The Radium Girls

Safety rules are written in blood. Simply put, they aren't changed until a sufficient value of people are hurt. And I say value, because, unfortunately, that's how it's looked upon. Only once the monetary cost of restitution outweighs the costs of increased safety do profit-driven corporations begin to make changes. Unless, of course, an external force acts upon the companies to make a change. But what happens if most people, including those in power don't realize that there is a danger? Especially if the companies know, but intentionally play it down? Well, the The Radium Girls: The Dark Story of America’s Shining Women by Kate Moore attempts to describe the real-life horrors faced by women who worked in the luminous dial industry. 

The Radium Girls outlines the rise of radium and its glow to the forefront of industry in the early twentieth century. Seen as a miracle that could do no harm, it exploded into the commercial world, from health tonics to illuminated dials, leading us to the crux of the story: the women whose job it was to do the painting. Having illuminated digits is helpful, particularly once WWI broke out, exacerbating the need for them. The technique was, as repeatedly described in this book "Lip, Dip, Paint", or use the mouth to align the brush bristles, dip them into the luminous paint, and then apply it to the dial. It was the officially sanctioned technique taught to new employees. The trouble? Radiation's hazardous effects were already known to scientists. These women were simply told that if anything, ingesting radium was healthy. Well, as their painful and drawn out deaths proved, it wasn't. 

Overall, the story centers on the deterioration and legal struggle of the women as they desperately fought to any semblance of restitution. But as their bones literally crumbled, the justice they longed for was hard to find. Although their losses were not compensated, the Radium Girls fought for a fairer future for all works, and their sacrifices helped lay the groundwork for significant improvements for workers rights. 

This book is fairly well written in a literary format, but strongly supported using in-text citations. It's probably worth reading if not for its awards, then to learn about the brave women who helped craft the modern understanding of workplace safety.