Copy of Triangle Shirtwaist Fire
Published on Mar 17, 2016
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PRESENTATION OUTLINE
HOW DID THE TRIANGLE SHIRTWAIST FIRE OF 1911
HELP SECURE THE SAFETY OF AMERICAN WORKERS TODAY?
March 25, 1911
4:45pm
Was a day of tragedy
For thousands of employers who lost their life or were close to, due to the unsecured safety in their factory
Photo by designshard
The factory was located on the top three floors of the ten story Asch building on the corner of Greene street and Washington place in New York City
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The main causes for the fire were due to fact that safety regulations were not very safe. At the time firefighters equipment could only reach 7 stories however the Asch building and others were more than 7. Most buildings like the Asch building did not have enough doors, staircase, nor fire escapes and most factory doors opened inward instead of outward which caused confusion and difficulty when many tried to rush out. Most people were always tightly working together, scraps of clothing were scattered around the floor, equipment and materials were highly flammable, clothing was hung above workers heads , and most workers were uneducated and poor.
Photo by designshard
Although disasters in factories like this one were inevitable there had been certain WARNINGS to the previous disaster which could have helped avoid the disaster if they would have acknowledged them sooner. For example there had been a fire that had started in a factory near by where they were warned that the same would happen to them if they didn't take precautions, many small fires had started in the company before, inspectors had told them they had some safety problems, they were told that they should offer fire drills for employees, and they were told that the building had no sprinklers to put out any fires that might start. But since there were no laws for any of the matters the owners did not think they were necessary.
Photo by designshard
Preparations could have been made but due to the fact that at that time there were no strict laws on the safety of factories and people nothing was arranged for such like events.
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This all lead a major fire which destroyed the company and numerous life's, in total about 146 people died and 70 were injured. The people who were misfortunate died inside the building either being suffocated or burned alive but others in the fear of being burned alive or suffocated made a leap of death and chose to jump out of the windows since it was obvious that the fire equipment nor help would arrive in time.
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The disaster had caused $65,000 in insurance payment for property damages
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The fire lead to a rise of public anger over management and government indifference to worker safety which lead to a meeting that demandad actions on fire safety, Three months later, after pressure from activists, New York’s governor signed a law creating the Factory Investigating Commission, which had unprecedented powers. The commission investigated about 2,000 factories in dozens of industries
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The Triangle Shirtwaist fire of 1911 inspired one women in particular, Frances Perkins who with the help of citizens and employers helped enact eight laws covering fire safety, factory inspections and sanitation and employment rules for women and children. After that they pushed for 25 more laws to better secure American employees safety and rights. Perkins later went on to help create the nation’s most sweeping worker protections through the New Deal, including the National Labor Relations Act.The Triangle Shirtwaist fire of 1911 helped majorly in changing the rights of employees and the requirements for companies by instituting new labor laws, creating the state department of labor, creating the Factory Investigating Commission, and The National Labor Relations Act.
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