The Age of Industrialisation- 2 Flashcards
what was the labour situation in victorian britain
In Victorian Britain there was no shortage of human labour. Poor
peasants and vagrants moved to the cities in large numbers in search
of jobs, waiting for work. when there is plenty of
labour, wages are low. So industrialists had no problem of labour
shortage or high wage costs. They did not want to introduce machines
that got rid of human labour and required large capital investment.
why did industrialists prefer hand labour?
(or)
employment was seasonal. justify
In many industries the demand for labour was seasonal. Gas works
and breweries were especially busy through the cold months. So
they needed more workers to meet their peak demand. Bookbinders and printers, catering to Christmas demand, too needed
extra hands before December. At the waterfront, winter was the
time that ships were repaired and spruced up. In all such industries
where production fluctuated with the season, industrialists usually
preferred hand labour, employing workers for the season.
certain products could be produced only by hand labour why
A range of products could be produced only with hand
labour. Machines were oriented to producing uniforms,
standardised goods for a mass market. But the demand in the market
was often for goods with intricate designs and specific shapes. In
mid-nineteenth-century Britain, for instance, 500 varieties of hammers were produced and 45 kinds of axes. These required
human skill, not mechanical technology
who demanded handmade goods?
In Victorian Britain, the upper classes – the aristocrats and the
bourgeoisie – preferred things produced by hand. Handmade
products came to symbolise refinement and class. They were better
finished, individually produced, and carefully designed. Machinemade goods were for export to the colonies.
did britan have labour shortage
In countries with labour shortage, industrialists were keen on using
mechanical power so that the need for human labour can be
minimised. This was the case in nineteenth-century America. Britain,
however, had no problem hiring human hands.
as the people migrated to cities, what did actually finding work depend upon?
The abundance of labour in the market affected the lives of workers.
As news of possible jobs travelled to the countryside, hundreds
tramped to the cities. The actual possibility of getting a job depended
on existing networks of friendship and kin relations. If you had
a relative or a friend in a factory, you were more likely to get a
job quickly. But not everyone had social connections. Many jobseekers had to wait weeks, spending nights under bridges or in night shelters. Some stayed in Night Refuges that were set up by private
individuals; others went to the Casual Wards maintained by the Poor Law authorities.
what did seasonality mean for the workers?
Seasonality of work in many industries meant prolonged periods
without work. After the busy season was over, the poor were on
the streets again. Some returned to the countryside after the winter,
when the demand for labour in the rural areas opened up in places.
But most looked for odd jobs, which till the mid-nineteenth century
were difficult to find
what did wages of workers depend upon
i)Wages increased somewhat in the early nineteenth century. But they
tell us little about the welfare of the workers. The average figures
hide the variations between trades and the fluctuations from year to
year. For instance, when prices rose sharply during the prolonged
Napoleonic War, the real value of what the workers earned fell
significantly, since the same wages could now buy fewer things.
ii)Moreover, the income of workers depended not on the wage rate
alone. What was also critical was the period of employment: the
number of days of work determined the average daily income of
the workers. At the best of times till the mid-nineteenth century,
about 10 per cent of the urban population were extremely poor. In
periods of economic slump, like the 1830s, the proportion of
unemployed went up to anything between 35 and 75 per cent in
different regions.
what did workers do as the fear of unemployment increased?”
The fear of unemployment made workers hostile to the introduction
of new technology. When the Spinning Jenny was introduced in
the woollen industry, women who survived on hand spinning began
attacking the new machines. This conflict over the introduction of
the jenny continued for a long time.
what is the spinning jenny
Devised by James Hargreaves
in 1764, this machine speeded up the spinning
process and reduced labour demand. By
turning one single wheel a worker could set in
motion a number of spindles and spin several
threads at the same time.
what were some new opportunities for employment in 1840’s
After the 1840s, building activity intensified in the cities, opening up
greater opportunities of employment. Roads were widened, new
railway stations came up, railway lines were extended, tunnels dug,
drainage and sewers laid, rivers embanked. The number of workers
employed in the transport industry doubled in the 1840s, and doubled
again in the subsequent 30 years.
