Lives of Factory Workers Ch 13. Sec 2

Factory Workers  Factory Workers had many rules to follow. –Had to be on time, breaks at set times, only leave with permission, work in all types of weather.  Breaking of rules resulted in fines, pay cut, or job loss.  Factory machines had no safety devices. –Accidents happened frequently.  Employers offered no compensation. –Workers were expected to work 14 hrs a day, six days a week.

Changes in workplace  Abuses soon scandalized England. –Parliament investigated working conditions in factories.  Elizabeth Bently was questioned. –She said that she started to work when she was 6. –She was forced to work from 5 in the morning to 9 at night. –She was beaten for been late. –England passed the Factory Act of  Allowed for factory inspections and enforcement of child labor laws.

Tenements  Life for workers was not much better at home. –Lived in shabby apartments called Tenements. –12 or more people were crammed into a single room. –In one town in England up to 50,000 workers lived in cellars.

Development of Middle Class  Balance of economic power shifted form farming to industry.  Well-educated middle class thrived. –Many of them served as management for the factories and kept them running. –Gained economic and political power. Not based on birth.  They started to live in bigger houses and were able to acquire more expensive life- style.

Women and Industrialization  With the decrease for farm labor many women started to work in Textile factories.  Some started to work for the middle class families in domestic activities. –Middle class women started to stay home. –Many started to look for independence.  Found work as nurses, operators, went to college and as teachers.