1. Industry and Labor

2. Chapter 20, Section 2 Arguments For and Against Trusts The Argument Against Trusts Trusts and monopolies reduce competition. Without competition, there is no need to keep prices low or improve products. New companies can’t compete with powerful trusts. Trusts have too much political influence. They are able to buy favors from elected officials. The Argument in Favor of Trusts Competition can ruin businesses and put people out of work. The wealthy contribute the most to the community. Corporations bring lower production costs, lower prices, higher wages, and a better quality of life for all. By 1900, Americans had the highest standard of living in the world. In a free enterprise system, businesses are owned by private citizens. Private citizens decide what to make, how much to produce, where to sell, and what to charge. Some Americans said large corporations hurt the free enterprise system. In 1890, Congress passed the Sherman Antitrust Act, banning the formation of trusts and monopolies. However, the law was too weak to be effective.

3. Chapter 20, Section 2 The Growth of American Business Causes Railroad boom spurs business Businesses become corporations Nation has rich supply of natural resources New inventions make business more efficient The Rise of IndustryEffects Steel and oil become giant industries Monopolies and trusts dominate important industries Factory workers face harsh conditions Membership in labor unions grows Effects Today United States is world’s leading economic power American corporations do business around the world Government laws regulate monopolies

4. Chapter 20, Section 3 The Automobile and the Airplane Change American Life In 1913, Henry Ford introduced the moving assembly line. Workers stay in one place as products edge past them on a moving belt. The assembly line reduced the time needed to build a car. The assembly line allowed mass production—the making of large quantities of a product quickly and cheaply, which meant lower prices. Reaction to the automobile At first, people laughed at the automobile. Some thought it was a nuisance. Others thought it was dangerous. Automobiles gave people freedom to travel easily. Eventually automobiles would make travel quicker and trade easier. On December 17, 1903, Orville and Wilbur Wright made the first flight. The first flights did not attract much interest. No one could see any use for a flying machine. The United States military first saw a use for airplanes. They could fly over battlefields to locate enemy positions.

5. Chapter 20, Section 4 The Rise of Labor Organizations The problems workers faced The workplaceBefore the late 1800s, factories were small and family run. By the late 1800s, factories had become large, crowded, and noisy. Wages were low. In some industries, sweatshops became common. A sweatshop is a workplace where people labor long hours in poor conditions for low pay. Child laborIn 1900, nearly 2 million children under age 15 worked. Many worked in mills, tobacco factories, garment sweatshops, and coal mines. They had little chance to go to school. Hazards of work The workplace could be dangerous. For example, the air in textile mills was unhealthy and dust filled. Cave-ins and explosions occurred in mines. Vats of molten metal spilled in steel mills.

6. Chapter 20, Section 4 The Rise of Labor Organizations Knights of Labor In 1869, workers formed the Knights of Labor. At first, the union was open to skilled workers only. Knights of Labor president Terence Powderly worked to open the union to immigrants, African Americans, women, and unskilled workers. Knights goals included a shorter workday, an end to child labor, and equal pay for men and women. Powderly wanted workers and employers to share ownership and profits. Haymarket Square Workers at the McCormick Harvester Company went on strike. The Knights did not support the strike. The McCormick Company hired strikebreakers, or replacements for striking workers. Workers clashed with strikebreakers. Police opened fire, killing four workers. The next day, anarchists, people who oppose all organized government, led a rally in Haymarket Square. A bomb exploded, killing seven police officers. Eight anarchists were arrested for what was called the Haymarket Riot. Antilabor feeling swept the nation. Ways workers fought back

7. Chapter 20, Section 4 The Rise of Labor Organizations American Federation of Labor In 1886, Samuel Gompers organized the American Federation of Labor (AFL), for skilled workers only. Workers joined a trade union, a union of persons in the same trade, and the union then joined the AFL. The AFL worked for higher wages, shorter hours, improved working conditions, and collective bargaining, the right of unions to negotiate with management on behalf of workers. African Americans, immigrants, and unskilled workers were barred from trade unions, and thus, the AFL.

8. Chapter 20, Section 4 Women in the Workplace Women worked for better conditions, too. Mother JonesMary Harris Jones devoted much of her life to the cause of workers. By calling attention to abuses, she helped pave the way for reform. International Ladies’ Garment Workers Union (ILGWU) In 1900, garment workers organized the ILGWU, which went on strike for better conditions. More than 20,000 women and men walked off their jobs. After a few weeks, employers met demands for better pay and shorter hours. Triangle FireIn 1911, fire broke out in the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory in New York City. Nearly 150 people, mostly young women, died because the company had locked the doors to keep workers at their jobs. Their deaths shocked the public and led New York and other states to approve new safety laws to protect factory workers.

9. Chapter 20, Section 4 Organized Labor Falls on Hard Times Between 1870 and 1900, two major depressions and three recessions rocked the country. In such hard times, workers lost jobs or experienced pay cuts. In the 1870s railroad workers went on strike. In some places, the strikes turned into riots. In the 1870s and the 1890s, miners organized strike after strike. The federal government usually sided with business owners. Some Presidents sent in troops to end the strikes. Courts usually ruled against the strikers. In one case, Pullman workers were jailed for violating the Sherman Antitrust Act. This act was intended to keep trusts from limiting free trade. The courts, however, said that the strikers were limiting free trade. Union workers staged thousands of strikes during the late 1800s. However, few Americans supported the strikes. Many feared that unions were run by foreign-born radicals.