How did the growth of industry in the late 1800s and early 1900s affect labor union membership?

Many workers in the late 1800s and early 1900s spent an entire day tending a machine in a large, crowded, noisy room. Others worked in coal mines, steel mills, railroads, slaughterhouses, and in other dangerous occupations.

The main goal of the labor unions during the late 1800s and early 1900s was fighting for better wages, better working conditions that included safety and reasonable hours of work. The struggle was also against child labor and getting health benefits for the workers and their families.

The labor movement in the United States grew out of the need to protect the common interest of workers. For those in the industrial sector, organized labor unions fought for better wages, reasonable hours and safer working conditions.