How did the industrial revolution contribute to the rapid increase in child labour during the 1800’s and what effect has this had on child slavery in today’s society? With this question in mind, I will be focusing my essay on child labour as a contemporary social problem that is still seen as a major issue in society today. In particular I will be focusing on child labour in England and its relationship with the British industrial revolution. Child labour is often referred to as the employment of children in hardworking conditions that are more often than not harmful to their physical and mental health. By analysing the origins of child labour as a result of the industrial revolution and focusing primarily on child labour in the textile industry in England, I will be discussing how the issue of child labour came to be such a big problem in society both in the past and the present and answering the question of how the industrial revolution contributed to the rapid increase in child labour.
“Many children are employed in horrible conditions in many countries around the world” (Sebastian, 1997). Child labour is a problem that was seen in not only England specifically, but exists in most third-world countries during the early stages of the eighteenth century. Child labour is an important issue because it affects the lives of millions of children around the world who are suffering from severe mental and health problems due to the poor working conditions with which they are forced to work in as well as the mistreatment they receive from whom they work for. Child labour dates back to the eighteenth century where children were forced to work in harmful conditions for extremely low wages, from as early as the ages of six or seven. Howeve...
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... widespread and this is just one of many examples of how child labour existed in society in the 1800’s. “Today child labour is often seen as outside the scope of child welfare and child protective services” (Mayers, 2011). Many people believe that child labour was a social issue that is no longer a big problem, however child labour is still a big problem in countries around the world today and many children are suffering from these unnecessary working environments because employers value profits more than the lives of these innocent children. The industrial revolution introduced a completely new outlook on life and contributed to the way employers thought about their workers, just like Winks and Neuberger discuss in their article, “the industrial revolution changed the world in concrete ways and in the ways people experienced and thought about their lives” (2005).
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Show MoreThroughout 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.
For instance, a boy might end up tending to the field for an ill parent, or a young girl might be forced to take care for her younger siblings after her mother dies. Often, while this work was somewhat taxing for children, it was expected of them and it was considered a family responsibility for them to assist their parents in difficult situations. This was considered chores, and it was necessary for the survival of these families. However, this attitude that it was a child’s duty to assist their parents did contribute to the development of child labor. As Edith Abbott wrote, “The introduction of child labor into our early factories was a natural consequence of the colonial attitude toward child labor.” While child labor was necessary during these times, it paved way for a harsher form of child
Forms of labor included child slavery that existed throughout American History. As industrialization moved workers from farms and home workshops into urban areas and factory work. Children were often preferred, because factory owners viewed them as more manageable, cheaper, and less likely to start a rebellion.2 Growing opposition to children in the North caused many factories to move to South. By early 1900’s, states varied considerably in whether they had implemented child labor standards.3Child labor peaked in the nineteenth century. American children worked in large numbers in places like mines, glass factories, textiles, agriculture, canneries, home industries, and as newsboys, messengers, shoe shiners and peddlers....
England was a society dominated by children. During the reign of Queen Victoria one out of three of her servants were under the age of fifteen. Child labor was a prominent issue, because there were no systems to ensure the safety of children. During the start of the industrial revolution, there was a “high demand” for labor (Robson 53). Many families moved from rural areas to new, industrialized cities. After a while things weren’t looking as “promising” as they did before (Boone 23). In order to maintain, families had to put almost all of their family members to work. This led to a rise in the number of child labor. Children were “mistreated, underpayed and overworked” (Kincaid 30). Using children to do all of the hard work, the mining companies believed, was the most sensible and efficient way to get the job done. Because the children were a lot smaller, it was easy for them to “maneuver through tight spaces” and on top of that the children demanded little or no pay at all(Boone 43 ). These wages were enough to persuade companies to use children for all sorts of dangerous jobs such as coal mining and chimney sweeps. Children were called to do many other “horrible” jobs, jobs that adults in this era could not bear, just so long as the bills were paid (Robson 18). The working conditions and treatment of young children during this era was horrible and a lot was done to put an end to it.
Young children were exploited and quick pace but an unnecessary burden on the children. In the early 1800’s, it was common to put children on dangerous machinery because of their small quick fingers, such as tying broken threads on the machine, while the machine was running. Child workers were separated from parents and placed under the supervision of strangers. Parents extremely disliked the unorthodox method of having their child work under someone outside the family. The improvement in machinery, humanitarian concerns, and parents convinced Britain to pass child labor laws in 1833. Not having children in the workforce created a new belief that childhood was for education, not for work. Labor discipline was one of the major reasons why child labor laws came into
"Childhood Lost: Child Labor During the Industrial Revolution." Eastern Illinois University. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Feb. 2014.
In the beginning in the late 1700 and early 1800 hundreds when the Industrial Revolution when many families had to find someone to work or they wouldn 't survive in this decade this started child labor you might be asking yourself what is child labor, child labor is work that harms children or keep them from attending school or trying to get an education to better themselves. industrial labor organization made 215 million children between the ages of 5 and 17 had to work under the condition that are considered legal hazards or extremely exploitative in the environment that they worked in. underage children had to work also because usually their families were extremely poor and didn 't have enough money to support their selves for their children by them doing this there are many things that involved child labor when it came to the mistreating them. Such as them getting
While the working conditions for children in Europe during the Industrial Revolution were hazardous and sometimes fatal, the era was only capable of the extraordinary profits and accomplishments it achieved because of child labor. They achieved the feats that they did because of the wide array of labor the children performed in factories, coal mines, and cotton mills.
The Industrial Revolution had poor working conditions. It was a very cruel time for children. Many children as young as six years old worked hard and long hours for a little amount of money. Sometimes children worked nineteen hours a day for only one hour of pay to help support their family. These children sometimes lost limbs due to careless actions working with the dangerous machiner...
Christopher Hibbert’s The English: A Social History, 1066-1945, harshly reflects child labor. The author uses graphic details to portray the horrible work environment that the children, sometimes as young as four and five, were forced to work in. Hibbert discusses in much detail the conditions the children work in, the way they are mistreated, and what was done to prevent child labor.
Before considering the reasons for and impact of child labour, it is necessary to provide a brief overview of the Industrial Revolution in England. The 14th century saw England shift from an exporter of raw wool to manufacturer of quality woollen textiles. The two main events that took place, which allowed this to happen were: the Hundred Years’ War and Bubonic plague. The Hundred Years’ War was a battle between the English and French, which, began in 1337. During the war, King Edward III of England created a wool monopoly in an attempt to raise funds to help support the war effort. This was achieved by taxing the export of wool to Flanders and the Low Countries. As a result, the production of woollen textiles decreased, and provided England the opportunity to capitalize on the shortage. It was also during this time the Bubonic plague struck Europe killing somewhere between a third to a half of the population. The effects of the plague were devastating for the most part, but...
In the late 1700’s and early 1800’s big business began to boom. For the first time companies were developing large factories to manufacture their goods. Due to the new mechanics and cheap labor, factory owners could now produce their goods at a cheaper rate. As big businesses brought wealth and capitalism, it also widened the gap between the wealthy elite and the poor. One class in particular was horribly affected by the growth of big factories. This class was the poor working class. According to the article “Child Labor in the United States” written by Robert Whaples, a big proportion of the labour work force was made up of children: “In 1820 children aged 15 and under made up 23 percent of the manufacturing labor force of the industrializing
The Industrial Revolution restructured the employer-employee relationship into an impersonal association exhibited by indifference to the quality of life of the worker. Children were especially exploited because they could be hired for lower wages and were made to work equally long days (Miller). Around the 1830s, children constituted about one-third of the labor in New England (Illinois Labor History Society). The conditions of workers as a whole necessitated action on behalf of the rights of laborers.
With the gradual advancements of society in the 1800’s came new conflicts to face. England, the leading country of technology at the time, seemed to be in good economic standing as it profited from such products the industrial revolution brought. This meant the need for workers increased which produced jobs but often resulted in the mistreatment of its laborers. Unfortunately the victims targeted were kids that were deprived of a happy childhood. A testimony by a sub-commissioner of mines in 1842 titled Women Miners in the English Coal Pits and The Sadler Report (1832), an interview of various kids, shows the deplorable conditions these kids were forced to face.
Imagine waking up at five in the morning to walk over a mile to a factory where you work until noon where you get a half hour break for lunch, then it’s back to work until nine or ten at night, when you are finally allowed to go home and you are only eight years old. Today that seems unimaginable, but during the early 19th century it was the everyday life of thousands of children whose ages range from as young as five until you died. During the Industrial Revolution many children were required to work dangerous jobs to help their families.