On this day in Labor History the year was 1912.
That was the day fifteen women lost their jobs for dancing on their lunch break.
The women worked for the Curtis Publishing Company in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
The company was a powerhouse in the flourishing magazine industry.
Curtis published the Saturday Evening Post, which featured popular cover-art by Norman Rockwell.
Curtis also published the Ladies Home Journal.
It became the first magazine to have one million subscribers.
This magazine had the widest circulation of a group of periodicals known as the “Seven Sisters.”
The Sisters targeted a middle-class women’s audience, and included titles such as McCall’s, Woman’s Day, and Good House Keeping.
The magazines featured stories on home making, including how-to articles and advice columns.
Edward W. Bok was the editor of the Ladies Home Journal.
He heard that fifteen of his employees had been dancing the “Turkey Trot” on their lunch break.
This did not fit into his magazine’s ideas for the proper behavior for women.
The Vatican had condemned the ragtime dance as too suggestive.
Some dancehalls banned the step, but the censorship only served to make it more popular with young people.
When Bok found out about the dancing, he fired all fifteen women.
The magazine went on to rail against future dance crazes.
In 1921 an article declared “The road to hell is too often paved with Jazz steps.”
Have you ever danced on the job? What do you think your employer would say if you took time to turkey trot while you enjoyed your turkey sandwich?
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Labor History in 2:00 brought to you by the Illinois Labor History Society and The Rick Smith Show