THE RISE OFBIG

BUSINESS

Homework: Due at the Start of Next Class

Write a dialogue between a factory owner and a worker that might have taken place in 1900. Your dialogue must:

Begin with these opening lines: Worker: We on the

assembly line aren’t happy.

Owner: Well, what’s your beef?

Worker: I’ve got a list of complaints and I want to know your response. To begin with…

Contain at least 4 concerns of workers at the turn of the century.

Contain accurate responses by the factory owner to each of the worker’s concerns

Use the following terms: assembly line, working conditions, labor union, strike, profit

Use appropriate language that reflects the passionate feelings held by workers and owners.

Be free of spelling and grammatical errors.

Changes in American Society

America went from an

agricultural (farming)

society to an industrial

(factories) society.

Industrialization Industrialization:

using machines to do work usually done by people

Increase in the use of factories Age of Steel:

In 1872, a Scottish immigrant named Andrew

Carnegie brought a technique for making cheap

steel to America.

Steel is stronger than iron, and soon was used

to make many different products.

Bright ideas! 1870s: Thomas Edison developed the electric light

bulb.

1876: Alexander Graham Bell invented the

telephone.

Telephones made American industry more competitive

because suppliers, producers, sellers, and customers could

communicate quickly and easily.

Assembly Line Made popular by Henry Ford.

The assembly line was like a conveyor belt,

where a product was assembled one piece at

a time.

Each factory worker was responsible for one

part of the product.

The assembly line made creating products

faster and cheaper.

Urbanization Urbanization: the growth of cities

Immigrants and rural Americans flocked to

cities looking for jobs.

As cities swelled with workers, demand for cheap

housing exploded. To meet the demand,

developers threw up cheap apartments called

tenements.

Tenements were overcrowded and usually

didn’t have running water.

…comes new problems…

With new technology…

Working Conditions

Working conditions in factories were

horrible!

Low wages (women earned ~$1-$3/day!)

Long hours, no breaks

Hot in summer, cold in winter

No fire escapes or sprinkler systems

Dangerous machinery

20 minutes!! With a partner, read the passages about

the Triangle Factory and answer the questions.

Watch, Listen & THINK!

Complete the FQR on the next slide as you watch a video clip about the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire. What Facts do you hear? What Questions do you have? How do you Respond to what you see?

Triangle Shirtwaist Fire

F.Q.R.Facts I Hear

Questions I Have

Responses I Feel

Onlookers watching the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory burn

Hole in glass sidewalk skylight from a falling worker

Policemen cover the fallen bodies

Th

e b

roke

n fi

re e

scape

ladd

er

The 9th floor after the fire was out.

Vocabulary Labor Union: Organization of workers who join

together for collective bargaining and mutual protection

Assembly Line: A production system of machines and workers arranged so each person does one task again and again building efficiency

Working Conditions: environment in which business occurs. These can be both positive and negative

Strike: a stopping of work by workers to force an employer to meet demands

Profit: Remaining money after expenses are paid for

Homework: Due at the Start of Next Class

Write a dialogue between a factory owner and a worker that might have taken place in 1900. Your dialogue must:

Begin with these opening lines: Worker: We on the

assembly line aren’t happy.

Owner: Well, what’s your beef?

Worker: I’ve got a list of complaints and I want to know your response. To begin with…

Contain at least 4 concerns of workers at the turn of the century.

Contain accurate responses by the factory owner to each of the worker’s concerns

Use the following terms: assembly line, working conditions, labor union, strike, profit

Use appropriate language that reflects the passionate feelings held by workers and owners.

Be free of spelling and grammatical errors.