I.
Work
conditions
A.
Early
on, unappealing to rural wage earners
B.
Boring,
monotonous, looked like a poorhouse, whistle-work, not used to regiment
(cottage industry…work ‘til Saturday/payday, party ‘til Tuesday, catch up ‘til
Saturday)
C.
Abandoned
pauper children as labor/exploitation
D.
Need
for labor – entire families would go to work
E.
Eventually,
reform measures; Parliament forbids pauper “apprentices”
F.
Robert
Owen says kids working under 10 hurts health
G.
Factory Act of 1833 – under 9 in factory schools; 9-13
worked only 8 hours; 14-18 worked 12 hours
H.
Subcontracting
– commonly done and usually the subcontractor had family or friends under him
II.
Women
workers
A.
Men
are the breadwinners; women at home; “separate spheres”
B.
Women
unlikely to work full-time; if they did, it was in poor jobs
C.
Why?
Sexism, pregnancies and small children make holding a job difficult, conscious
separation of sexes b/c adolescents intermingled at
work – this mixing and mingling was believed to lead to… (long walks in the
woods to pick wildflowers)
D.
Mines Act of 1842 – forbade underground work for
women and young boys; picture p. 753
E.
Many
women welcomed the role of homemaker
III.
Labor
Movement
A.
1850,
Britain still: most folks farmed, 2nd largest job was domestic
servant
B.
Hand
tool crafts in small shops still operating; example of iron industry
C.
Unions
1.
workers
began to see themselves as a collective group
2.
strikes
result; British government sees unions, guilds, monopolies etc. as unnatural
“combinations” contrary to laissez-faire liberal economics (capitalism)
3.
Combination Acts of 1799 – forbade such
groups, but largely it was ignored; repealed in 1824
4.
Robert
Owen
a.
very
progressive – disciplined workers yet concern for health, safety, hours
b.
see
The Crisis p. 749
c.
sought
utopian experiment in New Harmony, IN (failed)
d.
sought
national labor union – Grand National Trades Union (failed)
e.
started
– Amalgamated Society of Engineers as a skilled machinist union (successful)
5. Chartist movement – wanted all men to
have the right to vote