This exhibit will explore labor laws in the United States of America during 1870 through 1940. Before this point in time, there were very loose labor laws that were not concerned about things such as gender or racial equality, a person’s age, the amount of work someone would have to do, or the employee’s working environment. The project will also address how America’s labor laws have evolved and adapted over time to create better accommodations for workers as well as the different responses that certain laws and pieces of legislation had all received that were both positively and negatively viewed.
During the 19th century and more specifically from the year 1865 and on, going through the early 20th century, both larger and smaller corporations and businesses had the mindset and agenda of mass production with a high income at a high efficiency rate. Because of these mindsets, the conscious care to grant fair accommodations to hired employees in the work place was set aside. By setting aside such cares, this has resulted in issues such as putting children as young as 6 and 7 years old for extended periods of time during the day with little to no break. This also applied to adults as well, and because they were older, they were therefore seen as being able to accomplish more. Labor conditions were poor, and in most cases, can be seen now as very illegal. The amount of work wasn’t the only issue at hand, the condition in which these people were working was also a large reason for change. However, because there were no set laws to regulate these conditions, the effects of these lawless times (in the sense of labor) was unfair wages, no job security, discrimination in the workplace, and denying workers the ability to create unions. Companies would also pray on those who were poor and in need assistance. By targeting that demographic, they [businesses] would be able to acquire mass amounts of workers to produce the businesses mass amounts of products.
The amount a person had to work, whether it was a child, teenager, or adult, was extremely taxing. Employees would be expected to work most of the day during all days of the week, only to achieve very minimal compensation. In some cases, workers would receive a company’s credit that can only be used for products provided through some sort of store operated by the company.
After decades of extraneous and dangerous jobs, employees eventually had enough. In order to combat unfair labor, they petitioned, formed unions, started law suits, and challenged older laws to get them revoked.
During America’s Labor Movement, long working hours and minimal pay was an urgent matter that needed to be addressed. The Haymarket Riot became an international symbol for worker’s rights (Duignan). This riot was because workers wanted a reasonably set limit of working hours per week, which was decided as an 8 hour day and a 40 hour week. The Knights of Labor (KOL), at the time was the largest and most successful union organization in the country, was blamed for the incident (Duignan). By blaming the KOL, businesses that acted in designating long work hours demonstrated their attempts to try and suppress such organizations.
Another way that these businesses combatted these progressive attempts, was to combat unionization of workers. In order to effectively and “legally” stop people from joining unions, the yellow dog contracts were created. These were made so that if and when an employee would sign it, then they would not be able to join a union. Eventually however, yellow dog contracts were deemed illegal through the Norris-Laguardia Act.
One of the acts challenged was the Wagner Act. Wagner conceived of his act as an effort to establish “industrial democracy.” The transplantation of democratic forms into the workplace, he believed, was necessary if political democracy was to survive in an age of gigantic, powerful corporations (McCartin)
Throughout the late 1800s and mid-1900s, the time frame this exhibit is focusing on, the struggle for equal and fair labor laws was very much real. Through years of constant efforts and actions employees eventually were able to achieve better wages, hours, equality, as well as taking down unjust laws and acts created by politicians and businesses to oppress workers. By the end of the time period, labor laws and conditions had significantly improved relative to what they once were by revoking laws seen as unjust, creating organization intended to help employees, and law suits to call out laws and reveal what they truly are.