Industrial Paternalism: the Company Town
Industrial Paternalism: The Company Town
ABSTRACT: Industrial Paternalism has had an impact on the way that unions are viewed in today’s society. The early 1900’s saw many Company Towns used by companies to control their workers both in their workplace, as well as, their personal lives. This paper reviews the definition of Paternalism and Industrial Paternalism in the early 1900’s mining industry. It reviews notable events that materialized due to these conditions and concludes by examining how this has impacted today’s views on Unions.
INTRODUCTION “You load 16 tons, what do you get / another day older and deeper in debt / Saint Peter don’t you call me ‘cuz I can’t go / I owe my soul to the Company Store.” (Doyle, 2008) The lyrics made famous by Tennessee Ernie Ford’s “Sixteen Tons” in late 1955, brought to the forefront of pop culture at the time, the woes of many coal miners of the early 1900’s. The chilling lyric “I owe my soul to the Company Store”, is a direct link to the history of mining and the ability of Company Towns and Industrial Paternalism, to control their workers. From the gold mines of Nevada to the coal mines of West Virginia, Company Towns are buried deep in the history of mining throughout the United States. Some still stand today, while others went down in a blaze of glory with many workers and their families losing their lives all in the name of unionism.
Paternalism, according to the Webster Dictionary, is: “a system under which authority undertakes to supply needs or regulate conduct of those under its control in matters affecting them as individuals as well as in their relations to authority and to each other” (Merrian-Webster, 2012). This definition, when applied to the prevalence of company owned and controlled towns of the early mining days, is what can be known as Industrial Paternalism. While these types of towns are also seen in the automobile industry and the early garment industry, for the sake of keeping
ABSTRACT: Industrial Paternalism has had an impact on the way that unions are viewed in today’s society. The early 1900’s saw many Company Towns used by companies to control their workers both in their workplace, as well as, their personal lives. This paper reviews the definition of Paternalism and Industrial Paternalism in the early 1900’s mining industry. It reviews notable events that materialized due to these conditions and concludes by examining how this has impacted today’s views on Unions.
INTRODUCTION “You load 16 tons, what do you get / another day older and deeper in debt / Saint Peter don’t you call me ‘cuz I can’t go / I owe my soul to the Company Store.” (Doyle, 2008) The lyrics made famous by Tennessee Ernie Ford’s “Sixteen Tons” in late 1955, brought to the forefront of pop culture at the time, the woes of many coal miners of the early 1900’s. The chilling lyric “I owe my soul to the Company Store”, is a direct link to the history of mining and the ability of Company Towns and Industrial Paternalism, to control their workers. From the gold mines of Nevada to the coal mines of West Virginia, Company Towns are buried deep in the history of mining throughout the United States. Some still stand today, while others went down in a blaze of glory with many workers and their families losing their lives all in the name of unionism.
Paternalism, according to the Webster Dictionary, is: “a system under which authority undertakes to supply needs or regulate conduct of those under its control in matters affecting them as individuals as well as in their relations to authority and to each other” (Merrian-Webster, 2012). This definition, when applied to the prevalence of company owned and controlled towns of the early mining days, is what can be known as Industrial Paternalism. While these types of towns are also seen in the automobile industry and the early garment industry, for the sake of keeping
References: Doyle, Jack. (2008). Sixteen Tons, 1955 – 1956. Retrieved from http://www.pophistorydig.com/?p=619 Paternalism. (2012). In Merriam-Webster.com Retrieved February 5, 2012, from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/paternalism Clark, Judy. (2006). Company Towns in America 1880 to 1930. A Thesis Presented to The Faculty of Humboldt State University. Retrieved from http://www.nohum.k12.ca.us/tah/maprojects/Clark.pdf The Ludlow Massacre. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.umwa.org/?q=content/ludlow-massacre Kilkeary, D. (2002). Battle of blair mountain. Retrieved from http://www.glendale.edu/chaparral/apr05/blair.htm