Workers Unite Unit 2: #4 10/09/12 Life of an Industrial Worker Life for workers in industrial America was difficult 12-16

12-16 hour days, six days a week Workers were not entitled to vacation, sick leave, unemployment compensation or reimbursement for injuries Working conditions were often unhealthy and unsafe Heavy machinery lacked safety devices, which led to a large number of injuries

Industrial workers Children (ages 10-15) were also subjected to these harsh conditions Creation of Labor Unions By the late 1800s workers began to band together With their large numbers they could pressure employers into giving them better pay and safer working conditions There were no laws giving workers the right to organize or require owners to negotiate w/ them Labor leaders were frequently jailed Unions were often associated with Marxist revolutionary ideas Marxism Karl Marx (The Communist Manifesto) argued that in a capitalist society the class struggle between workers and owners would always exist Workers would eventually revolt, seize control of the factories & govt Leaving behind a communist society where classes did not exist His ideas spread throughout Europe New immigrants coming to America were often blamed for the formation of unions It was believed that unions threatened American institutions (Democracy & Capitalism)

Divisions Among Unions Skilled workers & unskilled workers unions The American Federation of Labor (AFL), invited only skilled workers from different trades to join Samuel Gompers, its president, it focused on collective bargaining to reach agreements on wages, hours and working conditions Strikes were used as a major tactic

Between 1890-1915, the average weekly wage rose from $17.50 to $24 The work week fell from 54.5 hours to just under 49 hours

Unskilled Unions Eugene V. Debs felt that unions should include all laborers, skilled and unskilled He formed the American Railway Union (ARU) Most of the new members were unskilled or semiskilled In 1894 the ARU won a strike for higher wages, and its membership grew from 15,000 to 90,000

Strikes Turn Violent In 1877, the Great Railroad Strike started after wages were cut for a second time Clashes between militia and strikers led to numerous deaths The army had to be called in to end the strike

Haymarket Affair The Haymarket Riot in 1886 also ended violently Crowds gathered to protest police brutality against strikers, when a bomb was thrown into the crowd causing panic 11 people died, more than 100 people were injured This led people to turn against the labor movement