October 2, 2011
Kaitlyn Lucas
In the period of the Industrial Revolution, child labor was a very large problem. Children worked in factories for the factory owners that they called “Slave Drivers.” The children were treated poorly and were paid low wages even though they worked excessive hours. Workers were not allowed to miss work or enjoy themselves in anyway while in the factories.
Children who worked in factories and mills would work more than the maximum hours and were paid less than a dollar a day. Due to the harsh labor and terrible working conditions, many children became sick. Some came down with a sickness called Brown Lung. They were not allowed to miss work because they were sick or even to go to church. None of the children could read but they memorized the words written on one sign. It said that if they did not go to work on Sunday they should not bother going to work on Monday. There was no fun allowed while the under aged cheap labor was working. If they were caught laughing or talking they could be fined or even fired. The children wanted to go to school and get an education. They especially wanted to learn to read. These dreams were thwarted because they had to work and bring home as much money as they could to help support their families. The factory owners liked the idea of child labor. They received cheap labor and did not have to provide rights to their workers because the children did not know that they could prevent what was happening to them. The “Slave Drivers” believed that the government should mind their own business and leave the factories and mills alone. They wanted no one to interfere with the production of their goods because all they cared about was money. They wanted to earn as much cash as they could get as fast as they could get it.
The perspectives of child labor during the Industrial Revolution varied depending on who was involved. Some people favored child labor because of the savings but...