Table of Contents Are new production techniques like Ford's assembly line good or bad for workers? ………………………………………………………….p.3 Have the Republican Era presidents of the 1920’s been good or bad for american workers? ………………………………………………………...p.4-5 What should workers be fighting for in the 1920’s? ………………………………………………………..p.6-9 Are unions good or bad for workers? ………………………………………………………..p.10-11 Group Editorial ………………………………………………………..p. 12
Were new production techniques good or bad for workers. By: Alexis Stumpf
New production techniques were things that they used in factories when making goods, for example henry ford's assembly line was an example of a production technique that was very popular. I think that things like this was good for workers because they help make things faster and more efficient. Production techniques like Henry Ford's assembly lines for cars were good for the workers because they were a much faster and more efficient way of making goods for people and consumers. Workers did not have to work as hard with these production techniques because they splitted up the worker that they were good at and they worker at that. Mass production also was a benefit to workers because it was basically a large scale of assembly lines that use interchangeable parts. Interchangeable parts are parts that they use in assembly lines, they are ensured to fit any assembly of the same type. Not just workers benefit from these production techniques people also do. At the rate that workers can make and produce certain goods they were able to sell these goods at a lower price and more people would be able to afford some things that they normally wouldn't be able to. Also they government benefits from this because with more people buy goods the government is getting more money.
Some of the negative aspects of working with new techniques was they didn't need as many people so more and more workers were being laid off. So companies would cut back workers hours or just cut them off all together, which was not a good thing for workers. Also some workers may not like the idea of new production techniques and this could make them not want to work their anymore and this could be bad for other workers. For most workers new production techniques were good but some people may argue that they are not. Most of the time they make work easier and more efficient and they were able to make more product in less amount of time. So I believe that new production techniques are good for workers.
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The Republican Presidents of Today (1920s) Are Causing Harm to American Workers By Mikail Syed Today, I will be discussing the current Republican Era
presidents. The Republican presidents have been annoying the workers’ socks off recently. This is primarily because our Republican presidents - Presidents Coolidge and Hoover - did not take action for American workers or countered their protests. Herbert Hoover would have been an excellent president for a good economy. He was not much prepared or even knowledgeable regarding a bad economy. But when stocks were encouraged, people bought stocks by borrowing money. Eventually, there was no money left and even the rich suffered, causing the Great Depression. Hoover failed to do anything regarding the problem, which in turn hurt his ratings. In 1929, people lost interest in stocks and decided to sell them. This was a problem as banks lost all their money and could not pay anyone back. Investors lost their money at this point. Businesses could not hold onto their money, or make anymore, especially considering the fall of banks. The country is going to take years to recover, and Hoover again could not solve the problem, due to his lack of knowledge on an unstable economy. Had Hoover been able to deal with the Great Depression, his ratings could have improved significantly. Hoover was more fit to serve for a good economy due to his experience with business, but he was almost no match for a country with a bad economy. Little did he know the economy was going to fall, and he could not prepare to deal with the economy. Hoover, as a result, could not counter the Great Depression. Aside from the Depression, Hoover was otherwise seen as a good president, but the Great Depression was a mainstream issue in which he could not solve. Hoover was undoubtedly given low ratings as a president.
President Coolidge gained popularity in a very rude way. Workers were losing ground and protested the minimum wage. This in turn caused Coolidge to counter this by attacking the workers and not solve the problem, which made him more popular. He overall opposed helping workers and changing their minimum wage, which could cause workers to lose spirit overall. Coolidge is, as a result, was not a good example for a president who would support American workers in any way. Demobilization was also a problem. The government was the main problem, so the presidents, as part of the government, were awarded a bad reputation as a result. Government officials clogged telephone lines. Factories could not get supplies or reach their workers and closed. Other businesses that relied on the telephone were forced to close. The presidents were the cause of the problem. Republican Era presidents are very bad for American workers. Coolidge would counter workers, and Hoover could not deal with the Great Depression, creating a big crisis for the American workers who run the country’s business affairs. This leaves the entire country impacted in a negative way. The Great Depression is also marked as a historic event. The word should be spread so that the president can make changes and help our American workers.
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The American Worker By Mikail Syed
Join Together, Fight The Power By Lem Elliott “Change can only happen once you strive for change”. Unions were good for America for it was essentially the only way for the workers to make a change to their work environment. America had no plans for demobilization, so once the war ended everyone went on a spending spree, resulting in a large spike of inflation; reducing the value of a dollar by more than 15 percent. The high inflation reduced the standard of living greatly for almost everyone except for the extremely wealthy. From this 100,000 businesses went bankrupt, and 453,000 farmers lost their land. Since there was high inflation, a huge crime wave occurred in America, where crime like The South Braintree became commonplace; and received little newspaper coverage. People had resorted to crime, for it was the only way they could get by during the recession. Bosses took advantage of their employees. Bosses tried to pay their workers for as little and as long as possible. Bosses didn’t bother for the conditions of their workers. If a worker got and injury bosses simply hired a new worker to replace them. Despite all this, hate against unions caused anarchy in cities. When the Boston police force went on a strike, it caused a huge increase in crime. When 100,000 people had a general strike the mayor called called it an attempted revolution and called in federal troops. Even though all of this happened, in 1919 there were more than 3,600 strikes Because of this, the unions power diminished after several supreme court decisions. They rejected across the country. increasing the maximum wage for children. Made the average income well below $1,500 a year; far less than people needed to survive. Unions are the only way to lead change forward, for most bosses won’t change their ways unless it negatively affects them. Unions have a good cause, but their execution wasn’t the greatest. If they improve upon their methods for change, it would’ve greatly helped the entire workforce. Yet despite how they would of helped, fear of a full revolution reduced the unions power greatly.
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Lem Elliott
Are unions Good or Bad For the U.S.? By Max Becher Unions are good for america because they
The most important thing to remember is
are there to make sure workers are being paid and
that unions are good for america because they are
respected the way that they should be. Unions are
there to make sure workers are being paid and be
groups of workers working together to make a
respected in the ways they should.
difference for themselves and other workers of America. Unions are making lives easier for workers, for example the IWW (Industrial Workers of the World) Marine Transport Workers Union led by black activist Ben Fletcher organized the Longshoremen in Baltimore and Philadelphia promoting solidarity between whites and blacks in the workplace. The IWW’s campaign to defend free speech was an inspiration for the founding of the American Civil Liberties Union in 1920 to defend dissidents and protect the bill of rights. But there are some conflicts that unions can cause for example in 1919 unions staged more than 3600 strikes across the U.S.. But that does not mean they’re a dangerous threat, but the only time that strikes caused a threat was in 1919 when boston police walked of their jobs.
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United Workers in the 1920’s By: Natalie Dunlap Our nation has just been freed from a World War. This should be a time of celebration and joy, but instead we find ourselves in an economical recession. The working class are suffering and it’s causing workers to organize. At the return of four million soldiers, the United States simply doesn’t have enough jobs. Those who do have jobs are suffering through long hours, in poor conditions, with low pay. The government is doing nothing to regulate industry because five million people in the United States are unemployed, and lots of people are willing to do any job to provide for their family. In addition, the value of the dollar has sunk over 15% because of the sudden spike in consumerism that occurred right after the war. This inflation has led to higher prices and and less pay for workers. Farmers are producing more, but losing land. The cost of living is higher, and while the working class suffer, the wealthy are given tax breaks. Because of all this suffering, workers have been organizing in unions and striking. Most unions are fighting for better conditions, higher pay, shorter hours and work regulation. Organizing is not easy though, outside forces and problems within work staff prevent organization and progression.
unemployment so high, some workers don’t want to risk losing their jobs by walking out. Organizing groups of different races is difficult because of language barriers and discrimination. Some unions are exclusive to certain races. Furthermore, industries are working to keep power from the unions to prevent organization. It leaves us with the question, is the progress made in the workforce during the war gone? And if so, will workers ever be working in the proper conditions?
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UNITED WE CAN IMPROVE THE WORK PLACE
By; Natalie Dunlap
The Struggle of an Industrial Worker by: Alexis Stumpf, Lem Elliot, Max Becher, Natalie Dunlap and Mikail Syed Since the turn of the century when factory work began, there have been labor disputes and workers suffering in poor conditions. More recently, workers have been protesting and striking for better conditions and pay; unfortunately workers have not been successful in their struggle for better working conditions. Workers have tried to create change by joining unions. Unions are work forces that help workers fight for fairness in the workplace. Workers also attempt to succeed by striking; however, President Coolidge countered against the strikes and was given popularity as a result, and cemented the worker's’ current status. Not much change has come from this though. First of all, workers are hard to organize. Some workers are unwilling to go on strike because they don’t want to lose their jobs. Industry bosses also are trying to prevent organization by keeping power from these unions. In addition, some unions are exclusive and for specific types of workers. The government is also not on the workers side this century. 1920’s presidents either don’t get involved in labor disputes or go against the workers, which in turn results in an
increase or decrease in presidential popularity. Such as Calvin Coolidge, who countered against the American workers when they protested; he attacked any worker who dared to strike, and as a result was deemed more popular. Herbert Hoover had also failed to address workers’ problems in the Great Depression, due to his inexperience with a poor economy. In addition, the Supreme Court has made decisions that weaken unions. Workers have been set back by a far margin because of the Great Depression
People were encouraged to buy stocks. Businesses and banks had to close because they could not pay everyone back. Herbert Hoover could not help with this, and was given low ratings. Workers were thus given less pay and not only did they suffer, the world was suffering as well. Overall, the 1920s have been an age of suffering for workers.The workers have received cruel treatment and can´t seem to make a difference. 12