Working Conditions In The 1800s

In society, many make a living by working for others to get the necessities they need. Workers face many struggles such as wage cuts, horrendous work conditions, an increase in hours, due to these conditions they are labeled ‘wage slaves.’ These individuals have no choice but to work in these conditions. The growth of industry in the United States made corruption easier and made employers richer while the poor stayed poor. The employers justify their actions by arguing that the employees have a choice to go and work for someone else. However, workers do not have the choice to work for others since most employers were using the same method to make a profit. Workers are treated unfairly, but they use many effective techniques such as strikes

During the late 1800s, many Americans worked at jobs that required little or no real skill. These jobs were tedious and boring because they did the same task every day for however long they worked. Their work day included long hours and was often six to seven days each week. These workers were not only working for low wages and long hours, they were working at jobs that involved extremely unsafe working conditions. Workers were becoming angry at their employers and the competition for the available jobs was increasing with the consistent growth of the areas surrounding the factories and the steady stream of immigrants made filling these unskilled jobs, at ridiculously low wages, and in extremely unsafe conditions relatively simple for the rising

Being an industrial worker in the late 19th-century in America was not a simple life. Even at the best times the pay was small and the time spent at work was long in dangerous conditions. Most of the money derived in America went to the actual workforce. Women and children suffered the most however, making up the majority of the workers and only receiving a small percentage of what a man could make. Different periods of economic crises tokk the nation by storm, also breaking down the amount of wages from industrial work and increasing the total population of the unemployed.

Throughout history, children have always worked, either as apprentices or servants. However, child labor reached a whole new scale during the time period of the Industrial Revolution. Throughout the time frame of late 1800s-early 1900s, children worked long hours in dangerous factory conditions for very little wages. They were considered useful as laborers because their small stature allowed them to be cramped into smaller spaces, and they could be paid less for their services. Many worked to help support their families, and by doing so, they forwent their education. Numerous nineteenth century reformers and labor groups sought to restrict child labor and to improve working conditions.

Conditions of factories were not safe for anyone, let alone a small child. Due to these conditions many children died before their prime. Many children “began work at age 5, and generally died before they were 25” (www.victorianweb.org), America was beginning to lose an entire generation due to these working conditions that so many had to endure. Children were hired at an alarming rate. “In 1870, the first time census reported child workers, there were 750,000 workers in the United States age 15 and under, not including those who worked on family farms or in other family businesses” (“Child Labor in America”), these numbers were not something that was looked over, it astonished many. “A cotton manufactory of 5 or 6000 spindles will employ those 200 children” (Bremner 232). The workforce would continuously grow, hiring more and more children each day. Factories were good for using children as a means of their productivity. “Textile factories, for the most part […] were in the forefront of this industrial revolution, and children formed an essential component of the new industrial workforce” (Bremner 232). Many times without these children working some of these factories would not have survived through the revolution.

The Industrial Revolution occurred in Britain and America around the late 1700’s to 1900. This revolution improved the production of goods using new mechanisms and machines. Human labor was in high demand in order for the highest production rates. Factories employed low to middle-class people that were as young as three years old (Document 9). These workers were benefited with money, shelter, and clothes, but the working and living conditions were not satisfying. The average industrial worker experienced a variety of factors that can be classified as good or bad, including the positive effects of labor, like the shelter, money, and food they were given; and the negative effects of the factory,

“C: What time did you begin work at the factory? B: When I was six years old” (Testimony on Child Labor in Britain) Children started doing strenuous work at such young ages. Children would often be mentally or physically tormented in life because

In 1833, the Factory Act of 1833 was passed to improve the working conditions for children who labored in factories. A source reveals, “Young children were working very long hours in workplaces where conditions were often terrible,” (Document 10). As this came to the government’s attention, the act was produced by them in an attempt to lessen the abuse of working children, and to treat them more like children. First, the Factory Act limited the hours children could work in factories. The act states, “Children of 9-13 years to work no more than nine hours a day; children of 13-18 years to work no more than 12 hours a day,” (Document 10). Children were also not allowed to work at night. By having working hours reduced, children were able to fit in time to play, sleep, and get an education. It also reduced fatigue, as the children weren’t on their feet as long, and they got in more time to sleep. Secondly, within the act, there was a rule limiting the age children must be to work in factories. No children under the age of nine were allowed to work in the factories,” (Document 10). Although this decreased the amount of money coming in for each family, it allowed the children to get educations, have more free time, and help their

In 1815, the British Parliament sent out researchers to interview child workers and learn more about factory conditions. Factory owners often preferred to hire women and children because men expected higher wages. Children were hire to work in Great Britain’s coalmines. There was soon some reforms for child workers and a proposed law to limit their workday to 10 hours. In the end, there were connections among child labor, factory conditions, and attitudes about capitalism, reactions to capitalism and the rise of labor movements.

Throughout history many people, such as politicians, officials, and generals, have been noted to have molded the United States, neglecting the fact that workers have also played an important role in shaping this nation’s history. During the 1870s to the 1930s, laborers faced many hardships; they had trouble keeping their jobs, had their wages decreased, and were forced to work sixty-hour weeks without insurance. Over time, workers began to feel aggravated by their employers’ demands and began to voice their opinions. Only by forming into unions and standing up to what employers’ thought was “freedom” in the workplace were the laborers able to change working conditions more favorable for them.

During the 19th century children from ages of 3 onwards were forced into employment, mainly to work in factories. Child labour was extremely popular and played a big part of Britain’s economic success. Adults seemed to

The first downside to working in a factory in the 1800’s is the outrageous hours that men, women, and children have to work. They can work up to fifteen hours in a day, and many workers fought for a full day of work to be considered ten hours at most. This problem in the industry affected every worker physically, because if a worker got very few hours of sleep, then the next day his work ethic would not be at his full potential. That could then cause their boss to fire them, and hire another man who is stronger and more willing to work. An incident like that happened to Jurgis. He worked so hard to keep his family fed, then he had to take time off of work due to an injury. (Sinclair 116) When he tried to come back to work, they replaced him

Government regulations had a big impact on the daily life of child labourers during the industrial revolution in many ways, such as Children were often forced to work in difficult conditions for long hours. They received little pay and were harshly disciplined. There were no restrictions on the age of workers or number of hours that could be worked.

The Factory Act, 1833 was an attempt to set up a normal working day in

In the late eighteenth century and early nineteenth century of England, the Industrial Revolution occurred. It is marked as an important movement in history because it introduced steam-driven machinery, large factories, and a new working class. With new manufacturing, job opportunities opened up. As the demand for employees rose, that is when the working class also began to rise. However, it not only included adults but children as well. The main reason for children to work is because it benefits the employers and their families economically. Employers made profit by having children work for low wages, and the money the children made would go towards the family income and necessities to survive. The low adult wages would not suffice for a neutral family or extended, so children had no choice but to work and help support their family. Although in need of money, there were too many dangers involved when the children were working. As a result of this, the state legislation had Acts passed for the children’s safety. The Industrial Revolution had many upsides in modernizing England, but it also uncovered that children should not be seen as workers needing money, but as young human beings that need education and protection, and the only way to initiate this is with the involvement of the state.