Factory Workers in 1870s Chicago Strike for Safety and Fair Wages

In Episode One of Borrowed Lives, “Awakenings,” Elise wakes up in the body of a Textile Factory worker named Mary. Her coworker, Sarah, warns Elise to pay attention and button her sleeve cuff. Otherwise, Elise could lose her hand or even her whole arm. Working in a factory could be dangerous!  

In the 1870s, technological advances, particularly in making steel, allowed the construction of factories for mass production. Large-scale, well-financed companies came to dominate most industries. Factories no longer needed many skilled artisans or craftsmen, whose work could now be done by machine. Instead, they needed large numbers of unskilled or semiskilled workers to operate the machines.

Working conditions in many of Chicago’s factories were arduous and hazardous, with employees enduring long hours and unsafe environments. Industrial workers who experienced dangerous or exploitative conditions had little leverage to negotiate fair wages or workplace protections.

Workers labored for 12 to 14 hours a day, six days per week, in unsafe conditions. The threat of dire poverty loomed should injury, illness, or unemployment stop a paycheck. There was no safety net.

Because of these challenging conditions, labor movements emerged and gained momentum, with workers organizing to demand improvements in wages, safety, and working hours. Chicagoans looked to unions and labor federations to help them fight for minimum wages, maximum hours of work, unemployment compensation, and safety standards.

The movement advocating for an eight-hour workday became prominent during this time. These demands were not met until World War I, which resulted in several violent confrontations, including the Great Railroad Strike of 1877. 

In May 1886, 35,000 Chicago workers joined strikes and walked off the job to protest the long hours. This resulted in some violent confrontations with police that led to the deaths of at least two strikers. In response, roughly 1,500 people gathered on May 4th at the West Randolph Street Haymarket. It was a peaceful gathering that featured fiery speeches from labor leaders.

Even though the gathering was peaceful, hundreds of policemen arrived to disperse the crowd. An unknown person threw a bomb at the police, killing one officer instantly. The police responded by firing bullets into the crowd. An unknown number of demonstrators were killed or wounded, sixty police officers were injured, and eight eventually died. 

The protesters were blamed for the violence, and eight men were convicted of murder, despite there being no evidence linking specific people to the bomb. Five of the men were killed by hanging. Of those five, four were German-born. The one American Haymarket Martyr was Albert Parsons, who had been swept up in the raids following the explosion.  The Haymarket Martyrs’ nationality contributed to a growing suspicion by broader American society towards German immigrants. 

The trial was later considered grossly unjust, and it was found that the men were convicted based on their various speeches and writings, and it’s likely the conviction was driven by discrimination against German immigrants. In 1893, the Illinois governor granted an absolute pardon to the three remaining imprisoned defendants.

Sources: 

http://www.encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org/pages/1382.html

https://dcc.newberry.org/?p=14434

http://www.encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org/pages/1284.html#:~:text=By%20the%20late%201860s%20Chicago,elections%2C%20winning%20both%20city%20and

https://urbanhistory.willmackintosh.org/project/chicagos-eight-hour-movement-of-1886/