U.S. # 4801
2013 46¢ Made in America: Building a Nation
At the beginning of the 20th century, some experts were predicting machines would take over many industrial jobs, forcing people out of work. Photographer Lewis Hine drew a different conclusion. He said, in fact, “The more machines we use the more do we need real men to make and direct them.”
Artists like Hine captured the dignity and pride of average workers on film. Rather than focusing on the buildings and machinery that marked the progress of the industrial age, he showcased the people who carried out their work diligently six days each week.
The building of America was dangerous during that time and accidents were commonplace. Employees accepted the risks as part of the position. In the midst of the Great Depression, people were grateful to have any job and worked long hours for low wages. Basic survival needs outweighed workplace perils.
Those who built the Empire State Building faced danger every day as they worked without hard hats or harnesses. They balanced on steel beams or wooden planks with the skill of tightrope walkers. Women found work in America’s mills, producing textiles for consumers across the country and around the world. Those who were fortunate enough to receive an education were sometimes employed in publishing houses as linotypers. Miners extracted the coal that powered the factories and towns. The risk of the tunnel’s collapse or the buildup of gases was ever-present dangers.
Lewis Hine documented Americans creating our nation’s railroads, airplanes, and buildings. Without his images, the faces of those who operated our presses, mined our coal, and built the foundations of our industries, would be lost forever.
Derry Noyes created the Made in America stamps using early 20th century photographs. Of the 12 stamps, 11 reproduce photographs taken by Lewis Hine, while the 12th came from the Kansas Historical Society. Hines’ photographs had previously been used as models for U.S. stamps, including two in the Celebrate the Century series. He was also honored in the 2002 Masters of American Photography stamp pane.
Value: 46¢ 1-ounce first-class letter rate
Issued: August 8, 2013
First Day City: Washington, D.C. – at the Department of Labor Frances Perkins Building
Type of Stamp: Commemorative
Method: Photogravure printing in sheets of 60 in 5 panes of 12
Perforation: Serpentine Die Cut 10 ½ x 10 ¾
Self-Adhesive
Quantity Printed: 2,500,000 panes
Passage of the First Successful Workmen’s Compensation Law
US #1186 was issued for the 50th anniversary of Wisconsin’s Workmen’s Compensation Law.
On May 3, 1911, Wisconsin passed America’s first worker’s compensation program. This law provided financial security for workers injured on the job. By 1948, all 48 then-US states had passed such laws. Alaska and Hawaii had workmen’s compensation laws when they joined the Union.
Working conditions in the 1800s were dangerous and hazardous. Between 1855 and 1907, 26 states passed laws that allowed workers to sue their employers. However, these cases were difficult for employees to win. The employers had virtually unbeatable defenses, arguing the worker was also negligent, they knew the dangers of the work, or their injuries resulted from negligence by another employee.
US #1090 – Steel mills were one of several places that suffered from high worker injuries.
After the Civil War, industrialization boomed, but the number of deaths and injuries in steel mills, railroads, meatpacking plants, coal mines, and elsewhere skyrocketed as well. Initially, most courts stood by earlier decisions that had sided with the businesses. Eventually though, judges and juries ruled more favorably for workers.
In Europe, Otto von Bismarck developed the Workers’ Accident Insurance system in 1881, which served as the model for other nations, including the US. Concerned about the rising cost of court cases, employers began to embrace the idea of adopting worker’s compensation programs. New York, Maryland, Massachusetts, and Montana passed early worker’s compensation laws between 1898 and 1909, but they were all deemed unconstitutional by their respective state courts. In 1908, Theodore Roosevelt signed one of the first federal worker’s compensation laws, the Federal Employers Liability Act, which protected railroad workers and is still in existence today.
US #4801 features early 20th century photos of American workers in a variety of industries.
On May 3, 1911, Wisconsin passed its own Workmen’s Compensation Act, which assured proper compensation for workers injured or made ill on the job. The law created a no-fault system that awarded injured employees regardless of fault. The act further limited the amount of compensation a worker could receive for their injury. The law went into effect that September and a group of Wisconsin employers angered by the new law took it to the state Supreme Court. The court upheld the law, making it the nation’s first workers’ compensation law to be deemed constitutional and survive legal fights.
US #1895 – After a 1917 Supreme Court ruling, workers’ compensation was made mandatory in all states, though Texas later allowed employers to opt-out.
By the end of 1911, nine more states adopted similar workers’ compensation laws. All 48 states in the Union had passed such laws by 1948. When Alaska and Hawaii joined the Union, they both had workmen’s compensation laws. The workers’ compensation laws of the early 1900s were generally voluntary, meaning the employers weren’t required to purchase the coverage. At one point, employers argued that to make workers’ compensation compulsory was unconstitutional and violated the 14th amendment (requiring due process). In 1917, the US Supreme Court ruled that an employers’ due process wasn’t infringed on by mandatory workers’ compensation. After this ruling, the states instituted their own requirements.
US #1186 – Classic First Day Cover
Today, workmen’s compensation provides pay and medical help for people injured while working and provides pensions for their dependents in cases where workers are killed.
US #1186 – Fleetwood First Day Cover