The Industrial Revolution : The Positive Effects Of The Industrial Revolution

Throughout the 1700’s and the early 1800’s child labor was a major issue in American society. Children have always worked for family businesses whether it was an agricultural farming situation or working out of a family business in some type of workplace. This was usually seen in families of middle or lower class because extra help was needed to support the family. Child labor dramatically changed when America went through the Industrial Revolution. When America’s industrial revolution came into play, it opened a new world to child labor. Children were now needed to work in factories, mills, and mines. These were not ordinary jobs for young children, these jobs required much time, effort, and hard work. “American

During the industrial revolution in Britain, the usage of child labourers dramatically increased as it became a cheap and easy form of labour. This lead to the continued abuse of many children in textile factories. In 1833, the Factory Act of 1833 was put forth which dictated that no children under the age of nine would work. Children ages nine to thirteen wouldn’t work more than nine hours a day and children ages thirteen to eighteen wouldn’t work more than twelve hours a day. In addition it introduced the circulation of four factory inspectors who were to enforce the new legislation. They were to certify whether children had received their compulsory education of two hours each day and report conditions to the government. This act brought forth attention and sparked debates from the public which made stronger note of the working conditions for children.

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

This was a little bit on the extreme, children who operated in factories work 12-14 hours with 1 hour break. Not only were these children subject to long hours, but also, they were in horrible conditions. Large, heavy, and dangerous equipment was very common for children to be using or working near. Many accidents occurred injuring or killing children on the job. Not until Florence Kelly helped win the passage of the Illinois Factory Act in 1893. The law prohibited child labor and limited women’s working hours. The law became a model for other

A regular shift for any factory worker was 12-16 hours a day, six days a week. The poem “My Boy” written by a working mother during the Industrial Revolution says that her “labor drives [her] forth…” (Document 2) until “…night when [she is] free.” (Document 2) She is “a stranger… to [her] child and [her child] one to [her].” (Document 2). This was not unheard of during this time. Parents and their children being driven away from each other to provide for the family. However, the mother working at the factory provided better financial opportunities for her family and in turn a higher standard of living. Elizabeth Bentley, a woman who testified on the child labor in Britain, when asked “what time [she] began work at the factory” (Documents 7) responded “when I was six years old” (Document 7). She worked in the mill “for about a year” (Document 7). Long hours and separation of family weren’t the only problem when it came to the Industrial Revolution. The use of child labor was also a significant

The working conditions of the average laborer during the industrial revolution were oftentimes harsh and dangerous as seen in documents in 1,2,3 and 5. According to the Sadler Committee of 1832, men were forced to work excessively long hours and were whipped to stay awake. (Doc. 1) Additionally, the Sadler Committee revealed that many workers have suffered from infections, disease and muscle problems. (Doc. 2) This shows that industrial factory owners oftentimes exploited their laborers for profit. Andrew Ure’s The Philosophy of Manufactures reveals that children in the factory

Imagine a world without cars, phones, and radio. This world would feature children working in slums and trips that take twice the amount of time they would if one would have simply taken the train. Believe it or not, but this was how society was before Industrialization. It is argued whether or not Industrialization had a positive or negative impact on society, as it brought the dangerous world of child labor and several ill business practices. Despite these hardships, Industrialization had a greatly positive effect on society, as with it came the creation of child labor laws, the advancement in the mass production of goods, and technological advancements that changed our world forever.

The Industrial Revolution was a very gloomy time period. There were many horrible things going on at this time. One major thing was child labor. Child labor was happening everywhere. Also the dangerous working conditions for the many workers and the long, tiring hours the people had to work in those harmful polluted factories.

Throughout the American Industrial Revolution, child labor in industries such as textiles, agriculture, mining, manufacturing, laboring, street work, and domestic work was endemic in the United States. Several factors, including mechanization, urbanization, industrialization, poverty, labor shortages, and lack of regulation were the primary causes for this increase in child labor. Children, as young as three years old, worked from sunrise to sunset in factories, mines, fields, and mills where conditions were excruciating. The arduous work resulted in myriad deleterious effects, namely, afflictive injuries, pitiful deaths, and bleak futures. In order to curtail the abusive conditions, numerous people championed the rights of child laborers and ultimately achieved their concordant goal of gaining federal regulation of minimum employment ages, permissible types of jobs, and duration of work hours for youths.

Employers would often require their employees to work long, grueling hours for little pay, often implementing a “sun up to sun down” work day. This is equivalent to fourteen-sixteen hours a day, six days a week. People were okay with this because as long as they got paid, they would do the work. Workers would get paid ten cents an hour. If you were a skilled worker, you earned a little bit more.

During the Industrial Revolution, from 1760 to 1850, work life for children dramatically changed. Children had always helped on farms or assisted in making textiles at home. However, as life became more urban and industrial there were fewer domestic job opportunities. This forced many children from working on their family farm to working in unsafe factory conditions.

“An act called the Factory act of 1847 was passed and it says that I can only work you all for 10 hours a da-”(“Working Conditions in the Industrial Revolution”). He was cut off from the cheering of the entire factory. “SILENTS!! This simply means that lunch will be shortened thank you and continue working.” And with that he vanished.

The Industrial Revolution had an enormous and deplorable effect on children and family life. During the 19th century, children worked in various industries such as textile mills, foundries and farms etc. Major changes during the industrial revolution occurred in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transport, and technology (The Industrial Revolution, Par 1).

Children aged from six years old in the industrial revolution worked hard hours for very little. The children usually worked up to 19 hours a day, with a one-hour break. Not only were these children subject to long hours, but also, they were in horrible conditions. Large, heavy, and dangerous equipment was very common for children to be using or working near. Many accidents happened killing or injuring children on the job. Children were only paid only a fraction of what an adult would get, and sometimes factory owners would pay them

(Laslett, 1970) Coupled with these innovations was the new concept of applying scientific methodology to industrial processes. (Laslett, 1970) All of these changes, while beneficial to businesses, did little to improve the lot of the industrial laborer. (Laslett, 1970) One of the key complaints of an entirely unregulated labor force in the late 1800s was the extensive use and abuse of child labor. In 1870, nearly three quarters of a million children between the ages of ten and fifteen worked in hazardous aspects of manufacturing, agriculture and street trade. (Laslett, 1970) By 1880, that number was over one point one million, or one in every six children in that age group. (Laslett, 1970) By 1900, that number doubled. The conditions under which children worked were very dangerous. They worked the same shifts as adults (about 12 hours a day, six days a week), denying them the opportunity for school and play. (Laslett, 1970) The factories, mills, mines and other work venues in which they labored were unsafe and unregulated. Children were also often used in the most dangerous aspects of industrial work, such as clearing jammed machines or working in confined spaces too small for adults. (Laslett, 1970) In 1881, only seven states had any kind of regulation laws for child laborer. Desperate for money to survive, immigrants and working-class Americans forged