US Labor History

Improved Essays
US Labor history
Introduction
The US labor force has gone through various transitions over the years, and that is attributed to the changes in the management systems. In the 19th and start of the 20th century, workers in the US were faced with various problems. The problems included low wages, poor working conditions, long working hours and a poor working relationship between the employees and their seniors. Apparently, this led to the formation of labor unions and trade unions to help in addressing the workers issues (Broadberry & Irwin, 2004). However, the labor unions did not succeed in addressing the problems. Hence, this led to the formation of counteractions in the form of strikes, boycotts and sabotage. The managers, on the other side, were not left behind, as they came up with their ways to handle the resistance from the employees. In this case, both parties would end up suffering as no one would not listen to the other party’s complaints. Management should have came up with ways to address the employees issues, and this would have led to a good working relationship between both parties. Discussion Problems experienced by the employees from the 1800s to 1970s The labor force in the US was faced with various problems during the period above.
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The problems in the workplace led to these employees feeling demotivated towards putting their best in their jobs (Broadberry & Irwin, 2004). Moreover, it led to a poor working relationship between the normal employees and their superiors. The problems are discussed below.
Low wages
The problems of low wages affected most of the labour forces across the US (Rogers, 2001). The employees would work tirelessly, but at the end of the day, they would go home with low wages. Hence, this led to a spread of poverty in the US as well as individuals leading a low lifestyle. In 1890, for instance, the Pullman Palace Car Company decided to cut the wages of their employees in the name of an increase in the company’s profitability. Hence, this shows how the companies in the US focused on ensuring that their employees had low wages.
Long working hours
The workers were subjected to long hard labor. The workers were meant to work for at most ten hours so that they would attain their wages (Countrystudies.us, 2015). The construction of the railway, for instance, saw to it that the laborers had to ensure that they worked hard to earn their wages. In as much as the employees worked for long, they were demotivated by the aspect of not spending enough time with their families. Poor working conditions The employees would work for long hours, with low wages and at a poor working environment. The coal workers at the Midwest mines, for instance, were subjected to hard labor in poor working environments. Most of the employees would end up getting sick, and even dying, but were never compensated. Poor working relationship between the employees and their seniors Due to the problems at the workplace such as poor wages, long working hours and poor working conditions, the relationship between the employees and the management team worsened (Countrystudies.us, 2015). The managers worked hard to see to it that the employees’ lives were a living hell. At the same time, the employees planned to counteract. Reaction of the employees to the problems arising at the workplace With the increased lack of

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