Big Business &

Organized LaborHow did industrialization change the workplace and give rise to labor unions?How did industrialization change the relationship between the worker and boss?

EQ:

IndustrializationLeaders

Inve

ntions

Organiz

ation

Lives of Workers?

Leaders

OrganizationInventions

Brain Storm

PSD Time!• Please take 5 minutes to read and

think about the document you were given

• Think about:– The workers’ complaints– The workers’ attitudes and perceptions

of their bosses– What workers’ conditions must have

been like

Minute Spit-it• Give each person in your small

group one minute to talk about their findings

• Remember:– Do not interrupt– If minute not filled, must be silent

Conditions for WorkersBrain Storm

Factory Life• Workers: Immigrants, whites, & African

Americans from the South.• Hours: Long• Pay: Very Low• Conditions: Dust, bad lighting, faulty machines,

no inspections, burns, death, poor training.• Women: Highest number of workers.• Children: Did not go to school.• Employers not required paying for factory injuries.• Triangle Shirt Factory: Owner locked workers

in, most died in a fire.

Especially Brutal Conditions in PA

• Coal and iron police• Pennsylvania Railroads and

corporate charters• Use of the state militia and federal

troops• Company towns

In PA Industry was King!

Not in notes

What could you do to protect your rights?

• If you were this guy, what would your options possibly be to try to protect yourself?

Strike!!!

Strikes in the U.S.

Where are most strikes taking place? Why?

Labor Unions• Goals: Safer working conditions, shorter hours,

& better pay.• Early Unions:

– Knights of Labor – American Federation of Labor led by Samuel

Gompers.• Problems: Some unions did not represent all

workers, riots, protests and strikes became violent.

• Started Collective Bargaining or negotiations between workers and management

Knights of Labor

Terence V. Powderly

An injury to one is the concern of all!

Knights of Labor

Knights of Labor trade card

Goals of the Knights of Labor• Eight-hour workday.

• Workers’ cooperatives.• Worker-owned factories.• Abolition of child and prison labor.• Increased circulation of greenbacks.• Equal pay for men and women.• Safety codes in the workplace.• Prohibition of contract foreign labor.• Abolition of the National Bank.

The American Federation

of Labor: 1886

Samuel Gompers

How the AF of L Would Help the

Workers• Catered to the skilled worker.• Represented workers in matters of

national legislation.• Maintained a national strike fund.• Evangelized the cause of unionism.• Prevented disputes among the many

craft unions.• Mediated disputes between

management and labor.• Pushed for closed shops.

Haymarket Riot (1886)

McCormick Harvesting Machine Co.

Management vs. Labor

“Tools” of Management

“Tools” of Labor

“scabs” P. R. campaign Pinkertons lockout blacklisting yellow-dog

contracts court injunctions open shop

boycotts sympathy

demonstrations informational

picketing closed shops organized

strikes “wildcat” strikes

The Corporate “Bully-Boys”:

PinkertonAgents

Case Study: The Pullman Strike of 1894

Pullman Cars

A Pullman porter

A “Compa

nyTown”:Pullman

, IL

The Pullman Strike of 1894

Government by injunction!

Case Study: StrikesEach group will be given one of thefollowing strikes to research:

• The Lattimer Massacre• The Great Railroad Strike (in

Pittsburgh)• The Homestead Strike• The McKeesport Strike

Your group must research thefollowing topics and report theirfindings to the class

• What industry was involved with this strike (coal, steel, railroads)?

• What caused the strike to happen?• How did the strike “go down”?• What was the end result?

The Great Railroad Strike of 1877

The Great Railroad Strike of 1877

Homestead Steel Strike

(1892)

The Amalgamated Association of

Iron & Steel Workers

Homestead Steel Works

Attempted Assassination!

Henry Clay FrickAlexander Berkman

SummarizeWhat conditions cause strikes to happen?

What is the purpose of the strike?

How did the company, police, gov’t, etc treat workers?

What did the strike accomplish?