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Greenback party

(Encyclopedia)Greenback party, in U.S. history, political organization formed in the years 1874–76 to promote currency expansion. The members were principally farmers of the West and the South; stricken by the Pa...

Perkins, Frances

(Encyclopedia)Perkins, Frances, 1882–1965, U.S. Secretary of Labor (1933–45), b. Boston. She worked at Hull House, was executive secretary of the New York Consumers' League (1910–12) and of the New York Commi...

Newlands, Francis Griffith

(Encyclopedia)Newlands, Francis Griffith, 1848–1917, American legislator, b. Natchez, Miss. After practicing law in San Francisco from 1870, he moved (1888) to Nevada. He became well known for his interest in irr...

Danbury Hatters' Case

(Encyclopedia)Danbury Hatters' Case, decided in 1908 by the U.S. Supreme Court. In 1902 the hatters' union instituted a nationwide boycott of the products of a nonunion hat manufacturer in Danbury, Conn., and the m...

minimum wage

(Encyclopedia)minimum wage, lowest wage legally permitted in an industry or in a government or other organization. The goal in establishing minimum wages has been to assure wage earners a standard of living above t...

sweating system

(Encyclopedia)sweating system, method of exploiting labor by supplying materials to workers and paying by the piece (see piecework) for work done on those materials in the workers' homes or in small workshops (swea...

Richberg, Donald Randall

(Encyclopedia)Richberg, Donald Randall, 1881–1960, American public official, b. Knoxville, Tenn. He practiced law in Chicago, served as attorney for the city and for Illinois, and became nationally known after sp...

piecework

(Encyclopedia)piecework, work for which the laborer is paid on the basis of the amount of work done. The system is best adapted to standardized operations in which quantity is preferred to quality. Its advocates ma...

Truman, Harry S.

(Encyclopedia)Truman, Harry S., 1884–1972, 33d President of the United States, b. Lamar, Mo. Truman remained active in politics for many years after his retirement, campaigning around the country for Democrat...

inclosure

(Encyclopedia)inclosure or enclosure, in British history, the process of inclosing (with fences, ditches, hedges, or other barriers) land formerly subject to common rights. Such land included fields cultivated by t...