Child Labor Laws around 1900s Homework Help

Child Labor Laws around 1900s

In the late 1800s the United States government regarded child labor as a means to businesses and industries making maximum profit. Hines quotes “The object of employing children is not to train them, but to get high profits from their work” (Nash, 1977). The late 1800s and early 1900s were characterized by large numbers of children providing labor in industries. More than two million children were either employed or offering unpaid labor in various sectors. Children as young as five years of age were also utilized for labor. A majority of the children were uneducated and those educated were from wealthy families. The children worked approximately 70hours a week while receiving very minimal wages and sometimes they were unpaid. Deplorable, unhealthy, and unsafe conditions are the conditions that the children were exposed to. A variety of health conditions, for instance tuberculosis and bronchitis, developed in children working in mines and factories. Those working in the mines also developed back problems that were sometimes serious enough to lead to paralysis. The horrible conditions that the children were exposed to killed many of them (Nash, 1977). This paper will address the various laws that were enacted in the 1900s regarding child labor.
Background
The industrial revolution is one factor that can be considered a catalyst to the growth of child labor. Another reason would be poverty which pushed families to allow their children to be employed in order to increase their chances of attaining basic necessities. Other than factories and mines, the children also worked on farms and in urban households as domestic laborers. The early 1900s saw the rise of activists advocating for abolition of child labor as it was a form of child abuse.
In 1903 a march was organized by Mary Harris Jones, labor organizer, whereby the marchers marched over 100 miles from Philadelphia to President Roosevelt’s summer home that was located in Oyster Bay. The march was aimed at pushing the government to understand the harsh conditions of child labor and for it to reduce the working hours to 55 hours per week. During this march which is popularly known as the “March of the Mill Children,” Mary Harris Jones delivered a speech referred to as “The Wail of the Children.” However the president refused to see them. In her speech Mary Jones said “We want President Roosevelt to hear the wail of the children” (Mason, 2011). She considered the employment of children as the cause of many other social problems as stated in one of her other speeches “the employment of children is doing more to fill prisons” (Mason, 2011).
The National Child Labor Committee
The enforced child labor present in the late 1890s led to the rise of a movement. The national child labor committee was formed in 1904 with the objective of eliminating child labor. Local committees were established in the various states especially the ones that allowed the practice of unregulated labor. In 1907 the committee was chartered by congress and henceforth began publicizing the plight of children employees]. Their campaign was on a national scale and included publishing of photographs, information, and statistics detailing the dangers and unsafe conditions that children were exposed to in the workplaces. Lewis Hine, a famous photographer was hired in 1908 by the committee to investigate and expose the harsh conditions that children worked under. The photographs he produced got published and shown all around the country in travelling exhibitions. These photographs played a big role in persuading the American people to call for laws eliminating the unsafe and unhealthy working conditions. The subsequent laws that regulated and in the end led to the abolishment of child labor can attribute their success to the work done by the committee (Nash, 1977).
The first goal of the committee was achieved in 1912 when a children’s bureau was established in both the United States commerce and labor departments. Between 1910 and 1920 the committee channeled its energy on the campaigning for the passage of legislation both at the state and federal levels banning a majority of the forms of child labor. Promotion of compulsory education in every state was also on the agenda. The Supreme Court ruled that the federal legislation that banned child labor was unconstitutional but that did not deter the committee from continued efforts (Mason, 2011). In the early 1930s the constitutional amendment that the committee was advocating for failed to pass by a very short margin.
Keating-Owens Act
The Owens Act is another legislation that was passed by congress in 1916. Although the act did not abolish child labor, it set standards for the regulation of child labor. The act set a minimum age of factory workers at 14 years of age and 16 years for mine workers. It also required documentation of the age of workers by employers. A workday was set at a maximum of eight hours. Those violating this law were prohibited from shipping their goods from one state to another. However, the Supreme Court ruled the law to be unconstitutional as the authority of Congress did not extend to interfering with interstate commerce in matters of labor conditions and that it was a violation of state’s rights.
This act was the first federal statute successful in imposing restrictions on child labor. The restrictions imposed by this act reduced the number of employed children by approximately a quarter of a million. The children working on farms were, however, not affected as much as those working in the factories and mines as their working conditions were less harsh. The passing of this statute was largely dependent on the massive campaign that was waged by progressive activists and social reformers. These reformers and activists had achieved significant victories in a majority of the states prior to the federal law. An approximate of thirty-six states had prohibited the industrial employment of underage children as stated by the Act by 1916 (Mason, 2011). The need for a federal law arose as states lacking child labor laws were unlikely to enact them any time in the foreseeable future. Also the states not implementing the child labor laws had competitive economic advantages over those that did therefore a federal law was necessary in order for equal competition to be practiced. “I sign this bill into law with great enthusiasm as it is a centerpiece of my social and economic reform program” (Mason, 2011).
Fair Labor Standards Act
President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1938 signed the Fair Labor Standards Act as part of the New Deal. The Act was a landmark in the elimination of child labor. It set the minimum wage at 25 cents an hour and the maximum work week at 44 hours (Heathfield, n.d.). Important provisions were included in the Act in which child labor was defined and regulated in detail. The children were protected from employment conditions that were hazardous and detrimental to their health as well as their well being. Employment interfering with the education of children was prohibited. Throughout the twentieth century, various amendments were made to the law focusing on protecting the rights of employees between 16 and 18 years of age further.
The Fair Labor Standards Act affects both the public and private sectors in terms of employment. The local, state, and federal governments are all included as being affected by the Act. Other than the minimum wage, the Act requires overtime to be paid by one and a half times the amount paid in the regular rate. However, overtime pay for weekends or holidays are not set in the law therefore the amount paid by employers is not legally required but rather is out of goodwill. The minimum wage standards vary from one state to another therefore the important thing is for employers to be versant with the requirements in their particular state. Over time amendments have been made to the law such as the definition of employees classified as non-exempt or exempt. The most recent changes made were done in 2004 (Heathfield, n.d.).
Conclusion
Child labor was not an uncommon sight in the late 1800s and early 1900s as most of the factories and mills utilized the cheap labor offered by children. However campaigns to abolish this practice due to its disregard for the safety and health of children started. The national child labor committee is one such movement that arose. In 1916 the Keating-Owens Act became the first statute to address the necessary restrictions on child labor. The Fair Labor Standards Act was eventually formed in 1938 having wide ranging changes made in the regulations and provisions on child labor. To date the Fair Labor Standards Act continues to protect the rights of children regarding employment.

References
Heathfield, M. S. Fair Labor Standards Act. About.com. Retrieved December 1, 2011 from: http://humanresources.about.com/od/glossaryf/a/flsa.htm
Mason, L. (2011). Understanding the History of Child Labor Laws in America. Bright Hub. Retrieved December 1, 2011 from: http://www.brighthub.com/education/homework-tips/articles/109994.aspx
Nash, G. B. (1977). American Odyssey: The United States in the Twentieth Century. Ch. 17. New York: McGraw-Hill.