We, as a society, have become greatly accustomed to the idea of anyone working 40 hours a week from 9AM-5PM, on Mondays through Fridays. We are so used to this concept that the struggles which were faced in order to reach this norm are regularly overlooked and forgotten. Just a little over one hundred years ago, the people of the labor force in New York, specifically in the garment industry, were working 56-58 hours per week while being compensated with a little over three dollars for their labor. At the time, New York City was the largest industrial city in the country and garment production was its largest manufacturing business. Due to this, thousands of people, mostly immigrants, were affected by the crazy hours and subpar pay that they were receiving and these issues are highlighted in Chapter 8 of Activist New York by Steven Jaffe as well as “Immigrant Women and Work” by Nancy Foner.
In order to understand how and why this situation was reached, it’s important to understand the people that were working and facing these circumstances and how they got to America. In a clearly organized and informative piece, Nancy Foner is able to describe the lives of immigrant, specifically Italian and Jewish, mothers and daughters in “Immigrant Women and Work”. At first the immigrants were mostly men and as they became more established and had enough money, they brought over working-aged kids followed by the mothers/wives and young children. Many Jewish girls worked in the garment factories (Foner 111). They mainly worked outside of the house to support their families to ensure for food and a roof over their heads. Almost all of the girls income went straight into covering house expenses, while boys were given some financial independence with how they spent their money. Additionally, it was normal for boys to receive higher educations that were funded by the salaries of their sisters.
In 1910 regulations were put into place to limit the amount of hours that people had to work, however most of the girls took on over time because they were afraid of getting fired if they didn’t work extra shifts. These extra hours also helped cover expenses for their homes. In addition to barely receiving wages, these girls were fined for any mistakes they made while on the job and they also had to pay for chairs and lockers. Along with unfair pay and long hours, the working conditions of the companies were dire and unsafe. Although life was bleak filled with working at factories as well as home, there were some benefits for working girls. They were able to socialize and make friends which enable them to express their thoughts in a new environment. They were exposed to many more ideas and different people compared to what was found in the four walls of their homes. Also the freedom to work outside of the house gave many girls the freedom and liberation to choose their spouses.
Compared to immigrant daughters, the lives of immigrant mothers were vastly different. Most didn’t work and stayed at home doing domestic work. For Jewish women, this was a distinct lifestyle compared to the lives that they lead back home as many eastern- European Jewish women were involved in business and acted as the breadwinner of the family. In the US, married women making money was seen as a result of financial trouble within the family, and not as a respectable choice. During the early years of immigration, women that wanted to work would do so from home by making things or help run their shops. As an additional source of income, Jewish families would house boarders so the women would cook and clean for them which could count as working. Immigrant, married, Italian women also faced a similar reality to the Jewish mothers. However, it was more common for an Italian women to go outside and work in a factory to help support the family because their husbands would generally earn less money than the Jewish men. The reason behind the difference why it was less acceptable for a women to work in NY is because the housework here was more taxing and difficult. Back home, people would have their own parents to help and raise their kids however this was a big thing that was missing in American life. In addition, “housework was generally more demanding in America” (Foner 119). The use of sheets and fabric was a new concept and they needed to be washed and aired on a weekly basis.
Similar to their daughters, immigrant mothers would often socialize with friends. They would also hold the power to purchase what was needed for the house from the income of their children and husband. On the other hand, due to the the fact that they were mostly always at home, Jewish and Italian mothers rarely learned English or other American customs. Although they socialized with friends in the area, they felt a lack of community in America, compared to back home.
Most of the workforce in the garment industry consisted of the immigrant daughters. In order to try and combat the horrible working conditions, unions were formed that gave the group of workers (who had no authority) power in numbers; a practice that employers were against. Through the use of strikes, boycotting, as well as picketing, women across New York were able to demand change. One of the people who first insisted for a strike was Clara Lemlich, a garment worker who was forced to work unbelievable hours in dangerous condition with barely any pay along with 20,000 other people. These practices were not welcomed with open arms and in fact, “Employers hired prostitutes and male criminals to provoke and rough up picketers” (Jaffe 126). Employers believed that they were the only ones who had the rights to determine the wages for their employees. Surprisingly, the employers themselves did not make much more money than the immigrants that they were hiring. Due to this, there was an increase in competition for profit for themselves which meant more pressure on the workers.
One of the most unexpected results of these acts of defiance were how women of all classes joined alongside the workers. This went to show how this wasn’t just a call for better working conditions, rather a call for better treatment of women in the workplace all together. The union members were tactful and were able to get much needed publicity from the press using techniques from the women’s suffrage movement. The first win from all of this occurred in Feb. 1910 where the workers, “won higher wages and shorter hours in 320 hops, most of which recognized the union” (Jaffe 127). In addition, over the next four years the unions grew from 30,000 to 250,000. These actions also inspired male dominated unions which lead to the “Protocol of Peace”, a compromise introduced by Louis Brandeis, a Boston lawyer. The goal of this collaborative effort was to bring justice and order to the garment industry. This was a bit idealistic as many of the owners went back on their words or never accepted the terms to begin with. This was also mirrored with the working women that had striked in 1909 since when the contracts had expired, the owners went back to their old ways.
One of the most life-changing events that occured during this time period was the fire at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory. On March 25, 1911 a fire started in the company’s workshop on the eighth floor of the building in Greenwich Village. There were mostly immigrant women working on the floor who were trapped. Under a half hour 146 people were dead. The irony was that these women had asked for more sanitary and safer conditions and due to them not being granted, these people had died. This became an example for the “progressive-labor coalition” and they were supported by the 1911 Tammany Hall. This event also propelled labor laws and regulations towards better safety, hours, and working conditions.
Both of these texts together were able to fully encompass what life was like as a working woman in the early 20th century. Foner was able to provide insight about the personal and home life of these immigrant women, especially focusing on how they integrated into American society. On the other hand, Jaffe highlighted more of the history and the way that the treatment of women in the workplace evolved over time. Together these pieces of literature are able to show how far we have come today as well as how the power in the voices of the people has remained constant throughout history. It also should make us feel more grateful for all the opportunities and rights that we now have-rights that people once had to fight until death for.
-Rida Rasheed
