Women were another vulnerable group because they were always paid at a lower rate than men. There was no safety net for people who fell into poverty other than resorting to the ‘workhouse’ which had been established to deal with cases of extreme poverty in Trade unions had little power as the Taff Vale Incident of 1901 showed and Friendly Societies could only provide a limited amount of help. Attitudes to poverty in the early 20th century were quite unsympathetic many politicians from both the Liberal and Conservative party felt that poverty came from personal laziness. Both parties had an attitude of “laissez-faire” i.e. non interference from the government.
John majors government came into office after the downfall of Margret Thatcher, which ultimately created divisions within the party. Not only did the party suffer from the internal conflict but also faced the problems of the recession after the ‘Lawson boom’. In order to stabilise the economy he joined the ERM getting a good deal but ultimately resulting in ‘black Wednesday’ causing Major to raise interest rates to 15%. This was political suicide and he soon lost the support of the press we had once relied so much on to get re-elected in 1992. The housing market also plummeted leading to negative equity, which the majority of the working class could not afford resulting in the repossession of their houses combined with the drastic increase in unemployment Britain was in a mess.
Businesses also suffer when massive layoffs occur. When spending by households decreases, incomes decrease for the businesses. Governments are not immune from the effects of massive layoffs of employees either. When households spend less, and businesses are selling less, there is less sales tax to be collected by the government. Also, when employees are laid off there is less income tax to be collected and to make things even worse, former employees can collect unemployment benefits from the government.
The Depression started with the market crash of 1929. Unemployment was on a rise, businesses were failing. The reason of that is because the stock market was doing badly, there were overproduction and a crash which is stock prices go down. Many people lost their jobs and those that were still working had to take major pay cuts, and people who were trying to get a job couldn't because the employees couldn't pay them.
Many factors caused the economic condition in America to change in the late 1920’s resulting in the Great Depression. These factors include World War One, individual debt, business failure, farming decline, banking failure, and the stock market crash. World Depression was caused by World War one because the demand for American products reduced after the war resulting in too much supply with limited demand. Production was lowered and jobs had to be cut, leaving many without jobs leaving many in debt because many people took out loans or stocks during the war. Many people did not have money to spend in businesses and businesses also took out loans that needed to be paid back.
Which can be supported by the quote “[…] none knew he was in debt” (Prologue Chaucer 123). Many people didn’t leave their homes or went and moved far away from cities to avoid the plague. This happening caused many people to not attend their jobs and sell goods. Trading was also affected a lot from this plague; some cities even closed their shipping docks, scared that incoming ships would bring more of the Black Plague with them. The only people who enjoyed the black plague were the peasants as said in the quote “As the Black Death swung the balance in the peasants favor” (Routt).
The 1930’s was the time when the culture in America really began to take shape. The Great Depression affected the lives of every American. The lack of government regulation left many people unemployed as well as, working in horrible conditions. Many Americans had become fearful of banks because of the growing economic panic. President Franklin Roosevelt tried to help the banking crises as we all the American people to regain economic strength and civilization.
Voter participation was plummeting due to the new poll taxes and literacy tests that were keeping the poor out of the voting booth. The progressive movement was an attempt to control the government through reform and provide protection to all classes’ welfare. Reform was not limited to the middle and lower classes; there were some upper class such as Alexander Cassatt, who was in charge of the Pennsylvania Railroad, that were supporters of regulation and political
Between 1935 and 1975, wealth amongst society increased and this created a decline in social connectedness as society grew more materialistic. This resulted in large divisions amongst society based on their economic status. The poor only got poorer, whilst the rich got richer. The poor found them selves detached from society as every one grew more materialistic and were never satisfied with what they had. Carver came from a broken family, who never supported him and this inspires a lot of his stories, as the sequence of event are similar to his own.
Most people who worked in the factories lived in the factories which had little living space, lack of proper ventilation and lack of proper hygiene (Wikipedia). Due to the poor living conditions and overcrowding people were subject to health issues and death related from communicable diseases. Along with the poor living conditions, hunger and malnutrition were common during this time. Labor laws did not exist. Workers worked long hours without breaks and children were also subjected to these cruel working conditions as they were often put to work alongside their parents.