American Smelting and Refining Company Loading Lead Ingots
Dublin Core
Title
American Smelting and Refining Company Loading Lead Ingots
Subject
Omaha Industrial Lead
Description
This (1938) image shows man placing lead alloy ingots onto a conveyor belt. In the image, the man is wearing a cap, apron, gloves, and a jumpsuit, which are his working attire. This attire was necessary so the worker did not get the industrial lead dust all over him. The room looks very dusty. According to an EPA science assessment, lead dust can be very unhealthy for any adult workers when breathed in as it can cause reproductive issues, cardiovascular issues, increased incidence of hypertension, and even decreased kidney function (EPA, 2012). In child workers, it can cause all of the same symptoms as adults, but can also cause anemia, hearing issues, hyperactivity, lower IQ, and other developmental issues (EPA, 2012). It is striking that the man does not appear to be wearing any sort of mask to prevent the dust from being breathed into his lungs. There appears to be little open ventilation accessible to the workers. This factory division of ASARCO, located at 105 South 5th Street Omaha, Nebraska, was producing refined lead alloy blocks.
During the 1930s, working conditions and overall occupational safety in industrial outlets such as factories, refineries, and smelters were still very hazardous to their workers. There were not many regulations protecting industrial workers health and so not much enforcement (AFL-CIO, n.d.). This image was taken during the Great Depression, which also took a toll on industrial workers, because it reduced the power of workers to demand regulation (Cussen, 2019). This lead to many people losing their jobs, getting paid much less, and companies being negligent about how they treat their workers (Cussen, 2019). Clearly, this was a large set of injustices facing industrial workers health standards and safety.
Around the late 1930s though was also the time the the government started passing into law many worker rights centered bills, such as the fair labor standards act of 1938, the social security act of 1935, and the national labor standads act of 1935, just to name a few. Workers were now allowed to engage in collective bargaining and unions were more protected because of the national labor relations act passed in 1935. The fair labor standards act was passed into law in 1938, requiring basic child labor laws, pay for overtime work, and mandating a federal minimum wage (Womble, 2008). In 1935, President Roosevelt even helped pass the Social Security Act, mostly providing aid to children, the blind, the elderly, and the unemployed (US Congress, 1935). This lead, throughout the progression of the decade, for the industrial working conditions to slowly, but surely, improve.
CITATIONS-
U.S. EPA. Integrated Science Assessment (ISA) for Lead (Third External Review Draft, Nov 2012). U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC, EPA/600/R-10/075C, 2012.
Cussen, M. P. (2019, April 2). The History of Unions in the United States. Retrieved from https://www.investopedia.com/financial-edge/0113/the-history-of-unions-in-the-united-states.aspx.
Our Labor History Timeline: AFL-CIO. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://aflcio.org/about-us/history.
Womble, C. (2008) Fair Labor Standards Act Law. United States. [Archived Web Site] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/lcwaN0001668/.
U.S. Congress. (1935) United States Code: Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. ยงยง 301- Suppl. 4 1935. [Periodical] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/uscode1934-005042007/.
During the 1930s, working conditions and overall occupational safety in industrial outlets such as factories, refineries, and smelters were still very hazardous to their workers. There were not many regulations protecting industrial workers health and so not much enforcement (AFL-CIO, n.d.). This image was taken during the Great Depression, which also took a toll on industrial workers, because it reduced the power of workers to demand regulation (Cussen, 2019). This lead to many people losing their jobs, getting paid much less, and companies being negligent about how they treat their workers (Cussen, 2019). Clearly, this was a large set of injustices facing industrial workers health standards and safety.
Around the late 1930s though was also the time the the government started passing into law many worker rights centered bills, such as the fair labor standards act of 1938, the social security act of 1935, and the national labor standads act of 1935, just to name a few. Workers were now allowed to engage in collective bargaining and unions were more protected because of the national labor relations act passed in 1935. The fair labor standards act was passed into law in 1938, requiring basic child labor laws, pay for overtime work, and mandating a federal minimum wage (Womble, 2008). In 1935, President Roosevelt even helped pass the Social Security Act, mostly providing aid to children, the blind, the elderly, and the unemployed (US Congress, 1935). This lead, throughout the progression of the decade, for the industrial working conditions to slowly, but surely, improve.
CITATIONS-
U.S. EPA. Integrated Science Assessment (ISA) for Lead (Third External Review Draft, Nov 2012). U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC, EPA/600/R-10/075C, 2012.
Cussen, M. P. (2019, April 2). The History of Unions in the United States. Retrieved from https://www.investopedia.com/financial-edge/0113/the-history-of-unions-in-the-united-states.aspx.
Our Labor History Timeline: AFL-CIO. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://aflcio.org/about-us/history.
Womble, C. (2008) Fair Labor Standards Act Law. United States. [Archived Web Site] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/lcwaN0001668/.
U.S. Congress. (1935) United States Code: Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. ยงยง 301- Suppl. 4 1935. [Periodical] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/uscode1934-005042007/.
Creator
Bostwick, Louis (1868-1943) and Frohardt, Homer (1885-1972)
Source
Original Format: 8" x 10" black and white film negative
Publisher
The Durham Museum
Date
1938-03-14
Contributor
Rohit Akella,
Betty Straub
Betty Straub
Rights
From the Bostwick-Frohardt Collection, owned by KM3TV and on permanent loan to The Durham Museum. Commercial use or distribution of the image is not permitted without prior permission of the copyright holder. Please contact The Durham Museum for permission to use the digital image
Format
Image/tif
Language
English
Type
Photo
Identifier
BF208-046; Bostwick-Frohardt Collection, Folio 208, Negative 046
Still Image Item Type Metadata
Original Format
Original Format: 8" x 10" black and white film negative
Physical Dimensions
8" x 10"
Collection
Citation
Bostwick, Louis (1868-1943) and Frohardt, Homer (1885-1972), “American Smelting and Refining Company Loading Lead Ingots,” History of Environmental Inequalities, accessed May 2, 2024, https://steppingintothemap.com/inequalities/items/show/20.
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