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Coal Mines
A lot of children hired during the industrial revolution didn't just work in factories but a lot worked in coal mines as well. Children were often hired in these places because they were small enough to fit into the places the adults couldn't and do jobs they couldn't in those positions. While doing these jobs though they often took the risk of being caved in or risked getting asthma (Doc D). They often worked in places that were very very dark and didn't have much room to move around in either. -
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Child Labor
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Factories
Children often had to work in conditions that were very dirty and dark. Factories would also hire children because they were small enough to fit their hands in the machine and fix it or unjam the machine (Doc D). A lot of children would often time lose fingers while doing this or other body parts such as feet or hands. -
Risks
The risks children took while working during the industrial revolution were often higher than the reward. Many children working in factories often risked losing an entire body part such as a finger or hand or oftentimes a leg or arm as well. Children working in coal mines risked being caved in on and dying or risked getting asthma or allergies issues for the rest of their life. They did all of this just so they could make 50-60 cents a day. -
City sweepers/cleaners
Children working during the industrial revolution also worked sweeping the city and cleaning the city too. Looking at cities, we often see them trashed and very dusty and dirty (Doc D). Children working like this often would work harder than they needed to just to make a minuscule wage (Doc D). -
Changes
Many laws were created to try to change and prevent the use of child labor. Some of these were highly successful and others didn't succeed at all. The three laws that affected children working the most were the Cotton Factories Regulation Act of 1819, the Regulation of Child Labor Law, and the Ten Hours Bill of 1847. These laws greatly affected child labor along with many others. Another law that affected working children greatly was the Fair Labor Standards Act. -
Fair Labor Standards Act
The Fair Labor Standards Act changed the minimum age to work to 16 during school, 14 for certain jobs, and 18 for any work that may cause harm to the worker (Doc. A). This also set a minimum wage for any person working so that children couldn't be taken advantage of and underpaid anymore than they already were.