Workers Protest Factory Conditions
Will their dream of a 10-hour workday come true?
Workers Fight For a Better Workplace
As a result, many workers are forming groups called trade unions that lobby for better conditions. Many workers are even walking off the job (called "striking") until the government gives them what they demand! Employers and managers of mills say that forming a trade union isn't allowed. However, the Massachusetts Supreme Court has ruled in Commonwealth v. Hunt that forming one is not illegal. A woman named Sarah Bagley led a major labor movement, and successfully convinced the Massachusetts legislature to lower the working hours from 16-18 to a maximum of 10 after much negotiating.
Despite this, most of these efforts to reform mills have not been successful. Children as young as 12 are still allowed to take adult jobs, many states' workdays have only been slightly shortened to a 12-hour day, and some haven't lowered the hours at all. Wages have not increased for the most part, and strikers might suffer a deduction from pay, especially if their effort fails. Even so, many people still come to work in the mills, despite the unfavorable conditions. As one man said, "It provides more money than working on the farm."
A Lowell Mill
Many workers are fighting to have better living and working conditions in mills like this one.
Sarah Bagley
Sarah Bagley is one of the leaders of the labor movement and is an advocate for worker's rights.
Strikers in New York
Workers are walking right off the job in hope that a labor shortage will make mill owners comply with their demands of better pay and a shorter workday.