Labor Is Not A Simple Construct - 2398 Words

Essay #3: Labor is not a simple construct. It is made up of a multitude of people with unique background and traits. While these people worked hard, it was not always easy to be treated justly. Many important events arose along labor’s growth in the United States encompassing identifiers such as race, class and gender. These different areas are an integral part of labor and will continue to be. Most of these identities overlap at certain points but it is worth mentioning them separately as each individual aspect of labor contributed a substantial amount to further the progress of labor within the United States even through the most difficult times. Gender, Race, and Class have played an important part in shaping U.S Labor history. One of†¦show more content†¦This in turn led the company to exploit their women workers by instituting speedups and a 20% paycut. Led by Sarah Bagley in 1845, 70 female workers walked out of the factory and demanded to the MA legislature for a 10-hour work day. While this ultimately failed and led to the company hiring more immigrant laborers that were willing to take the pay cut, it opened the door for women to fight for their rights at their workplaces. In 1860, women once again played an important role in labor. The Lynn Strike of 1860 would not have been as effective if it were not for women. Women helped form the â€Å"social networks that made the demonstrations even possible.† They also held their own female-only rallies that carried signs that demanded they not be treated like slaves and if they are given fair compensation then they would be more than happy to return to work. Women would ultimately abandon the strike resulting in its failure. During the Progre ssive Era, women like Jane Addams and Ida B. Wells were activists for the people, including labor, by the former setting up settlement housing and the latter writing pamphlets on lynching that would shock the world. Women emerge again in full force during WWII. Before WWII, 15.9 million women were employed and during the peak of the war 19.5 million women contributed to the war effort back home. After the