The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire A Case Study - 908 Words

Von Drehle (2004) outlines the Triangle Shirtwaist fire as a tragedy of the gilded age. The fire occurred in New York in 1911, and 146 people perished. The fire broke out in a shirtwaist or blouse factory in Greenwich Village. The workers inside, most of them Jewish women, worked in sweatshop conditions common to the industry at the time. They worked in the factory to support their families, and often had no other means of support. They had little or no say over their working conditions, which was standard practice at the time. While there were activists who fought for workers rights, in that era they had little power. The factory had little fire control equipment or other safety standards, and this lack of standards allowed the fire to spread rapidly. The locks to the factory had been locked from the outside ostensibly to prevent theft and as a result the workers were trapped inside the factory during the inferno. Many of those who died had jumped to their deaths to escape the blaze . While the owners of the factory were acquitted on their charges, the fire led to dramatic changes in workers protections and womens rights. Pence et al (2003) argue that the fire and its sensational trial was the genesis of laws safeguarding workers in addition to being a seminal moment in womens rights. On the former point, the fire can be viewed in the context of Gilded Age business practices. Von Drehle notes that there were few safety codes on the books at the time. The idea ofShow MoreRelatedThe True Cost Of The Garment Industry1017 Words   |  5 Pagestougher workplace safety but it is appropriate for Bangladesh to have lower standards because the country is a a lot poorer than what Americans are used to in the United States (Rees). He states that over the past 100 years (since the Triangle Shirtwaist factory fire) the American workforce has gotten safer and Bangladesh in the past 20 years has gotten a lot richer (Rees). III. Argument United Kingdom human rights group, Behind the Labour argues that, sweatshops do not alleviate poverty, theRead MoreJob Satisfaction : Traditional And Modern Study4181 Words   |  17 PagesJob Satisfaction: Traditional and modern study In the classic block buster movie from 1956, the legendary actor Charlton Heston playing the role of Moses’ declared to Pharaoh â€Å"Let my people go† (Exodus 5:1, New International Version). This is a reenactment of the Old Testament account from the Book of Exodus, where Moses is referring the Jewish people that are being used as slave labor by the Egyptians to build the pyramids. Archeologists and historians estimate the story of Exodus originated betweenRead MoreEssay on The Role of Labor in American History9019 Words   |  37 Pagescan only touch the high spots of activity and identify the principal trends of a century of achievement. In such a condensation of history, episodes of importance and of great human drama must necessarily be discussed far too briefly, or in some cases relegated to a mere mention. What is clearly evident, however, is that the working people of America have had to unite in struggle to achieve the gains that they have accumulated during this century. Improvements did not come easily. OrganizingRead MoreInternational Management67196 Words   |  269 PagesHodgetts, Fred Luthans, Jonathan Doh. 6th ed. 2006. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN-13: 978-0-07-811257-7 ISBN-10: 0-07-811257-5 1. International business enterprises—Management. 2. International business enterprises—Management—Case studies. I. Doh, Jonathan P. II. Hodgetts, Richard M. International management. III. Title. HD62.4.H63 2012 658 .049—dc22 2011002070 www.mhhe.com Dedicated in Memory of Richard M. Hodgetts A Pioneer in International Management Education iii