Unit 6 Lesson 3: Workers and the Labor Movement Flashcards
What does skilled labor mean
The term skilled labor refers to a job that requires a certain amount of skill and training. Skilled laborers often spend years developing their craft.
What are some examples of skilled labor
Welding, carpentry, masonry, and smithing are examples of skilled labor jobs.
What is unskilled labor
. Unskilled labor, on the other hand, refers to a job that can be done by most able-bodied workers regardless of their age, education level, or mastery of the English language.
Example of unskilled labor
A worker could learn to pull a lever or attach a part in a day or two, and then just got fast at doing that task.
What happened to skilled manufactoring jobs that were part of cololnial life
Many of the skilled manufacturing jobs that were a part of rural colonial life became unskilled factory jobs in the late 1800s.
What was a day working in a factory like
They were repetitive, solitary, and increasingly dehumanizing. A typical adult male laborer worked 10 hours or more per day, six or seven days a week, and earned wages considered below the poverty line.
How is a skilled laborer with 10 years of experience different from an unskilled laborer with the same amount of experience?
Skilled workers improve their craft over time, which makes them more valuable to an employer. Unskilled work can be learned in a short amount of time on the job, so years of experience doesn’t necessarily make an unskilled worker more valuable.
In the early 1800s where would factories pop up
In the early 1800s, before factories began to open in cities, towns would spring up around a particularly large factory.
Describe the company town model
In some cases, the factory would own the houses employees lived in and the stores where employees shopped.
What is Scrip
The company might pay its employees in scrip, a type of town currency accepted only at company stores.
There are a few problems with being paid in scrip:
- It is not accepted outside of the town, so there is no way to save up enough to move your family to another town.
- Company stores can charge inflated prices for food and clothing since employees are forced to shop there.
What led the company town model to die out
As factories moved to the cities, the company town model fell out of favor in the East.
Where was the comapny town model still being impletmed
But it was still used in the less-populated areas of the Midwest and West through the 1800s.
Is scrip still legal?
Scrip is no longer legal as payment for work, but general forms of scrip can still be found in some places
Think of scrip as a non-cash payment for goods or services. Where might you find this type of payment in use today?
Some arcade games accept cash (quarters or bills) and dispense tickets as a reward, which can be exchanged for prizes at a counter in that store. Public transportation sometimes accepts tokens, which can be purchased for cash, but are only able to be used in that city’s buses or trains.
How did owners feeel about the saftey of there factory
owners felt no obligation to keep their factories up-to-date and safe.
How was a worker’s contract seen
A worker’s contract was seen as an acceptance of risk,
What would a judge do if workers complained of bad conditiions
judge would most likely side with the factory in the rare occurrence of a lawsuit.
Collapsed buildings, fires, severed limbs, and other workplace injuries were considered
“acts of God” or “worker negligence.”
Why would childeren often be hired
Children were often hired because their small bodies and fingers could fit into places in and around machines where an adult’s could not.
How do some machines make heat?
Some machines, such as those in a garment factory, used heat or steam to accomplish their task. Other machines produced heat merely as a byproduct of friction.
What were sweatshops
Pack a few of these machines into a poorly ventilated space and add a few dozen workers, and the temperature inside could reach well over 100 degrees. Factories such as these were known as sweatshops.
Why were women often found working in sweatshops
Women were often found working in sweatshops, as clothing and textile factories were considered suitable work for women.
What risks made mining an especially dangerous job?
explosions, poisonous gases, respiratory diseases, and cave-ins
What reasoning was used to pay women and children less than men?
Women and children were expected to have husbands and fathers as the main breadwinners in the family.
What did a influx of immigrants and rural Ameircans looking for a job mean
The influx of immigrants and rural Americans looking for work meant that there was no shortage of people willing to take any available job.
What happened to workers who compliain
. A worker who complained was simply fired and replaced. If that worker happened to live in company-owned housing, the worker might arrive home to an eviction notice. Even skilled workers were not entirely safe
What was the orginally purpose of Labor Unions
Labor unions started out as trade guilds—organizations of skilled laborers of a specific trade that met for social and professional improvement.
What was the main purpose of guilds
Over time, these guilds combined into unions. A worker would pay a certain amount of money to the union every month. In return, the union would negotiate for improvements on behalf of all of its members.
What did Unions make possibe
Unions made it possible for some workers to earn enough money to move into the middle class.
Why would a union have a better chance at getting improvements than a single worker would?
A single worker can be fired and replaced with no impact on production. Firing most or all of the workers in a factory will stop production for as long as it takes to hire and train all new workers.
What is the most powerful tool union had
strike
What do workers do suring strike
When workers strike, they all refuse to work. They also go to the factory to make sure that no one else does their work. If the factory isn’t producing, the owner isn’t making money.
What is the goal of a strike
he goal of a strike, or even the threat of a strike, is to force the owner to negotiate with the workers to find a compromised solution.
What was the easest tactic ownders used to counter a strike
Owners had their own tactics to counter a strike. The easiest tactic was to simply wait it out. Eventually workers would run out of money and would have to come back to work
Whi were strikebreakers and what role did the play on countering strikes
Another way was to hire strikebreakers who would come to work in place of the strikers.
How did Unions feel about strikebreakers
Unions would label such workers as rats or scabs and try to physically keep them out of the factory, violently if necessary.
How did ownder sometimes use vioence to break up strikes
Sometimes owners would hire gangs or local law enforcement to violently remove strikers, too. In some cases, state militias or federal troops were brought in to finish the job. I
Whyh does a comapny do when it senses a strike
. If a company sensed that a strike was coming, it could preempt the strike by issuing a lockout. In a lockout, the company shuts down production on its own, potentially forcing a strike before workers are prepared.
Why would a strike be considered a measure of last resort for a union?
In a strike, people aren’t working, which means they aren’t being paid. It can be difficult for workers to go a long time without being paid, especially if the purpose of the strike is to force the company to pay higher wages.
What were the 2 largest early unions in US
Knight of LAbor (KOL) and American Federatio of Labor
Who founded the Knights of labor
Terence V. Powderly
When was the Knights of Labor founded
1878
What kind of people were allowed to join the Knights of labor
They were one of the first to accept both skilled and unskilled workers. They were also unusual in that they welcomed immigrants, women, and African Americans. They did refuse membership to certain professionals, such as doctors, lawyers, and bankers
What was the Knights of Labor made goal
The Knights envisioned a society focused on production, where factories were owned collectively by the workers instead of by a few, ultra-rich businessmen, and they favored political ideas that promoted this vision.
emebership of the Knights of LAbor
At its height in 1886, the Knights of Labor boasted a large membership of over 700,000 workers. However, that number dwindled to about 100,000 that same year following the Haymarket Affair.
Why was the American FEderation of LAbr (AFL) created
The American Federation of Labor (AFL) began in 1886, as a counter to the KOL.
What kind of workers could join the American Federation of Labor
As a federation of craft unions, the AFL accepted only skilled workers, which left out most factory workers. They also, as a rule, didn’t accept African Americans or women.
How many member did AFL have in it hight
Even at its height (4,000,000 members in 1920), the AFL only represented about 15 percent of non-farm workers.
What happened after Samuel Gompers started to run AFL
Under the leadership of Samuel Gompers, the AFL took a more conservative approach to labor organization than the KOL.
What did members of the AFL want
They didn’t oppose the existence of ultra-rich businessmen, they just wanted workers to have their fair share. The AFL rarely strayed into politics, except to advocate for matters that affected worker safety and higher wages. AFL leaders drew a large salary, and even socialized with business owners and managers.
What would the AFL gain by only accepting skilled workers as members?
Skilled workers are more difficult to replace than unskilled workers, so the AFL may have thought it could gain more for its members by only representing skilled workers.
What was the1886 Haymarket Affair
The 1886 strike against the McCormick Harvesting Machine Company was part of a nationwide movement. The movement advocated for better working conditions and an eight-hour workday. Striking workers were met with violence. Union leaders, widely regarded as anarchists, called for members to gather and rally.
How did the peacful protest of the Hayarkert turn violent
: Near the end of the otherwise peaceful protest, a bomb exploded, killing several police officers. Based more on opinions than evidence, union leaders were charged with murder and sentenced to death. These men became heroes of the greater labor reform movement. The Haymarket Riot inspired the labor movement for generations.
How did the 1892 Homestead Strike come to be
To lower expectations prior to contract negotiations, the Carnegie Steel Company cut workers’ wages. When the Amalgamated Association of Iron and Steel Workers objected, the company instituted a lockout. Private security agents from Pinkerton National Detective Agency were hired to protect the company’s property and replacement workers.
How did the Homestead Strike get violent
The two sides met in a violent clash. As Pinkerton agents arrived by river barge, protestors threw dynamite. Violence continued even as the Pinkertons were guaranteed safe passage out of the area.
What was the result of the 1892 Homeread strike
The violence weakened the union’s reputation, and they eventually accepted a contract with lower wages and longer hours.
How did the 1894 Pullman Strike come to be
George Pullman owned both the Pullman Car Company and the town where the workers lived. Employees called a strike when Pullman cut their wages, but not rent and other expenses in the town.
What wa the result of Pullam’s actions
In solidarity, the American Railway Union, led by Eugene V. Debs, called a strike, halting rail traffic.
How did the Pullman striek get violent
The strike turned violent. The government issued an injunction, or court order, to break the strike. The arrival of federal troops incited more violence, turning public opinion against the strike.
What was the result of the 1894 Pullman strike
Pullman rehired employees who pledged not to unionize. Congress acted to create Labor Day to soothe workers’ anger.
The strike against the McCormick company centered around what issues?
better working conditions and an eight-hour workday
What words used by the Argus paper showed a distrust of unionized workers?
dastardly mob and anarchists
What action began the strike against the Carnegie Steel Company?
The company instituted a lockout of its workers.
Why were workers at the Pullman Car Company especially upset about having their wages cut?
Wages were cut, but rent for company-owned housing and prices at company-owned stores remained the same.
Who was the union leader who called for the Pullman strike?
Eugene V. Debs
In the South what did states do to convicted prisoners
In the South, state prisons routinely leased convicted prisoners to companies as slave laborers.
How did the leasing of convicted prisoners befnits the state and comapny
The deal was good for both the state and the company, who paid the state less than what it would cost to pay workers who weren’t convicts.
In 1891, miners at the Tennessee Coal Mining Company near the town of Coal Creek were presented with an unfair contract. What was stated in the contract
If they signed, workers would be paid in scrip and give up the right to check the weight of the coal they mined (workers were paid according to the weight of the coal).
How did the workers respond to the Tennesee Coal Mining Company contract
The miners refused to sign and went on strike. I
The miners refused to sign and went on strike. what was the Tennese Coal mining Company resposne to that
In retaliation, the mine operators brought in convict laborers as strikebreakers.
What led to the convicts winnign?
In the fall of that year, approximately 1,000 armed miners took control of the area, freed hundreds of prisoners, and burned the camps that housed the convicts. The company surrendered and revised the contract, promising not to use convict labor any more.
