Introduction
The First Industrial Revolution
The First Industrial Revolution, which peaked during the late 18th century, started a new phase in human history, despite the terrible working conditions and unfair treatments in the factory.
The First Industrial Revolution, which started the technological development in Europe during 1760 to 1830, was largely limited to Britain. Inventions such as Spinning Jenny and the power loom that boosted the speed of the production required the factories to employ more workers, which resulted in urbanization (Britannica).
By the middle of the industrialization, rural families in Britain started to move to the cities with the hope of pleasant life. But the reality was not as hopeful as they had thought. A lot of the migrants were left unemployed, and the lives of the
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The Second Industrial Revolution, which peaked between 1870 and 1914, was aiming to expedite the extraction of the gold from the mines, railroads had to be laid to reach across the land to the ports for global trading (Engelman, Ryan). This made factories call in more and more workers, and in 1880, five million Americans were industrial employees. (Lutz, Alexandra)
Compared to the First Industrial Revolution where only few laws or regulations existed for the workers, more labor laws were created during the Second Industrial Revolution, aiming to ensure the safety of the workers. A series of further Acts, which was regulated during 1860 and 1872, aimed to strengthen the safety provisions of the workers. The Act included the first regulation that legalized safeguards for health, life and limb (Wikipedia).
Indeed, the laws were meant for the workers in the factories to have safer working conditions, but it never really worked out. Records vary, but it is known that as many as 35,000 workers killed and another million injured on the job in 1900. (Lutz,