Triangle Shirtwaist Fire

In 1911, one of the most infamous incidents in American industrial history occurred when the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory in New York City burned, killing 145 workers. It is one of the most remembered incidents since the deaths were largely preventable. Most victims died as a result of neglected safety features and locked doors within the factory building. While the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire did result in a new legislation for safety in the work place, it was not the most important result. The most important result was the institution of the process to enforce pre-existing legislation regarding worker safety and protection in the workplace along with the laws that followed. In the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire, one will understand the significance

One act included the Act of 1938, also known as The Fair Labor Standards Act. This act establishes minimum wage, overtime pay, recordkeeping, and youth employment standards affecting full-time and part-time workers. In The Fair Labor Standards Act, 1938 document, it states, “Nevertheless, in 1938 the Fair Labor Standards Act, which contained many of ER’s [Eleanor Roosevelt] labor concerns passed through the Congress.” Eleanor Roosevelt was a social reformer that wanted to take action since the fire had occurred in 1912 and it motivated her to create a “passage of legislation” to better the lives of women who are working in factories and ensure their safety. Further down the road, in 1970, another act was created that covers most private sector employers and their employees in the US to make their lives safer and better in their own workplace. One can see that reformers of all kinds did this; they took action, whether it was small or big, they were the ones who actually motivated Congress into passing these acts with their dedication and determination to keep everyone

Their actions spoke many words and in doing so changed many lives as well as saving them. They went above and beyond, thus with hard work and many years of waiting, acts and regulations were passed. It was a devastating time when the fire occurred in 1912, but in the reformers eyes, they did not just see lives being taken, but an opportunity to save many others from this awful predicament to ever happen again. The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire will go down in history, in reformers and people to this day, as one of the most tragic and upsetting experiences to ever happen in the factory