Cherry Injury Law RSS Feed
A thought-provoking column in the Philadelphia Inquirer this week remembered the horrific tragedy of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire that occurred 100 years ago on March 25, 1911. That day, 146 garment workers in New York City lost their lives in an event that forever changed workplace conditions and labor unions when people realized that no one should be killed or severely injured at their place of employment.
Most of the people who died in the fire were young women girls who were the main breadwinners for their families. After the fire broke out, many of them became trapped as some of the doors were locked and others only opened from the inside. There were also only two exits to evacuate 400 people, and although firefighters quickly arrived at the scene, their hoses and ladders could only reach to the sixth floor of the building. About 50 people on the ninth floor burned to death and another 90 jumped from the windows, often holding hands, and did not survive.
In fact, the column pointed out that many of these same women had stood outside of the factory only a year before picketing for a union, better pay, and safer working conditions. All they had managed to get was a small pay raise.
The columnist reminded us that so many of the things we currently take for granted in our workplaces are results of the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire, including obligatory fire drills, sprinkler systems, capacity limits, accessible and clearly-marked exits and fire escapes.
The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire made clear that although these safety precautions required time and money, they were necessary, the columnist noted. And while there is often opposition to regulation, the columnist pointed out that this tragedy is what a deregulated industry could look like.
Today, 100 years later, people have the right to work in an environment that is safe and collect workers’ compensation if an accident causes them to be injured on the job.
Resource: The Philadelphia Inquirer, “Remembering the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire, 100 years later,” Patricia McLaughlin, 3/23/2011.