Lesson of the day
WORK.
Listen: You can hear the episode here (Apple podcasts) on YouTube, or on our website. Feel free to take notes on our Graphic Organizer!
Do: Investigate the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire (Grades 9-12)
It took years of organizing, strikes, lobbying and negotiating to achieve the modern American workplace. Certain events are somber testimonies to what it took to shock the nation into better standards. From violent police interference in strikes to dangerous, even deadly, machinery, many laborers lost life and limb to the workplace. One of the greatest American workplace disasters was the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire.
On March 25th, 1911, 146 individuals were killed when a fire broke out on the 8th, 9th and 10th floors of the Asch Building in Manhattan.
Now you be the investigator.
Consider the Asch building and the actions taken by the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory owners before and after the fire, then see if you can answer these questions:
What were the specific ways in which Issac Harris and Max Blanck neglected their employees’ health and safety?
What measures could have been taken to prevent this disaster? If you need a hint, you can look over this OSHA fire safety fact sheet.
Harris and Blanck were minimally fined for their role in the many fatalities at their factory, but that wasn’t the end of the story for activists and unions — why is it important to remember the Triangle tragedy even today?
