Child Labor During the Victorian Period and Beyond Essay Example
Belville, Page 1
Child Labor during the Victorian Period and Beyond
The 1870 Census of England reported 750,000 children were part of the workforce.
These were only the children under age 15 and working as laborers. There were many
more working on family farms or in family-owned businesses, not accounted for in that
census. Children are perfect targets for exploitation in the workplace because, in
Victorian England as today, less pay means more profits, children do not have the same
choices as adults, and the poor people of the world will do whatever it takes to survive.
The explosion of industry during the Victorian Era helped sustain established
Victorian attitudes about proper behavior and lifestyle which also allowed more
marriages and more children to be born. In Victorian England the lifestyle of a child was determined by the house he was born into. Wealthy parents, and your education, excellent food, and the best in health care were guaranteed. Children born to poor families went to work for industry as young as 3 to 5 years of age. They worked very hard, long hours for very little pay. Poor rural farm families would put their children to work too. They were often times more fortunate than those who worked outside their homes. Victorian Era society was very judgmental towards anyone who did not work hard to make ends meet. While the upper class enjoyed their luxuries, families struggling to eat put their children to work. This was viewed by many as a source of pride, the larger the number of children in a village working in industry, the better. They saw it as an aid to those in dire need of money.
Belville. Page 2 When business owners found a low-cost workforce by hiring children, their profits increased. This one fact is the main reason child labor was allowed then and is tolerated today. When profits are increased the company looks good on paper, but we must look deeper than that. Businesses were
Child Labor during the Victorian Period and Beyond
The 1870 Census of England reported 750,000 children were part of the workforce.
These were only the children under age 15 and working as laborers. There were many
more working on family farms or in family-owned businesses, not accounted for in that
census. Children are perfect targets for exploitation in the workplace because, in
Victorian England as today, less pay means more profits, children do not have the same
choices as adults, and the poor people of the world will do whatever it takes to survive.
The explosion of industry during the Victorian Era helped sustain established
Victorian attitudes about proper behavior and lifestyle which also allowed more
marriages and more children to be born. In Victorian England the lifestyle of a child was determined by the house he was born into. Wealthy parents, and your education, excellent food, and the best in health care were guaranteed. Children born to poor families went to work for industry as young as 3 to 5 years of age. They worked very hard, long hours for very little pay. Poor rural farm families would put their children to work too. They were often times more fortunate than those who worked outside their homes. Victorian Era society was very judgmental towards anyone who did not work hard to make ends meet. While the upper class enjoyed their luxuries, families struggling to eat put their children to work. This was viewed by many as a source of pride, the larger the number of children in a village working in industry, the better. They saw it as an aid to those in dire need of money.
Belville. Page 2 When business owners found a low-cost workforce by hiring children, their profits increased. This one fact is the main reason child labor was allowed then and is tolerated today. When profits are increased the company looks good on paper, but we must look deeper than that. Businesses were