Unskilled Workers

By the end of the nineteenth century, the United Sates had become the ideal destination for immigrant workers. Immigrants from various countries all over the world flocked to America in hopes of finding work in the growing industrial sector. Many immigrants that migrated to America had intentions of either establishing a life for themselves in the states or sending money back home to support their families in their home countries (Goldberg, ed. 7, The American Journey, 523). The type of work that immigrants could find depended mainly on their skill sets. A majority of the immigrant laborers who came to America in search for work possessed little to no skills or means which made life hard for them from the start (Goldberg, 523). Since most immigrant workers were unskilled and eager to find jobs, they would take
Skilled workers took the hardest hit during this changing time period. Their standard of living dramatically decreased as their jobs were replaced by automated machines and immigrant laborers (Goldberg, 520). Many factories preferred to hire the unskilled immigrant workers over the skilled laborers because the immigrant workers would take on the difficult and demanding jobs no one else wanted to do and they would work for much less. Even though the manufacturing industry was flourishing and many people were employed, the gap between the rich and urban working class was becoming more and more apparent (Goldberg, 518). The entrepreneurs of Industrial America were able to flourish, while common city laborers were struggling to make a living on their small salaries and living in cramped, impoverished neighborhoods (Goldberg, 518). It was believe during that time that with hard work and determination, an average city worker could improve their standard of living and prosper. The wealthiest people looked down on the factory workers and determined that their current status was due to laziness and