WORKING CONDITIONS

GROUP 2;
MATAGOL, JERALD
KAMID, ARNHORJEHAN
ABDULAZIZ, JAZEERA
SALIH, BENZAR
The Evolution of Working Conditions
Working conditions in factories have historically been
among the most hazardous of any industry.

These conditions have improved since the Industrial

Revolution but still pose a hazard to many workers
around the world.

Learn how working conditions in factories have evolved

since the Industrial Revolution and how modern
innovations and policies improve conditions today.
 Working Conditions in the Industrial
Revolution
 At the start of the Industrial Revolution, primarily from 1760 –
1840, factories were a new source of production, and factories
employed the majority of the working class. During this time,
working conditions for factory workers were at their most
hazardous. Textiles, coal mines, steel, and glassmaking were
among the most common industries during this time, and a lack
of workers’ rights policies allowed factory owners to exploit
their employees. Due to a lack of other jobs available, many
people had no choice but to subject themselves to the poor
working conditions of factories.
Workers were exploited primarily
through the following:

1.Long hours
2.Low wages
3.Child labor
4.Physical discipline
5.Dangerous conditions
 These conditions posed major threats to
the wellbeing of factory workers, and
resulted in extremely low living conditions.

1.Long Hours
Throughout the Industrial Revolution, workers were
expected to work for an average of 12-16 hours shifts with
few breaks or days off, if any. They were often given short
meal breaks, during which they were often required to clean
their machines and perform any operational maintenance
that was not to be done on paid time.
2. Low Wages

During the Industrial Revolution, competition for

jobs was extremely high, with few jobs available
outside of factories. Because of this and the lack
of a minimum wage law, employers were able to
offer extremely low salaries to their employees.
Men made an average of $8 per week, while
women made approximately $4 per week, and
children $2 per week, despite all working similar
hours and jobs.
3. Child Labor

The United States at this time lacked substantial

laws and regulations regarding working
conditions. Due to this, factories were able to
employ children with limited safety regulations.
Children were subject to the same working
conditions as adults, and were often put in more
dangerous situations due to their ability to fit into
machinery spaces that adults couldn’t.
4. Physical Discipline

In addition to cutting wages and hours, employers often used

physical means to discipline their workers. Long hours caused
extreme exhaustion, and workers frequently fell asleep on the job.
While this was a major hazard for those working with heavy
machinery, it also subjected them to physical discipline from
employers and managers. Such discipline included:

 Beating employees with leather straps

 Hanging iron weights to workers’ necks
 Dowsing workers in water to keep them awake
5. Dangerous Conditions

Due to the overpopulation of cities during this time,

factories were substantially overcrowded. This led to
frequent outbreaks of diseases like cholera, diphtheria,
and typhoid. In addition, workers were expected to
operate heavy machinery for long hours with no breaks,
leading to extreme injuries and even death. Limb loss
and physical deformation were common effects of
unsafe working conditions, and for many, it resulted in
an inability to work. Without substantial worker
protections or social security measures, physical injuries
could result in permanent job loss and lifelong poverty.
Effects of the Industrial Revolution
Industrial Revolution resulted in historic advancements
in technology, agriculture, and economic rise, it also
led to severe pollution and substantial effects on
human health. Pollution from factories went
unchecked due to the novelty of industrialization and
the unknown effects of pollution, leading to heavy air
and water pollution in industrialized areas. In addition
to pollution affecting human health, factories lacked
substantive safety precautions, leading to poor
working conditions that drastically affected factory
workers.
 Working Conditions During the 1800s

After the initial boom of the Industrial Revolution,

manufacturing and technological advancements
provided factory jobs to millions of Americans.

These factory conditions were extremely dangerous due to

a lack of workers’ rights and safety regulations.

Learn how factory conditions affected workers in the 1800s

and how the rise of labor unions influenced policy.
 FACTORY ACT IN 1833
In 1833 the Government passed a Factory Act to improve conditions
for children working in factories. Young children were working very long
hours in workplaces where conditions were often terrible. The basic act
was as follows:

 No child workers under nine years of age

 Employers must have an age certificate for their child workers
 Children of 9-13 years to work no more than nine hours a day
 Children of 13-18 years to work no more than 12 hours a day
 Children are not to work at night
 Two hours schooling each day for children
 The Rise of Industry in the 1800s
 After the First Industrial Revolution in the US and UK in the late
1700s, industrial advancement boomed with the introduction of
new technologies and manufacturing processes. This led to rapid
urbanization and a massive influx of factory jobs.
 The Second Industrial Revolution took place in the 1860s, when
further technological advancements boosted industrialization
and manufacturing.
These are the technological advancement boosted industrialization
and manufacturing in 1860s:
• Railways
• Electrical grids
• Assembly lines
 Working Conditions in Factories
 Factory conditions were significantly poor in the 1800s due to a lack of
regulations and enforceable policy. In many instances, the rise of
electrical grids, railways, and assembly lines worsened factory
conditions. Workers handled dangerous electrical equipment, fast-
paced assembly lines, coal pollution, often without substantial
instruction or safety precautions. These furthered the dangerous
working conditions that arose in the 1700s.

As with the working conditions in the 1700s, there was a severe lack of:
 Child labor laws
 Minimum wage
 Factory ventilation
 Rest breaks
 Hazardous conditions For Workers
• In the 1800s, employees worked 12-16 hour shifts per day with minimal breaks
or rest days.
• This led to people falling asleep on the job and facing severe injuries and
even death.
• Children were not exempt from these expectations, and also had to work
long hours in dangerous conditions.
• The introduction of electrical grids led to increased dangers in factory
conditions.
• The majority of factories at the time did not provide compensation to workers
who suffered injuries on the job, leading to many workers losing their jobs and
facing lifelong unemployment and subsequent poverty.
• Industries faced frequent strikes and riots in response to their conditions, but
there were no policies enacted at the time to protect workers' right to strike,
which led to factories firing the strikers and hiring new workers to take their
place
 The Introduction of Labor Unions
 The first trade union in the United States began in 1794 with the federal
society of Journeymen Cordwainers. Slowly, many others to began to follow
suit, leading to increased strikes throughout industries. In 1867, 2,000 Chinese
workers who laboured on the transcontinental railroad system demanded
pay equal to their white co-workers. Others included women and black
workers who walked out of jobs to demand fair wages and safer conditions.
 It wasn`t until 1881 that the Federation of Organized Trades and Labour
Unions was formed, which later became the American Federation of Labour
in 1886. Members of this organization called for nationwide requirement for:
• Child labour laws and compulsory education
• Legal recognition of unions
• Establishment of an 8-hour workday
• Factory and mining ventilation and inspections
Working Conditions in the 1900s

Working conditions began to steadily

improve by the 1900s, primarily due to the
pressure put on industries by the growing
labor and trade unions. The rise in unions
allowed workers to use collective
bargaining, in which they pressured
industries to abide by the set working
conditions they proposed.
Towards the end of the Great Depression in 1933,
Congress passed the National Industry Recovery
Act with the intent to stimulate economic recovery
across the country, as well as enact new labor
regulations to improve worker conditions. The
enforcement of this act:

Protected the right of workers to form unions

Enforced a minimum wage
Allowed workers to bargain for maximum weekly hours
Significantly limited child labor
The protection of workers’ right to form unions and
bargain with their employers led to vast improvements in
working conditions throughout the 1900s. While many
factories were still extremely hazardous and the
improvements were slow, workers were able to bargain
for improvements, including:

 Better pay
 Less continuous hours and more breaks
 Safety inspections in their workplace
 Health aid and compensation for injuries
 Industry in the 1900s
The First and Second Industrial Revolutions of the 18th and 19th
centuries introduced major booms in industrialization, urbanization,
and economic growth to the United States from mass increases in
production and job availability. However, with these booms came
a rise in pollution and hazardous conditions for factory workers. The
early 1900s saw many of the same poor working conditions as the
previous two centuries, including:

 Low wages
 Long hours
 Child labor
 Dangerous conditions
 Physical discipline from employers
 The Rise of Labor Unions
While unions first emerged in the late 1700s, they lacked
widespread membership and awareness, and
subsequently lacked substantive negotiation power with
industries. In the late 1800s, the American Federation of
Labor (AFL) was founded to advocate for better working
conditions, including:

 Child labor laws and compulsory education for children

 Legal recognition of unions and the right to strike
 Establishment of an 8-hour workday
 Ventilation and inspections for factories and mines
 Initially, these organizations lacked enough membership and
recognition to hold any negotiation power. However, in 1911, the
Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire killed 146 workers in New York City.
The deaths would have been largely preventable with proper
safety precautions, such as fire exits and smoke ventilation. The
tragedy sparked national attention to the poor conditions in
factories, and by the 1920s, the AFL had millions of members
nationwide. This growth in membership gained enough traction
and collective bargaining power to influence Congress to create
the Department of Labor and led to a cascade of federal
legislation that enforced:

 Minimum wage
 Paid overtime
 Basic child labor laws
 Protection of strikers
Improving Working Conditions
The rise of industry in the 1900s saw substantial
growth in a number of industries, primarily:

Textile
Oil
Steel
Railroad
Food production
Automotive
However, workers’ rights still struggled, and the mid- to
late- 1900s saw large growth in union memberships across
the country, with increases in Black, Latino, Jewish, and
women support. By 1979, union membership in the United
States reached its peak with 21 million people. As a result,
rising strikes and boycotts gained more recognition from
the public and policymakers. This led to an expanse of
federal regulation that protected workers, including:

Equal pay regardless of race or gender

Strict child labor laws
Minimum wage
Working Conditions in Modern Factories
Working conditions in factories have improved
exponentially since the Industrial Revolution.

While the United States saw drastic increases in

workers’ rights throughout the 19th and 20th
centuries, many developing countries across the
world today still lack basic protections.

Learn how working conditions in modern factories

put workers at risk.
 Modern Regulations in the United States
Since the Industrial Revolution, working conditions in factories have
undergone countless changes, beginning with unregulated practices
that posed severe dangers to the health, safety, and livelihoods of
workers. Throughout the 19th and 20th centuries, the rise of labor
unions put increasing pressures on employers and policymakers to
enact dynamic changes in workers’ rights, including:

 Regular safety inspections

 Ventilation
 Equal pay
 Paid overtime
 Minimum wage
 8-hour working days
Working Conditions Today
While working conditions in factories have
steadily improved since the beginning of the
Industrial Revolution, many places in the United
States still struggle with hazardous conditions.
Regulations on conditions vary across states and
industries, with many factories still using child
labor and low wages for migrant workers, which
are difficult to regulate and enforce.
Factory conditions for workers can still be
dangerous, with long hours and physically taxing
jobs that cause a multitude of health problems,
including:

Back and repetitive stress injuries

Burns, broken bones, and nerve damage from
machinery accidents
Cancers, respiratory diseases, and vision
impairment from chemical processes
In 2015, 61% of US workers reported intense physical conditions and
repetitive stresses in their work, with hearing and breathing risks and
extreme temperatures creating hazards in their workplaces.
However, the improvement of working conditions has allowed
workers greater compensation and safety assurance since the 20th
century, with major improvements including:

 Increasing minimum wages

 Health benefits and worker compensation
 Safety regulations
 Improved ventilation and air filtration of factories
 Working Conditions Across the World

 While the United States has continuously improved its factory

conditions since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, many
of the countries that produce the majority of our commodities
and good still lack substantial workers’ rights. This leads to
crowded factories where workers endure long hours of physically
taxing work, low wages, and dangerous conditions. Countries with
the lowest quality of working conditions include:

 Vietnam
 Indonesia
 India
 Bangladesh
Vietnam
Vietnam is the third largest producer of clothing
and textiles in the world, with over 6,000 clothing
factories in the country and 2.5 million workers
employed by the industry. In 2020, the country
increased its minimum wage, requiring
companies to pay workers a minimum of
approximately $68 per month. Still, many factory
workers are forced to work 50 hours of overtime
per month to sustain the cost of living.
Indonesia
Indonesia is another major producer of garments and
shoes, with approximately 95 million workers in the
industry. Workers face low wages, with an average of
$33 per month across most regions, as well as long
hours and harsh factory conditions. Approximately 60%
of Indonesian factory workers in the garment industry
are women who are disproportionately susceptible to
lower pay and layoffs than men, and are often heavily
exploited due to their vulnerability and dependence
on their jobs.
India
The clothing industry is one of India’s main
sources of GDP; however, Indian workers suffer
from long hours with minimally paid overtime,
and harassment from management. The majority
of factory workers in India make under $200 per
month, which is often far less than the cost of
living. Many workers have to take overtime to
make ends meet, while others are forced to work
unpaid overtime under threat of unemployment.
Bangladesh
Bangladesh is one of the largest producers of
clothing and textiles in the world, second only to
China. 85% of factory workers in Bangladesh are
women, who often work in overcrowded factories
with minimal rests between shifts. Despite the
majority of workers being female, many factory
workers do not receive substantial maternity
benefits, with most who take leave coming back to
lower wages. Sexual harassment is also prevalent in
Bangladeshi factories, with few women working in
supervisor positions.