Children Work in Crucial Conditions
March 12, 1898 Written By Breanna Smith
Many children, under the age of 15, were working in coal mines and manufacturing. They worked under very poor conditions and even worse pay. Most of these children were working to support their families, at only 15! Children should not be able to work in these factories, under these conditions and their wages should be raised so they are at least equal to the average adult.
By 1900, 1 out of 5 children, ages 10-15, were working to support their family. They were not paid enough to buy food, $0.60 is what most were paid a day. That is not enough to even support themselves let alone a whole family. They also worked 14-16 hours a day in terrible conditions. In coal mines, they would handle coal all day, to the point where the sulfur would their hands swollen and bleeding. These poor children will never get the chance to change their jobs for a better life because they have never been to school. Some try to go to school at night after work but they are so tired that they just can't. Most of the children can't read or have never even opened a book.
Problem Solved
After many crucial years in mines and manufacturing, children finally were saved. In 1938, The Fair Labor Standards Act was passed. This act prohibited anyone under 16 to work in mines and factories. It also made minimum wages, maximum hours, and standards for workers. This helped the children because they no longer had to work 14 hours for hardly any pay.