The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire

In an article about the 100th year anniversary of the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire, U.S. Secretary of Labor, Hilda L. Solis, writes about how places similar to the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory are still present in America despite many years of improvements in safety, workers' rights, and the government's power to prosecute, sweatshops are still present in America.  Sec. Solis argues that the most important thing to do for workers in these situations is to help them unionize so that their collective voice can be heard and bring up the problems that need to be addressed.  In another article, by David Von Drehle, he argues that the reason behind the drastic reforms to improve workplace conditions and working hours for factory workers was to secure votes first by Tammany Hall Boss Charles F. Murphy, and then by FDR.  This idea is an interesting way to look at the idea of means justifying goals.  The central idea of both articles however, is that in order to improve their stock in life, workers need to organize, either in the form of unions, or to back a political entity that supports them.  This idea still holds true today as workers have trouble finding jobs and some politicians are looking at breaking up unions, since it means that organization is still the worker's best tool to fight for a better life.