Industrial Revolution: Big Business In The Gilded Age

Big Business in the Gilded Age

The Industrial Revolution lasted from 1870- 1900. This 30 year span began the current production industry style as well as the “necessities”, like light and power we have today. But that is not to say it came easy. Hundreds to thousands of people suffered the horrendous conditions in sweatshops and the slave like treatment. Imagine working hot, small, overpopulated work space for cents a day or week. Starting from as young as five just to make enough for a loaf of bread. The Industrial Revolution had many downsides but with every negative there is a positive. The positives here are the electricity to run the factories and machines, the lights to allow work into the night hours. But the positives did not always
A sweatshop was a hot, dirty, unsafe workplace mainly in the clothing industry. Many of the factories had the awful conditions and the workers were not paid a fair wage for the work conducted. In addition to unsafe conditions and underpaid the workers often worked 10-12 hour shifts with limited breaks in between. Generally the factories employed children as young as five years old. These children were underdeveloped physically and had serious bone deformities due to the cramped work spaces. Any factory worker was not regularly educated in hopes of preventing rebellions but the few that were educated enough to have known spoke up for their rights. These workers tried to ask the business owners for better conditions but they said no so the workers “demand[ed] a reduction of the hours of labor, which would give a due share of work and wages to the reserve army of labor and eliminate many of the worst abuses of the industrial system now filling our poor houses and jails…” (document 6) This quote comes from Samuel Gompers the founder of the AFL, a union for craftsmen. Gompers and the AFL lead many protests for better working conditions for the people. Samuel and many others knew the workers were not being treated of paid fairly so these unions formed and took a stand against big business. Although the sweatshops were bad for the worker the consumer benefited
businesses expanded their effect of the community and people by growing bigger, which impacted the response to industrialist many Americans had. The industrial revolution brought thousands of jobs to the cities and gave the people a source of income and living. But with the increase of factories conditions of work began to decline to almost inhabitable causing many people to suffer and try to protest against the business owners. Finally the factories made such high production rates the formation of department stores allowed all americans to shop and buy whatever they needed or wanted. The industrial revolution benefited the deceleration of independence in the matter of equality. Industry provided a job for man women and children but also prohibited some of the rights the Declaration states. One right that was denied is the right to a just government who provides laws of protection and safety. There were no laws prohibiting the big businesses from forcing employees to work long hazardous shifts in the factories. Good or bad the Industrial revolution was a time period in America's history that has provided the advanced technology used in schools and the work force