Question

How did child labor of the late 1800s and late 1900s affect society?

Answer 1

During the colonial period and into the 1800s the family and guardians usually needed children to work. Initially major percentage of the population worked in agriculture and children often moved into tasks demanding greater skills and strength as they aged. The poor families relied upon child labor to earn the basic living essentials and necessities. The child labor was used to increase production and profits because of the cheap labor. The children operated the power driven machines to save the cost. The working children had little time to rest and no time to go to school, or to play. Child labor had higher rates of death and injury at work compared to the adults and over 50% of child labor was indulged in the dangerous and hazardous work. They suffered not only from physical stress but also with the mental stress because of the appalling working conditions. The child labor prevalence in U.S. meant that the poor children could not receive basic education to enable them to get skilled well paid jobs. They were deprived of a decent education and entered the poverty spiral from where the society had no escape for the growing number of uneducated and unskilled workers.