Why Is Philanthropy Good For America

In the late 1800’s, John D. Rockefeller and Andrew Carnegie were both robber barons because they were ruthless and cruel. Rockefeller used mean harsh tactics to make money. In addition to that, Carnegie tried to stop unions in his company that represented his workers. Rockefeller bought out other companies so that people who needed oil would have to buy it from him. He also used thugs to make companies sell if they were stubborn. Carnegie squashed other businesses. Because John D. Rockefeller was able to make a lot of money, he kept using his strategies to get rich. Carnegie received lots of money because of his industry. He also used cruel tactics to make money along with Rockefeller. They were both ruthless when it came to money.

The Carnegie Steel Company was a successful factory, which employed many hundred of workers. Andrew Carnegie, who was the owner of the company, wanted a large successful business, which he had achieved already, but he was always looking for ways to save and make more money. By 1892, unions had been formed

Many people at the time were living in poverty and there weren’t enough jobs that had sufficient pay to support a family. The steel industry was one that had the highest earning wages. The average daily wage at the time for iron and steel workers were $1.87, this is far above other industries that had a smaller amount of pay. Others can argue that because of the bad working conditions workers faced in the steel industries, Carnegie shouldn’t be considered a hero. But isn’t the goal of a business to create more jobs? Carnegie believed that it was proper to have completion between the rich and the poor because if there wasn’t, there would be no individuals capable enough to provide such jobs to further expand the essential needs of laborer and those of the economy (Doc 3). When Carnegie sold the Carnegie Steel company to J.P Morgan for $400 Million, the newly named company (U.S Steel) created numerous amounts of jobs employing 168,000 people.

Andrew Carnegie was known to be the most hypocritical of all robber barons. He supported worker’s rights but couldn’t uphold his own moral code. Under his watch, his company cut worker’s wages and extended hours. Carnegie caused an uprise of his own workers and created the Homestead Strike of 1892. He approved that his company should hire men to intimidate the workers into submission, which sparked violence and ultimately resulted in many people getting killed. Andrew Carnegie used his wealth and influence to his benefit, paying a replacement to fight for him to avoid getting drafted in the Civil War. Andrew Carnegie was a powerful robber baron that used vertical integration to control the steel industry.

This can be blantely obvious through the ever growing rift between the rich and poor classes. Henry George, a journalist-author who advocated for social reform through the imposition of a single, universal tax, stated “the gulf between the employed and the employer is growing wider” in his 1879 published work Progress and Poverty (Document A). The industrialization of this era was dominated by John D. Rockefeller’s horizontal integration of the oil industry and Andrew Carnegie's vertical integration of the steel industry. Horizontal integration was the technique of taking over and monopolizing an industry though consolidating smaller competitors while vertical integration aimed to own all phases of manufacturing from mining to market for efficiency and quality control. However, through this strive for the domination of industry came trusts. Trusts were created between companies who agreed upon what a beneficial asset was. James B. Weaver, the presidential candidate of the Populist party in 1892, stated “The main weapons of the trust are threats, intimidation, bribery, fraud, wreck and pillage” in his A Call to Action speech regarding trusts (Document E). Prior to this speech, it was perspectives, such as this, that led to the Sherman Anti-Trust Act of 1892. The captains of industry were so self interested that they also had little regard for the skill level and residency of workers as they simply sought to have cheap labor. This came in the form of wage cuts or the employment of immigrants. A wage cut of ten percent was laid upon the railroad workers of Baltimore and Ohio in 1877 and it resulted in strikes spreading nationwide across the railroad line. Later on in 1894, the Pullman strike occurred also due to wage cuts. As for immigration, many of these new immigrants came from eastern and southern europe

     “By 1900, the transformation of the American economy from agricultural to industrial was in full swing, as the nation of farmers and artisans was giving way tot hat of factory workers and manufacturing giants” (Wattenberg, 1998, p. 32). Coinciding with this transformation, an atmosphere conducive to entrepreneurship allowed single families to dominate individual industries, giving rise to the so-called “trusts”. As icons in American business, John D. Rockefeller, Andrew Carnegie, and Cornelius Vanderbilt were perceived as the enemy of the working class. Bertrand Russell, a well known British philosopher said in a interview with Life

Monopolies caused most factories to be ran by the same people, which led to poor working conditions across the United States. Business men, like Andrew Carnegie and John D. Rockefeller, were determined to obtain the most money perceivable, while blatantly mistreating their workers. Miserable factory workers were fed up with the antagonizing work hours for little pay; consequently, they started to create unions to fight against these harsh working conditions. Frequently, members of these unions would protest, and demand higher wages- they were often ignored or fired. Railroad strike of 1877, homestead strike

Andrew Carnegie’s management of his companies reshaped the way business was performed in the 19th century. His treatment of workers was completely different from all other businesses’ at that time. His true genius was his ability to work closely with other men. Carnegie thought of himself as a man of the people and a hero of workers. His workers got the higher salaries and shorter shifts. Carnegie used a “sliding scale'; in wages. The pay of the workers would increase if profits went up, and the pay would decrease if profits went sown. This was an initiative for workers to work harder if they wanted higher wages. Carnegie had an impressive way of dealing with workers who went on a strike. He didn’t hire new workers, but instead shut the business down completely and made the strikers to eventually give in and agree to his terms. Carnegie had enough

John D. Rockefeller, Andrew Carnegie, J.P. Morgan, and Cornelius Vanderbilt were wealthy and well known and monopolies in the late 1800s and early 1900s. They are the captains of industry because they all helped the U.S economy with their business, and they also donate a lot of money to different types charities. For example, J.P Morgan and Cornelius Vanderbilt played a huge role in the developing of the railroads, John D. Rockefeller managed around 90% of America's oil industry, and Andrew Carnegie led the huge expansion of the steel industry. Without the railroads, oil, and steel people will not be able to transport things, operated machines and factories, there will be a huge rate of unemployment, and we would have a very poor economy.

As well as J.P. Morgan, Andrew Carnegie was certainly another individual who assumed great leadership and transformed the ways of the U.S. economy during the Gilded Age. He concentrated his works on the Steel industry. He helped the United States switch from an agricultural and commercial nation to the greatest industrial nation in the world. A document published by Gale: Cengage Learning even stated, “In years of recession and depression he kept running his plants, undercutting competitors, and assuring employment for his workers.” Obviously, he was a strong competitor among the entrepreneurs of the time. He kept his prices low while also expanding markets for steel products. In fact, he established the J. Edgar Thomson Steel Works, which later became the Carnegie Steel Company.

The post-Civil War was a time of reform and industrialization. The United States was recovering from a war that left the nation in shambles, left with none other than itself to rejuvenate. As America strived to get back on its feet big companies also attempted to contribute to helping the economy. However, their efforts and intentions does not alternate the fact that numerous issues were still at large. On one hand these alleged captains of industry have created numerous job opportunities and built many factories, but on the other hand, the employees were underpaid and mistreated and that their entire wealth is based on corrupt actions. While they did keep the economy going and the United States wealthy, robber barons manipulated and preyed

The history of America is one of complex change, often shifting in both foreign and domestic affairs, where American policy seen as fickle and unsatisfactory. The United States government actions and relations with the American South and broken Native Americans were often very stagnate in meeting their necessities and saw the rise of unchecked oppression on a wide scale. These once threatening adversaries would now know the hand of the Federal government relations as a result of Social Darwinism. The violent and brutal engagements in the former Confederate states which ensued, would be caused by neglectful and permissive President Andrew Johnson and by the devastation left over from the American Civil War. The defeated Native Americans would also become a largely exploited group with much of their land and territory to seek after for the ideal of American Expansionism as well as the precious resources which many desired to have a stake in. Many parties involved would endure failed expectations, while others would enjoy a degree of contentment. America’s industry would also see a dramatic level of development in technology, industry, and lifestyle while at a cost to several others. America’s industrialism was due to enterprising men like Rockefeller and Carnegie, who go about conquering their respective industry of choice and become very established in America’s politics and set the way of life for America’s workers. While many of these ventures could be perceived as

American was a prosperous country with incredible economic growth between the end of Reconstruction and the Great Depression. It was during this time that "industrial expansion went into high gear because increasing manufacturing efficiencies enabled American firms to cut prices and yet earn profits for financing still better equipment (Henretta 488)." During this era, the manufacturing of steel, the construction of railroads, factories, and warehouses, and the growing demand for technological advancements, increased greatly. Philanthropists, such as Andrew Carnegie, Andrew Mellon, and John D. Rockefeller, took advantage of the situation they were in by investing large sums of capital into the growing economy. Carnegie constructed

The massive businesses of the world are responsible for millions of dollars in charity every year. Companies of all disciplines pride themselves on being able to flaunt their donation total at the end of the year. However, companies go about things in different ways, some simply donate large sums while others take a more hands on approach. In the case of Microsoft, a combination of both leads to very good philanthropic profile. With Microsoft being a technology company, the way that they do philanthropy is different than a food giant for example. Microsoft has many programs that they both own and aid that are involved in they do their charity. Another technology giant, Apple has only recently begun to leave a philanthropic mark, as (the

The most common form of philanthropy in the CSR pyramid (Economic, Legal, Ethical, and Philanthropic) is cause-related marketing, where a charity donation is tied to a commercial exchange. Next most common are donations of cash in which donations are not tied to a sale of a product. These donations can also be matches of fundraising for a cause. Another common form of philanthropy is community involvement, usually coupled with employee volunteerism. Other less common forms of philanthropy include awareness campaigns and promotions of social issues, donations of products, licensing, event sponsorship, and customer donations. (Peloza & Shang, 2010).