What problems does Upton Sinclair associate with industrialization and what solutions does he appear to offer to these through The Jungle?

In The Jungle, one of the major problems Sinclair sees with Industrialization is its emphasis on money, something he hopes is minimized with an embrace of socialism.

A significant part of Jurgis's character is his willingness to work for money. When he says, "Leave it to me; leave it to me. I will earn more money—I will work harder," Sinclair makes a strong statement on what he feels is one of the major problems with industrialization.  The increase of industrialization in America has created a reality where money dictates all aspects of life. Sinclair traces all of the problems his characters face to this reality.  Poor living conditions in Chicago are because people cannot afford to live in a better area.  In these areas, workers must spend so much money in order to make ends meet:  "What had made the discovery all the more painful was that they were spending, at American prices, money which they had earned at home rates of wages – and so were really being cheated by the world! The last two days they had all but starved themselves – it made them quite sick to pay the prices that the railroad people asked them for food."  The unsanitary working conditions where food is prepared and where workers struggle are because the owners take short cuts in order to increase their profit.  When Jurgis mugs his first victim, his guilt is offset when he is reminded that the victim "was doing it to someone as hard as he could."  Ona must sacrifice her dignity and go to work as a prostitute in order to make money for her family. 

Sinclair sees industrialization as having created a reality where people are dehumanized in the face of money. People are treated as means to an end. Industrialization has limited individual freedom because economic accumulation is its only metric for success. It has created a system where workers toil for very little while owners make much more.  Sinclair believes that socialism would change this because of its call public ownership of wealth.  The communal approach to wealth is a compelling solution to the problems of private industrialization.  Sinclair feels that the Socialist call for improving everyone's condition can help to alleviate the sufferings that excessive industrialization has brought to so many in America.