The fire at the Triangle Waist Co. in New York City, which claimed the lives of 146 young immigrant workers 100 years ago in March 1911, is one of the worst disasters since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution.
The Triangle Waist Co. was in many ways a typical sweated factory in the heart of Manhattan, at 23-29 Washington Place. Low wages, excessively long hours, and unsanitary and dangerous working conditions were the hallmarks of sweatshops.
Even though many workers toiled under one roof in the Asch building, owned by Max Blanck and Isaac Harris, the owners subcontracted much work to individuals who hired the hands and pocketed a portion of the profits. Subcontractors could pay the workers whatever rates they wanted, often extremely low. The owners supposedly never knew the rates paid to the workers, nor did they know exactly how many workers were employed at their factory at any given point. Such a system led to exploitation.
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