“Miners families…had to make their purchases of all the necessaries of life, meager as they were, from

company stores at double the prices for which they could be had elsewhere it was a common saying that

children were brought into the world by a company doctor, lived in a company house….were buried in a

company coffin, and laid away in a company graveyard.”-Samuel Gompers

1900 average worker worked 10 hour days, 6 days a week, for $1.50 women and children made less.

1910s women who worked made less then $6 per week.

Penalized for working to fast (ex. Buttonhole makers)

Child laborers• No school• Illiterate• Low wages• (paying dead fathers debt)

Progressives and labor unions fight for anti or limited child labor laws.

Florence Kelley highly involved in this fight. 1893 convinces Illinois to ban child labor

Long hours 16+ hours per day

“stay awake” “Capital has no morals nor

ideals” 1912 child labor laws in 39

states Others limit time/literacy

tests Lax laws Limit hours Ideas behind minimum

wage 1938 minimum wage law

passed

Reform workplace safety!!!

1911 500 employees mostly young women.

Fire breaks out No way down from the 8th

floor 140 workers burn to

death Dead bodies were the

answer form this reform. https://www.youtube.com

/watch?v=ILTya4tnycI&index=7&list=PL1BA7FEF1361D4E61

More states passed protective legislation.

Business owners say this violates their 14th amendment rights. “prohibits any state from depriving any person of life, liberty, or property without due process.” they said this deprived them of their property and got its way many times.

Other legislation turned down for violating freedom of contract, or negotiating contracts.

Labor Unions continued to fight for workers rights and for the closed shop (when workers must belong to a union)

Most unions wanted better conditions for workers, but not to change capitalism.

Many did want to replace capitalism with socialism, or a system where the government or worker cooperatives own the factories.

American Federation of Labor Samuel Gompers Grew four-fold 1900-1914 Excluded unskilled workers Left many without support Operate within the system

International Ladies Garment Workers Union

Jewish and Italian immigrant women. Clara Lemlich wins over crowd starts

a strike on working conditions Membership rose Some demands met African American women take place

of striking white women.

Industrial Workers of the World Opposed capitalism William “Big Bill” Haywood made claims

of independence for working class. Denounces AFL practices Strikes, destruction, boycotts Accepted virtually everyone Some success Eventual collapse