The history of the government and relationship with businesses is somewhat complex. During the Gilded Age (late 19th century) government regulation in the American economy and American businesses was extremely limited. There was no government involvement in establishing wages, work hours, working conditions, etc. However, this changed during the early part of the 20th century.
Muckrakers (people who expose problems in America) took on big business with a series of famous books that brought the governments attention to unsanitary, unsafe, and unfair working conditions. A perfect example of this would be the book The Jungle. The Jungle, written by Upton Sinclair, was a book that discussed the horrible and unsanitary conditons of the meatpacking industry. The filth that filled these factories were extremely harmful to American citizens. This is when the government began regulating the working and sanitary conditions of businesses. President Teddy Roosevelt helped to start this movement by helping to pass the Meat Inspection Act of 1906. This resulted in a federal agency that would visit meatpacking businesses to ensure sanitary conditions were being used in the factory.