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The Progressive Era Essay

1119 Words5 Pages

Working today is not meant for any kids, but was a big problem during the Progressive Era which was around the 19th century. People under 13 are considered children and there had been thousands of children under this age who had been forced to work for many different reasons. There were horrible conditions, and poor pay. The children couldn’t do anything about it because not only were they forced to work, but their families needed the money to support and feed them. Children earned less pay than adults and their working conditions were so bad that most of them became very sick and their bodies were ruined because of the work. Child labor was such a big problem during the Progressive Era because the working conditions were horrible, making …show more content…

Their parents were not stopping them from doing so because they needed the money desperately. Some of the jobs that children worked at weren’t meant for them and they were getting hurt. As it said in the book, Kids At Work, there was a 12 year old boy found working a huge machine and as a result he fell into it and tore off two of his fingers. He was still forced to work with these dangerous and frightening conditions. At one factory, young girl laborers worked at picking or cleaning nuts and separating meats by their fingers. They did these tasks for many hours each day. They would only earn 6 cents for a pound of picked nuts. A number of girls worked together and cleaned over 15 pounds of nuts in an hour but only ended up getting 15 cents each. The children were given no chairs, they were forced to work in a hot and dirty environment, and once again, they got bad pay. If someone were to make that little money today, it would translate to only about 4 dollars. If they worked for around a 12 hour day, then they would make about $48 which is cruel for that amount of time. The working conditions in general were unruly for the children who had to undergo them. No matter what the age, quality, job, or amount they did, their pay was less than adults who worked the same jobs as them. Children were forced to work in humid areas which led to sickness and unhealthy conditions. Children were forced to work in horrible conditions for very little money. Freedman page 2, Gourley page

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Workers could develop disease and die because of the things that would get on them or into their mouths and eyes. Child labor was the most pressing issue and encouraged many documents and other works expressing the need for government regulation of underage factory workers. Document three explains how factory labor is not something a child should be doing as it is detrimental to their growth and body. Children made up the majority of workers because they were cheap and listened to

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They also employed them because they were small and could go under and fix the machines easily. As children were expected to work at a young age in the Industrial Revolution time, they employed loads of children so than they didn’t have to do as much work and they could get more done at once. The jobs they done caused injuries frequently such as crushed fingers, broken arms, and even legs been pulled off. The factory owners did not force the workers to work they had a choice, either be homeless, or get underpaid and mistreated. The children had to fix broken machines and fix the broken threads, when they were still going.

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This was at a time when there were no laws for child labor. Child labor was treacherous and some important people stepped in to stop it. These working conditions were hazardous and the kids were not safe. Child labor affects the child’s mental and physical health and it keeps children from struggling in school.(Doc. 7) Also, the reason why there were so many accidents in factories is because there were no safety regulations and requirements for uniforms.(Doc. 2)

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Children had to work 14 hours a day, and had hardly any breaks, and had no time for school. This is stated in Document D, which states, “ that in many mills, they are forced to work thirteen, fourteen, or fifteen hours per day, and that they have not time either for play or education.” The hours they worked left no time for education, or for play as stated in Document C, “Our regular time was from five in the morning till nine or ten at night; and on Saturday, till eleven, and often twelve o’clock at night, and then we were sent to clean the machinery on the Sunday.” Being able to play and go to school is a important part in child

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