Child Labor In The 1800s

All kids deserve to be free and happy. They need education to succeed in life and deserve to cherish their few moments in life where they can be carefree. Child labor has taken this away from them. Child labor has denied them that right. Children under the age of 13 should not work so they can attend school. In the mid 1800’s child labor became a major problem. Kids had been working in farms, but never in factories. As the factories became more popular, more children were employed to work in them. They would work 12 to 18 hours a week, 6 days a week, and for only a dollar in the factories. Most children would start to work at the age of 7, and spin mills or haul heavy loads. These children had no time to play or go to school. To add on, these

Child labor started with finding people to work in these factories. The machines didn’t require adult strength, and children were cheaper to hire compared to adults. By the mid 1800s, child labor had become a big problem. Most had to work in factories, and It was hard, dangerous work. Kids under 7 would work 12 to 18 hours a day, 6 days a week, for just a dollar! People like teachers, church and labor groups, and others were extremely angry about this. English writer Charles Dickens even helped publicize a book about the horrible conditions of child labor with his novel Oliver Twist. Congress eventually decided to outlaw child labor, but it took the United States many years to do it. The U.S. Congress passed two laws, in 1918 and 1922, but both were deemed unconstitutional by the Supreme Court. In 1924, Congress proposed a constitutional amendment, making child labor illegal, but no state ratified it. Finally, in 1938, Congress passed the Fair Labor Standards Act. It said that only people that were the minimum ages of 16 could work during school hours, 14 year olds could work certain jobs after school, and only 18 year olds and older could do dangerous work. Child labor was finally outlawed. (Scholastic 1) Our government has certainly been direct on its views regarding child labor. However, there are still improvements that could be made. For example, we could make sure all business owners get background checks

This will give them the freedom and education at the young age that they are at. In 1938 Congress passed the Fair Labor Standards Act. It said that only people that were the minimum ages of 16 could work during school hours, 14 year olds could work certain jobs after school, and only 18 year olds and older could do dangerous work. There are children in this world who have had to provide for their families, come home with blistered, cut, bruised hands, sick and ill at the end of each day, under the age of 7. Most kids we now are building sand castles, playing house, and running through sprinklers. These are the moments in our lives when we don’t have to feel encumbered and stressed with work. We can just be free and happy. Child labor has taken away those few moments in a child’s life and replaced them with fear, stress, and anxiety. Children are the base of our society. They are our future generation. Do you want a future generation with sweat, and blood on its hands because it worked in coal mines in its youth? In conclusion, children under the age of 13 should not work, so they could attend school. Kids should stay in school to improve their education. 200,000 injuries, thousands of cases of permanent disability, and more than 70 deaths each