New York: ruled against limiting
hours in bakeries because it violated the original contract between the employer and the employees
• Muller v. Oregon: allowed women’s hours to be limited in order to protect the health of the women. This often kept women out of higher paying jobs.
• In general though, the labor union movement did grow in importance during this time
Top Related