Child Labor
Child Labor was cruel and very hard on children
Young Children Worked Long Hard Hours
Children worked 12-16 hour days in the mines and factories. Children started working as young as the age of five. The hours they worked were hard, they did the hard jobs that all the adults were too big to do. These included pulling carts on all fours through mine passages, and going under dangerous machines to fix them.
Child Labor Was Considered Acceptable
Parents thought that child labor was acceptable. They thought this because the young children had always helped out working on the farm. Also the parents needed the children wages to help support the family and keep them from starving.
Factory Acts Were Passed
In the early 1800's Factory Acts were passed. Factory Acts were child labor reform laws. The laws were passed to reduce a childs work day to 12 hours and remove children under the age of eight from cotton mills.