Industrial Workers Text Pages 572 573 The industrial

Industrial Workers Text Pages 572 -573

The industrial growth of the late 1800 s created new jobs.

Industrial growth raised the standard of living for Americans.

Compare what factories were like before mass production and what they were like after…

• Factories were once small workplaces where employers & employees worked side-by-side.

• Now, factories are larger and less personal.

Describe the industrial labors’ work day & week: • Workers typically had 10 -12 hour days; and a 6 day a week. • That’s a 60 -70+ hour work week!!!

How might workers loose their jobs? 1. They could be fired for any reason. 2. They lost jobs during downturns (when business was not booming). 3. They could be replaced by immigrants willing to work for less.

Describe conditions in factories and mines: • Noisy • Unhealthy • Unsafe

Describe a common steel mill accident: • Burns from spills of hot steel.

Describe a common mine accident: • Coal miners died in caveins and from the effect of gas and coal dust.

Describe common textile ailments: ailments 1. Lung damage due to airborne lint. 2. Eyesight ruined by poor lighting. 3. Flammable material caused factories to become “firetraps. ”

Define “sweatshops” Crowded urban factories where laborers work for low wages.

Women Workers Many women had jobs as domestic servants in the late 1800 s.

By 1900 more than one million women worked in industry.

Describe the salary of women in the workplace: • Salaries were about half of what men made.

Explain why this was allowed to happen: • There were not any laws regarding workers’ salaries.

Child Labor • By 1900 hundreds of thousands of children under 16 years worked in factories. • State legislatures passed laws to protect children.

List some child labor laws: 1. Children had to be at least 12 years old. 2. Children could not work more than 10 hours per week.

Kids lost limbs in mining and industrial accidents.

Were the child labor laws effective? Why? • No, because employers widely ignored child labor laws.

Did these laws apply to children working in agricultural field? • NO !!

How many children where employed by the agricultural field? About one million.