Key: Progressive Response to Societal Problems
Problem / Enacted ReformWorkers work 60-84 hours per week. / Many states passed laws limiting the work day to eight hours.
Children work in dangerous industries. / By 1912 three fourths of the states had passed laws banning child labor.
Each year about 35,000 workers are killed and 500,000 maimed in industrial accidents. / Workers’ compensation laws were passed that forced employers to pay employees who were injured or contracted a disease because of their jobs.
The meat industry has poor sanitation and sells diseased and contaminated meat. / The Meat Inspection Act was passed in 1906, which gave federal officials the right to inspect meat, due in large part to a response from the conditions in Upton Sinclair’s book The Jungle.
Many harmful additives are put into food. Companies make misleading statements about their products. / The Pure Food and Drugs Act was passed in 1906, which gave federal officials the right to prohibit the sale of impure drugs, foods, and liquors.
There is vote fraud because people can see how each other vote. / The secret ballot was put into place in many areas.
“Backroom deals” have led to the election of many wealthy businessmen to the Senate. / Corrupt city bosses and political machines were replaced by appointed commissioners and city managers.
Elected officials favor special-interest groups, especially big business. / The 17th Amendment to the Constitution required that U.S. senators be directly elected by the populace rather than selected by state legislatures. The initiative allowed citizens to bypass the legislature and propose laws directly. The referendum allowed citizens to directly vote on laws.
Some elected officials break the law but continue to serve out their term in office / Many states passed laws allowing the removal of politicians from office through the recall.
Political party leaders often select candidates that only benefit insiders. / The 17th Amendment to the Constitution required that U.S. senators be directly elected by the populace rather than selected by state legislatures. Direct primaries replaced the system in which party leaders picked candidates.
One percent of the population owns 50% of the wealth, while 50% of the people own almost nothing. / In 1913 the Sixteenth Amendment to the Constitution was passed, establishing an income tax that required the wealthy to pay taxes on their income for the first time.
Tariffs help protect big business but can hurt the common worker. / Tariffs continued throughout this time period.
Monopolies or near-monopolies provide huge profits for their owners by gouging consumers. / The Sherman Antitrust Act and Clayton Antitrust Act resulted in the federal government suing large corporations involved in monopolies and prohibited the sale of corporations’ stock when their sale might lead to a monopoly.
Monopolies or near-monopolies gouge consumers with higher, noncompetitive prices. / The Sherman Antitrust Act and Clayton Antitrust Act resulted in the federal government suing large corporations involved in monopolies and prohibited the sale of corporations’ stock when their sale might lead to a monopoly.
The 300 largest corporations own more than 40% of the industrial wealth of the country. / The Sherman Antitrust Act and Clayton Antitrust Act resulted in the federal government suing large corporations involved in monopolies and prohibited the sale of corporations’ stock when their sale might lead to a monopoly.
If something needs to get done quickly in a city, people need to pay a bribe. / Corrupt city bosses and political machines were replaced by appointed commissioners and city managers.
The police are poorly paid and poorly trained. / Police forces were professionalized.
Cities are overcrowded, with impure water supplies. / City water systems were purified.
The behavior of city residents is poor, resulting in STDs, crime, and alcoholism. / The attempts to crack down on these problems was not very successful and gained the resentment of many people, especially immigrants, who felt they were looked at as inferior people who needed to be controlled.
Mr. Kelly’s History Class