Factories During The 19th Century
Living Conditions
As business began to boom and the national markets grew, more people began to move to the Northeast because they wanted jobs. Most people lived in the "slum" as depicted in the picture to the left. Five to nine people lived in a single room which was as big as an apartment. Not only was there not enough room, but more people got sick as well. Because everyone lived in terrible conditions and so close to one another, diseases spread rapidly and lack of medicine and medical care resulted in many deaths. At the time, population was increasing rapidly because of more people moving in, so apartments became more crowded and in worse condition. These were the people that lived every lives that had to fight for jobs and competed to live.
Working Conditions
Simply, the working conditions were terrible during the Industrial Revolution. As factories were being built, businesses were in need of workers. With a long line of people willing to work, employers could set wages as low as they wanted because people were willing to do work as long as they got paid.
How much the workers usually receive and how many hours they work
People worked fourteen to sixteen hours a day for six days a week. However, the majority were unskilled workers, who only received about $8-$10 dollars a week, working at approximately 10 cents an hour. Skilled workers earned a little more, but not significantly more.