The Progressive Era by William Kuisel

The Working Class

wkuisel26 — 2024-07-14 16:34:58 UTC

The working class during the progressive era were working in very poor conditions and financially were not stable. A lot of the workers were primarily consisted of industrial workers, including men, women, and children, who labored in factories, mines, and mills. These workers often worked long hours to get a very low wage that barely covered their basic needs. Child labor also played into role for kids as young as 6 were working in the harsh factories to help with the family income. This happened in the late 19th century to the early 20th century in big cities such as New York and Chicago. A lot of citizens had no other choice than to accept this offer because of the necessity of workers and not a lot of employment opportunities, but people went to the government for help and they tried to protect their rights.

The New Consumer Culture

wkuisel26 — 2024-07-14 17:53:28 UTC

The new consumer culture was a rise of mass production of goods, making a lot of the consumer products more affordable. This new wave flourished in big cities where the economic growth increased opportunities for consumption of goods, but it was mainly from the middle class of the cities. People such as managers, and white collared shirts were the main people coming into this new culture. Also in the late 19th century, the economy was booming from all of the industries creating an excessive amount of goods. Advertisements and a large amount of department stores helped the new culture boom

Panic of 1873

wkuisel26 — 2024-07-14 18:26:55 UTC

In 1873, a banking firm by the name of Jay Cooke & Company had collapsed, ultimately making the stock market collapse. Because of this incident, it affected many workers and farmers causing wage cuts, job losses and many more devastating things. This was caused in the excessive amount of investment in railroads, land, and industrial expansion that led to unsustainable growth. In the end, it created a lot of tension between citizens with labor movements to increase their wages, and it created political consequences.

wkuisel26 — 2024-07-14 18:29:13 UTC

watch this short video to learn more about the incident in 1873

Scientific Management

wkuisel26 — 2024-07-14 19:04:14 UTC

During the late 19th Century, a profound scientist named Frederick Winslow Taylor, who was considered the father of Scientific management, positively affected our world today. Scientific management increased the efficiency and productivity of goods in industrial settings through systematic analysis and improvement of work processes. It helped reduce waste and increased out put which is a win win scenario. This method first was being used by industries and different assembly lines, but as time went on, these methods have been used globally in places such as Europe.

Knights of Labor

wkuisel26 — 2024-07-14 19:22:36 UTC

Founded by Uriah S. Stephens: Established in 1869 as a secret society in Philadelphia, later reorganized in 1878 under Terence V. Powderly, The Knights of Labor aimed to unify workers across various industries to speak out for better working conditions, shorter hours, and higher wages. They also promoted social reform. That included abolition of child labor, equal pay for equal work, and equal forms of ownership. This was all created because of the harsh working environments people had to endure, as well as long hours they worked for without good pay. The group protested, did strikes, and boycotted to get what is right.

American Federation of Labor (AFL)

wkuisel26 — 2024-07-14 19:33:09 UTC

Founded by Samuel Gompers and established in 1886 in Columbus, Ohio, The American Federation of Labor focused on organizing skilled workers into trade-specific unions, unlike the Knights of labor who protested for better rights. Their main reason for creating this group was for the skilled workers' rights. It addressed concerns specific to skilled trades, including job security, apprenticeships, and standardized wages. This positively made the economy better by bargaining for specific jobs.