Michel Sadler And The Factory Act Of 1800

During the Gilded age monopolies, which was cause by corruption, gave companies a lot of power resulting in child labor. In reaction to child labor the Keating-Owen Child Labor Act was formed. People were receiving low wages right along with poor working conditions. Along with the low wages and

Before the days of labor laws and unions, there was a time in which laws were not able to keep up with a rapidly changing industrial economy. As machinery and technology advanced, so did the possible amount of revenue being generated. Unfortunately, this machinery made it so unexperienced workers, such as children and teenagers, could work hours on end creating products. With little legislation in place, these vulnerable workers were exploited in factories and mills. Many individuals, such as Florence Kelley, called for change by creating speeches that would be presented in large conventions and rallies.

It first started with demonstrations: rallies and protests took place as labourers developed a “dangerous spirit of discontent with the Government” for many were dissatisfied with the unrealistic prices on grain thanks to the Corn Laws. The Corn Laws were instituted to assist local producers, and since the majority of lands were owned by companies due to the enclosure movement, most of the wealth went to the upper-class. Similarly, industrialization benefited not the workers the most, but instead the company owners; the “triumphs of machinery” and its “gain and glory” were to be only derived by “wealthy Liverpool and Manchester men.” (Document 4) Protests like such continued until the government began responding to the cries of the people. Under the “Hours of Labor in Factories Act” passed in 1844, work hours had been reduced to “ten hours per day” and “wages… have largely increased”.

Sadler’s intent was “… an effort to persuade the British Parliament to enact new laws to safeguard the rights of child workers.” , (Enotes) by proposing a limit on the number of working hours in a day to

Unlike today, the government took little interest in creating safety standards or in regulating how businesses treated workers. The typical industrial employee worked long hours under dangerous conditions for little pay. Many workers were poor immigrants who had little choice but to keep working despite the conditions. If

Due to the fact that industry grew so rapidly and work in factories was the main source of income for majority of families, more and more children were working. Many social reformers and educators spoke out about the detrimental mental and physical effects child labor had on most of America’s youth (Doc C). In 1816, during Wilson’s presidency, the Child Labor Act was passed, outlawing companies from utilizing the skill set of children under the age of fourteen. Activists such as Jane Addams and questions regarding the innocence children in the workfield, helped the Child Labor Act pass with relative ease. Also, earlier within the century, in 1906, the Pure Food and Drug Act was passed, further ensuring the quality and safeness of American processed foods.

During the Industrial Revolution in the United States, labor laws regarding safety and the age of children who could work were non-existent. Unlike today, in a time where strict laws regarding the use of child labor are regarded and respected, during the times of early Industrialism, children worked alongside their parents in an effort to help their families economically. With the turn of the twentieth century came new ideas of the Progressive Era, which forever changed the laws surrounding the use of children in factories and other labor-intensive occupations. However, the struggle behind the efforts to change child labor laws was a long one. With events such as the Newsboy Strike in New York in 1899 to the creation of the Fair Labor Standards

Child Labor was a huge flaw in the American system before the Progressive Era. Children were unskilled, but they could use their puny hands to reach in and under machinery. This became a problem, because fingers and sometimes limbs were lost. First, the National Child Labor Committee was formed to watch over the children. In 1916, the Keating-Owen Act was passed that made any good made by a child illegal to be transported out of state.

The New York Newsboys Strike of 1899 led to the recognition of the poor living conditions and life styles of young children in the urban cities. By the 1900’s, at least 18 percent of children were employed. 25 percent of the children working in the Southern cotton mills were below the age of fifteen and half of the 25 percent of the children were below the age of twelve years old. Up until the 20th century, child labor was an essential factor of the American economy and social life. In 1902, Florence Kelley, a founder the social work profession, and Lillian Wald, the founder of the Henry Street Settlement, persuaded the Association of Neighborhood Workers that they should take up the issue of child labor.

The progressives of the late 1800s and early 1900s may not have been a society or a union, but they were united under a common cause. That common cause was the need for change, and not just small changes; but the need for changes at the local, state, and national level. As they are now, things were far from perfect during the Progressive Era, and progressives sought to improve social welfare, worker rights, conservation of the country’s resources, and more. Of all of the issues with the United States’ social welfare in the early 1900s, the circumstances of child labor were arguably the worst.

Lewis Hine took pictures of child labor and that helped people see what was going on behind the scenes of big companies. John Spargo was a writer and his books informed people of child labor and how bad it really was. One of his most famous books was called “The Bitter Cry of Children”. After people started to realize that this needed to change laws started to get put in place. There were four acts/laws passed: the Children's Bureau, the Adamson Act, the Keating Owens Child Labor Act, and the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938.

An example of this blatant disregard for consequences in advocation for industrial advancements is the mass exploitation of child workers during the Industrial Revolution. During this period, in advocation for industrialization and economic growth, many children were employed and forced to work up to sixteen hours a day in poor work conditions and were never given a proper education. In document one, in an interview with the Sadler committee in 1832, one of the victims of this child exploitation who had to work in a mill would state, “[I began working in the mills] when I was ten years of age… we began at five in the morning and stopped at nine at night…we were frequently strapped.” (A form of punishment by whipping.) In addition, when asked about his education, the worker would state, “We had no time to go to day school, I can read, but cannot write.”

Child labor during the 18th and 19th century did not only rapidly develop an industrial revolution, but it also created a situation of difficulty and abuse by depriving children of edjucation, good physical health, and the proper emotional wellness and stability. In the late 1700 's and early 1800 's, power-driven machines replaced hand labor for making most manufactured items. Many of America 's factories needed a numerous amount of workers for a cheap salary. Because of this, the amount of child laborers have been growing rapidly over the early 1800s.

Child labor was a great problem in the Industrial Revolution. Factory owners usually hired women and children rather than men. They said that men expected higher wages, and they suspected that they were more likely to rebel against the company. Women and children were forced to work from six in the morning to seven at night, and this was when they were not so busy. They were forced to arrive on time and they couldn’t fall behind with their work because if they did they were whipped and punished.

Owen drafted a bill for “industrial emancipation” in 1815.It would have banned employing any child less than 10 years old, and set a maximum of 10 1/2 hour day for those 10 to 18.He was discouraged when he found out that Parliament passed the bill