Stop Child Labor!
When the industrial revolution first came to the United States, there was a high demand for labor. To survive in the lowest level of poverty, families had to have every able member of the family to go to work. This led to the high rise in child labor. Children were not treated well, overworked, and underpaid. Children sometimes worked up to 19 hours a day with, a one-hour total break for very little pay. Not only were these children forced to work long hours, but there were also in horrible conditions. Large, heavy, and dangerous equipment was very common for children to be using or working near. Many accidents occurred, killing or injuring children on the job. The treatment of children was often cruel, unusual, and neglected the safety of children. The people who the children served would beat them, verbally abuse them, and take no consideration of their safety. There were people in this time period that strongly advocated the use or the abolishment of child labor. The first step to improving conditions was in 1833 with the Factory Act. This limited the amount of hours children of certain ages could work. Later, in the early 20th Century, activists went even further to protect children’s’ rights in labor. Activists in the U.S. made the government set up the children’s bureau in 1912. This made it the U.S. responsibility to monitor child labor. Child labor today is still apart from many economies. 59,600 of the workers in the U.S. are under fourteen and many other countries have huge child labor troubles. Child labor came from the Industrial Revolution and is still around today. If a child is under the age of fourteen, I personally think they should not be able to work. Working is stressful and a lot of work. Children should be focusing on getting an education by going to school. When children are working instead of learning they are not getting smarter so, they could have a career when they get older. If you have a professional career it will get you more money. Stop child labor because it is cruel, overwhelming, and tiring.