Workers Organize

Question

Factories continued to spread in the 1800s. Craftspeople, who made goods by hand, felt threatened because factories were able to produce low-priced goods more quickly. To compete with factories, shop owners had to hire more workers and pay them less. Shoemaker William Frazier complained about the situation in the mid-1840s. “We have to sit on our seats from twelve to sixteen hours per day, to earn one dollar.”

The wages of factory workers also went down as people competed for jobs. A wave of immigration in the 1840s brought people from other, poorer countries. They were willing to work for low pay. More immigrants came to the Northeast, where the mills were located, than to the South. Competition for jobs also came from people unemployed during the ?financial Panic of 1837. For example, about 50,000 workers in New York City alone lost their jobs.

The Beginning of Trade Unions

Facing low wages and the fear of losing their jobs, skilled workers formed trade unions, groups that tried to improve pay and working conditions. Eventually, unskilled -factory workers also formed trade unions, seeking economic equity. Most employers did not want to hire union workers. Employers believed that the higher cost of union employees prevented competition with other manufacturers.

Select the answer choice from the drop-down list to complete the sentence correctly.

Workers formed trade unions in order to
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.

Answer 1

Workers formed trade unions in order to improve pay and working conditions.