On Saturday, March 25th, 1911, The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory, which occupied the top three floors of the ten story Asch building in New York City, caught on fire, killing 146 people within fifteen minutes and seriously injuring 70 more. Those affected were mostly young Jewish and Italian immigrant women between the ages of sixteen and twenty three. At the time, the space was occupied by the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory, a clothing sweatshop run by Max Blanck and Isaac Harris.
The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory was a large factory that made shirtwaists, a new style of women’s shirt that became incredibly popular in the early 1900s due to its freeing nature and versatility. The factory itself, however, was not quite as liberating as its product. …show more content…
Just four months previously, a fire in a Newark factory claimed 25 lives, many of which were caused by workers jumping to their deaths to escape the flames. In fact, fires were extremely common in large factories, and a fire could even be a good business move for a factory owner, if there was extra stock and insurance money to be collected. The Asch building itself had had four small fires leading up to the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire. However, fire safety was definitely not a priority in the eyes of the businessman. Sprinkler systems cost money, and if it became necessary to burn the factory, they would prove inconvenient. Fire drills took time out of the workday, lowering production. And safer buildings made for lower insurance rates, the occasional fire was still profitable to the brokers. The reasons behind unfair and unsafe treatments like limited fire protection, low pay, and unsafe buildings were fairly simple. To begin, large factories were new, and were expanding fast. This made it difficult for the safety standards to keep up with the physical realities. Most factories, including Triangle, also used contractors, who the companies paid a lump sum and allowed control over the workforce, including pay. This distanced the business owner from his workers and their issues. This led company owners to care more about profits than workers, who were seen as replaceable, a major component to this sweatshop
The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory was a large factory that made shirtwaists, a new style of women’s shirt that became incredibly popular in the early 1900s due to its freeing nature and versatility. The factory itself, however, was not quite as liberating as its product. …show more content…
Just four months previously, a fire in a Newark factory claimed 25 lives, many of which were caused by workers jumping to their deaths to escape the flames. In fact, fires were extremely common in large factories, and a fire could even be a good business move for a factory owner, if there was extra stock and insurance money to be collected. The Asch building itself had had four small fires leading up to the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire. However, fire safety was definitely not a priority in the eyes of the businessman. Sprinkler systems cost money, and if it became necessary to burn the factory, they would prove inconvenient. Fire drills took time out of the workday, lowering production. And safer buildings made for lower insurance rates, the occasional fire was still profitable to the brokers. The reasons behind unfair and unsafe treatments like limited fire protection, low pay, and unsafe buildings were fairly simple. To begin, large factories were new, and were expanding fast. This made it difficult for the safety standards to keep up with the physical realities. Most factories, including Triangle, also used contractors, who the companies paid a lump sum and allowed control over the workforce, including pay. This distanced the business owner from his workers and their issues. This led company owners to care more about profits than workers, who were seen as replaceable, a major component to this sweatshop