In 1911, 146 workers died in a horrific fire at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory. Their working conditions, untimely deaths, and the lack of adequate compensation for the families of the victims led to widespread unionization of garment industry workers, fire and workplace safety codes, and the creation of the Workers’ Compensation Law.
Nine decades later, a group of workers’ compensation attorneys created the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire Memorial to provide academic scholarship to the children of workers who were killed or permanently disabled on the job. Between 2001 and 2018 the Memorial provided a total of almost $500,000 in scholarship assistance while presenting its Clara Lemlich Public Service Award to luminaries including Hilary Clinton, Dr. Stephen Levin, Randi Weingarten, Lillian Roberts, Denis Hughes, Gary LaBarbera, and others.
After a hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Memorial will hold its 18 th Annual Scholarship Award Event at RWDSU headquarters on Seventh Avenue on Thursday, March 30, 2023. Memorial President Robert Grey said: “The Scholarship Award Event is such a valuable cause. It is important to remember and commemorate the Triangle Fire and the lives that were lost. It is also important to remember and reinforce the connection between the fire, the labor movement, and the Workers’ Compensation Law. And we are grateful for the opportunity to provide scholarships in memory and in honor of the young women who died in the fire.”
Information about the Memorial, the upcoming Scholarship Award Event, and scholarship applications can be found at https://trianglememorial.org/. The deadline for journal ads is March 2 and the ticket deadline is March 9, 2023.
