How Did The Industrial Revolution Affect Workers?

Title In the 1970’s, there was a great phenomenon that developed from England, which later spread throughout Europe. The Europeans had invented ways of transforming material items into making a new technology of machines that made production sky rocket, and less labor intensive work compared to the previous working lifestyle. This new world of machine and technology is called the Industrial Revolution, this caused Europe to become very well productive and superior to world trade. Although the Industrial Revolution did have affects on workers behind the machines that were operating them day to day. The affects that the Industrial Revolution had on workers was the issue of child labor, low pay for long working periods, and life expectancy drop. When the Industrial Revolution first sparked gave opportunity for simple jobs for children to do. An eight year old boy that worked at a tailor says, “I don’t know why but my parents say that I have to work or we will have to live on the streets.” Children all over Europe had these responsibilities at such a young age. Working full time jobs for minimum pay each day they worked. These working hours are unacceptable for children this young, since their bodies have not fully grown strong enough
to handle these working conditions. In 1861 the total percentage of kids under that age of 15 years old was 19% of the employment. This statistic proves how much poverty was in Europe at this time, since families where depending on their children to help provide for the family. Even though workers had worked multiple hours every day for the bare minimum pay they could receive.
A document informs that, “The average overtime in most of the factories was between 100 and 130 hours per month, and between 150 and 180 hours per month during peak production season.” Even with as many hours as they work they only earn around $200 a month. Which is well under the amount a single person should live off of monthly, even more devastating if you have a whole family to take care of. This is way families needed their children to help work for the family so they help out. Although they would only earn 25 to 30 cents a day for working 14 hours with two breaks. This caused obvious depressing and hopelessness throughout
Europe. Workers of all ages were working in extreme and intense working conditions multiple hours per day. This caused the life expectancy to drop for the average person in Europe. In 1820, the life expectancy was a low of 25 in Russia, and the high of 40 in UK. Continuing unto 1870, life expectancy was a low of 30 in Russia, and the high of 45 in Sweden. It progressively started to slowly grown higher, but it is still a very short life expectancy compared to previous lifestyle and time beyond the Industrial Revolution. The Industrial Revolution changed Europe in both pros and cons that came along with it. Although the machine’s made production easy and fast, the work was too intense and extreme for what little pay workers earned. Forcing families to worker through the hardships to make it through day to day.