U6.L9 Labor in the Gilded Age

was characterized by significant changes in the workforce, marked by the rise of industrialization, urbanization, and the formation of labor unions.

What was the market revolution?

Impact Areas:
- Women
- Urban areas
- Farming
- International trade
- Immigration
  
  Objective

Explain the socioeconomic continuities and changes associated with the growth of industrial capitalism from 1865 to 1898.

As the price of goods decreased, real wages increased.
- Resulted in new access to various goods and services.
- Improved living standards for many Americans.
- However, the gap between rich and poor grew.

White-Collar Workers:
- Professional positions in corporate offices.
- Named for white shirts worn to work.
- Emerged due to the need for middle management in corporations.
Blue-Collar Workers:
- Worked in factories, often with hands-on labor.
- Named for darker uniforms worn for durability.
- Growth in blue-collar jobs as factory demand increased.

Women entered the corporate workforce due to:
- Emergence of secretarial jobs seen as dead-end.
- Rise in employment as telephone operators with residential telephones.
By 1900, 4 million women were employed:
- One-third in domestic work, one-third in office work, one-third in labor.

Managers coordinated between executives and factory floor.
Advancements required scientists and engineers leading to:
- Rise of advertising departments.
- Increased demand for accountants and clerical workers.
Expanded middle class and increased demand for services (lawyers, doctors, storekeepers).
Middle-class growth allowed for more leisure activities.

By 1900, most Americans were wage laborers, working long hours (10 hours/day, 6 days/week).
Wages were influenced by supply and demand:
- High supply of workers led owners to pay less.
Wage earners struggled to provide for families on one income, necessitating women and children's employment.
80% of families earned less than $380/year in 1900.
- Average family size was five; equals today’s $13,481 of purchasing power.
J.D. Rockefeller's wealth was significantly greater than the average family income.

Labor and management clashed over wages and working conditions.
- Workers organized unions and confronted business leaders.

Management held power over wages and hours.
Strikes were easily undermined:
- Workers could be replaced without impact on production.
Employers countered unions using:
- Lockouts, blacklists, yellow-dog contracts, private guards, state militias, court injunctions.
Fear of unions branded them as anarchistic and un-American.

Founded in 1866 by William H. Sylvis & Andrew Cameron.
Goals:
- 8-hour workday, higher wages, equal rights, monetary reform, worker cooperatives.
Issues for African Americans due to racism.
Achieved an 8-hour workday but faced challenges during the Panic of 1873.

Established in 1869 as a secret society, made public in 1881.
Opened membership to all workers (including women and African Americans).
Goals included:
- Abolishing child labor, trusts, monopolies; arbitration for labor disputes.
Negative public perception after the Haymarket Bombing in 1886.

Definition: Suspension of work by employees to compel employer agreement to demands.

Began on July 14, 1877, due to wage cuts during an economic depression.
Strikes spread to 11 states, shutting down two-thirds of railways.
Government response included deploying federal troops leading to violent conflicts (100 workers killed).
Resulted in a wage increase from some railroads but harsher stances from others.

Took place from July 1, 1892, to November 20, 1892, at the Homestead Steel Plant.
Triggered by a 20% wage cut; strikers faced violent reprisals.
Strike disbanded after conflicts; union movement in steel stalled until the New Deal.