Labor Reform by Hadley Preston

Education v. Money...

129446_4 — 2025-01-30 20:22:17 UTC

Sandburg worked as a child and understood the insider secrets of child labor. He watched as children and adults alike put themselves in harm's way every day just for money. The kids shown above worked in dangerous environments with exposed gears and machinery for up to 12 hours straight. Rather than risking their lives in unventilated factories, children joined the labor reform movement and took to the streets demanding education.

Jacobin

National Park Service

Road to Progress...

129446_4 — 2025-01-30 20:59:29 UTC

The Seattle Union Record published the above cartoon in favor of the recent labor reform movement. It depicts the strong and large foot of organized labor headed towards progress while a small and 'shortsighted employer' attempts to hold it back. Former President Roosevelt agrees with the idea that labor unions are allowing workers to head into the future as he believes they must be paid sufficiently in order to participate in their ever-growing society.

Wikipedia

Muller V Oregon 1908

2025-01-31 20:29:08 UTC

Curt Muller, the owner of a laundry business, was fined $10 for overworking his female employess who were not supposed to work over 10 hours. The supreme court decided to uphold this law. This set an example for future labor regulations. The "Brandeis Breif" played an important role in this decision by discussing the important role of women in American society. The image above shows women working long hours in a factory.

Britanica

Keating-Owen Child Labor Act 1916

2025-02-01 23:31:21 UTC

In 1916 the Progressive movement sought to address issues involving child labor. Because local factory rules were under state law, Congress decided to ban interstate commerce of goods produced by children under the age of 14. However, in 1917 the Supreme Court decided this law was unconstitutional. The image above shows a newspaper headline while congress was enacting this law. The quote above is from Section 3 of the Act stating that the Secretary of labor and whoever he sends will have the power to inspect these workplaces at any time.

Pettengill

Workmen's Compensation

2025-02-02 00:16:08 UTC

During the Progressive era, workmen's compensation laws became increasingly popular. These laws provided benefits to any workers who have been injured on their job regardless of who was at fault. The image above shows Wisconsin's Worker's Compensation Law, which was the first. The quote above explains the history of workers compensation laws.

USDepartmentofLabor

LaborHistory

Carl Sandburg

2025-02-02 00:32:59 UTC

Carl Sandburg was a poet and activist against child labor. The image above shows a poem he wrote in 1916 talking about children who are forced to work instead of living their childhood. The quote above is also from Carl Sandburg discussing his take on child labor.

NationalParkService

InternetPoem

Lewis Hine

129824_8 — 2025-02-03 09:18:36 UTC

Lewis Hine's photography powerfully visualized the immorality America was experiencing in the midst of a second industrial revolution: making the wealthy richer through the work of small, feeble hands. Years later in her 1983 newspaper, New York Times writer Gutman wrote about the issue, discussing how Hine's photography caught the inner strength a human can possess, even if it meant enduring endless, tiring hours as a young boy or girl. Even years later when child labor wasn't as prominent, it still existed in Gutman times and it still does today, emphasizing how despite progress in past decades, the degradation of morale is prominent when it comes to money.

Not for Kids: Little Workers in Lewis Hine’s Photographs

Lewis Hines Last Legacy

The Road to Liberation

129824_8 — 2025-02-03 09:40:16 UTC

As said by the Library of Congress, this period was a time of unrest, yet that did not hinder people from stepping up and giving their voice. In the picture, there is a whole lot going on. From the typical top hat Gilded Age man stooping over the large crowd of laborers, to the man picking up a rock, to the mother and her two children cast to the side, all parties were involved. This was a time of chaos but change as well. This large crowd embodies the true feeling everyone at the bottom of the social hierarchy was experiencing: resistance. This went hand-in-hand with fueling the labor reform movement.

Striking Scenes

America at Work

Through the Voices of the Overlooked

129824_8 — 2025-02-03 10:45:05 UTC

Despite years of unrest between the black and white race, both the black and white man had come together in the Progressive Movement to fight against the unjust lifestyles they had both been forced to live as visualized in the picture. While both groups had their struggles, black people suffered lower wages and went through segregation and lynching, placing them even lower than the white man, yet that did not stop them from coming together and going past their race in their fight in the labor movement, emphasizing what the human capability can achieve through solidarity. As said by Randolph, the struggle to achieve justice must be continuous.

Hall of Honor Inductee: A. Philip Randolph

Black laborers in the Iron Industry

2025-02-03 20:06:57 UTC

Questions

2025-02-03 20:30:23 UTC

Skills-Based

How did the labor reforms from the progressive era impact the workforce in today's society?

Inference

What were the main goals of the labor reform movement?

How did the Muller v. Oregon case influence labor reforms?

Factual

What was the greatest number of hours women were supposed to work?

What did Lewis Hine capture through his photography?