Child labor is employing children to work for a salary. This became a problem as the Industrial Revolution began to surface and spread across the world. During this time, it was commonplace to see young children contributing on the family farm. However, the conditions of the early factories and mines during the Industrial Revolution were very unfit for children. Many people were concerned that the conditions greatly affected the welfare and life span of the young children.
In 1910, about two million children were working in the Industrial settings. Most children who were employed during this time period were under the ages of 10. They were often times preferred over an adult due to their size which allowed them to move through the crooks and crannies of the machinery. In addition, their small fingers could fix minor problems on the machine without having to stop it, and their young bodies were stronger, faster, and had more stamina than an adult. Perhaps the main reason though was that they were far more economical considering they received less money than an adult doing the same chore. Moreover, the Industrial Revolution caused many problems for lower class families; therefore the hard earned money the young children received was very important to keeping their family afloat.
The factories where the children worked were extremely unsafe. It is said that they, "...dulled the mind, enervated the spirit, and deformed young bodies." Their work conditions were polluted, dark, and gloomy. These horrid conditions were the causes of asthma and other lung related issues. The children were expected to work, on average, for 8-10 hours a day with a short break, and worked approximately 6 days a week for just sixty cents a day.
As a result of their long work hours and stressed bodies, many of the children were illiterate. They could not read or write, in fact some did not even know their ABC's. Their whole lives were about working all day, going home to a tidbit of a meal, sleeping in a small house with their numerous amounts of brothers and sisters, than repeating the process.
This is not a time period that America is proud of. We were lost in the Industrial Revolution and all its greatness that we forgot the downfalls of it. With the help of two very important men, Edward Keating and Robert Owen, as well as the Children's Bureau, a very influential document came into play that would change the course of history.
As a result of their long work hours and stressed bodies, many of the children were illiterate. They could not read or write, in fact some did not even know their ABC's. Their whole lives were about working all day, going home to a tidbit of a meal, sleeping in a small house with their numerous amounts of brothers and sisters, than repeating the process.
This is not a time period that America is proud of. We were lost in the Industrial Revolution and all its greatness that we forgot the downfalls of it. With the help of two very important men, Edward Keating and Robert Owen, as well as the Children's Bureau, a very influential document came into play that would change the course of history.