working conditions why was labor angry? corporations - you, too, can own a company! corporations -...
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Working ConditionsWhy was labor angry?
Corporations - you, too, can own a company! Corporations -
Companies that are publicly owned Sell stock to raise funds to grow business Stock prices are determined supply and demand Stock is sold on a stock market (New York Stock
Exchange is on Wall Street in NYC) Share - One part of the business.
Shareholders - people who own at least one share of stock
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Corporations vs. Private companies Must tell public
(potential shareholders) about profits/losses
Controlled by a elected board of directors (shareholders vote)
Can raise $ quickly
Owners do not have to tell profits/losses
Owners have more control
Harder to raise capital (funds) for new machines, factories
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Working Conditions in late 1800s
As mass production increased, companies get bigger, less personal.
Workers can be fired any time for any reason Factories were uncomfortable, unsafe, dark, and dirty Hours varied from 10 to 14 hours a day, 6 days/week Injuries - if you were hurt, you were fired. No
insurance. Sweatshops - crowded and dangerous, usually refers
to textile/garment industry
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Workplace Safety 1900 - 35,000 people died in
industrial accidents 500,000 people were injured in the
same year Most infamous incident was the
Triangle Shirtwaist Factory in New York City, a clothing sweatshop that started on fire
Women and Children in the Labor Force
Women paid half as much as men Child Labor
Hundreds of thousands under 16 working Some states ban laborers under 12, but
these laws were ignored Kids work on machines designed for adults Kids have almost no power to stand up for
better pay, conditions
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Triangle Shirtwaist Fire
Progressives Attack Workplace Reform
Triangle Shirtwaist Fire (1911) Fire breaks out in NYC garment shop Most workers are female Jewish
immigrants 146 die in fire, some by jumping out
of upper story windows Lower windows were barred and doors
were locked to prevent workers from leaving early
How It Began Doors were locked Windows on first
and second floors were barred
No breaks, no fresh air
Spark lit lint in the air on fire, and it spread rapidly
People could not escape, and the workers, mostly women, jumped out of upper windows to the streets below
146 workers perished in the fire
Police could only stand by and watch - doors were locked!
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Fire escapes melted due to the intense heat and were useless
“And there was this beautiful little girl, my friend, Dora. I remember her face before she jumped.” Bessie Cohen - Worker
Triangle Shirtwaist fire Made National News
People began to look at reforms in the workplace
Unions Protest Deaths of Their Fellow Workers Unfortunately we
had to have a horrible incident to get things moving
When else has this happened?
Triangle Shirtwaist Fire
Websitehttp://www.ilr.cornell.edu/trianglefire/