The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1922-05-23
INDUSTRIAL HOME WORK OF
CHILDREN

Industrial home work in a state with
no system Of regulation means child
labor at ages and under conditions
prohibited for factory employment, ac-
cording to a report just issued by the
u. S. department of labor through the
Children's Bureau The report is en-
titled Industrial Home Work Of Chill
dren," and gives the results Of a study
made in three Rhode Island cities. At
the time Of the study none Of the
labor laws of that state applied TO
work done in homes.
It was found that at least 1000 chill
dren under 16 years of age had done
home work in the course of a year.
that over z per cent Of all the children
to IS years of age. inclusive, in the
three cities, had been engaged in such
work during that period. and that 3.5
per cent had worked for 30 days or
more. OF these 1888 children who had
worked at least one month out of the
year and had received compensation,
per cent We're under 16 years of age
and As per cent were under the age of
IL.
The standards set up by the state
of Rhode Island for school children
and children working in factories were
violated in the case of home working
children, the report states, in four re-
spects: Children of school age remain
ed at home occasionally or for extend
ed periods to do home work. contrary
to the compulsory school attendance
law of the state; children under the
age of Ia were engaged at home in all
kinds of work which the law prohibit
ed them from doing in factories; and
children under the age of 16 who
worked in factories did overtime work
at home contrary TO the spirit of the
law limiting hours of labor; and chill
dren injured in the course of home
work did not receive compensation
under the workmen's compensation
law. Injuries, especially accidents
from machines installed in the homes,
in addition to eye-strain and fatigue
reacting upon school work, We're fire.
quent.
Twenty-one industries, anon
which the jewelry industry led were
represented by the manufacturing es-
adjustments distributing home work
in the district of the study; 1913 estab-
lishments We're covered by the inquiry
The principal kinds of work included
carding snaps, stringing tags, drawing
threads from lace. linking and wiring
rosary beads, setting stones in jewelry
and assembling military buttons.
Four-fifths of the 956 children who
earnings could not make, at
the rates paid, so much as 10 cents an
hour working at top speed; half could
not make cents. or the families re-
porting total yearly earnings from
home work, almost rine-tenths earned
less than 800 aSld nearly three-fifths
earned less than $25. These earnings
in nearly all cases represented COM
pensation for the work of more than
one person; in over two-thirds of the |
families included in the study at least
three persons had engaged in home |
work.
A possible danger to the health of
the community was found in the fact
that large numbers of families report
ed doing home work while members of
the family were i'll with infectious dis
eases In some cases the sick per-
sons took part in the work.
The testimony of manufacturers us
ing the home work system indicates, |
the report states, that industrial home
work in this district could be abolished
with few business losses.