Lesson 17: Social Issues (Part 1)
Due to urbanization, mechanization, the ending of Reconstruction, and many other influences, social issues began to take a forefront in the minds of people. There are many ways this was manifest so only a few will be discussed here.
Labor Unions
A labor union is a group of people who typically have similar jobs or employment. These people band together to fight for what they believe they deserve, whether that is better pay, health care, working conditions, etc. A labor union only works if those belonging to the union are willing to all do what the union says. Labor unions began as being only for skilled workers (meaning they had a particular trade such as mechanic), but eventually unions would spread to include unskilled workers as well.
The biggest tool a labor union has is a strike. A strike is where the union workers refuse to work until their demands are met. It works best when the employer does not know it is going to happen. An example of this is in the teacher's union. One year, the teachers in a Utah school district did not feel that the district was treating them well, so they planned to strike. The plan was that none of the teachers belonging to the union would show up to work on a particular day. The results would be that students would show up to school and there wouldn't be any (or hardly any) teachers there. The administrations would be frantically trying to find substitutes for the classes, but districts don't hire enough substitutes to cover 90% of the classrooms in the district on the same day, so it would leave the entire district scrambling to make sure students were being supervised. There was no way that the students would learn anything that day. Parents would hear about it and complain to the district, forcing the district to meet the demands of the teachers so they would go back to work.
Unfortunately for the teachers, it didn't work out this way. The union, instead of keeping the plan and date a secret, told the media. The district got word out to the parents that there wasn't school and it just turned into a day off school for everyone. Then, during spring break, the students and teachers had to make the day up because the state requires so many days of school attendance. In this case, the strike did not work.
Although strikes are the most powerful tool a labor union has, it is very unpopular. Think of what all the parents would have thought about the teachers and the district had the teacher's union performed their strike correctly. Strikes are also unpopular because historically they have turned violent. Due to violence, numbers of people joining labor unions after the 1890s declined. There would be more labor unions today had previous strikes not been violent.
The most radical labor union in the late 1800s was the Knights of Labor. Read about the Knights of Labor here: http://www.history.com/topics/knights-of-labor
Labor unions, though they often have bad reputations, actually have fought for some really good things. They "fought" (not meaning violently) for the 10 hour work day. Eventually they would fight again for the 8 hour work day, which is why in most jobs, if you work more than an 8 hours a day/ 40 hours a week you get paid time and a half (1 1/2 of your regular hourly wage). Today, this is combatted by businesses by putting their employees on salary, rather than an hourly wage, meaning that the person gets a certain amount of money to do a job (typically expected to take about 50 hours a week). This way, the company gets more work out of an individual for less money because if that employee works more than 40 hours, the company doesn't have to pay them more.
Labor unions fought for fair wages (which is a good thing). This would lead to the federal government's enactment of a minimum wage. Depending on if you believe in the Republican or Democratic party beliefs, minimum wage is a good or bad thing.
Labor unions fought for safer working conditions. This would lead to the creation of Worker's Compensation, OSHA, and other agencies who inspect the workplace to make sure it is safe for employees.
Retirement funds came from the efforts of labor unions. During the 1800s there was no such thing as Social Security. You had to save money (which was pretty much impossible if you were an unskilled worker) to survive without a job, though most people of the time worked until they died.
Lastly, health care is a benefit that labor unions fought for. Though there were many problems with early labor unions (and even some labor unions today), they have paved the way for better benefits for workers in the United States.
The biggest tool a labor union has is a strike. A strike is where the union workers refuse to work until their demands are met. It works best when the employer does not know it is going to happen. An example of this is in the teacher's union. One year, the teachers in a Utah school district did not feel that the district was treating them well, so they planned to strike. The plan was that none of the teachers belonging to the union would show up to work on a particular day. The results would be that students would show up to school and there wouldn't be any (or hardly any) teachers there. The administrations would be frantically trying to find substitutes for the classes, but districts don't hire enough substitutes to cover 90% of the classrooms in the district on the same day, so it would leave the entire district scrambling to make sure students were being supervised. There was no way that the students would learn anything that day. Parents would hear about it and complain to the district, forcing the district to meet the demands of the teachers so they would go back to work.
Unfortunately for the teachers, it didn't work out this way. The union, instead of keeping the plan and date a secret, told the media. The district got word out to the parents that there wasn't school and it just turned into a day off school for everyone. Then, during spring break, the students and teachers had to make the day up because the state requires so many days of school attendance. In this case, the strike did not work.
Although strikes are the most powerful tool a labor union has, it is very unpopular. Think of what all the parents would have thought about the teachers and the district had the teacher's union performed their strike correctly. Strikes are also unpopular because historically they have turned violent. Due to violence, numbers of people joining labor unions after the 1890s declined. There would be more labor unions today had previous strikes not been violent.
The most radical labor union in the late 1800s was the Knights of Labor. Read about the Knights of Labor here: http://www.history.com/topics/knights-of-labor
Labor unions, though they often have bad reputations, actually have fought for some really good things. They "fought" (not meaning violently) for the 10 hour work day. Eventually they would fight again for the 8 hour work day, which is why in most jobs, if you work more than an 8 hours a day/ 40 hours a week you get paid time and a half (1 1/2 of your regular hourly wage). Today, this is combatted by businesses by putting their employees on salary, rather than an hourly wage, meaning that the person gets a certain amount of money to do a job (typically expected to take about 50 hours a week). This way, the company gets more work out of an individual for less money because if that employee works more than 40 hours, the company doesn't have to pay them more.
Labor unions fought for fair wages (which is a good thing). This would lead to the federal government's enactment of a minimum wage. Depending on if you believe in the Republican or Democratic party beliefs, minimum wage is a good or bad thing.
Labor unions fought for safer working conditions. This would lead to the creation of Worker's Compensation, OSHA, and other agencies who inspect the workplace to make sure it is safe for employees.
Retirement funds came from the efforts of labor unions. During the 1800s there was no such thing as Social Security. You had to save money (which was pretty much impossible if you were an unskilled worker) to survive without a job, though most people of the time worked until they died.
Lastly, health care is a benefit that labor unions fought for. Though there were many problems with early labor unions (and even some labor unions today), they have paved the way for better benefits for workers in the United States.
Immigration
This was discussed in the lesson urbanization, but here is a brief review. There was an immigration explosion out of eastern Europe (Greece, Italy, Poland, Russia, etc.) between 1865 and 1900. Over 30 million of these immigrants came to the United States. They struggled here in the United States because of language barriers. Many were unskilled workers. They didn't believe in the same Protestant religions as the majority of Americans (the majority of immigrants being Catholic, Greek Orthodox, or Jews). Lastly, they were not white Arians like previous immigrants from western Europe, so they stood out. A nativist (anti-immigrant) movement began in the United States against these new immigrants.
Darwinism
The theories of Charles Darwin were catching hold in the United States during this era. Charles Darwin theorized that plants, animals, and humans evolve based on their environment. His theories then were applied by politicians to society. This is known as Social Darwinism. Read about Social Darwinism here: http://www.britannica.com/topic/social-Darwinism
Assignment #3
1. What is a labor union?
2. What is a labor union's biggest tool?
3. Why did numbers of people in labor unions decline after the 1890s?
4. In your opinion, what do you think is the biggest reason Americans didn't like new immigrants during this time period? Explain your opinion.
5. Explain in your own words what social Darwinism is.
6. What did the Knights of Labor do?
7. Describe the difference between skilled and unskilled laborers.
8. What kind of laborers or workers were the majority of immigrants between 1865 and 1900?
9. Five things were given above as good things that labor unions fought for. Out of the five, which is the most important to you? Why?
10. What theory was used to support laissez-faire capitalism? Explain how it supports laissez-faire capitalism.
2. What is a labor union's biggest tool?
3. Why did numbers of people in labor unions decline after the 1890s?
4. In your opinion, what do you think is the biggest reason Americans didn't like new immigrants during this time period? Explain your opinion.
5. Explain in your own words what social Darwinism is.
6. What did the Knights of Labor do?
7. Describe the difference between skilled and unskilled laborers.
8. What kind of laborers or workers were the majority of immigrants between 1865 and 1900?
9. Five things were given above as good things that labor unions fought for. Out of the five, which is the most important to you? Why?
10. What theory was used to support laissez-faire capitalism? Explain how it supports laissez-faire capitalism.