Child Labour in the Early 20th

Century

• Children were drawn into the labour force throughout most of American history. However, it was not up until the early decades of the 20 century during the Industrial revolution that child labour peaked drastically.

• This period witnessed thousands of children being forced to forgo their education and, instead, toil long hours under impoverished conditions in various industries.

• Children were regarded as an asset to their employers as they were considered cheap labour, and their size and agility allowed them to maneuvre themselves through narrow parts of machines. Besides being forced to work in factories, mines, and farms, many children, some as young as five, were also recruited as messengers, newsboys, peddlers and in various other menial jobs.

• An investigative photographer for the National

Child Labour Committee, Lewis Wickes Hines

began documenting in 1908 the inhuman

conditions that American children were forced to

endure in the work force. His photographs not

only motivated the society to campaign against

child labour but also urged lawmakers to

introduce reforms for the protection of these

children.

One of the spinners in Whitnel Cotton Manufacturing Company in North

Carolina. When asked how old, she hesitated, then said "I don't

remember." Then confidentially, "I'm not old enough to work, but I do

just the same."

A young driver in a mine

who drives daily from 7

A.M. to 5:30 P.M.

Children working in a glass factory at midnight

A spinner takes a glimpse of the outer world from the factory.

Leo, 48 inches high, 8 years old. Picks up bobbins at

15 cents a day in Elk Cotton Mills.

Three boys, 13 and 14 years old, pick shade-grown

tobacco on Hackett farm.

Camille Carmo, Justine Carmo, seven and nine

years old. The older one picks about 4 pails a day.

Manuel, the young shrimp-picker, five years old.

Understands not a word of English

Child Labour in India

• Global number of children in child labour

have declined by one third since 2000, from

246 million to 168 million children.

• More than half of them, 85 million, are in

hazardous work.

• Asia and the Pacific still have the largest

number of child labourers, almost 78 million

or 9.3% of child population.

12-year-old Jatindra, with his 7 year-old brother,

carrying waste material of an industrial area

A boy works at a vegetable market in New Delhi

A girl walking on a

rope to earn the

families livelihood.

The girl was found

with her parents

doing 'shows' and is

now rescued by the

police

A young girl does the household works for a family

Children working at construction sites

Young girls selling

popcorn by the road

Child labourers working in an embroidery unit in Mumbai

A child serving tea in Punjab

Child labourers works at a road side food shop

53 child labourers between the age of 10 to 15 were rescued

from Jarimaker workshop working at Byculla.

Questions

• What are the reasons for child labour? • Are the reasons the same today as they were in 1900? • What are the similarities and differences between child labour

today and in 1900? • Why were laws passed to eliminate child labour in Canada and

the developed world? • Why do similar laws not exist in developing countries today? • What role do Canadians play in allowing child labour to

continue around the world today? • If we stop buying products made in counties that use child

labour, what do you think the consequences of such an action would be?

• Do you think we will ever see a day when child labour eliminated?