The High Cost of Low Price The Industrial Revolution was a period in the late 1700s and early 1800s where changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology had a large effect on economic, social, and cultural conditions. The first industry to be industrialized was the textile industry in Britain. However, not everything resulting from the industrial revolution was good. In fact, the pollution, poor working conditions, and poor living conditions in the industrial revolution can be compared to the problems with current day corporate monsters, namely Wal-Mart. One similarity is between the living conditions of the two eras. In the industrial revolution, sickness was widespread, and people living in cities lived in dark, dank houses, thanks to the factory system. In the Chinese sweatshops owned by Wal-Mart, workers are always deducted pay for rent from a company apartment, even if they are not living in it. The workers in the industrial revolution were not cared about. The management said, “If you’re going to complain, there’s a line of people right outside the door that would love to have your job.” Also in the Chinese sweatshops, employees are actually told to lie about their working hours and wages. This is one similarity between the two points in time. Another Similarity between the problems created by the industrial revolution and the problems created by Wal-Mart is the pollution. Workers in the industrial revolution had to work in dirty factories that blasted hazardous fumes into the atmosphere. Employees at Wal-Mart have to take care of hazardous materials that Wal-Mart stores in its parking lot. These materials are usually pesticides or fertilizers, that, if left untouched, can spill and leak into local water sources, and poison the water. This is another similarity between the problems after the industrial revolution and the problems created by Wal-Mart. A third similarity between the two is the poor working
The High Cost of Low Price The Industrial Revolution was a period in the late 1700s and early 1800s where changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology had a large effect on economic, social, and cultural conditions. The first industry to be industrialized was the textile industry in Britain. However, not everything resulting from the industrial revolution was good. In fact, the pollution, poor working conditions, and poor living conditions in the industrial revolution can be compared to the problems with current day corporate monsters, namely Wal-Mart. One similarity is between the living conditions of the two eras. In the industrial revolution, sickness was widespread, and people living in cities lived in dark, dank houses, thanks to the factory system. In the Chinese sweatshops owned by Wal-Mart, workers are always deducted pay for rent from a company apartment, even if they are not living in it. The workers in the industrial revolution were not cared about. The management said, “If you’re going to complain, there’s a line of people right outside the door that would love to have your job.” Also in the Chinese sweatshops, employees are actually told to lie about their working hours and wages. This is one similarity between the two points in time. Another Similarity between the problems created by the industrial revolution and the problems created by Wal-Mart is the pollution. Workers in the industrial revolution had to work in dirty factories that blasted hazardous fumes into the atmosphere. Employees at Wal-Mart have to take care of hazardous materials that Wal-Mart stores in its parking lot. These materials are usually pesticides or fertilizers, that, if left untouched, can spill and leak into local water sources, and poison the water. This is another similarity between the problems after the industrial revolution and the problems created by Wal-Mart. A third similarity between the two is the poor working