Working Conditions Flashcards
How long was the working week in factories?
6 days with 14 hour long days
What was the fine if a worker was 10 minutes late to work?
Fined 2 hours of wages
What was the fine if a worker was caught talking?
Fined 1 shilling
What was the fine if a worker was wasting resources (e.g. fixing machines under a gas lamp)?
2 shillings
When was the Davy Safety lamp created for workers in mines?
1815
What were the risks of working underground?
Flooding, gas explosions, collapsing shafts etc.
Between 1770 and 1850, how much did production in mines increase by?
6 million tonnes to 55 million tonnes
How many meters deep were mines in the 18th century?
90m
How many meters deep were mines by 1850?
300m
How long was a working week in the mines?
12 hours a day - 6 days a week
What was the single most frequent source of discontent among the mining community?
That there was no fixed wage
What was the usual wage for women?
12-15 shillings per week
How much were women paid compared to men?
1/2
What work were women made to do?
The work that men didn’t want to do
What was the most common work for women?
Being a ‘hurrier’ which involved wearing a chain around their shoulders and hauling carts of coals
How much of the working population were under the age of 20?
49%
Describe the story of Martha Appleton.
In 1859, Martha Appleton was a 13 year old from Wigan, and she caught her left hand in a working machine which severed her fingers - rather than receiving compensation, she lost her job
By 1842, what fraction of the workforce were under the age of 19?
1/3
What were the dimensions of a back-to-back house?
4m wide, one room deep with one bedroom upstairs
How many bricks deep were back-to-back houses?
3
How many windows did back-to-back houses have?
1
What caused respiratory problems among the working classes in towns?
The frequent use of candles, oil lamps and smoke pouring from factory chimneys
What were courtyards?
Communal areas for washing, toilets and access to properties
How much was rent for ‘back houses’?
1s 10d per week
How much was rent for ‘front houses’?
2s 6d per week
What fraction of workers in Birmingham lived in back-to-back housing?
2/3
How many back-to-back houses did Nottingham have by 1841?
12,600
Where and when was the first major cholera outbreak and how many people died?
The first major cholera outbreak was in 1831, which spread around the country and killed 32,000 within 1 year
How much did the population in urban areas increase by every decade?
27%
How much did towns with over 2500 people, absorb of the total increase of England’s population between 1801-41?
67%
When was the Municipal Corporations Act?
1835
In Chadwick’s 1842 report, how many streets did he inspect in Manchester?
687
In Chadwick’s 1842 report, how many of the streets that he inspected were unpaved?
248
In Chadwick’s 1842, how many of the streets that he inspected were ill-ventilated?
112
In Chadwicks 1842 report, how many of the streets that he inspected had stagnant pools of effluence or piles of rubbish?
252
How many people died from diphtheria and scarlet fever each year?
4000
In what years were there 4 major outbreaks of typhoid?
1830-36
How many people died from Asiatic cholera in 1832?
52,000
How many people died from Asiatic cholera between 1848-49?
70,000
How many people died from asiatic cholera between 1853 and 1854?
30,000
How many people died from Asiatic cholera in 1866?
18,000
What % of children died before their fifth birthday according to Chadwick’s report?
57%
