Chapter 8(c)- Factory and Social reform Flashcards
What were conditions in the factory like?
-Factories and Coalmines were dangerous places.
-Children as young as four worked in the coalminers and some six-year-olds worked in factories.
-Working hours were very long and accidents were common, with many children losing limbs and even their lives.
What were some reactions to the idea of factory reform?
-The public were horrified when they heard about the conditions people worked in. Some people wanted to stand up to improve the living conditions.
-Some politicians did not agree with social and political reform because of laissez-faire politics (the belief that politics should not be involved in people’s personal lives. However, some philanthropists pressed on to improve the lives of the working class.
Examples of people who contributed to factory reform?
-Michael Sadler MP, he was motivated by the terrible conditions the children worked in and the dangers of the machines.
->He suggested the ten-hour movement. This was the ideas that the maximum amount of working hours for under 18s was 10 hours.
-Robert Owen, he was a mill owner and thought that a happy workforce was more important than profit.
-> He supported the 10 hour movement, introduced an 8-hour day, 1810, social areas for workers were created to visit during time off.
-Elizabeth Fry, was a Quaker who wanted to help the poor, and contributed in Prison reform.
-> The opened a school and a chapel in Newgate Prison, and had prison reform raised in Parliament. Conditions for women on transportation ships were also improved.
What was the impact of the reforms?
-Poor people were still at a disadvantage and this was only made worse by the Poor Law Amendment Act of 1834. This sent people to the workhouse if they could afford care for their families.
-They felt that something had to change so they started to group together in trade unions.
