Mass Production Affects Conflicts With Society, Business And International Affairs

The Progressives made great efforts to solve the political problems that industrialization and urbanization were causing. They tried to wipe out political corruption by limiting power to big companies/ bosses and reduce the control of political machines. Many of the progressive reforms also supported the railroad legislation, conservation movement, and food and drug laws. This also included efforts to protect society by initiating prohibition and they also extended suffrage to women. The progressives succeeded at keeping the power of the railroad industry in the hands of the governments but failed at protecting the states right to control businesses. Finally in 1890 the first federal law was passed against monopolies known as the Sherman Anti-Trust Act.

The labor movement in the United States grew out of the need to protect the interest of workers. For those in the industrial area, organized labor unions struggled fighting for better wages, reasonable hours and much safer working conditions. The labor movement fought to stop child labor, give better health benefits and provide help to workers who were injured and/or retired.

During the Progressive Era of the Gilded Age, many laborers were being mistreated by the companies that they worked for. Because of this, workers started forming labor unions or organized association of workers, formed to protect and further their rights and interests. Many of these labor unions failed, while few of them achieved their goals and still exist today. Many factors contributed to the failure of these labor unions. The labor unions were given a bad image, the reason for this was the media, and they did this by publishing articles depicting the unions as violent, communist groups. The government supported big business during this time, since the government had a lot of power; this was a huge setback in the labor unions’ battles.

Labor unions have existed in one way or another since the birth of our country in 1776. They were created in an effort to protect the working population from abuses such as sweatshops and unsafe working conditions. From the start of our Nation there were a few unions organized unions in a scattered fashion, but many were disbanded after they had achieved their goals, such as when the printers and shoemakers briefly unionized in Philadelphia and New York City in 1778 to conduct the first recorded strike for higher wages. Three years later in 1971 the first successful strike happened, when Philadelphia carpenters campaigned for a ten-hour workday. This caused the need for skilled and unskilled laborers to skyrocket during the Industrial Revolution and the Civil War and also got the ball rolling with Labor unions. At this point in our Country, there had been nothing done yet for workers’ rights, conditions, pay, and so on. People at this time saw that they could come together and do something to make their lives better for themselves and their families. Many of these dates were important in shaping our country’s labor policies into what they are today. In 1847 New Hampshire enacts as the first state to enforce a 10-hour workday law. In 1909 the International Ladies’ Garment workers’ Union calls a strike in New York, demanding a 20-percent raise and a 52-hour workweek. Within two days, more than 20,000 workers from 500 factories walk off the job. This largely successful uprising

The labor movement in the United States began due to the need of the common interest of workers to protect themselves from their employers. Those who worked in the industrial sector, organized labor unions were formed to fight for better wages, reasonable hours, and safer working conditions for the employees. Understanding the history of the labor movement in the United States from the Industrial Revolution will allow for a better understanding of the purpose of the labor movement. Incorporating how the following theories: The Mainstream Economics School, The Human Resource Management School, The Industrial Relations School, and The Critical Industrial Relations School the labor issues in the early periods will allow future organizations to address issues in a more precise manner.

Industrial Revolution. Many progressives desired a limitation on the power of big businesses, an improvement on the democracy of the people, and an increase in social equality among the people. The progressive era was a time of enlightenment and reform for the United State, in that it improved the quality of life through government regulation, muckraking, and conservation.

The nation’s businesses, and politics prior to the Progressive Movement is best described by Mark Twain in his book, The Gilded Age: A Tale of Today. The nation was glittering and sparkling on the surface but corrupt underneath. In politics, the government looked the other way. In Joseph Keppler’s famous “Bosses of the Senate” cartoon, he depicted the big business owners as moneybags looking over the congressmen. This was an accurate view at how the government was run. The government never attempted anything that was against what the businesses wanted. If a politician did rebel, he would not win a reelection. Big businesses were continually growing, and along with it, disparity. The industries had no competition amongst each other. One person or group was in total control of an industry, and because of that, they could do as they pleased. Railroad rates, for example were as high as the owner wanted. Since there was only one railroad, people had no choice but to spend whatever the individual asked. Once the Progressive Era began, these political and business issues were taken care of.

The 1800s is characterized with the rise of industrial America. As technological advances were introduced to industry, unskilled labor also rose in accordance to the rise in factories. However, this rise also introduced several labor unions such as the Knights of Labor, which organized a series of protests and riots. The labor unions had good intentions, aiming to lower the average work hours for workers, as well as increase their wages. However, their methods which involved riots and protests, were altogether not effective, and ended up being detrimental to their cause. Between 1875 and 1900, labor unions surged and were temporarily successful; however, their methods would prove detrimental to their cause overtime, leading to their

Most people regard industrialization as a positive development capable of generating great wealth and revitalizing run-down areas. Mention industrialization today, and it brings to mind large factories organized with the latest technologies in mass producing. Along with these visions comes the promise of more jobs for the community, higher rates of pay, and financial stability. One can only think of the positive influences on a community that the opening of a new factory could bring, but during what some have deemed the Industrial Revolution, industrialization only meant using machines and new power sources to accomplish a task formerly done by human and animal power. Our modern day conception of industrialization can greatly influence our

During the time period 1875 to 1900, the labor unions failed miserably in their efforts to amend the working conditions their workers were under. During the 19th century, the Second Industrial Revolution and The Gilded Age were taking place. These were transmuting the way society was viewed and how people lived their everyday lives. During the labor movement, there were many different organizations and groups that advocated change. Two of those specific groups were the Knights of Labor and American Federation of Labor. The failure of those labor unions between 1875 and 1900 in the U.S. was mostly due to the union's actions, followed by problems within the unions, and people's response to the union.

By 1900, the United States had become the number one industrial power in the world. One factor that allowed the country to climb to its prime position was its abundant labor supply, largely composed of immigrants who had arrived between 1865 and 1900. However, the spot came at a cost; laborers were working long hours for low wages under poor conditions for the dominating monopolies of the time. Hoping to better these undesirable situations, multiple labor unions would form in the last half of the nineteenth century. Despite the continual efforts of these organizations little change was experienced from 1875 to 1900 due to disharmony among those competing to represent the laborer, the long-standing negative

Labor union is an organized association of workers, in a trade or profession, formed to protect and further their rights and interests. During the industrial revolution in Europe there was a rise in new workers without representation in the workplace. In the 19th century the industrial revolution spread to the United States from Europe, this resulted in the economy shifting to manufacturing from agriculture as an economic importance. American societies were increasing in population as well as experiencing industrial growth. This industrialization brought conflict between businesses and the labor force since mechanized production was replacing household

Unions first came about with the realization that workers were being treated unfairly, worked in

The Labor Movement was necessary to protect the common interest of workers. The state of working environments during the Industrial Revolution produced a mandate for this movement. The Industrial Revolution served as a turning point for all western nations because of the influx of businesses and factories. America generally benefited from the revolution; however, it was at the expense of the workers. Industries were only interested in profit so workers were generally underpaid, worked long hours, and in unsafe conditions. Working conditions during the revolution were generally dreadful. And since there were copious amounts of people willing to work for any compensation, employers could set wages as low as they wanted. Labor unions arose because there were many who disagreed with how big businesses ran. A prime objective of labor unions is to make sure its members are paid fairly. Labor activists believe that employees and the company share its successes and that they should be rewarded for its productivity. Labor unions want to improve working conditions for their members. They demand reasonable working days along with safe working environments. Also, labor unions provide more than just job security and safety services. These services include provision of education and training to inform union members of their employment rights and to improve their basic skills. Labor unions are a group of employees who organize to provide a balance in negotiations between management and the

Labor Unions began in the United States in the mid-late 1800’s. The first founding labor union was the National Labor Union, started in 1866. This labor union was not set on a particular type of worker and even though it did not succeed in making a difference in workers’ rights, it set an important precedent in our country. Being a part of a labor union has lots of pros and cons, as well as, because of them, the right to work movement was created.