Shirtwaist Factory Fire Report

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Most people in America have to work a regular job in order to make a living; whether it is a 9-5 job in an office, or shift work in a factory or hospital. People work hard to put food on the table and keep a roof over their head. According to OSHA 4,679 people died while on the job in 2014; this number has dramatically decreased over the years thanks to the labor laws and safety requirements that have been put into place. Employees have not always been protected by labor laws and I believe that the Shirtwaist Factory Fire helped motivate people to push government officials for safety laws that still protect employees today. The main goal of a company is to make money. Sometimes the greed of the owners blinds them from seeing the conditions …show more content…

In 1900 the International Ladies’ Garment Workers’ Union (ILGWU) was founded by local unions. Many employees wanted the factories to join unions so that their concerns for a better workplace would be taken seriously. They wanted more pay, less hour requirements, and better safety conditions in the factory; like the locked safety exits. On November 24th 1909, more than a year prior to the fire, more than 15,000 shirtwaist factory employees walked out of the factories and started a strike that lasted fourteen weeks. During the strike the owners of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory hired prostitutes and thugs to fight with the shirtwaist picketers, and police were paid to look the other way. Police and city officials were paid off to have the picketers arrested and fined. Five months into the strike the employees came to an agreement with the owners. Their demands for increased wages and better hours were met however; the employees did not receive the union representation that may have changed the safety issues. (Documentry) Another issue prior to the fire was the lack of support for better factory safety from government officials. In an article called Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire: The Lessons of History, I learned how people’s opinions changed after the fire. The article gave a review of the Triangle Gathering that took place at the New York University’s Bobst Library during the 100th anniversary of the fire. (FRIEDMAN, ARTHUR, and KRISTI ELLIS) Richard Greenwald, a historian, was a speaker at the

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