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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE AND LABOR
BULLETIN
OF THE
BUREAU OF LABOR
NO. 8 9 -JULY, 1910
ISSUED EVERY OTHER MONTH
WASHINGTON
GO VER NM EN T P R IN TING OFFICE
1910
CONTENTS,
Child-labor legislation in Europe, by 0. W. A. Veditz, Ph. D.:
Page.
Introduction..............................................
1,2
Austria................................................................................................................ 3-92
Earlier child-labor legislation..................................................................
3-7
Present regulations affecting child labor.................................................. 7-21
Organization and work of the inspectors................................................ 21-38
Extent and nature of child la b or............................................................. 38-92
Belgium........................................
93-143
The child-labor law of December 13, 1889.............................................. 93-97
Legislative and administrative modification of the law of 1889.......... 97-111
Agencies for enforcing the labor laws and decrees............................ 111-115
Enforcement of the laws and decrees concerning ‘ ‘ protected per
sons” ......................................................................................................115-130
Extent and nature of child labor......................................................... 130-143
F rance............................................................................................................. 143-231
Beginnings of child-labor legislation.................................................... 143-152
Present laws concerning child la b or...................................................... 152-176
Organization and work of the labor inspectors................................... 176-221
Enforcement of the child-labor laws in mines................................... 222-224
The courts and the labor laws............................................................... 224-231
Germany........................................................................................................... 231-312
Child-labor legislation in the nineteenth century.............................. 231-241
The Industrial Code............................................................................... 241-269
The law of March 30, 1903 .................................................................... 269-280
The staff of inspectors........................................................................... 280-294
Methods and work of the inspectors.................................................... 295-312
Ita ly .............................................................................................................. 1 313-326
History of child-labor legislation............................................................313-316
Present regulation of child labor................... ......................................316-326
Switzerland.......................*............................................................................ 326-413
Child-labor legislation prior to 1877 .................................................... 326-337
The factory law of March 23, 1877....................................................... 338-342
Provisions of the law of 1877 which particularly affect children in
factories................................................................................................ 342-345
Further federal legislation affecting child labor.................................. 345-347
Cantonal legislation affecting child labor............................................. 347-372
Enforcement of the child-labor laws.................................................... 372-395
Extent, nature, and consequences of child labor................................. 395-413
Decisions of courts affecting labor:
Decisions under statute law............................................................................ 414-432
Combinations in restraint of trade—boycott—antitrust law—consti
tutionality of statute (Grenada Lumber Co.v. Mississippi).................414-416
Employers’ liability—fellow-servants— course of employment— lia
bility of foremen (Moyse v. Northern Pacific Ry. C o.)................... 416-419
hi
IV
CONTENTS.
Decisions of courts affecting labor—Concluded.
Page.
Decisions under statute law—Concluded.
Employers’ liability—railroad companies—acceptance of relief bene
fits—constitutionality of statute ( McNamara v. Washington, Terminal
C o.)...................................................................... : ...............................419-422
Employers’ liability—railroad companies—federal statute—construc
tion ( Tsmura v. Great Northern Ry. C o.)........................................... 422,423
Hours of labor of employees on railroads—commerce—regulation by
state law—federal regulation (People v. Erie R. R. Co.)................. 423-425
Hours of labor of employees on railroads—federal statute—periods of
service and rest—construction of statute (Atchison, Topeka and Santa
Fe Ry. Co. v. United States)................................................................. 425,426
Hours of labor of employees on railroads—violation by employees as
affecting claims for damages—state and federal regulation ( Lloyd v.
North Carolina R. R. C o.)................................................................... 426-428
Hours of labor of women—police power—constitutionality of statute
( W. C. Ritchie 4e Co. v. Waym an)...................................................... 428-430
Safety appliances on railways—commerce— state regulation (Detroit,
Toledo and Ironton Ry. Co. v. State).................................................... 430,431
Sunday labor—contracts to be performed on Sunday—recovery of com
pensation (Knight v. Press Co., Limited)............................................. 431,432
Decisions under common law........................................................................ 432-436
Contract of employment—consideration—release of claim for dam
ages—breach of contract (Illinois Central R. R. Co. v. Fairchild). . 432,433
Contract of employment—reduction of rank of employee—violation of
contract—duty to seek other employment (Cooper v. Stronge &
Warner Co.)........................ : ................................................................ 433,434
Contract of employment— term— renewal—breach—assignment of
claims (Allen v. Chicago Pneumatic Tool C o.).................................... 434-436
B U L L E T IN
OF T H E
BUREAU
No. 89.
OF L A B O R .
W ASH IN G TO N ,
J u l y , 1910~
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN EUROPE.
B Y C. W . A . VEDITZ, P H . D.
INTRODUCTION.
This study o f the legal regulation o f child labor covers the six con
tinental European nations o f most importance and o f the greatest
interest for the United States—Austria, Belgium, France, Germany,
Italy, and Switzerland. (a) After Great Britain, these are the chief
industrial countries o f Europe. They have all recognized the exist
ence o f a “ child-labor problem.” A ll have attempted to solve that
problem by means o f legislation restricting the gainful employment
o f children and by providing a corps o f officials whose special task it
is to secure compliance with the terms o f this legislation. The ex
perience o f the German Empire and of the Swiss Confederation is of
peculiar interest, because these countries exhibit a division o f legisla
tive and administrative powers between the central government and a
series o f local governments which bears a striking resemblance to the
federal system o f the United States.
The first object o f the investigation was to determine the law upon
the subject—to make a statement o f the prevailing legal limitations
upon child labor. This was not so simple a matter as it may seem.
Not only are the prevailing limitations upon child labor usually scat
tered in several laws, but the laws themselves often constitute merely a
framework which must be filled out by means o f numerous decrees,
ordinances, police regulations, and other legislative or administrative
measures. These measures, moreover, sometimes constitute a relaxa
tion o f the general rules laid down by statute; when, for instance, the
administrative authorities are given far-reaching powers to set up
“ exceptions” to and “ exemptions” from the operation of the laws,
and exercise this power in such a manner and on such a scale as par
tially to abrogate the law. Sometimes, on the other hand, these ad
ministrative measures may become tantamount to a much stricter
regulation o f child labor than appears on the face o f the law.
®Bulletin No. 80 o f the Bureau o f Labor (January, 1909) contains an article
entitled “ Woman and child wage-earners in Great Britain.”
1
2
BULLETIN OP TH E BUREAU OP LABOR.
The second purpose o f the investigation was to learn what pro
visions have been made to secure the observance o f the measures
regulating the gainful employment of children. The experience o f
all nations that have experimented with labor laws furnishes abun
dant testimony— if such testimony were needed—to the fact that it is
one thing to pass a child-labor law and quite another and a different
thing to secure the enforcement o f that law. A new law is easily in
scribed upon the statute books o f a nation, but old and firmly estab
lished practices in economic life are not so readily set aside. It is, in
fact, less difficult to enact an excellent child-labor law than to enforce
successfully a moderately good child-labor law. For this reason it
was felt that a mere statement of the enacted regulations concerning
the employment o f children possesses little more than an academic
interest, and needs to be supplemented and vitalized by a description
o f the agencies which have been provided to carry out these regula
tions in the world of business. Inasmuch as these agencies consist
mainly o f “ labor ” inspectors or “ factory ” inspectors and their col
laborators, the organization and work o f these officials fall naturally
within the scope o f the investigation.
But no matter how numerous and well-chosen the inspectors, and
no matter how zealous and efficient they may be in the detection of
violations o f the labor laws, their work will be o f little avail unless
offenders against the laws are promptly and adequately punished.
Hence, wherever possible, information has been collected with regard
to the frequency and severity o f punishment inflicted by the courts
upon violators o f the labor laws, particularly violators o f the pro
visions that concern children.
Any study of the regulation o f child labor by law, no matter how
superficial it may be, leads inevitably to the conclusion that the prob
lem o f child labor can not successfully be solved without taking into
account its connection with the problem o f education. The school
laws and the labor laws stand, or should stand, in the closest possible
relationship. Moreover, the regulation o f certain forms o f child
labor is practically impossible without systematic cooperation between
the labor inspectors and the school authorities. This aspect o f the
problem has therefore not been entirely overlooked in the present
investigation.
Finally, wherever reliable and recent data were available with
regard to the extent of child labor in the countries concerned and
with regard to its effects upon the children themselves, a summary
o f this information has been added. (®)
° The entire investigation was carried on during the first half o f the year
1909. For this reason the latest available statistics were usually for the year
1908, and in some cases for the year 1907. Here and there, however, information
o f more recent date was inserted while the proof sheets were being read.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
3
AUSTRIA.
EABLIEB CHILD-LABOB LEGISLATION.
During the eighteenth century the Austrian Government encour
aged the employment o f children as one o f the means o f developing
the industries o f the Empire. Statesmen o f the mercantile school, as
well as theoretical economists o f the period, held that industrial
development and prosperity depend in part upon a large supply of
cheap labor and that such labor is readily furnished by children,
women, and the aged. The noted economist, Justi, in his treatise on
Manufactures and Factories (®) contended that the “ genius ” of manu
factures can be developed only by encouraging the industrial em
ployment o f young children. According to Justi:
In countries that exhibit a special genius for commerce and manu
factures, children are taught labor and industry in their earliest
years. In Holland and England one sees children between 4 and 6
years performing all kinds o f work suited to their age; in nations
that lack the genius o f business affairs, they grow up in play and
idleness. Undoubtedly it should be the duty o f teachers in churches
and schools, as well as parents, to admonish and teach the children
that labor alone leads to happiness in civil society. * * * A ll
children should learn in their youth to be industrious, to acquire the
habit o f work and to love it. * * * There are hundreds o f kinds
o f labor that children 5 and 6.years old are capable o f performing,
and by means o f which work may be made natural for them and
prevent them from ever becoming idlers. ( *6)
This argument for child labor sounded somewhat less convincing
when employed by factory owners like the Stockerau manufacturer,
Gabriel Metsch, who declared that he had built his mill “ out of love
for the general welfare and to exterminate the disgraceful habit of
idleness that is shockingly prevalent among our children.” ( c)
The Government made special efforts to require regular productive
labor o f the inmates o f orphan asylums and homes for soldiers’ chil
dren, on the ground that children should not only be taught habits
o f industry but that they should also contribute to the cost o f main
taining these institutions. It must be admitted, however, that the
financial consideration was not always the more important, for the
Government did not hesitate to make expenditures for the purpose
o f encouraging child labor. Thus, for instance, an imperial order
under date o f October 19, 1764, provided that “ girls learning to
a Justi: Vollstandige Abhandlung yon denen Manufakturen und Fabriken.
2te Ausgabe, Berlin, 1780.
6 Idem, Vol. I, p. 181; and also Die Grundfeste zu der Macht und der Gliickseligkeit der Staaten, etc., Vol. I, p. 697, and Vol. II, p. 117. Konigsberg and
Leipzig, 1760.
c Quoted by Ludwig von Mises, “ Zur Geschichte der osterreichiscben Fabrikgesetzgebung,” in Zeitschrift flir Volkswirtschaft, Sozialpolitik und Verwaltung,
vol. 14, p. 211.
4
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
make taffeta shall receive a bonus of 12 florins ($5.78) a year for the
three years o f their apprenticeship, if they are too poor to get the
necessary clothing.” (a) But the people seem to have hesitated to
subject their children to the exacting regime of the factory, for the
Government found it necessary to issue orders to the local authorities
enjoining them to “ place capable children o f both sexes at the dis
posal o f the factory owners.” And inasmuch as “ the children that
love freedom too much ” took every opportunity to run away from
the factories, magistrates and administrative officials were required
to help manufacturers to prevent the escape of their apprentices.^)
Not until the first quarter o f the nineteenth century did the view
seem to prevail that the State ought not actively to encourage indus
trial child labor.
Even during the period in which the Government encouraged child
labor, however, it was recognized that their employment involved
certain dangers and evils. Hence the enactment during the eight
eenth century o f apprenticeship laws which provided that masters
must not maltreat their young charges nor require them to perform
work not connected with the trade they were learning. In 1786 the
impaired health and the wretched physical condition o f children
living in the so-called apprentices’ “ homes ” connected with many
factories led to an ordinance which declared that the dormitories for
boys and girls must be separated; that each child must have a sepa
rate bed, and that clean bed linen must be provided every week.
This ordinance does not seem to have been enforced, for in 1816 most
o f its terms were reenacted, and the municipal and circuit physicians
instructed to supervise the physical condition o f factory children
because o f “ the great danger o f their being crippled and neglected.”
The detrimental effects o f excessively long periods o f work led to
the decree o f 1787, providing that factory children should receive
“ indispensable instruction.” The Government, it declared, could not
permit so many o f the factory children “ to grow up in the crass
ignorance that is the mother o f shiftlessness and im m orality;” but
. it did not propose “ to deprive the factories o f the hands they need,
nor the poorer classes o f part o f their earnings.” This decree pro
vided that “ before children begin their ninth year they must not be
employed in factories save in cases o f necessity.”
Apart from the measures passed during Metternich’s regime ( c) to
provide for Sunday rest (prompted by religious considerations), no*6
a Codex Austriaeus, VI, p. 602.
6 Kopetz: Allgemeine osterreichische Gewerbsgesetzkunde, Vol. I, p. 115.
Wien, 1829, 1830.
e A Lombardian decree in 1816 fixed tbe age o f admission to factories at 9
years; for dangerous labor at 14 years; it forbade night work for children under
12; fixed the maximum workday at 10 hours for children under 12, and 12
hours for those between 12 and 14. These provisions applied only to factories.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
5
labor legislation o f any significance was enacted during the ensuing
period until the decree of June 11, 1842. According to this decree
(really the first child-labor law in Austria) no child under 12 years of
age could be employed in a factory; but the local authorities were
empowered to permit the employment o f children 9 years old if they
had completed 3 years’ school attendance. Children 9 to 12 years old
were not allowed to work more than 10 hours a day; those 12 to
16 years old might work 12 hours a day. There must be at least
1 hour for rest during the workday. Night work (work between
9 p. m. and 5 a. m.) was forbidden all persons under 16 years of
age. Employers were required to keep a list o f their child laborers.
Violations o f the law were punishable by a fine o f 2 to 100 gulden
(96.4 cents to $48.20); and for repeated offenses the right to employ
children under 12 years o f age might be withdrawn. The enforce
ment o f the law was intrusted to the local administrative authorities,
to the district school superintendents, and to the local clergy.
The provincial government of Upper Austria went somewhat fur
ther by decreeing, on January 16,1846, that in this Province the admis
sion o f children under 12 years o f age to factories should not be tol
erated, and that before any children be admitted to work therein they
should be subjected to a medical examination. But the influence of
the factory owners was sufficient to lead to the suspension o f these
provisions a few months after their enactment.
The enforcement o f the law o f 1842 was not at all satisfactory.
Cotton printing mills were reported as employing children under 8
years o f age without the slightest hesitation. The paper mills and
cotton mills in 1845 contained 38,124 laborers, o f which 5,590, or
14.7 per cent, were children o f school age (12 years or less). In
Vorarlberg children 7 and 8 years old worked 13 hours a day, and
in times o f exceptional industrial activity 3 or 4 hours longer. A l
though such flagrant violations o f the law and reckless exploitation
o f children was objected to by the .local authorities, yet as a rule
the abuses continued, and the provisions concerning child labor came
to be regarded as part and parcel o f the old and obsolete legislation
o f the so-called “ reactionary ” era.
Mention should be made o f the decree o f September 3, 1846, con
cerning laborers employed in the manufacture o f matches, an indus
try started in Austria in the thirties and which soon attained con
siderable importance. An Austrian physician, Dr. F. W. Lorinzer,
appears to have been the first to recognize the injurious effects of this
occupation and to diagnose phosphorus necrosis. An official investi
gation that disclosed the awful ravages o f this disease in match
factories led to the prohibition o f the employment o f children in
making phosphorus paste and in rooms in which the “ drying”
process was carried on.
6
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
A further step was taken by the enactment o f an industrial ordi
nance (Gewerbeordnung), on December 20, 1859, which forbade
the employment o f children under 10 years o f age in “ larger indus
trial enterprises; ” that is to say, in those “ comprising as a rule more
than 20 laborers.” Children between 10 and 12 years o f age were
allowed to work therein only when provided with a permit granted
at the request o f the child’s parents or guardian by the local authori
ties ( Gemeindevorstand). They could not be employed at work
injurious to their health or apt to hinder their physical development.
The local authorities were enjoined not to grant the above permit
unless the work in which it was proposed to employ the child was
compatible with regular attendance at school, or unless the employer
himself provided educational facilities approved by the local school
authorities.
. For persons under 14 years o f age the maximum workday was
fixed at 10 hours; for those between 14 and 16 it was 12 hours. In
both cases the workday should be interrupted by “ sufficient pauses
for rest.” Night work (work after 9 p. m. or before 5 a. m.) was
forbidden persons under 16 years of age, but in establishments oper
ated both day and night, and in which production would otherwise
be seriously interfered with, the local authorities could permit night
work for persons under 16, but not for those under 14 years o f age,
on condition that the laborers alternate between night work and
work by day. Moreover, in times o f great demand the authorities
might permit children under 16 years o f age to work 2 hours longer
than the usual maximum for a period not exceeding 4 weeks.
A ll “ larger industrial enterprises ” were required to have a register
o f their employees, subject at all times to the inspection o f the authori
ties, and a working schedule, posted in the places o f work, indicating
the kinds o f work performed by the women and children employees,
the hours o f labor, and the school arrangements for the children of
school age. Violations o f the provisions concerning children were
subject to a fine o f 10 to 100 florins ($4.82 to $48.20). Infractions so
serious as to indicate the undesirability o f permitting a manufacturer
to have children in his employ could be punished by the withdrawal
o f this right, either for a fixed period or permanently.
The imperial school law o f May 14, 1869, provides that when
children employed in factories or “ larger industrial enterprises ” are
unable to attend the commercial schools, employers must provide for
their education in accordance with the standards established for pub
lic schools. In these so-called “ factory schools,” moreover, the hours
o f instruction must not fall below 12 hours per week and must be
divided among the several days o f the week “ as equally as possi
ble; ” they must fall between 7 a. m. and 6 p. m. (excluding the noon
hour).
7
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
The ordinance o f 1859, combined with the school law o f 1869,
undoubtedly constituted a step beyond previous legislation. But in
the absence o f any satisfactory provision for enforcement, the law
remained practically a dead letter. The public officials intrusted
with the execution o f the school law and the industrial ordinance were
already too heavily burdened with other tasks to give any attention
to what took place in factories and workshops. The few officials that
might have taken time for the work o f inspection were dominated by
the manufacturers. The manufacturers, moreover, successfully op
posed all plans for the appointment of special inspectors. Indeed,
as long as the Liberal party remained in power every effort to provide
for the enforcement o f the labor laws failed; and it was not until the
fall o f the German Liberal party that the law of June 17, 1883, pro
viding for the appointment o f special factory inspectors, was passed.
Meanwhile it was a secret for no one that the laws concerning child
labor were systematically and regularly violated. The chamber of
trade and commerce at Reichenberg declared officially in 1870:
“ It is known generally that, contrary to the express provisions of
the industrial ordinance, children from 8 to 14 years o f age work in
factories just as long as adults.” (*)
In 1868, when a new labor law was proposed in Parliament, it was
stated as a simple and familiar fact that the provisions concerning the
labor o f children were insufficient, unenforced, and incompatible with
the law requiring 8 years’ attendance at school. Doctor Roser, the
author o f the proposed law, declared that “ the violations and excesses
for which employers are responsible can be done away with only by
the introduction o f regular factory inspection, like in England and
in France.” But the proposed measure was buried by the committee
to which it had been intrusted; and several subsequent legislative pro
posals met a similar fate until a new industrial code ( Gewerbeordnung) was slowly elaborated and put into effect in 1885. The pro
visions o f this code and o f the other labor laws and decrees now in
force, as far as they affect the employment o f children, constitute the
subject o f the following section.
PRESENT REGULATIONS AFFECTING CHILD LABOR.
The Austrian industrial code o f 1885, apart from subsequent modi
fications and supplementary enactments, contains 10 chapters and 152
articles, forming a rather voluminous instrument; but the provisions
which it contains in regard to the labor o f children are not numerous.
Nor can it be said that during the quarter o f a century which has
elapsed since the promulgation o f the code much o f special note has
been accomplished in the way o f additional legislative intervention
in behalf o f child workers. Moreover, as we shall have occasion to
0 B ra f: Studien liber nordbohmische YarMltnisse, p. 138.
Prague, 1881.
8
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
point out later, the reports o f the industrial inspectors contain rela
tively little information upon the subject of child labor in the estab
lishments subject to the labor laws.
Austrian labor legislation may be said to consist o f two sets o f
fairly distinct measures: those which regulate industrial labor gen
erally, wherever and whenever it is regulated at all, and those which
concern labor in mines.
The nucleus o f the first group o f measures consists o f the Industrial
Code o f 1885. T o this should be added the law o f March 15, 1883;
the law o f June 17,1883, providing for the appointment of inspectors;
the laws o f January 16, 1895, August 28, 1895, and July 18, 1905,
concerning work on Sundays and holidays; and the laws o f February
23, 1897, February 25, 1902, July 22, 1902, and February 5, 1907,
introducing certain modifications o f the Industrial Code.
The second group o f measures consists principally o f the laws and
ordinances under date o f June 21, 1884 (concerning women and
children); December 31,1893; December 17,1895; May 3,1896; June
27,1901; and June 8,1907 (concerning child laborers).
The Civil Code and the Commercial Code also contain provisions
which to some extent regulate the conditions o f employment; but they
are o f minor significance, particularly as regards the employment o f
children.
Like the code o f 1859, the “ Gewerbeordnung ” o f 1885 does not
apply to agriculture or forestry or to the industrial occupations con
nected therewith, whenever these occupations consist in the manipula
tion o f the immediate products o f agriculture or forestry; nor does it
apply to ordinary unskilled manual labor, to domestic service, to
industrial occupations carried on by the members o f the employer’s
family, to transportation by rail or by ship, to navigation by sea,
canals, or rivers, nor to sea fishing. Its provisions do apply, however,
to commercial establishments, i. e., to shops and stores.
For the purposes o f the present report the sixth chapter o f the code
is o f most importance. This chapter contains the provisions concern
ing* industrial employees generally (gewerbliches Hilfspersonal) and
most o f the special provisions affecting children and women em
ployees.
Industrial employees ( Hilfsarbeiter) are divided into four groups:
(a) Helpers (commercial employees, journeymen, waiters, drivers o f
wagons, etc.); (6) factory laborers; ( c) apprentices; (d) laborers
employed to assist in a subordinate capacity in industrial processes,
but not engaged in any o f the occupations excluded from the scope
o f the law. But i f the persons in charge o f excluded occupations
also carry on processes subject to the Industrial Code, then the laborers
employed in the latter processes are regarded as industrial employees
and are likewise subject to the code. It is specifically provided, how
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
9
ever, that persons employed to perform services of a higher grade,
and who receive as a rule a monthly or annual salary— such as super
intendents, agents, bookkeepers, cashiers, designers, chemists— are not
to be regarded as industrial employees in the sense o f the law.
It is manifest that the provisions o f the law for the protection o f
all so-called industrial employees redound to the benefit o f child
laborers as well as adult employees. The labor laws o f Austria re
gard persons over 16 years o f age as adults and recognize no need of
special measures for male minors beyond that age. Adult women,
however, enjoy a certain amount o f protection; they may not be em
ployed at underground work in mines, nor may mothers be employed
in industrial establishments during the four weeks following confine
ment, nor may women “ as a rule ” work at night in factories.
The main provisions for the protection o f industrial laborers gen
erally—whether adults or minors— are briefly summarized in the
following paragraphs. While these provisions o f course involve bene
fits for children as well as adults, a detailed statement o f them lies
beyond the scope o f the present report.
SU N D AY W ORK.
It is provided by the code o f 1885 (modified by the laws o f 1895
and 1905) that industrial labor shall, as a rule, cease on Sunday.
Sunday rest shall begin not later than 6 a. m. and must be simulta
neous for all the laborers in each establishment subject to the law. It
shall last 24 hours. These general provisions, however, are not
absolute; the law provides the following exceptions:
1. The provisions concerning Sunday rest do not apply to the labor
o f the employer himself i f done privately and without the aid o f
employees.
2. They do not apply to work that can not be postponed, or to
the work o f cleaning and repairing that could not be carried on at
other times without danger to employees or without serious inter
ference with the business of the establishment or o f other establish
ments.
3. They do not apply to the work o f watch people and caretakers
o f industrial establishments.
4. They do not apply to temporary work that can not be post
poned and that is required by the public interest, considerations of
public safety, or circumstances o f necessity.
5. For the purpose o f taking an inventory the Sunday regulations
may be suspended once a year.
6. In mercantile establishments Sunday work is permitted for a
period o f not longer than 4 hours. The provincial authorities may,
however, further curtail this provision. On certain Sundays during
10
BULLETIN OP TH E BUREAU OP LABOR.
periods o f exceptional activity (like Christmas) work may be allowed
by way o f exception for 8 hours.
7.
In certain occupations in which an interruption o f activity is
impracticable, or in which the needs o f the public make work on
Sunday necessary, public ordinances may permit Sunday work.
Administrative ordinances have enumerated over fifty industries or
occupations in which under certain stipulated conditions employees
may work on Sundays.
The industries and occupations exempted partly or entirely from
the prohibition o f Sunday work include certain metallurgical es
tablishments, truck gardening, glass works, potteries, brick manu
factories, tanneries, bleaching and dye works, flour mills, chemical
plants engaged in the manufacture o f certain enumerated products,
malthouses and breweries, sugar manufactories, wine cellars, the
manufacture o f artificial ice, certain illumination and transportation
enterprises, bath houses, hotels and restaurants, and many others. («)
In most o f these occupations and establishments, however, the em
ployees who work on a Sunday must be given the next following Sun
day for rest. Thus, for example, in hotels and restaurants the em
ployees who work more than 3 hours on Sunday must be given 24
hours off on the following Sunday or on some week day, or else 6
hours on each o f two week days. Especially in hotels and restau
rants, however, this requirement has been so frequently ignored that
in May, 1909, the minister o f commerce complained to the local
authorities and urged a better enforcement o f the law.
The metallurgical establishments partially exempted from the
terms o f the Sunday law are o f four kinds: (a) Blast furnaces, in
cluding roasting works; (&) Bessemer and Martin steel works directely connected with blast furnaces; ( c) Bessemer and Martin
steel works not directly connected with blast furnaces; also cruciblesteel works and rolling mills supplied from puddling furnaces and
welding furnaces; ( d) puddling works and rolling mills.
In establishments under ( a) it is permitted on Sundays to supply
coal, coke, ore, and flux; to operate the water supply, the blast engines
and air-heating apparatus; to charge the furnaces and to tap the
metal; to remove the slag; to mold the pig iron and remove it to the
storing place. In establishments under ( b) it is permitted on Sun
day to bring the molten iron to the converters; to bring the inter
mediate products to the open-hearth furnaces; to operate the genera
tors and blast engines; to charge the furnaces and carry on the smelt
ing processes in converters and open-hearth furnaces; to tap the
a Vorschrifen fiber die Sonntagsruhe im gewerblichen Betriebe Osterreicbs.
Herausgegeben vom k. k. Arbeitsstatischen Amt im Handelsministerium. Wien,
1909.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
11
finished products; to case harden and remove it; and to remove the
slag. For both groups o f establishments, the laborers who are em
ployed longer than 3 hours on Sundays must be given 24 hours
off on alternate Sundays, i f operations can be interrupted for at
least 6 hours on Sunday, or if, at the weekly change of shifts,
a single reserve shift can be provided for on Sunday. But in the
latter case the workers in the relieving shift must not be employed
during the 12 hours preceding or following their regular employment,
and they must have a compensatory resting period at least equal to
that o f the workers whose places they take. I f peculiar conditions
in the establishment make it impossible to grant the above resting
periods, the 18 hours o f rest allowed at the change o f weekly shifts
may be regarded as equivalent.
The establishments under (c) are permitted to reduce the period
o f Sunday rest to 12 hours by arranging that the feeding o f the
furnaces shall be begun—according to the time the shifts change—
either at noon or at 6 p. m. The processes that may be carried on are
substantially the same as those enumerated under (b). A ll the
laborers thus employed for more than 3 hours on Sunday must have
24 hours free on alternate Sundays. In the establishments under ( d)
it is provided that if operations have been suspended during the
week for a period o f at least 24 hours this period may be 44made up ”
by work on the following Sunday, upon the condition that the proper
authorities be notified, in advance, o f the cause and duration of the
interruption and the number o f laborers affected. Unless there has
been an interruption o f 24 hours in the work during the preceding
week, the laborers in these establishments who work more than 3
hours on any Sunday must have 24 hours off on the next following
Sunday.
The whole subject o f Sunday legislation, however, is in a chaotic
condition, for in the 13 administrative subdivisions o f the Empire
58 local ordinances on the subject were passed in the years 1905 to
1909, establishing approximately a thousand different regimes for
different occupations and localities. Hence the Council o f Labor
(Arbeitsbeirat) declared th a t44in the matter o f a uniform and ade
quate enforcement o f the provisions concerning Sunday rest, much
remains to be accomplished.” The bewildering multiplicity and
variety o f regulations leads to a very objectionable state of affairs
in the regions bordering on districts having different sets o f rules
concerning Sunday work.
Employers who benefit by the exceptions numbered 2, 3, 4, and 5
are required to keep a list o f the laborers employed each Sunday,
indicating the names o f such laborers, and the place, nature, and
duration o f their employment.
12
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
I f work on Sunday lasts longer than 3 hours the employee is entitled
to a compensatory day of rest on the succeeding Sunday or two half
days’ rest on week days.
The provisions concerning Sunday rest were extended to huckster
ing and peddling by the law o f April 28, 1895. It should be added
that similar provisions apply to labor in mines, save that these pro
visions are suspended whenever their observation involves danger
to life or health or property.
H Y G IE N E AND SAFETY. (®)
Every employer is obliged, at his own expense, to provide such
safety appliances and to adopt such measures as may be necessary to
protect the life, limb, and health o f his employees against dangers
arising from the occupation in which they are employed. The work
places must be kept clean and as free from dust as the nature o f
the industry permits. I f an employer furnishes lodging for his
laborers, the rooms for this purpose must not be unhealthfuL I f he
employs women or persons under 18 years o f age, he is required to
make such provisions and arrangements as may be necessary to safe
guard their morality.
M A X IM U M W ORKDAY AND REST PERIODS.
In industrial establishments possessing the character o f factories
(a term which is defined later on) the maximum duration o f the work
day must not exceed 11 hours in 24, not counting intervals o f rest.
In all industrial establishments there must be intervals o f rest amount
ing to 1J hours. This total period o f rest shall include at least 1 full
hour at midday unless the nature o f the industry does not permit it.
The minister o f commerce may, after consultation with the minister
o f the interior and the chambers o f commerce and industry, permit
a modification of the rules concerning intervals o f rest in certain
industries, particularly those in which the interruption o f work is
impracticable. He may also determine the industries in which, upon
proof o f necessity, the maximum workday may be raised from 11 to
12 hours in factories. This list must be revised every 3 years. After
the same preliminaries the minister o f commerce may designate the
kinds o f industries in which continuous operation is permitted by
means o f shifts o f laborers. Whenever work is stopped by forces
beyond human control or by accidents, or whenever it is necessary to
increase the output, the authorities in charge of the enforcement of
the industrial laws may permit a temporary prolongation o f the workfl Numerous ordinances have been issued upon tbis subject, concerning such
matters as light, ventilation, stairs, fire escapes, heating, steam boilers, dan
gerous machinery, elevators, toilet rooms, scaffolding used in building trades, etc.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
13
day in particular branches o f industry for a total period o f not more
than 3 weeks; the right to grant this privilege for a longer period
belongs to the provincial administration. In cases o f urgent necessity
the working period may be prolonged for a period o f not more than
3 days in any single month by simply notifying the local authorities
in charge o f the enforcement o f the industrial laws.
The above provisions limiting the duration of the workday do not
apply to auxiliary tasks that form no part o f the industrial process
proper— such as getting up steam, illumination, cleaning—unless
these processes are carried on by laborers under 16 years o f age.
The right to work 12 hours per day instead o f 11 was granted to a
considerable number o f industries by the ordinance o f May 27, 1885,.
but has been subsequently withdrawn from a number o f the most
important ones, such as wool and cotton spinning. Frequent abuses
o f the right to work overtime led to the passage o f an ordinance 1
(December 12, 1895) which provided that permission to prolong the
workday beyond 11 hours be not granted for a longer period than 15
weeks in any year, nor to the owners of establishments not fulfilling
the requirements o f hygiene, nor to employers who have employed
their laborers overtime without first obtaining the requisite authoriza
tion.
On January 14, 1910, a law was passed regulating the hours o f
rest in mercantile establishments, shops, stores, and concerns for the
carrying and forwarding o f goods. Laborers ( Hilfsarbeiter) in
these occupations must have 11 hours for rest out o f 24, except wagon
drivers in the carrying and forwarding trade, for whom the mini
mum is 10 hours. The midday rest period must as a rule amount to
1J hours. Shops for the sale o f goods, and the offices connected
therewith, must close from 8 p. m. to 5 a. m., except those selling
food products, which may remain open until 9 p. m. The local au
thorities may prescribe longer rest periods. Seats must be provided
for laborers in the workplaces. The rest periods may be curtailed,,
however, in the following cases: When inventories are made; when
a concern is started or moved; when fairs or markets are visited;,
when work is imperative to keep goods from spoiling, or for like
reasons; and, besides, on a total of not more than 30 days in the
year. These rules may be set aside entirely at health resorts during
the so-called “ season.”
WORKSHOP AND FACTORY REGULATIONS.
Factories and industrial establishments with more than 20 em
ployees (°) must have a set o f working regulations, approved by the
« These provisions concerning workshop regulations apply also to the construc
tion o f railways and to building trades generally whenever the number o f
laborers exceeds 20.
56504°—No. 89—10----- 2
14
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
public authorities, and containing the following information: The
kinds of laborers employed and the nature of the work performed
by female and child employees; the arrangements that have been
made to provide child employees with the requisite schooling; the
workdays, the time at which daily work begins and ends, and when
the pauses are given; the time and methods o f wage payment;(°) the
powers and duties of foremen and superintendents; what is done for
sick and injured employees; the nature, amount, and uses of fines
imposed upon laborers who violate the rules of the establishment;
the rules concerning the dismissal o f employees.
W ORK BOOKS.
No employer may engage a laborer who is not provided with a work
book, which must indicate the full name, date and place of birth,
religion, civil status, and occupation o f the owner, and must contain
his signature. This book is delivered for a fixed fee by the local
authorities o f the laborer’s place o f residence, and must bear the
official seal.
At the time o f employment the employer takes charge o f the work
book and must be prepared to exhibit it upon requisition to the proper
authorities. At the termination o f employment it must be returned
to the owner after the employer has entered upon it the date on which
the laborer left his employ.
So much for the provisions concerning laborers generally, whether
adults or minors. Attention will now be given to the special provi
sions concerning children (according to the Industrial Code, persons
between 12 and 14 years o f age) and young persons (those between
14 and 16 years o f age).
CHILD LABOR.
Children under 12 years o f age may not be employed regularly in
industrial establishments. Those between 12 and 14 years of age
may be thus employed only to the extent that the labor in which they
engage is not detrimental to their health or to their physical develop
ment and does not interfere with their attendance at school during
the period fixed by law ; nor may they work more than 8 hours per
day. Moreover, the minister o f commerce, in conjunction with the
minister o f the interior and with the advice o f the chambers o f com
merce and industry, is empowered to issue ordinances designating the
industrial occupations that involve danger to the life, limb, or health
o f those employed therein, and in which women and children may
therefore either not engage at all or only under certain specified
conditions.
°A s in most countries, wages must be paid in legal tender.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
15
There is no general ordinance giving a list o f these occupations.
There are, however, several ordinances that have been issued in con
formity with paragraph 74 o f the Industrial Code, which concerns
measures that must be taken to safeguard laborers from industrial
diseases and accidents. One of these ordinances (under date of
April 15, 1908) applies to persons engaged in painting and lacquer
ing, and forbids the employment of women and children in the
industrial use o f white lead and lead compounds. Moreover, a law
under date o f July 13, 1909, absolutely forbids the manufacture and
sale o f matches made o f white or yellow phosphorus.
A law o f July 28, 1902, forbade the employment of girls under 16
at all, and o f boys after 8 p. m. or before 6 a. m., in certain branches
o f railway service; it also forbade overtime work for boys under 16
in the same occupations.
Children under 14 years of age may not peddle or huckster goods,
and the employment o f girls under 18 at this occupation may be
restricted or forbidden by the industrial authorities ( Gewerbebe-
horden).
A decree o f 1824 forbids the employment o f large numbers of chil
dren in ballets and pantomimes, and seeks to confine their employ
ment within “ necessary limits.”
Children under 16 years o f age must not be employed at night
(between 8 p. m. and 5 a. m.) in establishments subject to the law.
But the minister o f commerce, in consultation with the minister of
the interior, is empowered to issue ordinances modifying this provi
sion concerning night work or to exempt certain categories o f occu
pations from compliance with it by reason o f climatic circumstances
or o f “ other important considerations; ” he may, furthermore, per
mit the employment o f children between 14 and 16 years o f age at
night in factories in which continuous operation is imperative or in
■which the temporary requirements o f the industry make it necessary'
to employ alternating relays o f laborers.
In conformity with the powers thus conferred upon the minister
o f commerce the prohibition o f night work for children was sus
pended (a) in all industrial establishments engaged in certain speci
fied industries, and (6) in “ factories” in certain other specified
industries.
Under (a) the enumerated industries are: Scythe manufacturing,
in which male persons under 16 years o f age may be employed at
night to help take care o f the fires, provided they alternate from
night shifts to day shifts at reasonable periods; silk throwing, in
which male and female employees under 16 may be employed before
5 a. m. or after 8 p. m. if the midday pause is lengthened propor
tionately; hotels and restaurants, in which male waiters and similar
employees under 16 may work until 12 o’clock at night; white bread
16
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
and pastry bakeries, in which male apprentices under 16 may be
employed for 4 consecutive hours at night at so-called 44table work ”
(cutting dough, etc.), provided the hours are indicated by a notice
posted in the work place.
Under (b) the following are enumerated: Ironworks, in which
males under 16 may work at night as casters, oilers, helpers, etc., in
those parts o f the establishment in which work is continuous, such
as blast furnaces, coke ovens, rolling mills; glassworks, in which
males under 16 may be employed to open and close molds and to
perform auxiliary services as common laborers; paper and 44half
stuff ” mills, in which males and females under 16 may be employed
in connection with the drying processes and supervising bleaching;
sugar manufactories, in which males and females under 16 may be
employed in all processes carried on continuously by night and day;
canning and preserving establishments, in which persons under 16
may be employed whenever work can not be postponed without sub
jecting goods to the danger o f deterioration; manufactories o f enam
eled ware, in which persons under 16 may be employed in 44burning-in,” 44laying-on,” 44removing burrs,” and in carrying goods and
implements, provided the laborers are divided into three shifts work
ing 8 hours each, in which case the work o f young persons may be
continued not later than 9 p. m .(a)
Employers o f children under 16 years o f age in industrial estab
lishments must keep a list o f the children in their employ, indicating
the name, age, and place o f residence o f these children; the name
and residence o f their parents or guardians; and the date o f the
beginning and termination o f their employment. Such lists must be
kept ready for examination by the inspectors.
Apart from the above general provisions concerning the employ
ment o f children in any o f the establishments subject to the law
'there are additional regulations with regard to children employed in
those industrial establishments that possess the character o f 44fac
tories” ( fabrikmassig betriebene Gewerbsunternehmungen) . ( *6)
It was manifestly the object of these provisions to create a more
stringent regime for larger industrial establishments, and to give a
privileged position to the smaller concerns. Unfortunately, however,
a Females above 16 years of age may be employed at night in “ driving ” and
“ finishing ” bed feathers; in manufactures o f lace by machine, they may be
employed at night to put the bobbins in the “ carriages; ” in making smoking
caps (fezzes) they may work until 10 p. m., provided their workday does not
exceed 11 hours.
6 It must be kept in mind that the term “ factory ” has a peculiar and arbi
trary meaning in Austrian law, and that throughout the section o f this report
devoted to Austria the term is employed in the sense o f the law and not in its
current American significance.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
17
the definition o f what constitutes a “ factory 55 in the sense of the law,
set forth by a ministerial decree o f July 18, 1883, was neither very
clear nor concise. According to this decree the term “ factory ” com
prises establishments in which industrial merchandise is produced
or subjected to further modification in inclosed work places containing
as a rule more than 20 laborers working outside o f their own homes;
in such establishments, moreover, the work must as a rule be carried on
with the aid o f machines and by means o f a division of labor. Fur
ther distinctive characteristics o f a “ factory ” are stated to consist in
the direction o f the enterprise by a person not himself participating
in manual labor therein; in the payment o f larger taxes; in the
possession o f a firm name; and in the absence of the usual features of
ordinary handicrafts.
In establishments thus elaborately but unsatisfactorily described,
and in the construction o f railways and other building enterprises
employing more than 20 laborers, it is provided by the Industrial
Code that children under 14 years o f age shall not be regularly em
ployed at a ll; and that children between 14 and 16 years o f age may
be employed only at such lighter occupations as will not injure their
health or their physical development.
Boys under 16 and female laborers shall not be employed therein at
night, but ministerial ordinances may designate classes o f factories to
which this rule shall not apply, because of the nature o f the work or
the imperative necessity for the employment of relays to keep the
plants in continuous operation.
The Industrial Code contains a number of provisions regarding
the employment o f apprentices. These have been modified by several
laws, the most recent o f which is that of February 5, 1907. As the
law now stands, it provides that industrial employees under 18 years
o f age must be permitted to attend the industrial continuation schools
( Fortbildungsschulen) at such times as are fixed by the schedules o f
these schools. I f there are no such schools for female employees the
latter shall be permitted to attend domestic science schools wherever
such schools exist.
LABOR IN M IN ES.
It has already been stated that a number o f special measures have
been enacted concerning labor in mines. (a) The most recent o f these
and the one that particularly concerns the labor o f children is the
ordinance o f June 8, 1907.
a In 1904, the most recent year for which figures could be obtained, there
were nearly 6,000 children under 16 years of age employed in Austrian mines
(excluding salt mines), amounting to over 4 per cent o f the total number of
mining laborers (135,564).
18
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
For all laborers alike, the maximum duration o f employment,
according to the law of June 21, 1884, is 12 hours per day, including
pauses for rest, and 10 hours o f actual work in the mine. The 12
hours include the time o f descent and ascent. Exceptions may be
granted by the minister of agriculture in favor o f mines at high alti
tudes in the alpine region, but the total number of hours of work
therein must not exceed 60 per week. The administrative officials
having supervision o f mines ( Berghauptmannschaft) may in cases
o f u extraordinary occurrences ” or 46temporary necessity ” grant a
prolongation (within certain limits) o f the maximum workday.
The law o f June 27, 1901, concerning coal mines, provides that
laborers employed in mining the coal must not be employed more
than 9 hours a day, including pauses while they are underground.
This limitation, however, does not apply to mines in which the work
ing period was longer than 9 hours at the time the law went into
effect; for such mines the usual limit o f 12 hours, or 10 hours o f actual
work, is valid. The minister of agriculture may also grant excep
tions for coal mines at high altitudes in the alpine region, though
the total number o f hours’ work therein must not exceed 54 per week;
and the mining officials may likewise extend the maximum limit up
to 12 hours a day in the event o f “ extraordinary occurrences ” or
“ temporary necessity.” The reports o f the mining officials indicate,
however, that very few children under 14 are employed overtime.
Children under 14 years o f age may not be employed as laborers
in mines. But by way o f exception the authorities may, upon the
petition o f parents or guardians, grant permission to employ children
between 12 and 14 years o f age at light work above ground provided
it does not interfere with the performance o f their school duties.
Petitions to permit the employment o f children between 12 and 14
years o f age must state the days o f the week on which it is proposed
to have them work, the time o f beginning and ending work each day,
the exact time for pauses, and the kind o f work in which they are
to engage. Before granting such petitions the officials in charge of
the supervision o f mines must carefully investigate whether the
nature and duration o f the work and the pauses are commensurate
with the child’s physical condition; and also whether the schedule o f
working hours is compatible with attendance at school. The au
thorities must see to it that the hours o f work for these children do
not exceed, and the hours for rest do not fall short of, those fixed by
law" for children over 14 years o f age; if necessary they shall confer
with the health officers and the school officials. In no event may
children be employed on Sunday or at night (with one exception,
referred to hereafter).
Laborers between 14 and 16 years o f age may be employed only at
work that is not beyond their strength and not injurious to their
CHILD-LABOB LEGISLATION IN AUSTKIA.
19
physical development; girls under 18 years o f age must not be em
ployed underground at all. Certain kinds o f work—such as pushing
wagons up slanting galleries and moving heavily loaded wagons—
are specifically enumerated as forbidden for boys under 16 and girls
under 18 years o f age; likewise work underground at a temperature
above 25° C. (77° F.) or under conditions likely to produce noxious
gases, or unhealthful dust, or offering exceptional liability to accident
or disease.
Nor may laborers under 16 years o f age (or girls under 18) as a
rule work between 8 p. m. and 5 a. m. But in mines employing two
shifts per day, males under 16 may be employed until 11 p. m.
In cases o f imminent danger to life, health, or property, children
may be employed overtime or at night when adult laborers are not
available for extra work under such circumstances.
Boys under 16 and girls under 18 years o f age must have regular
pauses for rest amounting to at least 1 hour more than those allowed
adult laborers. The pauses must be so arranged that no actual work
ing period shall exceed 4 hours; any other arrangement is permissible
only when made necessary by the operation o f the mine or in the
interest o f the laborers themselves. Whenever young persons are em
ployed on Sundays by way o f exceptions provided for by law, they
must be given a compensatory day o f rest during the week following.
Exceptions to the legal provisions regarding night work, pauses,
and length o f the working period may be granted with regard to
young persons o f the male sex only when a physician acceptable to the
authorities has furnished a certificate indicating the precise kind o f
work in which it is proposed to employ the child and stating that
such employment is neither detrimental to his physical development
nor involves danger to his health. Whenever, upon the basis of such
a certificate, young persons are permitted to work at night, the alter
nation o f shifts must be such that they change from night work to
day work, or vice versa, at least every week.
In every mine in which young persons are employed a list must be
kept o f all such persons working therein, giving their name, age, and
place o f residence, the name and place o f residence of their parents
or guardians, the kinds o f work in which they are employed, the hour
at which each shiftbegins and stops working, the pauses granted, and
the date upon which employment began. Whenever young persons
are concerned in exemptions from the usual provisions o f the law
the precise nature o f these exemptions must be indicated in the afore
said list; and in the case of children under 14 years o f age it must
also indicate the time and number of hours o f daily attendance at
school, as well as the date and number which the official permit bears.
These lists are always subject to the inspection of the officials in
charge o f the supervision of mines.
20
BULLETIN OF THE BUREAU OF LABOR.
SCHOOL LA W S.
In general, the present school laws require 8 years’ attendance
at school. Inasmuch as Austria since 1774 has had compulsory
primary education for children over 6 years o f age, it would appear
that all children under 14 years of age attend school regularly.
There are, however, all manner o f arrangements for shortening the
school period from 8 to 6 years in many Provinces. In most o f
the Provinces, moreover, the seventh and eighth school years need
not involve more than 3 or 4 months’ attendance during the year nor
more than 3 or 4 hours per week during these months. In not a few
o f the Provinces it is still considered sufficient if the instruction the
children receive consists of “ religion, reading, writing, and arith
metic.”
PENALTIES.
In terminating this section it is necessary to summarize the pro
visions o f the labor laws with regard to the penalties that may be
imposed for violations of these laws. Five sorts of punishments are
enumerated: (a) Admonitions; (6) fines up to 1,000 crowns ($203);
( c) imprisonment up to 3 months; ( d) the temporary or permanent
withdrawal o f the right to have apprentices or employees under 16
years o f age; and ( e) the temporary or permanent withdrawal o f the
right to conduct an industrial establishment. With regard to fines,
the code enumerates two groups of offenses—for one group the fine
may be not less than 5 ($1.02) nor more than 500 crowns ($101.50);
for the other it may be not less than 20 ($4.06) nor more than 1,000
crowns ($203). The right to have apprentices or laborers under 16
years o f age may be withdrawn from employers who employ children
under 12 years o f age in industrial establishments generally, or chil
dren under 14 years o f age in factories; or who are repeatedly found
guilty o f employing them for other work or for a longer workday
than the law allows; or who violate the regulations concerning the
employment o f children in dangerous or unhealthful industries, occu
pations, or processes; or who repeatedly violate the provisions con
cerning the night work o f persons under 16 years o f age; or who per
sist, in spite o f repeated offenses, in breaking the rules concerning the
employment and dismissal of apprentices, or in preventing apprentices
from attending school in accordance with the law.
It is expressly stipulated that as a rule the penalty for violating the
industrial code shall consist o f fines, and a sentence o f imprisonment
shall be passed only in cases presenting especially aggravating cir
cumstances or in which repeated fines have been o f no effect.
When the guilty party is unable to pay the fine to which he has
been sentenced, imprisonment may be substituted at the rate o f 1
day’s imprisonment for every 10 crowns ($2.03); but the total period
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
21
o f imprisonment must not exceed 3 months. For fines under 10
crowns ($2.03) imprisonment for 24 hours or less may be substituted.
I f violations o f the law are committed by agents or lessees, the
latter shall be subject to fine or imprisonment. But the owner shall
also be responsible if the offense was committed with his knowledge,
or if he was guilty o f negligence in supervising the establishment
or in the appointment o f his agent. Should the legal penalty for
the offense consist o f the withdrawal o f the right to conduct an
industrial establishment, this penalty shall be inflicted only if the
owner o f the establishment knew o f the offense and was in a position
to prevent its occurrence.
Not only may the tribunals as a penalty for violations o f the law
withdraw the right to employ persons under 16 years o f age, but
the administrative authorities are likewise empowered upon their
own initiative to inflict the same penalty upon employers found
guilty o f gross neglect o f their duties toward persons under 16 years
o f age in their employ, and upon employers who are known to be
morally unfit to employ such persons.
The right to prosecute for violations of the labor laws expires
by limitation in 6 months after the date of the offense, unless the
offense is punishable at criminal law.
Tribunals o f the first instance for dealing with infractions o f
the labor laws are the local political administrative authorities. The
political authorities o f the Province constitute the tribunals o f the
next higher degree, and the highest court for these offenses is the
Ministry o f Commerce. Appeals from tribunals o f the first instance
must be filed within 2 weeks and from the tribunals o f second
instance within 4 weeks.
Fines o f not more than 30 crowns ($6.09) may be imposed without
trial by the courts o f first instance for infractions witnessed by
public officials engaged in the performance o f their duty. The
offending party may, however, within 8 days after notification o f
the imposition o f such a fine ask for a trial ,according to the usual
procedure.
The Ministry o f Commerce has the right to reduce, for sufficient
reasons, the penalties imposed. In the event that offenders fail to
comply with the sentence o f the courts, the necessary steps may be
taken to secure compliance—such as the seizure o f goods and imple
ments, stopping machinery, or the compulsory closing o f the estab
lishment.
ORGANIZATION AND WORK OF THE INSPECTORS.
There were practically no inspectors and hence no real enforce
ment o f the labor laws in Austria before the law o f June 17, 1883,
went into effect. This law was the outcome o f nearly 15 years o f
22
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
agitation and discussion in which some of the parliamentary repre
sentatives o f the laboring classes themselves manifested but little
enthusiasm for the proposed law. They urged the somewhat con
tradictory reasons that inspectors appointed by the Government
would simply represent an expansion o f bureaucracy, and that the
number o f inspectors would probably be insufficient to accomplish
anything worth while. The editor o f a leading socialistic labor organ
declared that no matter how well disposed the inspectors might be
they would be unable to prevent violations o f the law because the fear
o f dismissal would prevent laborers from giving information. A
leading employer is reported as having said that if one o f his laborers
should take the liberty o f reporting infractions o f the labor laws to
the inspectors, he would be discharged within half an hour following
the discovery o f such an act.(a)
The labor inspectors, or, as the Austrian law designates them, indus
trial inspectors (Gewerbe-Inspektoren), are responsible ultimately to
the Ministry o f Commerce ; ( 6) in matters o f discipline, however, they
are subject to the administrative authorities o f the Province in which
their district lies. Kegarding the qualifications which they must pos
sess, the law simply provides that no one shall be appointed to the
office o f inspector who does not possess “ the requisite technical train
ing and a knowledge o f the languages employed in the district to
which he is assigned.” As a matter o f fact, almost all o f the present
inspectors have been specially trained in engineering and chemistry.
In securing the enforcement of the law the local political adminis
trative authorities cooperate with the inspectors. Since 1889 the lat
ter are assisted by so-called “ commissioners o f industrial inspection,”
subordinate to the inspectors, whose duty consists in seeing that the
law is enforced in the territory intrusted to them by the inspector to
whose jurisdiction they are assigned and by whose authority they
exercise the functions o f the inspector within this area.
A t the head o f the staff o f inspectors is a central industrial in
spector who belongs to the Ministry o f Commerce and thus furnishes
the connecting link with the central administration. Curiously
enough, the law contains no provision whatever regarding the func
tions o f this official. His rights and duties have therefore been deter
mined by administrative ordinance, according to which he is desig
nated as the specialist in industrial matters o f the ministerial depart
ment o f commerce, and charged with general supervision of the appli
cation o f the industrial laws. He is required to keep in touch with
matters o f interest and importance arising from the application of
these laws, to render an account o f the reports o f the inspectors with
0 Lukinac: Die Gewerbe-Inspektion in Osterreieh, p. 22. Wien, 1908.
h A decree under date o f June 20, 1908, established a “ social-political ” section
of the Ministry o f Commerce, to have charge o f questions concerning labor.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
23
regard to the consequences o f their enforcement, and to make such
suggestions in regard thereto as may appear to require action on the
part of the central administration or to call for further legislative
measures.
Under this central official are the inspectors, whose activity, it
should be noted, is not confined to factories but extends as a general
rule to all enterprises affected by the industrial code.
The service o f inspection is organized on the territorial principle;
that is to say, each inspector has charge o f a definite area assigned to
him by the minister of commerce. Nine inspection circuits were estab
lished in 1883, and the inspectors in charge thereof began their activi
ties on February 1, 1884. Subsequent ordinances have gradually in
creased this number to 35. (a) The territorial principle is modified to
the extent that the minister of commerce is empowered to single out
certain branches o f industry and place them under the jurisdiction
o f “ special inspectors,” whose territory may thus overlap that o f a
number o f circuit inspectors and may even be coextensive with that o f
the whole Empire. Thus far, four such special inspectors have been
provided for. One o f them has charge of ship transportation on
inland waterways, the second is intrusted with the inspection o f public
transportation enterprises in Vienna, and the remaining two have
charge o f the construction o f waterways. (6)
Apart from the special inspectors and three clerical officials, the
staff now consists of 1 central inspector, 9 chief inspectors, 39 in
spectors, 1 female assistant, and 35 commissioners, making a total of
85 officials. Besides a regular salary, the amount of which, however,
is exceedingly small when compared with the salaries of correspond
ing officials in France and England, these officials receive traveling,
expenses, office expenses, and certain other allowances for heating,
light, periodicals, etc. The total expenditure in 1908 was 718,820
crowns ($145,920), exclusive o f the salaries o f the special inspectors.
The duties o f the inspectors consist, generally speaking, in the en
forcement o f all industrial labor laws. In other words, they have
charge o f the application o f the regulations concerning (1) the meas
ures which employers must adopt to protect the life and health o f
their laborers; (2) the employment o f laborers, the working period,
and intervals for rest: (3) the lists o f employees, workshop or factory
rules, the payment o f wages, and laborers’ work books or certificates;*
a An ordinance of April 6, 1909, raised the number to 38.
* In the latter part o f 1909 the minister of commerce appointed two laboring
men to positions on the inspectorial staff as assistant inspectors in the first cir
cuit of Vienna. Both o f these men were stone polishers; one of them for many
years was an official o f the stone masons’ union. They will devote their atten
tion especially to the inspection o f labor in the building trades. Four women,
moreover, were appointed as assistants to the inspectors at Prague, Graz,
Briinn, and Lemberg; and a “ consulting hygienist” designated.
24
BULLETIN OF THE BUREAU OF LABOR.
and (4) the industrial training of apprentices.
tions provide as follow s:
The official instruc
In the performance o f their work the inspectors shall strive by
means o f sympathetic supervision not only to secure for laborers the
benefits o f the law, but also to cooperate tactfully with employers
in securing the fulfillment of the obligations which the law imposes
upon them.
For the performance o f their official duties the inspectors must
not accept remuneration o f any kind whatsoever from employers or
employees, and they shall refuse all offers o f hospitality made by em
ployers or employees. * * * They have no right to inspect the
books, business records, or correspondence o f employers. * * *
They shall place the emphasis o f their activity upon the de visu in
spection o f work places and personal oral intercourse with employers
and laborers.
Inspectors are entitled to visit during the daytime all work places
subject to the law, as well as the homes o f the laborers when these
homes are provided by the employer. For this purpose they must
be equipped with cards made out annually by the chief administra
tive official of the Province. They may visit the work places at night
only when work is being carried on therein.
The employer or his representative is entitled to accompany the
inspector while visiting an industrial establishment. The inspector
has the right to question any person in the establishment with regard
to matters affecting the enforcement o f the law, including the em
ployer or his representative. This may be done in the absence o f
witnesses, but should be done without unnecessarily disturbing busi
ness operations. Refusal to permit the inspector to inspect an estab
lishment or any part thereof, refusal to answer legitimate questions,
giving false information, refusal to exhibit documents subject to the
inspector’s examination, and constraining other persons to impart
false information are all subject to punishment by law.
Should the inspector detect failures to comply with the law, he
shall request immediate compliance, and in the event of a refusal he
shall report to the local authorities and ask that steps be taken to
secure the imposition o f the penalties provided for by law. The
inspector’s work ends here, except in the event that the decision o f
these*authorities does not appear to be well founded, in which case
he may secure an appeal to the next higher tribunal. I f the decision
o f this tribunal appears to him unsatisfactory, he may set in motion
the complex and slow machinery o f an appeal to the imperial ad
ministrative authorities through the central inspector, a process
requiring not only abundant time and incalculable “ red tape,” but
an almost, incredible amount o f correspondence on the part of the
inspector. (a)
°L ukinac; Die Gewerbe-Inspektion in Osterreich, p. 37, Wien, 1908.
25
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
Inspectors are o f course obligated not to divulge industrial secrets
which come to their knowledge; the penalties for violating this
obligation are severe and may amount to imprisonment for a period
o f 2 years. They must not be connected as employer or employee or
beneficiary with any industrial enterprise.
Since the passage o f the law o f 1883 the inspectors have been
burdened with several functions and tasks not imposed upon them
originally, such as the investigation o f causes o f industrial accidents
and the preparation o f reports on certain assigned topics, e. g., on
the hours o f work in factories, on home industries, etc. Most critics
agree that the amount o f clerical work that devolves upon these
officials constitutes a serious interference with the performance of
their more important duties.
So much for the organization and functions o f the inspectors.
W ith regard to their activity, the principal source o f official informa
tion consists o f their reports, (a) issued annually since 1884.
The number o f inspected establishments has increased from 2,564
in 1884 to 24,504 in 1908. This increase is largely due to the in
creased number o f inspectors, o f which there are now 85, whereas in
1884 there were only 9.
The following table furnishes a general survey o f the activities o f
the inspectors since 1896:
NUMBER OF INDUSTRIAL ESTABLISHMENTS INSPECTED, NUMBER OF LABOR
ERS IN SUCH ESTABLISHMENTS, AND NUMBER OF SAID LABORERS WHO ARE
UNDER 16 YEARS OF AGE, 1897 TO 1908.
N um ber o f laborers—
Year.
1897
1898
1899
1900
1901
1902
1903
1904
1905
1906
1907
1908
Total num
ber of in Factories
spected es inspected.
tablish
ments.
11,680
11,057
11,383
15,393
17,213
16,733
19,949
21,242
22,677
22,493
23,451
24,504
4,473
4,724
5,104
6,315
6,613
7,711
7,956
8,435
8,729
8,343
8,528
9,126
In in
spected
establish
ments.
518,341
561,941
628,523
702,855
713,593
773,356
789,883
893,463
923,502
884,448
922,677
983,553
Under 16
years of
age.
31,513
33,971
38,894
42,261
44,841
44,948
45,619
51,630
53,972
51,822
55,708
59,840
How small a proportion o f the children under 16 years o f age
employed in industrial concerns are comprised in the establishments
inspected is disclosed by the following table, based on the industrial
census o f 1903, which shows that only one-fourth o f the children
under 16 actually employed in industrial concerns have the benefit
o f an inspector’s visit during any single year.
a Berichte der
k. k. Gewerbe-Inspektion, Wien, Verlag der Staatsdruckerei.
26
BULLETIN OF TH E BUBEAU OF LABOR.
TOTAL EMPLOYEES AND NUMBER AND PER CENT OF MALE AND FEMALE
EMPLOYEES UNDER 16 YEARS OF AGE, BY GROUPS OF INDUSTRIES.
Group of industries.
Total
number
of em
ployees.
Employees under 16 years of age.
Male.
Slight modification of raw materials.......
Extraction of metals from ores.................
Stone, pottery, and glassware...................
Metal wares.................................................
Machines....................................... ..............
Wood manufactures....................................
Rubber manufactures................................
Leather, hair, and feather goods..............
Textiles........................................................
Papering and upholstering........................
Clothing trades...........................................
Paper.............................................................
Food products..............................................
Hotels and taverns......................................
Chemicals.....................................................
Building trades..........................................
Graphic industries (printing, etc.)...........
Light and power plants.............................
Wandering trades.......................................
172,750
8,557
233,949
260,094
144,424
240,149
4,790
44,759
549,694
6,671
536,303
57,032
329,323
283,072
55,059
320,241
35,135
4,491
1,562
4,216
180
10,083
21,449
9,178
15,591
113
2,873
13,025
872
30,510
2,243
15,505
5,818
. 597
12,159
2,119
112
37
Total...................................................
3,286,955
146,680
Female.
Total.
609
45
2,856
1,580
122
1,687
108
140
20,645
14
15,043
1,619
2,664
3,729
470
301
533
!
''
i
52,166
Per cent.
4,825
225
12,939
23,029
9,300
17,278
221
3,013
33,670
886
45,553
3,862
18,169
9,547
1,067
12,460
2,652
112
38
2.8
2.6
5.5
8.9
6.4
7.2
4.6
6.7
6.1
13.2
8.5
6.8
5.5
3.4
1.9
3.9
7.5
2.5
2.4
198,846
6.0
A large proportion o f the establishments visited by the inspectors
are subject to the accident-insurance law and are inspected mainly by
reason o f that law— either for the purpose o f making an investigation
into the circumstances surrounding accidents that have taken place or
with a view to seeing that the requisite precautions have been taken
to prevent accidents. Thus, since 1900 approximately 80 per cent of
the establishments inspected were subject to the accident-insurance
law. Many o f these, to be sure, were also subject to other laws
designed to benefit the laboring classes. But it is none the less true
that a large part o f the work o f the inspectors may be said to consist
in securing the proper enforcement o f the accident-insurance law,
which applied in 1908 to 120,311 industrial establishments.
It has already been remarked that an undue share o f the attention
o f the inspectors is taken up by clerical work. Thus, in 1908 the
inspectors handled 167,214 “ pieces ” of correspondence, consisting of
reports to higher officials, complaints to tribunals, letters o f admoni
tion to employers, answers to requests for permits, etc., an average of
approximately 2,000 per inspector. While many o f these were largely
o f a formal character, they included 17,789 consultations with, and
reports to, various public authorities; some o f the reports not
only were lengthy but involved a considerable amount of personal
investigation.
The number o f instances in which the inspectors had occasion to
admonish employers for noncompliance with the law and to demand
its observance, and the number o f cases in which violations were
brought to the attention o f the judicial authorities for judgment, has
been as follows since 1899:
27
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
ADMONITIONS TO EMPLOYERS FOR VIOLATION OF THE CHILD-LABOR LAWS
AND PROSECUTIONS DUE TO INSPECTORS, 1899 TO 1906.
Prosecu
Number of tions
due
admoni to inspec
tions.
tors. («)
Year.
1899.....................................
1900.....................................
1901.....................................
1902.....................................
4,077
4,399
4,094
4,909
547
613
551
559
Prosecu
Number of tions
due
admoni to inspec
tions.
tors, (a)
Year.
1 9 0 3 .............................
1904....................................
1905...................................
1906...................................
5,375
4,799
4,617
4,076
732
641
753
811
• See p. 38 for the number due to outside sources.
The important point to be noted, however, is the activity of the
inspectors in detecting violations of the provisions o f the law con
cerning the employment of children. Upon this point the next table,
concerning the illegal employment o f persons under 16 years of
age (and in some cases under 18 years o f age) is instructive.
TOTAL CHILDREN INDUSTRIALLY EMPLOYED AND NUMBER EMPLOYED ILLE
GALLY IN FACTORIES AND IN OTHER ESTABLISHMENTS, 1897 TO 1908.
Children illegally
employed—
Total
number of
children
In other employed
indus
In facto establish
ries.
trially.
ments.
Year.
1897.....................
1898.....................
1899.....................
1900.....................
1901.....................
1902.....................
664
878
1,140
1,175
864
793
343
448
347
337
899
281
31,518
33,971
38,894
42,261
44,841
44,948
Children illegally
employed—
Year.
Total
number of
children
In other ejnployed
In facto establish
indus
ries.
trially.
ments.
1903.,.................
1904....................
1905....................
1906....................
1907....................
1908...................
812
982
1,008
927
798
968
409
385
236
307
434
423
45,619
51,630
53,972
51,822
55,708
59,840
It has already been noted, in stating the provisions o f the labor
laws, that so-called “ factories ” are subjected to a severer regime
than the smaller industrial establishments. There were two prin
cipal reasons for this. In the first place, it was felt that the smaller
concerns should be given an advantage over large-scale concerns. In
the second place, it was believed that the obligatory corporate organ
ization o f the smaller concerns (gewerbliehe Genossemchaften)
could be relied upon to compel the observance o f measures dictated
by a reasonable regard for the rights o f their employees. Experience
has demonstrated the futility o f this belief.
A ll o f the provisions in behalf o f the laboring classes [says Lukinac in his study o f labor inspection in Austria] (a) are much more
poorly observed in small industrial concerns than in factories. This
is probably because factory laborers are better organized than those
o f the smaller concerns, and more apt to insist upon the observance
o f the laws in their behalf. But it often happens even in the fac
0 Die Gewerbe-Inspektion in Osterreicli, p. 79.
Wien, 1908.
28
BULLETIN OF THE BUBEAU OF LABOR.
tories, and with the ready consent o f the laborers themselves, that
the provisions concerning the duration o f work, pauses, changes o f
shifts, and the labor o f children are not strictly observed.
Take, for instance, the prohibition o f night work for children.
Although persons under 14 years o f age may not work in factories at
all, while in other establishments they may be employed at the age
o f 12 years, and although violations o f the law are much more likely
to escape detection in the latter establishments than in the former,
the illegal employment o f persons under 16 years o f age at night is
more frequent in the smaller concerns than in the factories. In a
careful study o f the employment o f children at night, Inspector Karl
Hauck (a) states that—
in factories the prohibition o f child labor between 8 o’clock at night
and 5 o’clock in the morning gives rise to comparatively few viola
tions o f the law, whereas in small industrial plants a large number
o f infractions o f this rule are noted. I f we take the figures for
the five years 1901 to 1905, we find that the average number o f young
persons employed illegally at night in factories is 44 per year, while
in other industrial establishments the number is 124. * * * A p
proximately 0.35 per cent o f all young persons employed industrially
are discovered working at night contrary to the law. The actual
proportion o f violations o f this provision o f the law, however, is
probably much larger, for the small industrial concerns are inspected
less frequently than the factories. * * * The average number of
laborers per establishment inspected was 42, which shows that the
factories* preponderated. * * * The inspectors visit, above all,
the factories. * * * I f they inspected the small concerns as often
as the larger ones, the number of detected violations o f the prohibi
tion o f night work would be legion. This state o f affairs is aggra
vated by the fact that the small establishments are usually not satis
fied with detaining their young employees half an hour or an hour
after 8 p. m., but frequently continue work late in the night; at times
it is carried on throughout the entire night and occasionally through
out the succeeding day as w ell.(&)
In my opinion [says the same writer], this excessive employment
o f children at night is a gross abuse. It must be borne in mind that
the law fixes no maximum workday for smaller industrial establish
ments, and merely provides that young persons under 16 years o f age
shall not be employed earlier than 5 a. m. nor later than 8 p. m.
These concerns thus enjoy a privilege so great that the permanent or
temporary employment o f young persons after 8 p. m. constitutes an
unjustifiable exploitation. ( c)
Another group o f offenses o f which the smaller concerns are found
guilty more frequently than the larger establishments consists in the
a Die Nachtarbeit der Jugendlichen in der osterreichischen Industrie, p. 9.
Wien, 1907.
®Idem, p. 14.
c Idem, p. 15.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
29
illegal treatment of apprentices. The inspectors complain every year
that the owners o f smaller plants are too often incapable o f training
their apprentices properly. The conditions of their employment
were reported in 1902 as “ very unfortunate.” In addition to being
used to perform all manner of services not connected with the occu
pation they are supposed to be learning, the insanitary condition of
the places in which the children sleep, the gross treatment to which
they are subjected, the moral dangers to which they are exposed,
their frequent employment at night and the excessively long and
illegal periods o f work are the items most frequently noted in the
reports o f the inspectors for 1889,1894, 1895, 1898, and 1904.
The places in which apprentices sleep are characterized thus in the
general report for 1899: “ Dark and badly ventilated workrooms,
kitchens, garrets, dark and damp cellars, are considered good enough
to serve as sleeping places for young employees.” In bakeries, it is
reported, the journeymen and apprentices sometimes sleep in the
rooms where the flour is stored, or in apartments immediately adjoin
ing the bake ovens. One master potter had his apprentice sleep in
the winter in an empty oven; and in Budweis the inspector discovered
that an apprentice had been assigned to the kitchen as his sleeping
room and shared it with the maid of all work. In 1906 one inspector reported that 8 cabinetmakers’ apprentices
slept in two beds; that a wagon builder had his apprentice sleep on
a shelf hung from the ceiling o f a workroom and accessible by means
of a ladder; that among shoemakers’ apprentices the workrooms
serve frequently not only as kitchens, but as sleeping rooms for sev
eral employees and members o f the master’s family. The inspector
at Kromotau found that a fairly satisfactory room, previously as
signed at his suggestion to an apprentice to sleep in, had been rented
to the local branch o f a society for the prevention of tuberculosis, and
the apprentice forced to resume his old night quarters in a sort of
improvised bunk in the workshop. In tanneries, journeymen and
apprentices often sleep in the drying and currying rooms. (a)
Both the general and the technical education o f the apprentices is
reported as sadly neglected. Masters, regardless o f the law, do not
grant the time necessary to attend the “ continuation schools.” A
tailor in Karnten (Carinthia) refused to let his two apprentices go
to school unless they made up the “ lost time ” by additional work.
A cabinetmaker considered it superfluous to send his apprentice to
school, because the boy was “ too stupid anyway.” The apprentices
themselves appear to profit relatively little by their attendance at con
tinuation schools—which is comprehensible, in view of the fact that
a Berichte der k. k. Gewerbe-Inspektion, 1906, pp. xcii, etc.
56504°—No. 89—10----- 3
30
B U LLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
the schools meet at night when the children are tired out by the day’s
work. Especially in 64factories,” apprentices are often engaged
without the contract required by law. The inspector at Lemberg
found an apprentice in 1905 who had served 12 years with various
master cabinetmakers without ever having had a contract with any of
them. This is, o f course, an exceptional case. Not so, however, the
apprenticeship o f children in factories ill which the division o f labor
is so detailed that the simple work they are required to perform day
in and day out is o f next to no value as a form of industrial training,
and the very term 44apprentice ” is little more than a pathetic
anachronism.
The Austrian inspectors do not seem to have obtained the same
degree o f cooperation on the part of laborers as that o f which their
French and Swiss colleagues boast, although o f recent years some
socialistic labor organizations have undertaken to keep the inspectors
informed o f violations o f the law. An interesting development o f
the past few years, moreover, consists of the organization o f young
laborers, particularly apprentices, into associations designed to secure
better working conditions, better general and technical education, and,
above all, political influence. These organizations are divided into
two main groups, one under the control o f the so-called 44Christian
S ocial” party, the other under socialistic domination. (a)
But as a rule the inspectors count little upon the cooperation of the
laborers themselves. Says Inspector Karl Hauck in a special report
on night work which has already been quoted:
It might be supposed that the laborers themselves could be per
suaded to exercise a sort o f supervision with regard to the enforce
ment o f the laws; for example, by having the important provisions of
the law posted conspicuously in the work places. * ** * But ex
perience teaches that the help o f the laborers is little to be counted
upon, particularly when they derive no direct personal benefits there
from. A journeyman shoemaker once told me, when I complained o f
the excessive hours that his apprentice worked, 44 You don’t suppose
that I ought to let him stroll about the streets at 8 o’clock while I, the
journeyman, have to remain here and work until late at night be
cause he is not here to help me? ” He expressed the opinion o f 99
per cent o f his class, for hardly ever do the authorities receive in
formation from journeymen with regard to the illegal employment
o f apprentices, unless the former have been discharged by their
employer. ( *&)
a The socialistic organizations publish a monthly periodical, Der Jugendliche
Arbeiter, and have undertaken an active campaign in behalf o f apprentices.
Consult: Lehrlingschutz. Eine Sammlung von Gesuchen und Klagen nebst
Erlauterangen, by Dr. Fritz Winter, Wien, 1909, and the article on “ Osterreichische
Jugendorganization ” in the socialist periodical Der Kampf o f August 1, 1908.
&Hauck: Die Nachtarbeit der Jugendlichen in der osterreichischen Indus
trie, p. 16. Wien, 1907,
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
31
The same writer makes the statement that the provisions o f the law
concerning apprentices in mercantile establishments 44 are very little
observed, especially in the smaller cities.” (a)
Regarding the widespread illegal employment o f children at night
in bakeries he declares: 44I do not remember a single case in which
a laborer has called my attention to a violation o f the rules regarding
apprentices while he was still in the employ o f the master he de
nounced. Even the cases in which discharged laborers in quest o f
vengeance have reported such infractions are rare.” For the average
laborer the sweetest fat is that which clings to his own bones; and
the journeyman finds no objection to having the apprentice perform
certain tasks that lighten his own work, whether they are allowed
by law or not.(*6)
The difficulties o f enforcing the law in establishments carrying on
work at night, particularly in small bakeries, are as great as the
reluctance o f employers to observe its provisions. In bakeries, it will
be remembered, boys under 16 may be employed at night for 4 hours
at so-called 44table work ” (cutting dough, etc.). But it is hard for
the inspector to gain prompt admission to the shops; and when, after
repeated knocks and much shouting, he is admitted, it sometimes hap
pens that the apprentice has meanwhile been put into bed— even with
his clothes on— or that he is hurriedly called away from the work of
carrying coal, chopping wood, sieving flour, etc., and put to work at
the 44table.”
The infrequency with which the smaller establishments are visited
is partly due to the fact that they are scattered over a large area.
Inspecting them involves a great expenditure o f time on the part of
the inspectors, fo r the sake o f a relatively small number o f 44pro
tected ” persons. It is due, furthermore, to the insufficient number o f
inspectors. During the years 1900 to 1906 the average number o f
44 factories ” was 12,438, and the number inspected annually was ap
proximately 65 per cent of this total. In other words, each factory
is visited on the average once in 18 months. During the 9 years 1898
to 1906 the average number o f smaller industrial establishments
inspected annually was 10,419; and inasmuch as the number o f estab
lishments subject to the labor laws in 1902—the middle date o f the
period considered— was 617,855, it follows that 1.68 per cent of them
are visited annually by the inspectors. Under present circumstances,
therefore, it would take more than 59 years for the inspectors to visit
every industrial establishment.^) T o be sure, many of the unvisited
« Die Nachtarbeit der Jugendliclien in der osterreicliischen Industrie, p. 18.
Wien, 1907.
6 Idem, p. 30.
CA few of tbe establishments inspected are visited more than once. Thus, in
1908, 1,208 were visited twice and 179 were visited three or more times. Also,
there were 209 night visits o f inspection and 341 visits made on Sundays.
32
BU LLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
establishments are small and employ few laborers, but these laborers
are entitled to the benefits o f the law as well as those in the larger
enterprises. Certainly there can be little question o f the desirability
o f providing at least for the regular inspection o f the establishments
using mechanical motive power, in which the danger o f accidents
is as a rule greater than in other concerns. Yet only 8.16 per cent
o f these establishments are inspected annually; hence it would take
over 12 years, at the present rate o f inspection, to visit them all at
least once.(a) It is manifest that under existing circumstances, and
without a considerable increase in the staff o f inspection officials, the
service o f inspection is practically nonexistent for a large number o f
concerns nominally subject to the labor laws. Some improvement
could be achieved by relieving the inspectors o f the burdensome and
time-consuming clerical labor to which reference has already been
made.
The inadequacy of the present number o f inspectors, the excessive
burden o f work that now devolves upon them, and the difficulties
they experience in detecting violations o f the provisions o f the law
in favor o f child workers should be kept in mind in considering the
number o f infractions ( *6) reported from year to year by the inspec
tors, which we shall discuss in the following paragraphs.
The five important groups o f offenses to be considered in this con
nection are: (1) Violations o f the provisions concerning the age o f
admission; (2) violations of the rules concerning the maximum num
ber o f hours’ work and the duration o f pauses for rest; (3) violations
o f the prohibition or limitation o f night work; (4) violations o f the
rules regarding the employment o f children in dangerous or unhealthful industries, occupations, or processes; (5) violations o f the
provisions concerning apprentices. These five groups o f offenses will
be discussed in the order named, with particular reference to recent
reports o f the inspectors.
(1)
As regards the age o f admission of children to industrial
labor, the law sets up two standards. In “ factories ”—which may be
briefly but imperfectly defined as including those establishments sub
ject to the law in which more than 20 laborers are employed—the age
o f admission is 14 years. But in other industrial establishments sub
ject to the law the age of admission is 12 years.
It has already been said that the inspectors can not possibly dis
cover all the violations of the law. A rather convincing proof o f this
a Lukinac: Op. cit., p. 87. The average number o f plants using mechanical
motive power for the years 1901 to 1906 was 89,590; the average number visited
annually was 7,315.
&The total number o f violations of the provisions concerning child labor is
given in the table on p. 38.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
33
statement, with regard to the employment o f children under the legal
age o f admission, is furnished by the results o f an unofficial investi
gation (p. 39) made in 1900 by a national organization o f school
teachers. This investigation disclosed that in the second circuit alone,
in 1900, 30 children of school age were found working in peat bogs
that employed more than 20 laborers, and therefore fell under the
head o f “ factories,” in which children under 14 years of age can not
legally be employed. The inspector knew nothing o f this, although
16 o f the children were 13 years old, 5 were 12 years old, 4 were 11
years old, 3 were 10 years old, 1 was 9, and another 7 years o ld ; 20
had begun to work before the age o f 10 years, and 11 at the age of 6
years.
The industries in which children under the legal age are most
numerously employed are the manufacture o f bricks, tiles, glassware,
and pottery. This group o f industries (among the factories) fur
nishes more than 50 per cent o f the offenses. Next come the textile
industries, metal manufactures, and the manufacture of food products.
In brick and tile works the inspectors every year find young chil
dren at work with their parents. Many o f them are o f Italian birth.
A t the age o f 8 or 10 years they are considered fit to help, and during
the busy season the children, like their parents, frequently work, with
short interruptions, from 5 o’clock in the morning until 8 at night.
In 1899, the inspector o f the second circuit, to which reference has
just been made, found 2 Italian children under 12, and 23 between
12 and 14 years o f age, employed in large brick works. In 1900, a
teachers’ investigation (a) found 288 school children working in six
localities in the second circuit; 40 began work at the age o f 6 years,
50 at the age o f 7, 28 at the age of 8, 34 at the age o f 9, and 41 at
10 years o f age; 77 worked on Sundays and holidays. Their school
attendance was very unsatisfactory. Two hundred and seventy-two
o f these children were absent for a total o f 5,339 half-day sessions in
the period between February 15 and May 15. Similar facts from
other parts o f the Empire led Kraus to declare, in the report from
which the above data are taken: “ There seem to be no brick works in
Austria in which children are not employed. (*6)
The employers disclaim all responsibility for the presence o f the
children under admissible age, and the parents declare that the chil
dren are employed to take care o f their younger brothers and sisters
and not to do any real work. Nevertheless, employers in many locali
ties use their influence to hasten the closing o f schools in the summer.
a Kraus. Kinderarbeit und gesetzlicher Kinderschutz in Osterreich, p. 89.
Wien, 1903.
6 Idem, p. 91.
34
B U LLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
Conditions are similar in glassworks, save that the work at which
young children are frequently employed therein is more dangerous,
more exhausting, and more apt to retard physical development.
The extent o f the illegal employment o f children under age is indi
cated by the following table:
NUMBER OF CASES OF ILLEGAL EMPLOYMENT OF CHILDREN UNDER THE AGE
OF ADMISSION.
Cases of illegal employment of children.
12
Under 12 Under
Under 14
years, in
years, in other
years, in
estab
factories. lishments. factories.
Year.
78
86
69
82
84
20
25
51
1905......................................................................................
1908......................................................................................
54
19
52
55
19
45
81
46
Total.
366
439
322
368
308
286
427
480
498
494
443
455
361
351
533
577
Among the children under 14 years of age employed illegally were
26 girls under 14, who worked 10^ hours a day in a silk factory; 4 o f
them were under 11 years o f age. In a Bohemian brick works a boy
7 years old was employed as a laborer. Several 9-year-old boys were
found working in leather and celluloid factories.
The industries most frequently detected violating the provisions
concerning the age o f admission were the following :2
NUMBER OF CASES OF ILLEGAL EMPLOYMENT OF CHILDREN UNDER THE AGE
OF ADMISSION IN EACH INDUSTRIAL GROUP, 1901 TO 1908.
Industrial group.
1901.
1902.
Pottery, glassware, etc......................
Textiles...............................................
Building trades..................................
Clothing trades..................................
Food products (bakeries, etc.).........
Paper...................................................
Other...................................................
294
15
1
7
31
11
139
302
84
Total..........................................
498
1903.
1904.
1905.
1906.
1907.
1903.
10
63
9
26
288
29
2
35
32
6
51
190
43
22
49
84
12
55
228
28
25
2
8
4
66
177
47
12
42
21
6
46
296
48
19
56
22
27
65
335
68
9
44
22
13
86
494
443
455
361
351
533
677
(2)
Concerning the hours o f work and the duration o f pauses for
rest, it is provided that in establishments not included under the
term “ factories ” children between 12 and 14 years o f age may not be
employed at work that wTill injure their health, retard their physical
development, or interfere with their attendance at school; that they
may not work more than eight hours a day; and that there shall be
pauses for rest amounting to 1^ hours per work day.
35
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
The violations o f these provisions since 1901 and the main indus
trial groups concerned therein have been as follow s:
NUMBER OF CASES OF VIOLATIONS OF THE PROVISIONS OF THE LAW RELA
TIVE TO INJURY TO HEALTH, PAUSES FOR REST, ETC., IN EACH INDUSTRIAL
GROUP, 1901 TO 1908.
Industrial group.
1902.
1901.
62
Pottery, glassware, etc......................
Textiles...............................................
Clothing trades..................................
Food products....................................
Building trades..................................
Paper...................................................
Otner...................................................
24
8
17
11
86
T otal.........................................
158
1903.
32
8
1
3
13
1904.
32
12
49
10
6
37
4
38
23
27
2
24
63
155
1905.
1906.
31
14
43
1
38
29
14
2
8
2
8
30
142
93
1907.
1908.
21
38
32
32
25
11
8
26
44
11
62
16
19
3
39
113
172
194
4
(3)
Reference has already been made to illegal night work as an
Example o f the difficulties encountered by the inspectors in perform
ing their duties. Hence little need be added on this subject. From
the very beginning o f regular official inspection, in 1884, the annual
reports indicate that infractions o f these provisions are most numer
ous in the smaller concerns, especially in bakeries (classified under
“ food products” ) and mercantile establishments ( Handelsgewerbe),
as the following table shows:
CHILDREN UNDER 16 YEARS OF AGE EMPLOYED ILLEGALLY AT NIGHT IN
EACH INDUSTRIAL GROUP, 1901 TO 1907.
1902.
1901.
Industrial
group.
Food p ro d iints....... .....
C 1o t h i n g
trades.........
Metal manu
factures___
Hotels and
taverns___
Pottery, glass
ware, e tc ...
Paper............
Chemicals
Other............
Total ..
Other Fac
Fac estabto lish- to
ries. m’
ts. ries.
1904.
1903.
Other
Other Fac
estab Fac
to establish ries..
lish- to
in g .
m’ts. ries.
110
86
7
12
5
5
3
4
32
123
58
79
16
19
2
2
6
10
5
i
6
2
6 .......
8
24
129
14
107
121
7
1
4
55
185
Other
Other
estab- Fac
estab
lish- to lish
ries.
m’ts.
in g .
9
2
153
Other
Other Fac
estab- Fac
to establish- ries.
lish- to
m’ts.
m’ts. ries.
1907.
116
2
12
2
1906.
1905.
ISO
6
4
1
9
15
2
16
3
15
2
16
18
46
100
48
2
20
31
14
6
78
225
147
13
3
146
4
6
74
2
160
96
3
7
19
85
11
5
58
24
112
237
136
10
373
The exceptionally large number of children found working illegally
at night in pottery and glass works in 1907 is mainly due to the dis
covery o f 62 girls under age employed in a bottle manufactory in the
Tetschen district; these girls were divided into two shifts, one work
ing from 4.30 a. m. to 1.30 p. m., the other from 2 p. m. until 11.30
p. m. or until midnight. In the manufacture of wire rope children
are reported as frequently working at night.
36
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
(4)
Concerning the illegal employment o f children in dangerous
or unhealthful occupations, the following violations of the law were
discovered:
CHILDREN UNDER 16 YEARS OF AGE EM PLOYED. ILLEGALLY IN DANGEROUS
OR UNHEALTHFUL OCCUPATIONS, 1901 TO 1908.
Children employed illegally.
Year.
In other
In facto establish
ries.
ments.
1901.
1902.
1903.
1904.
250
166
131
197
Children employed illegally.
Year.
In other
In facto establish
ries.
ments.
Total.
24
38
38
31
274
204
269
228
175
185
107
108
1905........................
1906........................
1907 ........................
1908........................
8
15
40
23
Total.
183
200
147
131
The main offenders in this respect are indicated in the next table:
CHILDREN UNDER 16 YEARS OF AGE EMPLOYED ILLEGALLY IN DANGEROUS
OR UNHEALTHFUL OCCUPATIONS, BY INDUSTRIES, 1901 TO 1908.
Industry.
1901.
1902.
1903.
1904.
1905.
1906.
Chemicals..........................................
Leather, hair, and feather goods. . .
Pottery, glassware, e tc.....................
Wood manufactures.........................
Printing, engraving, etc...................
Other ...................................................
130
13
21
21
2
87
64
15
50
39
6
30
76
11
29
18
1
133
130
39
18
12
29
83
1
67
11
1
20
144
3
21
10
Total..........................................
274
204
269
228
183
1907.
1908.
22
75
34
9
9
11
9
38
1
17
13
5
57
200
147
131
(5)
Reference has already been made to the unfortunate condi
tions under which apprentices live. The conditions of their employ
ment as regards wages, hours o f work, etc., are no more satisfactory.
There are, to be sure, establishments, especially among the larger ones,
which not only comply fully with the terms o f the law, but which
have upon their own initiative provided their apprentices and young
employees with comforts and advantages far beyond the measure o f
the law. Thus, for example, a machine manufacturer in Brunn
fitted up a model workshop in connection with the continuation school
and equipped it with up-to-date machines; and in Prague an excel
lent technical school for bookbinders’ apprentices has been established
and all the apprentices in the trade are enabled to acquire a practical
knowledge o f all branches of bookbinding. (a)
But in many places the technical training o f female apprentices is
insufficiently provided for, because o f the absence o f suitable schools
for this purpose. Some establishments, to remedy this defect, have
established technical continuation schools at their own expense.
°Bericlite der k. k. Gewerbe-Jnspektion, 1907, p. cxxvii.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
37
In many occupations, however, little or nothing is clone to provide
apprentices with the requisite training; and some o f the inspectors
report that evening trade schools have taken the place o f afternoon
schools, upon the insistence of employers.
Violations o f the provision that masters must see to it that their
apprentices are properly trained and subjected neither to excessive
work nor to immoral influences are difficult to detect. Very few are
reported by the inspectors. The maltreatment o f apprentices is, how
ever, no uncommon occurrence, and frequently leads to criminal
prosecution o f masters and journeymen.
Concerning the penalties imposed for violations o f the law the re
ports o f the inspectors furnish lamentably little information. Such
information as is available indicates (1) that the proverbial 44law’s
delay ” is exceedingly common in cases concerning the infraction o f
the labor laws; (2) that the fines imposed are as a rule very low ; (3)
that severe penalties for frequently repeated violations o f the law
by the same employer are extremely uncommon. (a)
The procrastination of the authorities in punishing offenders be
came so common and so flagrant that in 1896 the minister o f commerce
found it necessary to urge prompter action, particularly with regard
to punishing violations o f the provisions concerning the protection o f
the health and safety of employees. Unfortunately this intervention
led to very little improvement in the subsequent years.
The conditions reported in 1906 and 1907, hereafter summarized,
are fairly typical o f the action o f the authorities upon repeated
violations o f the law.
In 1906, 811 cases were brought before the tribunals and at the end
o f the year 418 had been acted upon. In 205 of these cases employers
were compelled to carry out the measures demanded by the inspectors
(with regard to safety appliances, etc.). In 32 cases the offenders
w ere44admonished ” and usually threatened with a fine if the admoni
tion should not be heeded. In 123 cases fines were imposed, amount
ing in all to 6,737 crowns ($1,367.61), or an average o f 54.77 crowns
($11.12) per case. In one case the penalty was imprisonment for 48
hours. In 4 cases the establishment was closed by order o f the au
thorities. In 49 cases it was proved that the law had been complied
with since the complaint was filed. In 4 cases no action was taken.
The corresponding data for 1907 are as follow s: Cases brought to
the attention o f the authorities, 582; reported as acted upon at the end
o f the year, 322. In 161 cases the courts ordered employers to comply
with the demands o f the inspectors. Admonitions and threats o f fine
in case o f continued violation o f the law, 14 cases. In 106 cases fines
°Thus the compulsory closing of an establishment for grave and repeated
offenses occurred in only 4 cases in 1906, and in 8 cases in 1907.
38
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
were imposed, amounting in all to 4,370 crowns ($887.11), or an
average o f 41.23 crowns ($8.37) per case. In 8 cases the establishment
was compulsorily closed by the courts. In 24 cases the demands o f the
inspectors had been complied with since complaint was filed. In 9
cases no action was taken (because o f the death o f the employer, etc.).
It must be noted that in the above figures the number o f offenses
does not coincide with the number o f “ cases ”— a single case usually
involves several offenses and may involve any number. Hence the
average fine per “ case ” by no means coincides with the average pen
alty per violation o f the law. As a matter o f fact, the average fine
per violation is very small, as the inspectors frequently complain.
For offenses that have been repeated two or three times penalties o f
10 to 15 crowns ($2.03 to $3.05) are not at all uncommon.
The above data for 1906 and 1907, however, are not complete. They
concern only the cases arising out o f complaints made by the inspectors
as the result of their own investigations, and do not include the cases
brought to the attention o f the authorities from other sources.
The number o f cases thus reported is by no means inconsiderable
when compared with those due to the exclusive efforts o f the in
spectors, as the following table indicates:
CASES OF VIOLATION OF CHILD-LABOR LAWS REPORTED FOR ACTION, 1896
TO 1907.
Cases due to—
Year.
1896............................................
1897............................................
1898............................................
1899............................................
1900............................................
1901............................................
Cases due to—
Year.
Inspec
tors.
Others.
853
676
495
547
613
551
174
95
96
94
135
160
Inspec
tors.
1902..........................................
1903..........................................
1904..........................................
1905..........................................
1906..........................................
1907..........................................
559
732
641
753
811
582
Others.
275
262
314
354
395
435
It is to be remarked that few o f the cases due to outside sources
concern the violation o f the provisions o f the law concerning children.
Many o f them, reported by the police authorities, have to do with
infractions o f the workmen’s insurance laws and with the erection
o f establishments without having first obtained the requisite permis
sion.
EXTENT AND NATURE OF CHILD LABOR.
Manifestly the number o f children discovered by the inspectors in
the course o f their visits to establishments subject to the labor laws
falls far short o f the number o f children actually engaged in gainful
occupations. The labor laws apply only to certain groups o f indus
trial establishments, and o f these establishments not all are visited by
the inspectors. Hence the reports of the inspectors furnish a very
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
39
incomplete picture of child-labor conditions. It needs to be com
pleted by information concerning the children employed in estab
lishments not visited, concerning the children in industrial establish
ments not subject to the labor laws, and concerning the children who
work outside o f industries—i. e., in agriculture, in commerce, in trans
portation, in domestic service. A complete presentation o f the status
o f child labor, however, was never seriously undertaken in Austria
until circumstances to which reference will presently be made led to
the investigation o f December 31, 1907, which is probably the most
recent special official investigation o f the kind carried on in conti
nental Europe.
Previous to this undertaking an interesting though unofficial and
fragmentary investigation was carried on in 1900 by Siegmund
Kraus, with the aid o f a national organization of school teachers, and
the result published in 1904. (a) The Imperial Statistical Commis
sion also made an investigation o f the extent o f child labor in 1900. In
view o f the much larger scope and the official character o f the investi
gation o f 1907, little space will be given to a summary o f Kraus’s
report, so that more attention may be devoted to the results of the
subsequent official investigation.
Kraus’s investigation comprised 80,859 children, o f whom 23,016
(28.5 per cent) were engaged in gainful occupations. O f those gain
fully employed, 15,679 were engaged in agricultural labor, 2,646 in
domestic service, 2,383 in industry, and the remainder in numerous
other occupations. A ll of the children comprised in the investigation
were under 14 years of age. Concerning 5,746, the exact age was not
reported. O f the 17,270 working children whose age was given, 992,
or 5.8 per cent, were under 8; 2,609, or 15.1 per cent, were between 8
and 10; 4,219, or 24.4 per cent, were between 10 and 12; and 9,450, or
54.7 per cent, were over 12 years of age.
The agitation for a new law (b) regulating the employment o f chil
dren, and particularly the proposal to include in such a measure the
regulation o f child labor not only in factories, but also in home indus
tries, in commerce, and even in agriculture, emphasized the desira
bility—not to say the necessity—of a careful investigation o f the
actual conditions o f child labor in Austria. The Ministry o f Com
merce, therefore, in conjunction with other branches o f the Imperial
Government, planned such an investigation, some of the results o f
which have already been published in the Soziale Rundschau, the
official monthly organ o f the Austrian Bureau o f Labor Statistics.
a Siegmund K raus: Kinderarbeit und gesetzlicher Kinderschutz in Osterreich.
Wien, 1904.
h In December, 1903, and again in 1909, Doctor Ofner, a member o f the Lower
House, introduced a child-labor bill. This bill is likely, after modification, soon
to become a law.
40
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
This investigation is of particular interest because o f the apparently
careful and conscientious method by which it has been carried on and
o f the completeness and up-to-dateness o f its results.
The investigation, however, is not complete in the sense o f includ
ing the whole country, for it was decided not to extend the inquiry
to all the working children in the Empire, but to select in the differ
ent Provinces certain typical regions—regions representing the great
est variety o f economic conditions, such as large cities; industrial
centers; centers o f home industries; small towns and villages without
noteworthy industries or home manufactures; regions mainly devoted
to agriculture, to cattle raising, to forestry, and to wine, fruit, and
vegetable culture. The field work was intrusted to the teachers and
officials o f primary and secondary schools, aided in some parts of the
country by those o f the “ repetition” and “ continuation ” schools.
The lists o f questions, which relate to school children under 14 years
o f age, were prepared by the Bureau o f Labor Statistics and consist o f
three series, a so-called “ school” questionnaire, a “ class” question
naire, and an “ individual ” questionnaire.
The school questionnaire, to be filled out by the school directors,
contains questions with regard to the organization o f instruction, and
furnishes an opportunity for these officials (after local conferences
with each other, if possible) to express their opinions and state their
experiences concerning the nature and extent o f child labor in their
respective jurisdictions. It was also planned that the school physi
cian, or some other cooperating physician, should in this connection
make a report concerning the effects o f labor upon the health o f the
school children.
The class questionnaire is less detailed. Its principal object is to
ascertain the number o f children in each class, their age, and sex, and
the number engaged in gainful occupations.
The most important list o f questions is that contained in the indi
vidual questionnaire, to be filled out for every school child under 14
years o f age that did any work during the school year 1907-8 or
during the summer holidays preceding the school year, no matter
what kind o f work it may have been, regardless of the receipt or non
receipt o f wages for such work and whether the work was done at
home or elsewhere. Teachers were instructed to fill out such a ques
tionnaire in the case of every school child in their charge, except those
that did no work whatever or only incidentally helped their parents,
or the persons with whom they lived. The principal questions con
cern the age, sex, and family conditions o f the child, the nature and
hours o f employment, the wages or other compensation received, the
physical condition of the child, the regularity of school attendance,
and the child’s educational status.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
41
In the selection o f the regions drawn into the scope o f the investiga
tion, the bureau o f labor statistics solicited detailed reports from local
boards o f trade and commerce, local agricultural organizations, and
similar bodies. It was decided, moreover, to include all those sections
o f the Empire in which the employment o f children is known to be
carried on extensively or in which their labor is known to be
especially intensive. In the selection o f these sections use was made
o f such private or public partial investigations as had already been
made upon this subject, especially the reports o f the factory in
spectors on home industries. The local school boards were likewise
consulted and the reports o f some o f the trade unions. The Bureau of
Labor Statistics furthermore specifically included children in orphan
ages and foundling asylums because “ experience shows that these
children are frequently compelled to work.” (a)
The regions ultimately included within the scope of the investiga
tion contain between 15 and 20 per cent o f the total population o f the
Provinces to which they belong, and in all probability contain a like
proportion o f the total number o f children in these Provinces.
In all, 438,249 circular lists o f questions were sent out. O f these,
over 400,000 were “ individual ” questionnaires. Over 300,000 answers
have been received, and in the compilation o f the results approxi
mately two-thirds o f these answers were used.
It is expected that the entire report upon the results o f the investi
gation will be published before the end o f the year 1910. Meanwhile,
provisional results have been published, for certain Provinces, (*&) in
the “ Soziale Rundschau55for October and November, 1908, and Janu
ary, February, March, April, May, June, July, September, October,
and November, 1909.
UPPER AUSTRIA.
The first results published were those concerning Upper Austria.
In this Province there were, in 1900, 567 private and public element
ary schools with 118,952 children. The child labor investigation
covered 116 o f these schools, containing approximately 24,500 pupils,
12,400 boys and 12,100 girls. The schools included were scattered
throughout the Province— 73 in country regions, 20 in villages, and
23 in towns. The answers to the “ individual ” questionnaires were
complete and accurate enough to be used in the cases o f 18,230
children— 9,537 boys and 8,693 girls.
a Soziale Rundschau, October, 1908, p. 354.
6 Strictly speaking, the larger political subdivisions o f the Austrian Empire
are not all called Provinces. For the sake o f convenience, however, this desig
nation has been used throughout the section o f this article which relates to
Austria.
42
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
O f the 18,230 children thus concerned, 6,168, or 33.8 per cent,
worked. The schoolboys who worked numbered 3,328, or 34.9 per
cent o f the total number o f boys; and the schoolgirls, 2,840, or 32.7
per cent o f the total number. But the proportion o f working chil
dren varied considerably in different regions o f the Province. In the
city schools only 18*3 per cent o f the pupils worked. In the country
and village schools over 40 per cent worked.
Considering the family relations o f children it is found that a
larger proportion o f the illegitimate children worked than o f the
legitimate or legitimatized children. The same is true o f orphaned
children compared with those whose parents are living, as the fol
lowing table shows:
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF LEGITIMATE AND ILLEGITIMATE SCHOOL CHIL
DREN AT WORK, BY CONDITION OF PARENTS.
Children at work.
Condition of parents.
Total
children.
Number.
Legitimate or legitimatized................................................................
Both parents living........................................................................
One parent living..........................................................................
Both parents dead...........................................................................
Illegitimate........................................................... ...............................
Motherless......................................................................................
16,310
14,458
1,700
152
1,920
182
Per cent.
33.2
32.6
38.0
44.7
38.8
44.0
5,423
4,709
646
68
745
80
It is, o f course, manifest that the age o f the children influences the
extent to which they are employed to work. Upon this point the
investigation showed the following results:
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF SCHOOL CHILDREN AT WORK, BY AGE.
Children at work.
Age, December 31,1907.
Total
children.
Number.
Per cent.
6 to 8 years...........................................................................................
9 to 10 years...........................................................................................
11 to 12 years.................................................................. ......................
18 to 14 vears..........................................................................................
5,912
4,664
5,056
2,598
893
1,451
2,420
1,404
15.1
31.1
47.9
54,0
Total.............................................................................................
18,230
6,168
33.8
43
CHILD-LABOB LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF SCHOOL CHILDREN EMPLOYED IN EACH SPECIFIED
OCCUPATION, BY SEX.
Children employed in each specified occupation.
Total.
Boys.
Girls.
Number. Per cent.
Number. Per cent.
Number. Per cent.
Occupation.
Agriculture.......................................
Domestic service...............................
Industry (including home indus
tries) ...............................................
Hotels, taverns, and restaurants. . .
Trade and transportation...............
Delivering goods...............................
Other occupations.............................
Agriculture and domestic service
combined.......................................
Other combinations of the above
occupations....................................
1,651
1,819
26.8
29.5
1,186
663
35.6
19.9
465
1,156
16.4
40.7
174
104
26
112
21
2.8
1.7
.4
1.8
.3
142
75
13
91
17
4.3
2.3
.4
2.7
.5
32
29
13
21
4
1.1
1.0
.5
.8
.1
1,892
30.7
892
26.8
1,000
35.2
369
6.0
249
7.5
120
4.2
Total.........................................
6,168
100.0
3,328 |
100.0 j
2,840
100.0
It appears from this table that in Upper Austria agriculture and
domestic service, or a combination o f both, are the main occupations
o f the school children who work, 87 per cent being engaged therein.
O f the school children employed in agriculture, 71.8 per cent were
boys; o f those employed in domestic service, 63.5 per cent were girls.
The answers to the question at what age children began to work
in agriculture, domestic service, or a combination o f both, showed,
out o f the total number o f 5,362, the following:
NUMBER OF SCHOOL CHILDREN BEGINNING WORK AT SPECIFIED AGES.
Age at beginning work.
4 years or earlier.......................................
5 years........................................................
6 vears........................................................
7 years........................................................
8 years........................................................
9 years........................................................
Number
of
children.
14
305
1,274
1,125
712
541
Age at beginning work.
10 years................................................. .
11 years......................................................
12 vears......................................................
13 years......................................................
14 years......................................................
Number
of
children.
733
336
289
32
1
Thus it appears that half o f the working school children began
work before they were 8 years old and that a considerable number
began work before they attained the school age o f 6 years. These
extremely young children were employed to carry wood and water,
at domestic labor, in picking fruit and potatoes, cutting potatoes and
beets, gardening, watching and feeding cattle, driving oxen, and
“ minding ” children.
44
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
Important in connection with child labor is the question whether
the children are employed by their own parents and relatives or by
other persons. Concerning this aspect of the problem the following
table is suggestive:
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF SCHOOL CHILDREN WHO WORK FOR RELATIVES
AND FOR OTHER PERSONS, BY OCCUPATIONS.
Occupation.
Agriculture.......................................
Domestic service...............................
Agriculture and domestic service
combined.......................................
Total
children
employed.
Children employed
by relatives.
Children employed Children
employed
by others.
partly by
relatives
and partly
Number. Per cent. by others.
Number.
Per cent.
1,651
1,819
1,218
1,642
73.8
90.3
383
129
23.2
7.1
50
48
1,892
1,447
76.5
320
16.9
125
The practice o f employing children 12 or 13 years o f age as stable
boys, farm hands, kitchen maids, and children’s nurses in the service
o f outside persons (that is to say, not relatives) for terms o f one year
or for the school holidays is a fairly common one in Upper Austria.
Usually the contract for such employment requires the children to
begin work on May 1, as the school year usually closes at the end o f
A p r il; and inasmuch as the seventh and eighth school years involve
for most children fewer hours o f attendance than the preceding
years— 3 to 7 hours a week instead o f 24 to 30— many o f them enter
an employer’s service immediately at the close o f the sixth school
year. It is not uncommon for children to migrate from the com
munes in which the school requirements are more severe to neighbor
ing communes in which they are less severe with regard to the num
ber o f hours o f attendance required after the sixth school year.
With regard to the wages paid children engaged in agriculture or
domestic service or a combination of both, it was found that of the
5,362 school children engaged in these occupations 120 received
money wages, 330 were paid in goods, and 553 were paid partly in
money and partly in goods, whereas 4,359 received no wages at all.
Only 26.8 per cent of the children employed in agriculture received
any compensation for their services; this is largely due to the fact
that these children usually work for their own parents. More of
the boys, however, are employed by nonrelatives than o f the girls;
31.1 per cent o f the former receive wages and only 15.7 per cent of
the latter. The children put down as “ paid in goods ” receive, as a
rule, food, lodging, and some of their clothes. In domestic service
a considerable proportion o f the girls are employed by others than
their parents, and 11.3 per cent o f those thus employed receive wages,
whereas only 5.9 per cent of the boys in domestic service are paid.
The children under 12 years who work for other persons than their
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
45
own parents receive in exchange for their services, as a rule, only
food and lodging and a few clothes; their parents are glad to have
“ one mouth less to feed,” although these children occasionally get
1 or 2 crowns (20.3 to 40.6 cents) a month in money wages. Chil
dren in the seventh and eighth school years, not being required to
attend school more than a few hours a week, receive more. When
employed as domestic servants they usually receive, in addition to
board and lodging, an “ outfit ” o f clothes, and from 20 to 70 crowns
($4.06 to $14.21) a year.(a) The outfit consists generally o f 1 or 2
pairs o f shoes, 2 or 3 shirts, 1 suit o f clothes, 2 aprons, 2 pairs of
stockings, etc. Sometimes, though rarely, the employer pays for a
child’s services by giving the use o f a portion o f land to the child’s
parents.
Outside o f agriculture and domestic service the wages o f children
are difficult to ascertain and to compare. They differ not only in
amount, but also in the method o f payment. F or pasting 1,000 paper
bags children get 10 to 30 hellers (2 to 6 cents); for delivering news
papers daily the pay is 2 to 7 crowns (40.6 cents to $1.42) a month;
for delivering bread, 80 hellers (16 cents) a week; for furnishing
music in taverns, 20 hellers to 1 crown (4 to 20.3 cents) per night and
free meals; for setting up tenpins, 20 hellers (4 cents) per hour, 1
crown (20.3 cents) per afternoon, or 2 crowns (40.6 cents) per night,
together with free beer. In many cases the children receive for
smaller services, such as delivering goods, only a “ tip.”
With regard to the physical effects o f child labor the Bureau o f
Labor Statistics reports that the results of the investigation were not
so complete as had been anticipated. A considerable number o f
physicians, however, cooperated with the teachers and sent in valu
able statements. Some o f them, especially physicians in regions
where children are largely employed in agriculture and light house
hold services, report no evil consequences o f child labor. The ma
jority, however, note the harmful effects o f excessive labor upon the
child’s bodily development, particularly arrested growth, and troubles
o f the heart which result in premature invalidity. It is expressly
pointed out by some o f them that the disadvantages o f such invalidity
for the community are much greater than the momentary economic
gain obtained through the labor o f the children. This is particularly
true in the case o f children whose strength is not only overtaxed, but
whose food is insufficient and who live in unsuitable quarters—a com
bination o f unfortunate circumstances very apt to occur among
children o f poor families. Fully as injurious, according to the school
physicians, as insufficient food, overwork, and bad quarters is the
habit o f very early rising, common in agriculture; it robs the children
®Tbe average is about 30 crowns ($6.09) in Upper Austria.
56504°— No. 89— 10----- 4
46
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
o f the sleep they absolutely need. Late in the fall, moreover, when
children are not provided with warm clothes and good shoes and are
frequently employed to take care o f cattle, they are particularly
exposed to affections o f the respiratory organs. Again, carrying bur
dens (like bearing children in their arms, or taking farm products to
distant markets) often gives rise to curvature of the spine. Equally
dangerous is the employing o f young children for too long periods
at threshing (because o f the bent position they must occupy), and
keeping them too long in cattle sheds and stables in an atmosphere
the effects o f which a child is less able to resist than an adult.
Some o f the physicians emphasize the fact that it is difficult to ex
press conclusive opinions upon the consequences o f child labor, be
cause the sickly appearance o f the children and their fragility may
also be due to hereditary influences or perhaps to malnutrition dur
ing infancy. Hence it is necessary to observe the children through
out a considerable period in order to determine precisely the effects o f
labor upon their physical condition. But in the main the medical
testimony is unequivocal enough, and constitutes a remarkable mass
o f expert evidence on the effects o f labor, especially agricultural
labor, upon the development and the health o f children. Although
it is the large number and the unanimity o f these reports that con
stitute the most convincing feature about them, it will not be amiss
to quote from a few o f them by way o f example.
The early labor o f children is injurious to physical development
chiefly because it absorbs forces that are needed to build up the
body. For this reason children who perform work beyond their
strength, which is unfortunately very often the case, are stunted in
their growth. Although work m the country, in the fresh, open air,
untrammeled by tight clothes, is much less detrimental than labor
in mills and shops, children under 15 years o f age should never do
any work requiring more energy than that involved in play.
It is surprising how many o f the children have heart trouble, or
at least exhibit a condition which in the absence o f careful treatment
leads later to pronounced heart troubles. This is due to premature
overwork. There are instances in which children in the second or
third year o f school enter the employ o f peasants, and must mind
cattle early in the morning, then go to school, and when they get
back they must again attend to the cattle. The peasants themselves
would like to shorten the school period to six years with half-day
attendance, so that, as they themselves declare, they may obtain
cheap labor. They ignore that these poor children are retarded in
their physical and mental growth, that they are injured morally,
and that they frequently become burdens upon the community when
they are barely 50 years old because o f their incapacity to support
themselves. This incapacity is in turn due to the arrested develop
ment o f their inner organs.
Delivering milk before school in the morning must be condemned
because it fatigues the children so that they become, to say the least,
intellectually less receptive.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
47
The pernicious effect of premature labor is as a rule not exhibited
until the period o f growth that begins at the age o f 15 years, when
laboring children have already been burdened with more work than
they can support.
Many children in the employ o f persons not belonging to the family
must get up at 4.30 or 5 a. m. and work in the barn before going off
to school, which is often far away.
A ll night work and occupations that involve a protracted sitting
posture or that create dust should be avoided in the case o f weak,
anemic, and underfed children. Inasmuch as poverty, bad food, and
child labor are closely connected, it follows that the very children
who are badly fed, sickly, and anemic are those most often required
to work.
According to the teachers’ reports, the labor o f children employed
in agriculture and in domestic service or in a combination o f both
was responsible for unsatisfactory behavior in school (inattention,
sleepiness, etc.) and for irregular attendance in 1,439 cases; whereas
no such effects were noted in 3,823 cases. It is generally stated that
the employment o f school children does not affect their attendance
nearly so much as their receptivity while in school, their behavior,
their attitude, and the rate o f their progress, particularly in the case
o f the children in the upper classes requiring but few hours o f attend
ance per week. These children are frequently full-fledged laborers in
the employ o f nonrelatives. Contact with adult farm hands o f both
sexes, often given to coarse habits and coarser jests, is a poor substi
tute for moral training. Some o f the school authorities contend that
this contact is harmful not only to the children directly concerned,
but to their school companions as well. A few such children soon
demoralize a whole class. Setting up ten pins, peddling, furnishing
music in saloons and restaurants, not only interfere with school
attendance but are morally pernicious, especially when continued
(as they often are) until late at night or early in the morning. In
saloons and restaurants they are “ treated ” by the guests, they drink
what is left in the glasses, and they hear and see things that are
unsuitable, especially for young girls.
Says one school director:
The lack o f labor in the country regions, so noticeable since ten
years ago, has led to the increasing employment o f children even at
hard agricultural labor. From the farmer’s standpoint the child
is a help in time o f need, and must engage in work altogether beyond
its strength and apt to hinder its physical development.
When the children sleep in the same rooms and share the same
beds with older laborers the danger o f corrupting their minds and
their manners attains pathetic proportions for boys and girls alike. (*)
0 Soziale Rundschau, September, 1908, pp. 414 to 449.
48
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
SALZBURG.
The duchy o f Salzburg, like the Province o f Upper Austria, is
mainly agricultural, and economic conditions here do not differ essen
tially from those that prevail in the latter Province. Salzburg con
tained 184 elementary schools in 1900; 50 were included in the childlabor investigation. Pupils in the 50 schools investigated numbered
about 8,700 (4,300 boys and 4,400 girls), or 32.8 per cent o f the
school population o f the duchy. Four o f the schools were in cities, 6
in villages, and the remaining 40 in country districts. For parts of
the investigation, however, the returns from only 19 schools were used,
partly because o f identical conditions, partly because of insufficiently
detailed data. The desired information was complete with regard to
3,318 pupils (1,867 boys and 1,451 girls), or 12.5 per cent o f the school
population o f the duchy. O f this total, 544 were in city schools, 563
in village schools, and 2,211 in country schools. The working chil
dren numbered 1,106, or 33.3 per cent, almost exactly the same pro
portion as in Upper Austria, and o f these, 630 were boys and 476
were girls. That is to say, 33.7 per cent o f the boys worked and 32.8
per cent o f the girls.
Unlike Upper Austria, however, it was found that a larger propor
tion o f the city school pupils than o f those in country schools were
employed in gainful occupations; for whereas 41.4 per cent of the
city pupils in Salzburg worked, only 25 per cent in the village schools
and 33.5 per cent in the country schools were laborers. The bureau
attributes this difference between Upper Austria and Salzburg to the
fact that the city schools included in the investigation— only four in
number—were all situated in the single city o f Hallein, which hap
pens to contain a predominantly industrial population and a large
number o f laborers in all age groups.
The proportion of laboring children among the legitimate and ille
gitimate and those that have lost one or both parents is nearly the
same as in Upper Austria.
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF LEGITIMATE AND ILLEGITIMATE SCHOOL CHIL
DREN AT WORK, BY CONDITION OF PARENTS.
Children at work.
Condition of parents.
Total
children.
Number. Percent.
Legitimate or legitimatized....................................... ....................................
Both parents living........................ .................... ...................................
One parent living......................................................................................
Both parents dead............................................... ....................................
Illegitimate................... ....................................... ....................................... .
Motherless........................................ - ......................................................
2,766
2,367
369
30
552
39
917
725
174
18
189
21
33.2
30.6
47.2
60.0
34.2
53.8
49
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
The relation between the age o f school children and their employ
ment is as follow s:
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF SCHOOL CHILDREN AT WORK, BY AGE.
Children at work.
Total
children.
Age, December 81, 1907.
Number. Per cent.
6 to 8 years.......................................................................................................
9 to 10 years............................................................. .......................................
11 to 12 years............................................... ................. ................................
18 to 14 years...................................................... ...........................................
1,297
876
777
368
204
264
412
226
15.7
30.1
53.0
61.4
Total...............................".......................................................................
3,818
1,106
33.3
As in Upper Austria, the proportion? o f school children that work
is greater in the upper than in the lower classes at school.
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF SCHOOL CHILDREN EMPLOYED IN EACH SPECIFIED
OCCUPATION, BY SEX.
Children employed in each specified occupation.
Occupation.
Total.
Boys.
Girls.
Number.
Per cent.
Number.
Agriculture.......................................
Domestic service...............................
Industry (including home indus
tries)................................................
Hotels, taverns, and restaurants...
Delivering goods...............................
Other occupations...........................
Agriculture combined with do
mestic service............ ...................
Other combinations of the above..
129
378
11.7
34.2
I ll
183
17.6
29.0
18
195
3.8
41.0
41
15
9
6
3.7
1.4
.8
.4
30
14
8
5
4i8
2.2
1.3
.8
11
1
1
2.3
.2
.2
406
123
86.7
11.1
186
93
29.5
14.8
220
30
46.2
6.3
Total.........................................
1,106
100.0
630
100.0
476
100.0
Per cent. Number.
Per cent.
Agriculture, domestic service, or a combination o f both constitute
the occupations o f 82.6 per cent o f all the working children. Hence,
as in Upper Austria, these occupations are considered somewhat more
in detail because o f their preponderance. In many respects conditions
in these occupations are the same as in Upper Austria, e. g., boys are
more numerous than girls in agriculture, whereas in domestic service
the latter outnumber the former. O f the children employed in agri
culture and those combining agriculture with domestic service more
than one-third, and of those employed in domestic service alone more
than one-half, are less than 11 years old.
NUMBER
OF SCHOOL CHILDREN BEGINNING WORK IN AGRICULTURE AND
DOMESTIC SERVICE AT EACH SPECIFIED AGE.
Age at beginning work.
4 years or earlier . ......... .................. ......
5 or 6 years............... ............................. .
7 or 8 years............... ..............................
Number
of chil
dren.
4
418
220
Age at beginning work
9 or 10 years.............................................
11 or 12 years............................................
13 or 14 years............................................
Number
of chil
dren.
234
35
2
50
BULLETIN- OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
That is to say, two-thirds o f the children engaged in the three oc
cupations named began their careers as laborers before attaining the
age o f 9 years. Twenty-three of the schools (in a total of 50 from
which returns were received) reported that in their districts children
not yet o f school age, i. e., not yet 6 years old, are required to perform
“ light w ork ” in agriculture or domestic service, such as minding
younger children, helping in the kitchen, washing dishes, fetching
wood and water, and running errands. In agriculture, children 4
and 5 years old are employed to attend to cattle and to do light work
in connection with harvesting.
In agriculture 78.3 per cent o f the children at work are employed
by their parents or other relatives, 20.2 per cent by other persons, and
1.5 per cent partly by relatives and partly by other persons. The cor
responding figures in domestic service are 91.3, 7.7, and 1 per cent,
while o f those combining both o f these occupations 78.8 per* cent are
employed by relatives and 21.2 per cent by other persons.
W ith regard to the times o f the year that the children work, it
was found that 60.5 per cent o f the school children engaged in agri
culture work throughout the year, and 38 per cent during the sum
mer; o f the latter some work not only in the summer, but at other
times o f the year also, without, however, working the whole year
round. O f the children engaged in domestic service, 95.5 per cent
work the whole year, and o f those combining agriculture and domestic
service, 94.3 per cent. Furthermore, 98.4 per cent o f the children
employed in agriculture work during the long school vacation, 88.1
per cent o f those employed in domestic service, and 96.3 per cent o f
those combining both occupations. The percentages o f children in
these three occupations who work on Sundays and holidays are 37.2,
35.2, and 27.6, respectively.
I f the number o f weeks’ work per year is considered, the report
shows that in agriculture 16.3 per cent o f the children work from 2
to 10 weeks, 22.5 per cent work more than 10 weeks up to 30 weeks,
and 61.2 per cent more than 30 weeks in the year. With regard to
the number o f days’ work per week it was found that in agriculture
78.3 per cent, in domestic service 90.5 per cent, and combining both
86.5 per cent, work throughout the week; i. e., 6 or 7 days.
Still confining attention to the same occupations, it is found with
regard to the hours o f work per day, that in the winter approxi
mately one-half o f the child laborers work 2 hours or less per day,
and most o f the remainder work between 3 and 4 hours daily. In
the summer season, however, the workday is in most cases lengthened,
and the number o f children working 4 to 6 hours daily—insignificant
in the winter—increases considerably. I f the children in the seventh
and eighth school years, when attendance is in some schools reduced
to a few hours a week during half the school year, are considered
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
51
particularly it appears that about one-third o f those in the three
groups o f occupations named above work from 2 to 4 hours a day,
and the remainder are about equally divided among those working 4
to 6, 6 to 8, and over 8 hours a day, respectively; the proportion o f
those working over 8 hours a day was for those in agriculture 11.3
per cent, in domestic service 17.9 per cent, and combining both 22.7
per cent. During the main school vacation 28.4 per cent o f the chil
dren in agriculture and 31.2 per cent of those combining agriculture
and domestic service work more than 8 hours a day.
Interesting are the disclosures concerning night work o f school
children; i. e., work between 8 p. m. and 6 a. m. In agriculture 27
children work occasionally at night, in domestic service 15, and of
those combining both 76, making a total o f 118 in these three groups
o f occupations. O f this total, about half (52) work at night during
10 to 30 weeks o f the year. The 44night work ” is rarely longer than
2 hours, and most o f it is really morning w ork; i. e., before 6 a. m.
It is remarked with some degree o f appropriateness that in order to
get a correct notion of the demands made upon the school children
who work, the hours o f school attendance should be kdded to the
hours o f labor. As a rule, school attendance during the 44full-day ”
period is from 20 to 32 hours a week, only one-eighth o f the children
having less than 20 hours. In some schools attendance is reduced or
dispensed with altogether at certain seasons o f the year for all pupils
in the upper classes, or for all pupils during the summer season, or for
individual pupils under certain conditions. During the period of
regular attendance in winter, most of the working children do not
have more than 50 hours o f school attendance and work combined.
But in summer 23.6 per cent o f those in agriculture, 19.2 per cent of
those in domestic service, and 36.2 per cent o f those combining both
occupations have more than 50 hours a week. Bearing in mind, how
ever, that one-third o f the working children are employed on Sundays,
the report indicates that a considerable proportion o f the school chil
dren that work devote more than 8 hours a day to school and work.
In the total o f 913 engaged in the three occupations considered, 150
receive wages; and o f these in turn, 8 receive money wages, 113 re
ceive wages 44in kind,” and 29 are paid partly in money and partly
44in kind.” The children that receive a stipulated wage (in money
or in kind) are almost always in the employ o f other persons than
their parents or relatives. As a rule, the younger children employed
by nonrelatives as farm hands or domestic servants receive—in addi
tion to food, lodging, and some wearing apparel—occasional small
gifts o f money. Those that are 13 or 14 years old, however, not infre
quently receive a regular money wage that is usually between 15 and
30 crowns ($3.05 to $6.09) a year, although some get as much, as 70
crowns ($14.21) a year. For delivering bread or newspapers, the
52
B U LLETIN OF TH E BUBEAU OF LABOK.
remuneration varies from 20 to 50 hellers (4 to 10 cents) a day. At
setting up tenpins some children earn as much as 2 crowns (40.6 cents)
a day.
Concerning the effects o f labor upon the physical development o f
the 913 children engaged in the three occupations particularly con
sidered, it was reported that the health o f 618 was satisfactory and
o f 229 unsatisfactory. There were no reports regarding the remain
ing 66. But it is not justifiable to attribute the unsatisfactory health
o f these 229 children to the single fact that they w ork; for the phys
ical condition o f a child is manifestly determined by a multiplicity
o f circumstances, such as heredity, nutrition, housing, etc. Only four
physicians sent reports, all o f them to the effect that light agricultural
and domestic work is beneficial and that few children are overworked.
The school directors, however, report that in some cases children
employed on farms are required to rise at 3 or 4 o’clock in the morn
ing, after insufficient sleep, and that setting up tenpins keeps others
up very late at night. It was furthermore reported that the children
o f poor parents, often underfed and insufficiently clothed, are more
apt to suffer "from the effects o f labor than other children.
Finally, with regard to school attendance, behavior in school, and
the mental and moral development o f the children that work in the
three main occupations named above, teachers attribute unsatisfactory
attendance and behavior in 338 cases to the employment o f these
children as laborers. In more than half o f these cases (184) the
children combine agricultural employment with domestic service.
Some o f the school authorities insist that regular labor possesses a
distinct moral value, but lament the pernicious influences o f the con
tact o f children with coarse adult laborers and with the habitues o f
taverns and places of amusement. (a)
LOWER AUSTRIA.
In 1900 there were 1,866 elementary schools in Lower Austria, with
400,646 pupils. The child-labor investigation o f December 31, 1907,
included 452 o f these schools, with approximately 104,000 pupils—
53,000 boys and 51,000 girls. The schools included in the investiga
tion are well scattered throughout the Province; 89 are in cities (53
in Vienna), 69 in villages, and 294 in country districts. In compiling
the results all the school questionnaires were employed, but it was
decided to use the individual returns o f only 165 schools, partly
because o f the incompleteness o f the data for the others, and partly
because it did not appear desirable to make a more intensive study
o f Lower Austria than o f the other Provinces. A large number o f
the unused returns, moreover, indicate conditions precisely identical
a Soziale Rundschau, November, 1908, pp. 560 to 613.
53
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
with those of the schools whose reports were compiled, and care was
taken to include typical schools in the compilation. The 165 schools
concerning which all the returns were employed contained 40,743
children (23,532 boys and 17,211 girls), or 10.2 per cent of the school
population o f the Province. The country schools included in this
total had 13,774 pupils, the village schools 9,416, and the city schools
17,553.
It was found that 11,266 o f these children work, or 27.7 per cent
o f the total reported, 25.8 per cent o f the boys and 30.1 per cent o f
the girls. The comparative prevalence o f labor in country and city
is indicated in the next table.
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF SCHOOL CHILDREN AT WORK, BY LOCATION OF
SCHOOLS.
Children at work.
Location of schools.
Total
children.
Number. Per cent.
Cities.................................................................................................................
Villages............................................................................................................
Country districts.............................................................................................
17,653
9,416
13,774
2,950
3,089
5,227
16.8
32 8
37.9
Total.......................................................................................................
40,743
11,266
27.7
The country districts have the largest proportion of school chil
dren that work. This is attributed not only to the scarcity o f labor in
agriculture, which leads to the employment o f many children, but
also to the fact that in Lower Austria home industries are extensively
carried on in the country.
The relations between illegitimacy o f birth and the frequency of
child labor, and the frequency with which orphaned children are
found working, are substantially the same as in Upper Austria and
in Salzburg, as the following table shows:
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF LEGITIMATE AND ILLEGITIMATE SCHOOL CHIL
DREN AT WORK, BY CONDITION OF PARENTS.
Children at work.
Condition of parents.
Total
children.
Number. Per cent.
Legitimate or legitimatized..........................................................................
Both parents living.................................................................................
One parent living........................... ................. .....................................
Both parents dead.....................................................................................
Illegitimate................................................................................. ...................
Motherless...................................................... .........................................
37,828
33,271
4,182
375
2,915
461
10,364
8,932
1,321
111
902
154
27.4
26.8
31.6
29.6
30.9
33.4
54
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
As for the contribution o f the several age groups to the army o f
child laborers, conditions in Lower Austria are similar to those in the
Provinces already referred to, as the next table indicates:
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF SCHOOL CHILDREN AT WORK, BY AGE.
Age, December 31,1907.
Children at work.
Total
children
reported. Number. Per cent.
6 to 8 years................................................................................................
9 to 10 years............................................................. - ......................................
11 to 12 years....................................................................................................
13 to 14 years....................................................................................................
15,135
10,636
9,983
4,989
1,950
3,050
4,268
1,998
12.9
28.7
42.8
40.0
T otal.......................................................................................................
40,743
11,266
27.7
As the children get older the proportion o f those that work increases,
except for those 13 to 14 years of age. The somewhat smaller per
centage in this age group than in the one immediately preceding it is
attributed to the fact that many o f the working children leave school
before the age o f 13 years, while those who do not work, especially the
children o f well-to-do residents o f the cities, remain in school longer.
The main occupations in which children engage are as follow s:
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF SCHOOL CHILDREN EMPLOYED IN EACH SPECIFIED
OCCUPATION.
Occupation.
Children employed
in each specified
occupation.
Number. Per cent.
Domestic service................... ............................................................................................
Agriculture........................................................... , ...........................................................
Industry (including home industries)............ 1..........................................................
Hotels, taverns, and restaurants.....................................................................................
Trade and transportation................................................................................................
Delivering goods................................................................................................................
Other occupations...........................................................................................................
Domestic service combined with agriculture...............................................................
Other combinations of the above...................................................................................
3,383
1,710
1,376
155
131
380
27
2,568
1,536
30.0
15.2
12.2
1.4
1.2
3.4
.2
22.8
13.6
Two occupations which in Lower Austria occupy a larger propor
tion o f school children than in Upper Austria and Salzburg are in
dustries and delivering goods, both of which are more largely carried
on in cities than in the country. While the proportion employed in
agriculture, domestic service, or in a combination o f both o f these
occupations, is not quite so large as in the other two Provinces, these
occupations nevertheless employ 68 per cent of all the children that
work. Naturally, as in the other Provinces, girls predominate in
domestic service (1,268 boys to 2,115 girls) whereas the boys pre
dominate in agriculture (1,283 boys to 427 girls).
55
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
The above table indicates that 1,536 children, or 13.6 per cent o f all
school children that work, combine two or more o f the enumerated
occupations (apart from “ domestic service combined with agricul
tu re” ). Among the most frequent o f these combinations are “ in
dustry and domestic service ” and “ industry and agriculture.”
With regard to the kinds o f agricultural labor required o f school
children, it was found that o f the 1,710 children thus employed 492
were reported as engaged in the more difficult varieties o f farm labor,
such as cleaning stables, digging potatoes, threshing, and sawing and
chopping wood.
The following table concerning the industrial employment o f
children includes those also who combine with industrial employment
some other occupation:
NUMBER AND PER CENT OP SCHOOL CHILDREN EMPLOYED IN EACn SPECIFIED
INDUSTRIAL GROUP.
Children employed.
Industrial group.
Number. Per cent.
Prtttflry, glassware, and stone....... .................................... ............................................
M etals............ / ..................................................................................................................
Wood and basketry..........................................................................................................
Leather...............................................................................................................................
T e x tile s .................................................................................................................... .
Clothing............ ....................................... 1......................................................................
Food products..................................................................................................................
Other industries...................... ........................................................................................
228
145
112
165
1,218
163
67
50
119
10.0
6.4
4.9
7.3
53.7
7.2
3.0
2.2
5.3
Total.........................................................................................................................
2,267
100.0
The 228 children employed in making stone, clay, and glass prod
ucts include 135 employed exclusively in these occupations and 93
who carry on other work besides, generally domestic service or farm
labor. Most important in this group are brickmaking and glass
works. The children engaged in making metal products are largely
employed in button factories and in polishing metal wares. Those
employed in wood manufactures make baskets, wooden bowls, pipes,
cigar holders, etc. In the leather industry most of the children make
pocketbooks; they fasten the leather, usually cut in pieces before it
reaches them, to the metallic parts, and also stamp designs upon the
leather.
More than half o f the children employed industrially are engaged
in making textile goods, especially in winding yarn for parents who
weave at home, or for textile mills, and in sewing buttons on cards.
In some regions they sew together the parts o f clothes, woolen gloves,
etc. In others they help at hand embroidering, and the larger girls
even at machine embroidering.
56
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
In the clothing trades, which in the table include shoemaking and
laundering, children are employed in a great variety o f operations,
such as sewing underwear, sewing on buttons, collars, cuffs, etc.,
ironing clothes, and making artificial flowers.
In the paper industry they are largely employed in making paste
board boxes, making packages o f cigarette paper, pasting paper
bags, and gumming envelopes.
Referring now to the other main occupations in which school chil
dren are employed outside of industry proper, the report shows that
those working in taverns and restaurants are mainly engaged in set
ting up tenpins, in serving drinks, arranging and cleaning off the
tables, washing dishes, and tapping beer. Those working in trade
and transportation usually help wait on customers in their parents’
stores; a number, however, sell flowers, shoe laces, etc., or huckster
bread, butter, and eggs, or carry passengers’ baggage to and from rail
way stations. Most of those put down as delivering goods are en
gaged in delivering bread, milk, newspapers, and washing.
Reverting to the subject o f the age of the children employed in
gainful occupations, the following table indicates the proportion in
each occupation belonging to each of four age groups on December 31,
1907:
PER CENT OF SCHOOL CHILDREN EMPLOYED IN SPECIFIED OCCUPATIONS IN
EACH AGE GROUP.
Occupation.
6 to 8
years.
9 to 10
years.
11 to 12
years.
13 to 14
years.
Domestic service................. ..........................................................
Agriculture....................................................................................
Industry (including home industries).......................................
Hotels, taverns, and restaurants.................................................
Trade and transportation.............................................................
Delivering goods............................................................................
Other occupations.........................................................................
Domestic service combined with agriculture...........................
Other combinations of the above...............................................
26.9
9.0
26.6
14.8
5.4
12.1
11.1
11.2
10.0
30.2
21.8
29.0
20.7
18.3
34.2
33.3
26.6
24.7
31.4
42.9
31.1
43.2
43.5
38.7
33.3
42.0
44.7
11.5
26.3
18.3
21.3
32.8
15.0
22.8
20.2
20.6
Total......................................................................................
17.3
27.1
37.9
17.7
More than one-sixth (1,950) of the 11,266 working children under
consideration were between 6 and 8 years old, over one-fourth (3,050)
9 to 10 years old, and oyer one-third (1,268) 11 to 12 years old.
The youngest group is especially represented in domestic service and
in industries, the oldest group especially in trade and transportation
and in agriculture.
With regard to the age at which the laboring school children began
to work the following table indicates the percentage that began at
4 years or earlier, at 5 or 6 years, at 7 or 8 years, etc., in the main
groups o f occupations:
57
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
AGE AT W HICH SCHOOL CHILDREN BEGAN TO WORK, BY OCCUPATIONS.
Per cent beginning work at—
Occupation.
4 years
or earlier.
Domestic service.........................................
Agriculture.................................................
Industry (including home industries).. .
Hotels, taverns, ana restaurants..............
Trade and transportation.........................
Delivering goods.........................................
Other occupations.....................................
Domestic service and agriculture com
bined ........................................................
Other combinations of the above............
Total....................................... ...........
5 or 6
years.
7 or 8
years.
9 or 10
years.
11 or 12
years.
13 or 14
years.
0.7
.1
.4
30.1
12.3
28.3
8.4
6.1
11.3
3.7
36.4
28.8
31.4
23.9
21.4
26.1
22.2
23.9
38.6
27.3
40.6
36.6
36.0
44.5
8.3
18.8
10.7
22.6
31.3
23.7
29.6
0.6
1.4
1.9
4.5
4.6
2.9
1.0
.8
28.1
30.5
34.5
32.0
28.3
27.0
7.7
8.9
.4
.8
.6
25.5
32.9
28.8
11.2
1.0
In domestic service, two-thirds of the children began work before
they were 9 years old. In industries, domestic service combined with
agriculture, and “ other combinations,” 60 per cent or more began be
fore the age o f 9 years. Considering the entire list o f occupations, it
appears that about 90 per cent o f the children began work before they
had completed their tenth year.
The directors o f 69 schools in a total o f 330 reported that children
under 6 years o f age are more or less frequently required to mind still
younger children, to fetch wood and water, run errands, deliver goods,
and sometimes to pick potatoes and perform light agricultural tasks.
Earely are children under the school age (6 years) employed indus
trially, although it does happen occasionally that they are employed
to wind yarn, to sew buttons on cards, and to perform certain auxil
iary tasks in the manufacture of knit goods.
Most of the children at work are, of course, employed by their
parents or other relatives, as shown by the follow ing:
PER CENT OF CHILDREN WHO WORK FOR RELATIVES AND FOR OTHER PER
SONS, BY OCCUPATIONS.
Per cent
working
partly for
relatives
and partly
for other
persons.
Per cent
working
for rela
tives.
Per cent
working
for other
persons.
Domestic service...................................................................................
Agriculture...........................................................................................
Industry (including home industries)...............................................
Hotels, taverns, and restaurants........................ ...............................
Trade and transportation....................................... ...........................
Delivering goods................. ............................................ ...................
Other ne.e.iipatlnns_______ ______ _____ ____ ___________________
Domestic service and agriculture combined....................................
Other combinations of the above.....................................................
88.6
77.3
81.2
27.7
64.9
40.8
14.8
81.9
59.0
9.5
21.4
18.7
72.3
35.1
57.4
85.2
10.7
9.8
7.4
31.2
Total......................................................... .................................
77.5
15.7
6.8
Occupation.
1.9
1.3
.1
1.8
58
BULLETIN" OF T H E BUREAU OF LABOR.
Some o f the children employed by nonrelatives in agriculture or
domestic service or both—usually the children o f poor parents—work
for daily or weekly wages; and some are permanently employed as
servants or laborers. Those that are hired by the day are, of course,
most frequently employed during the school vacations, as well as on
days when there are no school sessions, and during the periods when
school attendance is not required for more than a few hours per week.
Often they work for the same employer as their parents. Such ar
rangements are facilitated by the provision that children may be
exempted from school attendance during the summer in the seventh
and eighth school years provided they attend regularly in the winter;
or they may attend regularly during the seventh school year and are
then required in the eighth school year to attend school only during
about 3 months in the winter and only 3 hours per week. O f the 452
schools included in the Lower Austrian investigation, 113 permitted
the first of the above-named arrangements, 109 permitted the second,
12 had somewhat different provision for reducing attendance in the
last years, and 42 allowed a curtailment o f attendance for individual
pupils.
Most o f the children employed in industries work with their par
ents, principally in home industries as helpers to their older relatives.
They wind yarn for parents that weave; or they work for a con
tractor or dealer at making purses, mounting buttons, etc. The chil
dren employed industrially by nonrelatives generally work in glass
works and in tile and brick making, usually as helpers to their own
parents working for the same employers.
The largest number o f children work in the summer, in all occu
pations, and the smallest number in winter, save in industry and in
trade and commerce.
Considering all occupations, it was found that 38.1 per cent of the
school children that work are employed on Sundays and holidays.
The percentage is lowest in industries, in which only 7 per cent work
on Sundays or holidays, and highest in taverns and restaurants, (a)
in which it is 74.2 per cent. In fact, 83.9 per cent o f the boys that
set up tenpins work on Sundays and holidays. Not all o f the children
work throughout the entire year, for many o f them are employed
only at certain seasons, and intermittently. However, 83.6 per cent
are employed more than 30 weeks out of the 52. I f we consider the
several occupations separately, the proportion working more than 30
weeks in the year varies as follows: In taverns and restaurants, 39.4 per
cent; in agriculture, 48.6 per cent; in industries, 73.7 per cent; in
« In the heterogeneous group o f “ other occupations ” it is even higher, 85.2
per cent; but there is included such a variety o f employments (furnishing music
for dance halls, etc.) that it may be disregarded in this connection.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
59
trade and transportation, 80.9 per cent; in delivering goods, 89.8
per cent; in other combinations than that o f domestic service and
agriculture, 93.5 per cent; in domestic service combined with agri
culture, 95 per cent; in “ other occupations,” 96.3 per cent.
But to be employed every week in the year does not necessarily
mean that one is employed every day in the week, or even 6 days in
the week. A large proportion o f the laboring children are, however,
employed throughout the week during the weeks that they work,
the proportion varying from 57.5 per cent in taverns and restaurants
and 51.9 per cent in the group o f “ other occupations ” to 92.1 per
cent in domestic service. In many cases, “ working throughout the
week ” means not 6 days but 7 days a week, especially in taverns and
restaurants, in which, however, 16.1 per cent o f the total number
employed are employed only 1 day in the week and that day is
usually Sunday.
The duration o f the daily working period varies very greatly.
The returns indicate that in the fall and winter nearly half of the
school children that attend school during the period o f full attend
ance, when no curtailment is allowed, work more than 2 hours daily;
nearly 30 per cent (2,808 children) work more than 3 hours daily;
17.5 per cent, or 1,652 children, work more than 4 hours; and 5.1 per
cent, or 481 children, work more than 6 hours daily. In the spring
and summer the duration of the workday averages considerably
longer than in fall and winter. For then approximately 60 per cent
o f these same children work more than -2 hours daily; about 40 per
cent (3,707 children) work more than 3 hours; and 8.3 per cent
(764) work more than 6 hours daily. The largest proportion of
children working more than 6 hours daily, in all seasons o f the year,
is found among those employed in hotels, taverns, and restaurants.
The above figures concern the children who are required to attend
school regularly, without any curtailment. I f those enjoying cur
tailed attendance be considered, the number of hours’ work per day
is still greater. Without going into details, it may suffice to say that
in the fall and winter 25.8 per cent, and in the spring and summer
51.9 per cent o f the children (819) having curtailed attendance, work
more than 8 hours a day. Indeed, 7.4 per cent in fall and winter
and 22.4 per cent (354) in spring and summer work more than 10
hours daily. A larger number, however, work in the spring and
summer than in the fall and winter (1,580 and 325 children, respec
tively) .
During the long school vacation the duration o f the workday is as
follows for all the school children that work during this period. The
total number o f school children that work during the main vacation,
to which the figures relate, is 10,763.
60
BU LLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
PER CENT OF CHILDREN WORKING EACH CLASSIFIED NUMBER OF HOURS PER
DAY DURING SCHOOL VACATION.
Hours of work.
2 hours per day or less
Over 2 to 4 hours....... .
Over 4 to 6 hours.......
Over 6 to 8 hours.......
Over 8 to 10 hours___
Over 10 hours............
Total.................
Percent.
25.8
21.4
17.4
14.7
12.4
8.3
100.0
As for night work, i. e., work after 8 p. m. or before 6 a. m., it was
found that in Lower Austria 16.6 per cent (1,873 children) of the
laboring school children are employed at night in this sense o f the
term. Night work is most frequent in taverns and restaurants; 41.3
per cent o f the children engaged therein are employed at night. It is
least frequent in domestic service; 6.1 per cent o f those employed
therein work at night.
The employment of children at night does not as a rule continue
throughout the whole year. In the case o f more than half o f the
children thus employed it does not continue through a longer period
than 30 weeks; about one-third o f the children who work at night do
so throughout the entire year. The children employed in delivering
goods, when they are employed outside o f the hours between 8 p. m.
and 6 a. m., as a rule work before 6 a. m. rather than after 8 p. m.
Their work is “ morning ” work rather than “ night ” work. The
same statement holds true in agriculture; while in industry, taverns
and restaurants, trade and transportation, the night work naturally
takes place in most cases after 8 p. m. Night work is in most occupa
tions more frequent in summer than in winter, the single exception
being the industrial group. The amount o f this night work is not
more than 2 hours in the case of four-fifths o f the children in the
winter and seven-tenths in the summer. Most o f the night-working
children that work more than 2 hours at night are employed in
hotels, taverns, and restaurants.
The report gives very detailed information concerning the total
number o f hours per week that children are employed both at school
and at work. When full attendance is required and no curtailment
allowed, from 20 to 32 hours of instruction per week are given in most
cases; and most o f the working children do not have more than 40
hours per week o f school and work combined. Nevertheless, nearly
one-fourth o f the children (2,223) have between 40 and 50 hours, 12.7
per cent (1,200) have between 50 and 60 hours, and 9.4 per cent (892
children) have between 60 and 90 hours’ work and school per week
during the period of full school attendance. In summer the total
number o f hours is greater, for at this season o f the year 6,551 o f the
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
61
working children have more than 40 hours per week of school and
work combined and one-fourth (2,686) have more than 50 hours, or
more than 8 hours a day on week days, not counting the time required
for preparing lessons at home and for going to and from school.
With regard to wages, it was found that 28.5 per cent of the labor
ing children (3,208) are paid in money or in “ kind,” or in a combina
tion o f both; and o f the number thus remunerated nearly three-fourths
(72.5 per cent) are paid exclusively in money and one-sixth (15.3 per
cent) in kind, i. e., in food, lodging, and clothing. Wages are most
frequently paid in industry (61.8 per cent o f those employed therein),
in taverns and restaurants (72.9 per cent), and in the group o f “ other
occupations; ” a stipulated remuneration is least frequent in domestic
service (10 per cent), in agriculture (21.9 per cent), and in a combi
nation o f these two occupations (17 per cent).
The wages paid children in agriculture vary greatly, according
to the age o f the children and numerous other circumstances, such as
local customs and conditions. Some o f the children get nothing
more than their food and lodging, but a number o f them receive in
addition for a whole day’s work between 70 hellers (14 cents) and 1
crown (20.3 cents). It is not uncommon, however, for them to
receive only 10 to 20 hellers (2 to 4 cents), although there are, on
the other hand, cases in which the bigger children employed at more
difficult work and for longer hours receive as much as 1.20 to 1.40
crowns (24.4 to 28.4 cents) a day. As a general rule the wages o f
the children are 60 to 80 per cent as high as those paid to adults.
Children who are “ hired out ” by their parents as domestic servants
or farm hands for longer periods receive 6 to 10 crowns ($1.22 to
$2.03) a month. Those who “ mind ” cattle in the fall—usually from
October 1 to November 15—get their food and 2 to 4 crowns (40.6
to 81.2 cents), or 8 to 10 crowns ($1.62 to $2.03) without food.
Most o f the children employed as domestic servants are over 12
years old and are not required to attend school more than 3 months
or 6 months (according to the system of curtailment). Their em
ployer usually gives them an “ outfit ” o f clothing, board, and lodg
ing, although the strongest get, in addition, a money wage that
varies in most cases from 10 to 80 crowns ($2.03 to $16.24), but
usually approximates 40 crowns ($8.12).
It has already been pointed out that the children employed indus
trially receive a money wage more frequently than those in any other
group o f occupations. Often the children help their parents, but
do not receive a stipulated wage from the employer. For instance, in
brickmaking, parents are usually paid by the piece and take their
children with them to help augment the output by performing such
auxiliary tasks as carrying and emptying brick frames. When the
children work without their parents, employers pay them from 60
56504°—No. 89—10---- 5
62
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
hellers to 1.20 crowns (12 to 24.4 cents) a day. As laborers in glass
works they get 80 hellers to 1.40 crowns (16 to 28.4 cents) a day;
in cracking and loading stones, approximately 1.20 crowns (24.4 cents)
a d ay; and in making bundles of kindling wood in sawmills, 5 hellers
(1 cent) a bundle. A t the last-named occupation quick and indus
trious children can earn 2 to 2.40 crowns (40.6 to 48.7 cents) a day.
A t weaving, children helping their parents earn from 2 to 4 crowns
(40.6 to 81.2 cents) a week. The children that are employed by
nonrelatives to knit stockings by machine earn 4 crowns (81.2 cents)
a week. As helpers to masons and tile roofers, wages were reported
as 1 to 1.50 crowns (20.8 to 30.5 cents) for a workday o f 6 to 8 hours,
though in some instances they receive only 2 to 4 crowns (40.6 to 81.2
cents) a week.
For mounting clasps, children get 3 to 4.50 crowns (60.9 to 91.4
cents) per thousand; for weaving mats, 10 hellers (2 cents) per mat,
which means 30 or 40 hellers (6 to 8 cents) a d a y; for making pocketbooks children receive 7 to 12 hellers (1.4 to 2.4 cents) an hour, as a
rule, although some o f the operations bring only 4 to 5 hellers (0.8
to 1 cent), while those who paint the designs stamped on the leather
earn as much as 20 to 25 hellers (4 to 5 cents) an hour.
In the textile industries it is reported that children employed by
outsiders (i. e., by other persons than their relatives) to wind yarn
earn 2 to 4 hellers (0.4 to 0.8 cent) an hour; according to another
report, smaller children receive 8 to 48 hellers (1.6 to 9.7 cents) a
week for this work, and larger ones 60 hellers to 1.50 crowns (12 to
80.5 cents). For sewing gloves the wages vary, according to the
quality o f the goods, from 8 to 40 hellers (1.6 to 8 cents) a dozen,
requiring from 2 to 7£ hours. In finishing machine-knit stockings,
children earn 1 to 1.20 crowns (20.3 to 24.4 cents) a week for 3 to 4
hours’ work per d ay; those very expert at this work receive, for 5 or 6
hours’ work per day, from 2 to 5 crowns (40.6 cents to $1.02) a week.
F or hand-knit socks the wages are reported as 32 hellers (6.4 cents) a
pair, or 60 hellers (12 cents) a week. For making buttons the wages
vary, according to the kind o f work performed, from 2 to 6 hellers
(0.4 cent to 1.2 cents) an hour; industrious and expert children can
earn 2.20 to 4 crowns (44.7 to 81.2 cents) a week at this work. But it
happens that whole families o f four or five persons engaged in this
labor earn only 5 to 6 crowns ($1.02 to $1.22) during a week o f hard
work.
Children who sell flowers, bread, or cigars in Vienna earn 1 to 2
crowns (20.3 to 40.6 cents) a day during the week, and on Sundays
as much as 3 crowns (60.9 cents). In restaurants and taverns they
frequently get, in addition to board and lodging, only the tips
that customers give them, amounting to 20 to 60 hellers (4 to 12
cents) a day.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA,
63
For setting up tenpins the wages vary considerably. During the
week children who do this work get 30 to 40 hellers (6 to 8 cents)
for an evening; for an afternoon and evening on Sundays and holi
days, 50 hellers to 1.50 crowns (10 to 30.5 cents); in Vienna 50 hel
lers (10 cents) an hour, or 1 to 3 crowns (20.3 to 60.9 cents) for 2 to 4
hours in the evening; in the restaurants frequented by the poorer
classes they receive only a few hellers in the shape o f tips from the
players. There are cases, however, in which children permanently
employed at this work get 12 to 16 crowns ($2.44 to $3.25) a month.
Unlike the children employed in agriculture and industry, the
children that work in taverns and hotels do not as a rule hand over
their entire wages to their parents.
The children employed to deliver goods and run errands are also
usually employed by nonrelatives and receive wages in money. Those
who deliver milk, and who work J to 1 hour a day, generally receive 20
hellers to 1 crown (4 to 20.3 cents) weekly; in exceptional cases 2
crowns (40.6 cents), and in some instances only food and old clothes.
F or delivering bread and pastry, wages are reported as 30 hellers (6
cents) a week and some meals, or 50 hellers to 2 crowns (10 to 40.6
cents) a week without meals; in exceptional cases, 10 per cent o f the
receipts. For delivering papers, which requires 1 to 2 hours a day,
children receive 2 to 10 crowns (40.6 cents to $2.03) a month. For
delivering o f washing, 30 hellers (6 cents) for a 2-hours’ trip, or 60
hellers to 2 crowns (12 to 40.6 cents) a week. Children who carry
dinner to mill laborers, requiring | to 1 hour daily, get 80 hellers to 5
crowns (16 cents to $1.02) a month. Messengers for stores, hotels,
etc., get a tip o f 2 to 10 hellers (0.4 to 2 cents) per errand, or, if
employed regularly, 20 hellers to 1 crown (4 to 20.3 cents) a week.
With regard to the effects o f labor on the health o f the children the
teachers reported that in 22 per cent o f the cases (2,481) the effects
were noticeably detrimental. Detrimental effects were most fre
quently noted among those employed industrially (32.1 per cent),
especially as regards the girls thus employed (34.9 per cent).
Unfortunately the testimony o f physicians was obtained in regard
to only 53 schools, or 12 per cent of those included in the investigation.
Employment in domestic service and in agriculture gives rise tp least
objection on the part of the physicians. Most objectionable is their
employment in selling pastry, cigars, and flowers in restaurants and
taverns, because o f its encroachment upon their sleep, and the easily
developed habit o f drinking and smoking. The physicians point out,
however, that the children whose physical condition is unsatisfactory
are often by nature anemic, rickety, scrofulous, or tuberculous, and
that even light work is apt to have injurious effects upon them. The
same is true o f the too numerous children who are underfed, or who
64
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
begin to use alcoholic beverages too early, or who live in unhygienic
homes.
The testimony o f physicians is supplemented by that o f school di
rectors, whose reports upon the health o f the children, though they do
not emanate from physiological experts, are none the less important.
The school authorities have opportunities for observing the children
during a longer period than the physicians and see them much more
frequently. The testimony o f these officials was in many cases cor
roborated and countersigned by physicians. Moreover, it is quanti
tatively more important, because reports upon this subject were
received from the directors o f 83 per cent o f the schools included in
the investigation for Lower Austria.
Only one-fourth o f the reports from school directors object to the
employment o f children in domestic service and in agriculture, chiefly
on the ground that it arrests their development, a large proportion of
them being later found unfit for military service. A large majority
o f the school authorities, however, object in strong terms to the indus
trial employment o f children. Home industries, it is urged, seques
trate them continuously in rooms containing foul air. The bent posi
tion they must occupy in knitting by machine is a fertile source of
lung troubles. Making hair nets (a widespread variety of child labor
in some o f the other Provinces) is injurious to eyes and lungs.
W inding yarn involves an unhealthful position o f the body and the
inhalation o f dust-laden air. Many operations in button making and
sewing are especially objectionable, because of the long hours of
work in winter, the straining o f the eyes, and the constant unnatural
position o f the body. The strength o f children is not sufficient for
the work o f making bundles o f kindling wood in sawmills, or helping
in the building trades and in tile roofing.
The authorities of Vienna are most emphatic in their denunciation
o f the effects o f child labor in taverns and restaurants. Although
such work is forbidden by the school officials, it continues to exist
nevertheless, and large numbers o f school children continue daily to
breathe for several consecutive hours the foul air o f taverns and the
dust o f bowling alleys.
In the opinion o f the school authorities the labor o f children is espe
cially injurious when they are required to work during their early
years, as is frequently the case in agriculture and in some home indus
tries, or when they are given work to do that is beyond their strength,
or when labor is unduly prolonged. In agriculture it happens not
infrequently that children do not get to bed until 10 or 11 o’clock at
night, and must rise at 3 or a quarter to 4 o’clock in the morning to
begin the next day’s work.
As for the effect o f child labor upon school attendance, upon the
behavior o f the children in school and upon their educational progress,
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
65
the teachers report as follow s: In the case of 41.5 per cent of the chil
dren who work, attendance is unsatisfactory. It is most unsatisfac
tory among those employed in agriculture (48.7 per cent), in industry
(45.8 per cent), and in a combination of domestic service and agri
culture (43.5 per cent). Except among those employed in domestic
service, the girls are less frequently irregular in their attendance than
the boys.
The authorities o f 352 schools reported on the effects of child labor
on school attendance, and those of 198 schools (56 per cent of those
reporting) note distinctly objectionable effects o f child labor in this
regard. The children employed in domestic service and agriculture
are the most frequent offenders. In families in which father and
mother are away from home all day the children often must take care
o f the home and attend to the younger children who are not yet of
school age, with the result that absences from school are frequent. In
other cases the elder school children help perform household duties,
and in this event they are apt to be missing from school on Saturdays.
In agriculture the effects of child labor on school attendance are most
disastrous at those seasons of the year when a considerable amount
o f work must be done quickly, e. g., at the time the hay and grain are
harvested and the grapes gathered. Most irregular and unsatisfac
tory is the attendance of children “ hired out ” as servants or labor
ers for longer periods. . The children o f wandering farm hands some
times fail to put in an appearance at school for months and even years
at a time. Absences are frequent, too, among the children employed
to mind cattle.
The delivery o f milk, pastry, newspapers, etc., in which many chil
dren are employed in Vienna and other large cities, does, not cause
frequent absences, but is responsible for tardy arrival at school in
the morning and for the fatigue that reduces attention and prevents
mental alertness. The children that carry dinner to their parents or
to other persons on the farms or in factories are frequently late and
inattentive at the afternoon sessions o f school.
As for the effects of child labor upon the educational advancement
o f the children, reports were received from 335 schools, o f which 234,
or 70 per cent, state that these effects are detrimental. The number
o f the working children that make poor progress as pupils is greater
than the number o f those that are deficient in their attendance. This
is due to the fact that there are means of constraining the parents
to send their children to school, whereas the progress o f the children
in school depends largely on the personal influence and disciplinary
resources o f the teacher, and these are limited in the case o f laboring
children. Next to fatigue, the progress o f the pupils is most often
retarded by their inability to perform properly the school tasks to
be done at home. The authorities o f only five schools express the
66
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
opinion that working children make better progress than those who
are idle while out o f school. One school director considered that
agricultural labor 44widens the horizon,” and that the children who
work are not so boisterous as the others.
The above statements have to do mainly with the progress o f
children from class to class. W ith regard to the general intellectual
development o f the children who work, returns were received from
half the schools (224), and o f this number the authorities of approxi
mately 37 per cent reported that child labor affected the intellectual
development o f the children disadvantageous^, whereas 6 per cent
reported the opposite effect. It is plain, however, that there must be
a certain parallelism between arrested physical development and slow
mental growth in children, and that children who are often absent and
late, or too tired to be attentive, can not be expected to profit most by
the instruction given them. As for moral development, 319 schools
made returns concerning this subject. O f these, 45 per cent noted no
causal connection between child labor and morality; 47 per cent report
that child labor is morally detrimental; and 8 per cent express the
opinion that it is beneficial to moral development. The general tes
timony o f those who regard child labor as morally harmful is to the
effect that it leads to coarse speech and rude conduct, and that work
ing children who roam about at night acquire habits o f drink and
spendthrift ways, and are sexually precocious* I t is also stated that
since they come into close contact with coarse and immoral strangers,
they corrupt the morals o f their schoolmates. Sharing their rooms
and even their beds with older laborers and servants, the children in
domestic service and in agriculture are made the witnesses o f sexual
improprieties. Many o f the school authorities discuss this aspect o f
the child-labor problem in considerable detail, and are vigorous in
their denunciation o f the moral dangers which they contend that it
too frequently involves. The school authorities reporting that child
labor is morally beneficial insist that it prevents idleness, keeps the
children off the streets, teaches a respect for labor, and develops the
sense o f duty.(a)
SILESIA.
In 1900 Silesia had 575 public and private elementary schools, with
103,423 children (51,003 boys and 54,420 girls). The investigation
o f December 31, 1907, comprised 204 of these schools, with 38,340
pupils (19,129 boys and 19,211 girls). The investigation thus in
cluded 37.1 per cent o f the school population (37.5 per cent o f the
boys and 36.6 per cent o f the girls). The schools comprised in the
investigation are well distributed throughout the Province; 34 are
a Soziale Rundschau, January, 1909, pp. 64-8T; February-Marcb, 1909, pp. 218
to 327.
67
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
situated in cities, 17 in villages, and 153 in country districts. The
answers to the 44school questionnaire ” were all used in preparing a
summary, o f the results, but the 44class ” and 64individual ” returns
were compiled for only 60 of the schools. As in the other Provinces,
this elimination o f some o f the returns was due to their incomplete
ness or to their close similarity to the returns that were used. The
60 schools for which all the returns were worked up comprise 11,455
children, or 11.1 per cent o f the total school population. O f this
number, 6,424 were boys and 5,031 were girls; 3,527 frequented city
schools, whereas 594 were in village schools and 7,334 in country
schools.
Among the 11,455 children comprised in the report 6,058 (52.9
per cent) worked; that is to say, 3,438 (53.5 per cent) o f the boys
and 2,620 (52.1 per cent) o f the girls. The extent o f child labor in
country schools as compared with those in cities and villages was as
follow s:
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF SCHOOL CHILDREN AT WORK, BY LOCATION OF
SCHOOLS.
Children at work.
Location of schools.
Total
children.
Number. Per cent.
Cities.................................................................................................................
Villages....... ....................................... ..........................................................
Country districts.............................................................................................
3,527
594
7,334
1,404
358
4,296
39.8
60.3
58.6
Total.......................................................................................................
11,455
6,058
52.9
As in Upper Austria and in Lower Austria, the proportion of labor
ing children is lowest in the city schools, because so many of the
children are employed agriculturally and because home industries
are largely carried on in the country districts.
The proportion of laborers among school children born legiti
mately, among those orphaned, etc., is as follow s:
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF LEGITIMATE AND ILLEGITIMATE SCHOOL CHIL
DREN AT WORK, BY CONDITION OF PARENTS.
Children at work.
Condition of parents.
Total
children.
Number. Per cent.
Legitimate or legitimatized
Both parents living___
One parent living.........
Both parents dead....... .
Illegitimate..........................
Motherless....................
10,954
9,119
1,641
194
501
65
5,758
4,704
949
105
300
38
52.6
51.6
57.8
54.1
59.9,
58.5
As in the other Provinces, the proportion o f pupils that work in
creases with their age, except for the two upper classes in school con
68
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
taming children 13 and 14 years old. The slightly smaller proportion
o f working pupils in these classes is due in part to the fact that a
number o f the working children leave school at the age of. 13 or 14
years.
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF SCHOOL CHILDREN AT WORK, BY AGE.
Children at work.
Total
children.
Age, December 31,1907.
Number. Per cent.
fi tr» ft yftftra_______________________ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
9
Ifl ypfl.rs__TT______ _________________ . . . . . . . . . . . . . __ . . . . _____ . . . .
11 to 12 years....................................................................................................
13 to 14 years................................................................................. .................
3,874
2,686
3,166
1,729
1,293
1,492
2,144
1,129
33.4
5 5.5
67.7
65.3
Total.......................................................................................................
11,455
6,058
52.9
The distribution of the working children among the principal
occupations is as follow s:
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF SCHOOL CHILDREN EMPLOYED IN EACH SPECIFIED
OCCUPATION, BY SEX.
Children employed in each specified occupation.
Occupation.
Total.
Number.
Domestic service...............................
Agriculture.......................................
Industry (including home indus
tries) ................................................
Hotels, taverns, and restaurants.
Trade and transportation...............
Delivering goods..............................
Other occupations...........................
Agriculture and domestic service
combined.......................................
Other combinations of the above..
Total.........................................
Boys.
Per cent. Number.
Girls.
Per cent. Number.
Per cent.
1,292
904
21.4
14.9
884
357
25.7
10.4
408
547
15.6
20.8
727
19
27
101
19
12.0
.3
.4
1.7
.3
426
17
20
91
19
12.4
.5
.6
2.6
.6
301
2
7
10
11.5
.1
.3
.4
1,853
•1,116
30.6
18.4
946
678
27.5
19.7
907
438
34.6
16.7
6,058
100.0
3,438
100.0
2,620
100.0
Agriculture, domestic service, and both of them combined employ
66.9 per cent o f all working pupils. As in the other Provinces, more
girls than boys are employed in domestic service, and more boys than
girls in agriculture, apart from the children employed in a com
bination o f both occupations. The “ other combinations ” are princi
pally the following: Domestic service, agriculture, and industry (262
children); agriculture and industry (225 children); domestic service
and industry (216 children).(a) Concerning the 1,292 children em
ployed exclusively in agriculture, it was reported that in 368 cases
a The returns for Silesia, like those for the other Provinces, furnish a long
list of occupations in which children are employed. This list is too long to be
reproduced in the present report.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
69
the work they performed was regarded by the school authorities as
“ hard ” work, such work consisting, for example, in digging potatoes,
cleaning stables, carrying wood, threshing, etc.
Among the children employed in industrial labor the largest num
bers worked in the manufacture o f textiles, the clothing trades,
wood manufactures, metal manufactures, and the building trades.
In each o f these industrial groups children are employed in a variety
o f operations. In the textile industry 634 children are employed, i f
there be included not only those that work exclusively therein (288),
but also those who combine one or more occupations with this employ
ment (numbering 406); the principal kinds o f work in which chil
dren engage in this group o f industries are winding yam and making
buttons o f thread. In the clothing trades children are usually em
ployed to sew buttons on cards, to sew Turkish cloth caps (fezzes),
and to sew leather gloves. In the manufacture o f wood products
children are employed in making basketry and furniture (especially
planing, sandpapering, and polishing). In the building trades they
serve as carriers o f bricks, stones, and mortar, as painters, and as
helpers to tile roofers. Among the children employed in trade
and commerce some serve as peddlers. (a)
TYROL.
For the Province o f Tyrol the investigation o f 1907-8 covered 194
schools and 21,370 children, or 15.2 per cent o f the school population
o f the Province. The included schools were well scattered through
out Tyrol, 9 being located in cities, 8 in villages and small towns, and
177 in country districts. For 104 o f these schools the data obtained
were sufficiently complete and precise to be tabulated in the final
results; these comprised a total o f 13,582 pupils (or 9.6 per cent of the
school population of T yrol), of which 1,733 attended city schools,
1,257 went to village schools, and the remaining 10,592 frequented
the country schools. The working children numbered 5,075, or 37.4
per cent o f the total 13,582; o f these, 2,666 were boys (or 39.2 per
cent o f the total number of boys) and 2,409 were girls (or 35.5 per
cent o f the total number of girls). This proportion of school chil
dren at work is larger than in any of the Provinces so far discussed in
this section, except Silesia.
As for the legitimacy and family status of the working children,
the following table indicates a condition of affairs closely resembling
that o f the other Provinces, except that the illegitimate children fur
nish a proportionately smaller contingent o f workers than usual,
except in the case o f those whose mothers are dead or unknown.
0 Soziale Rundschau for April, 1909, pp. 539-570.
70
BU LLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF LEGITIM ATE AND ILLEGITIMATE SCHOOL CHIL
DREN AT WORK, BY CONDITION OF PARENTS.
Children at work.
Total
children.
Condition of parents.
Number. Per cent.
Legitimate or legitimatized...........................................................................
Both parents living.................................................................................
One parent living..............- __ j ................... ....................
Both parents dead..................................................................................
Illegitimate.....................................................................................................
Motherless..................................... ..........................................................
13,087
10,942
1,972
173
495
57
4,922
4,059
795
68
153
25
37.6
37.1
40.3
39.3
30.9
43.9
With regard to the age o f the school children that work, Tyrol re
sembles the Provinces already considered.
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF CHILDREN AT W’ORK, BY~AGE.
Children at work.
Total
children.
Age, December 31,1907.
Number. Per cent.
6 to 3 ven.rs............... _....................................................................................
9 to 10* years.....................................................................................................
11 to 12 years...................................................................................................
13 to 14 years...................................................................................................
5,208
3,653
3,125
1,596
718
1,422
1,896
1,039
13.8
38.9
60.7
65.1
Total.......................................................................................................
13,582
5,075
37.4
W ith regard to the nature of the occupations carried on by the
school children who work gainfully, the data given in the following
table resembles those found in similar tables o f the other Provinces.
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF SCHOOL CHILDREN EMPLOYED IN EACH SPECIFIED
OCCUPATION, BY SEX.
Children employed in each specified occupation.
Occupation.
Total.
Boys.
Girls.
Number. Percent. Number. Per cent. Number. Percent.
Agriculture.................................................
Domestic service.......................................
Industry (including home industries). . .
Hotels, taverns, and restaurants..............
Trade and transportation..........................
Delivering goods.......................................
Other occupations.....................................
Agriculture and domestic service com
bined ........................................................
Other combinations of the above occu
pations ....................................................
1,900
935
122
13
25
32
9
37.4
18.4
2.4
.3
.5
.6
.2
1,522
187
89
5
7
14
6
57.1
7.0
3.3
.2
.3
.5
.2
378
748
33
8
18
18
3
15.7
31.1
1.4
.3
.7
.7
.1
1,760
34.7
669
25.1
1,091
45.3
279
5.5
167
6.3
112
4.7
Total................................................. .
5,075
100.0
2,666
100.0
2,409
100.0
To discover the extent to which the school children employed ex
clusively in agriculture are required to perform the heavier tasks
usually assigned to adult laborers, inquiry was made into the precise
71
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
nature o f their work, with the following results: Picking wood, 204;
cleaning stables and other sorts o f stable work, 114; hay raking, 32;
weeding, 52; potato planting, 20; digging potatoes, 5; picking po
tatoes, 5; littering straw for cattle, 1; chopping fodder, 44; cutting
straw, 8; loading, unloading, and spreading manure, 8; plowing, 15;
harrowing, 4 ; binding sheaves, 2; carrying sheaves, 4; threshing, 18;
barn labor, 2; mowing, 18; cutting and chopping wood, 4. It must
be understood, however, that these figures give an incomplete picture
o f the reality, because in many instances the nature o f the work per
formed was not indicated.
O f 242 children employed in industrial labor, the largest propor
tion were engaged in the manufacture o f wood products, in the metal
trades, the building trades, and in the textile industry. (a)
CARNIOLA (K R A IN ).
In the Province o f Carniola the investigation included 138 schools,
but the figures were worked up for only 35 o f them, partly because
they were entirely typical o f all the schools in the Province and partly
because the data for the others were not sufficiently complete. These
35 schools contained 10,255 pupils—4,840 boys and 5,415 girls— or 12.3
per cent o f the total school population o f the Province. O f this total,
4,922 worked, or 48 per cent of the total (2,421, or 50 per cent o f the
boys, and 2,501, or 46.2 per cent of the girls). The location o f these
schools and the proportion o f workers among the pupils in each group
o f schools was found to be as follow s:
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF SCHOOL. CHILDREN AT WORK, BY LOCATION OF
SCHOOLS.
Children at work.
Location of schools.
Total
children.
Number. Per cent.
Country districts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . __. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
3,608
1,089
5,558
1,326
386
3,210
36.8
35.4
57.8
Total...................... ................. ................................................. ..........
10,255
4,922
48.0
V illagfts.................................................................................................................................
The proportion o f school children at work here, as in the other
Provinces thus far considered, is greater in the country districts than
in the cities and villages because o f the large numbers o f children in
the country districts who are engaged in agricultural labor.
a Soziale Rundschau, May, 1909, pp. 733 to 762.
72
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
With regard to the legitimacy and family status o f the working
children, conditions in Carniola were found to be as follows:
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF LEGITIMATE AND ILLEGITIMATE SCHOOL CHIL
DREN AT WORK, BY CONDITION OF PARENTS.
Children at work.
Condition of parents.
Total
children.
Number. Per cent.
Legitimate or legitimatized................................................... ......................
Both parents living.................................................................................
One parent living.............................................................................. .....
Both parents dead.....................................................................................
Illegitimate....................................................................................................
Motherless............................................................. .................................
9,996
8,602
1,283
111
259
29
4,806
4,071
665
70
116
15
48.1
47.3
51.8
63.1
44.8
51.7
While orphaned children furnish a larger proportion o f child
laborers than those with parents—precisely as in the other Provinces
considered— the illegitimate children do not provide so large a pro
portionate quota o f laborers in Carniola as in the other Provinces.
The contributions o f the various age groups to the army o f child
laborers was found in this Province to be as follow s:
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF SCHOOL CHILDREN AT WORK, BY AGE.
Children at work.
Age, December 31,1907.
Total
children.
Number. Percent.
6 to 8 years.......................................................................................................
9 to 10 years.....................................................................................................
11 to 12 years....................................................................................................
13 to 14 years............................................................................... ...................
3,580
2,765
2,590
1,320
935
1,485
1,666
836
26.1
53.7
64.3
63.3
Total.......................................................................................................
10,255
4,922
48.0
The slight decline o f the proportion of workers in the last group,
that o f children aged 13 to 14 years, is due to a considerable falling
off in this age group o f the girls employed in gainful occupations.
In the country districts of this Province children are, as a rule, not
required to attend school after having attained the age of 12 years,
whereas in the village schools and city schools, having three or more
classes or grades, children are generally required to attend school
until they complete the fourteenth year o f age. But a law of 1874
provides that wherever there are elementary schools at which at
tendance is not required after the twelfth year, repetition schools
( Wiederholungsschulen) shall be introduced to furnish instruction
from the beginning o f the school year to the end o f the month o f
March. In these schools instruction shall be given three times a
week for a period of two hours, not including the time devoted to re
ligious instruction, two o f these sessions being for boys and one for
73
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
girls. As a rule, all children who have finished the elementary school
training are obliged to attend these schools until they have reached
the age o f 14 years.
O f the school children comprised in the investigation for this
Province, 9,212 attended the elementary “ all-day schools ” and 1,043
were “ repetition-school” pupils. O f the repetition-school pupils a
certain number were under 12 years o f age, but the great majority
were, of course, above that age. Bearing in mind that the all-day
pupils over 12 years o f age are mainly those in the cities, and divid
ing the pupils in both repetition schools and all-day schools into two
age groups, namely, those 11 or 12 years old and those 13 or 14 years
old, it was learned that in the first age group 89.6 per cent o f the
repetition pupils were engaged in gainful occupations and of the all
day pupils only 60.4 per cent, whereas in the .second age group 86.9
per cent o f the repetition pupils and 37 per cent o f the all-day pupils
were thus engaged.
Concerning the occupations in which the school children o f this
Province are employed, conditions may be said closely to resemble
those which prevail in the other Provinces already referred to.
NUMBER AND PER CENT OP SCHOOL CHILDREN EMPLOYED IN EACH SPECIFIED
OCCUPATION, BY SEX.
Children employed in each specified occupation.
Occupation.
Total.
Boys.
Girls.
Number. Per cent Number. Per cent. Number. Percent.
Domestic service.........................................
Agriculture.................................................
Industry (including home industries). . .
Hotels, taverns, and restaurants..............
Trade and transportation.........................
Delivering goods.........................................
Other occupations.....................................
Agriculture and domestic service com
bined ........................................................
Other combinations of the above occu
pations......................................................
Total...................................................
843
1,216
606
20
18
12
10
17.1
24.7
12.3
.4
.4
.2
.2
191
954
283
16
13
9
10
1,120
22.8
476
19.6
644
25.7
1,077
21.9
469
19.4
608
24.3
4,922
100.0
2,421
100.0
2,501
100.0
* 7.9
39.4
11.7
.7
.5
.4
.4
652
262
323
4
5
3
26.1
10.5
12.9
.2
.2
.1
O f the children employed in industrial occupations, there were 606
exclusively thus employed and 829 who worked partly in industrial
and partly in other occupations, making a total o f 1,435 who devoted
part or all o f their working hours to industrial labor in the nar
rower sense o f the term. O f these a considerable number worked in
the summer on farms and in the winter in their homes or in mills.
The industries which rank highest in the number o f children they
employ, either exclusively or in conjunction with some nonindustrial
occupation, are the textile industries, wood manufactures, the metal
trades, glass works, and brickyards. In fact, 698 school children, or
74
BU LLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
nearly half o f the total number employed industrially, worked in the
textile industries; and o f this number 520 worked at pillow-lace mak
ing, but not exclusively, inasmuch as 349 o f them did other work,
mainly domestic service. Eighty-eight per cent o f these lace makers
were girls. The industry is largely localized at Idria, where 335
school children were found working at it, and at Trata, where there
were 166 school children thus employed, chiefly the children o f miners
in these localities. Another important industry in which the children
engage is the manufacture o f horsehair sieves; 158 school children,
mainly at St. Martins in Krainburg, were thus employed. The work
o f the children consists usually in sorting the hairs according to color,
testing their strength, and 64threading” them preparatory to weav
ing. Practically all o f this work is done in the winter at the homes
o f the persons engaged therein.
Among the other preliminary data given in the Soziale Rundschau
for June, 1909, concerning the results of the investigation in Carniola
are summaries o f the reports o f school physicians and school authori
ties regarding the effects o f labor on the physical, intellectual, and
moral development o f the school children who engaged therein. The
physical condition o f 18.7 per cent o f the school children exclusively
engaged in domestic service, and of 13.7 per cent o f those engaged
partly in domestic service and partly in other kinds o f work, was re
ported as unsatisfactory. O f those engaged in agriculture exclu
sively, 12.9 per cent were similarly reported as not physically satis
factory. To what extent this unsatisfactory condition is due to the
labor the children perform, it is, o f course, difficult i f not impossible
to state, because o f the innumerable other factors which enter into the
matter. Specifically noticeable effects o f labor on the condition of
the children were, however, reported by a number o f school physicians
and other school authorities. The three physicians who specifically
examined the industrially employed children were unanimously
agreed that the physical effects o f industrial labor are clearly detri
mental. They referred particularly to the injurious consequences o f
pillow-lace making, in which children only 4 years o f age are some
times required to occupy a bent position for several hours daily.
From the testimony o f these physicians the following extracts are
taken:
The children who work in the glass works are nearly all pale and
anemic. They suffer frequently from nosebleed, headache, and lack
o f appetite. They are, moreover, peculiarly subject to infectious
diseases, especially tuberculosis—more so than other children. Affec
tions o f the respiratory organs are constant among children in this
industry; they are slow to develop mentally and physically.
Children employed in the building trades develop slowly because
o f the strenuous character o f the work. Mentally they are not alert,
and they are in every respect more backward than children o f the
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
75
same age who work on the farms. Because o f insufficient food and
by reason o f the bad weather to which they are so largely exposed
they fall ill more readily than other children. Diseases o f the res
piratory organs are especially common among them.
The children are employed in domestic and agricultural labors and
in making pillow-lace. The light domestic work they perform in
helping their mothers is from a medical point of view rather help
ful than harmful to their health and development. Work for several
hours a day, however, at pillow-lace making is apt to be injurious,
especially for children liable to rachitis or tuberculosis.
O f the 37 school superintendents who reported upon the effect of
labor on the health o f school children 14 were o f the opinion that
agricultural and domestic labor had no noticeable effects one way or
the other. Twenty-three reported that agricultural and domestic
labor has no evil consequences when it is carried on moderately.
Eleven o f these 23 maintained that whenever this sort o f work lasts
many hours per day or exceeds the strength o f the children it is dis
tinctly harmful. It is pointed out in particular that children em
ployed in agriculture are frequently compelled to begin work at 3 or
4 o’clock in the morning and do not go to bed until 10 or 11 at night,
thus being deprived o f sufficient sleep. Instances are mentioned o f
curvature o f the spine due to carrying younger children. Industrial
labor is reported as almost always having injurious effects, particu
larly in the glass industry, in the manufacture o f toothpicks, and
especially in making lace. Several school superintendents report that
the working children are frequently ill clad and poorly fed, and be
cause o f this the consequences o f their labor are more apt to be detri
mental. The following are examples o f the reports o f the school
superintendents upon this subject:
Children employed in glass works who were physically sound and
mentally alert when they began the work soon thereafter become un
responsive to school training; their faces grow pale and they pine
away.
The children in this school district, mostly peasants’ children, are
largely drawn upon for all sorts of agricultural and domestic labor
because o f the lack o f farm hands. Thus it happens that children
are required to get up at 3 o’clock in the morning to mow, to go to
school at 8, to toss hay when school is over, and do not get to bed un
til 10 or 11 o’clock at night. The girl pupils take milk to the city,
then go to school, and resume work again when school is out.
Girls who work in the open air or generally move about freely are
by no means harmed by agricultural or domestic labor; on the con
trary, such work has a good effect upon their bodily development.
But in this respect long hours o f work or whole days’ work in a seated
position at sewing or lace making is injurious for girls. This was
especially noticeable in the case of girl pupils in repetition schools
who are not satisfactorily fed.
76
BU LLETIN OF TH E BUKEAU OF LABOR.
Exhausting farm labor, which requires children often to get up at
5 or even 4 o’clock in the morning, and the manufacture o f straw
hats, which keeps them up until 11 or 12 at night, together with the
long distance they must walk to get to school, are exceptionally un
favorable in their influence upon the physical development o f the
children.
Agricultural labor carried on during only a part o f the year and in
the open air, and which is not too hard for the children, has no evil
influences either upon the intellectual or physical development o f the
children. But the taking care of children, which lasts throughout
the entire year and takes place in closed rooms, has an important un
favorable effect upon their physical condition.
W ith regard to the effect o f child labor upon the general mental de
velopment o f the children therein employed, 69 school superintend
ents offered testimony. Forty o f them noted no perceptible effects,
remarking in many cases, however, that no bad effects were noticeable
because the children did only light work for short periods and usually
did this work for their own parents. Twenty-four reported that the
work o f the children exerted an injurious influence upon their men
tal progress, while 5 reported the opposite effects. “ The children
employed in glass works,” said one report, “ take no interest whatever
in their studies.” “ W ork on the farm and domestic service,” said
another, “ has no harmful effects if the children are not worked too
hard and are given sufficient sleep.” “ The work of the children in
the fields and taking cattle to pasture,” declares another report, “ in
this district, where the population is poor, operates very unfavorably
upon their mental development because adult laborers are hard to
get and the children are therefore required to do the work of
adults.” (a)
VORARLBERG.
The investigation in the Province o f Yorarlberg included 51 ele
mentary schools with 11,124 pupils, or 56.4 per cent o f the school
population o f the Province. Two of these schools were in the city
o f Bludenz, 9 in villages, and 40 in country districts. For some
parts o f the investigation the results from all o f these schools were
compiled; but a detailed compilation was made for only 15 o f them,
containing 3,263 children, or 16.3 per cent o f the total school popu
lation o f the Province. O f these 3,263 pupils, 1,229 were found to be
working children— 546 boys out o f 1,584 boys in the schools included,
and 683 girls out of 1,679 girl pupils. The distribution o f the work
ing children according to the location o f the schools was as follow s:
a Soziale Rundschau, June, 1909, pp. 995 to 1027.
77
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF SCHOOL CHILDREN AT WORK, BY LOCATION OF'
SCHOOLS.
Children at work.
Location of schools.
1 Total
:children.
Number. Per cent.
Cities.................................................................................................................
Villages and towns.........................................................................................
Country districts.............................................................................................
716
471
2,076
163
136
930
22.8
28.944.8-
Total.......................................................................................................
3,263
1,229
37.7
As in the other Provinces considered, the proportion of working
school children is least in the cities and greatest in the country dis
tricts, for the reason, here as elsewhere, that pupils in the country
schools are largely drawn upon for farm labor and are largely em
ployed in home industries, which are most common throughout the
country regions.
The figures concerning the family status o f the working children
indicate that in Vorarlberg, unlike most o f the other Provinces, the
illegitimate children do not furnish an exceptionally large quota o f
laborers.
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF LEGITIMATE AND ILLEGITIMATE SCHOOL CHIL
DREN AT WORK, BY CONDITION OF PARENTS.
Children at work.
Condition of parents.
Total
children.
Number. Percent.
Legitimate or legitimatized..........................................................................
Both parents living.................................................................................
One parent living....................................................................................
Both parents dead..................................................................................
Illegitimate.....................................................................................................
Motherless................................................................................................
3,161
2,708
416
37
102
13
1,191
995
173
23
38
5
37.7
36.7
41.6
62.2.
37.3
38.5*
As in the other Provinces, however, the proportion o f school chil
dren who work increases with the age o f the children.
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF SCHOOL CHILDREN AT WORK, BY AGE.
Children at work.
Age, December 31,1907.
Total
children.
Number. Per cent.
6 to 8 years.......................................................................................................
9 to 10 years.....................................................................................................
11 to 12 years....................................................................................................
13 to 14 years....................................................................................................
1,319
845
766
333
199
311
477
242
15.1
' 36.8
62.3
72.7
Total*.....................................................................%................................
3,263
1,229
37. T
56504°—No. 89—10---- 6
78
BULLETIN OF TH E BUBEAU OF LABOR.
The kinds o f work in which the laboring children engage was found
to be as follows in this Province:
NUMBER AND FER CENT OF SCHOOL CHILDREN EMPLOYED IN EACH SPECIFIED
OCCUPATION.
Occupation.
Children employed
in each specified
occupation.
Number. Percent.
Domestic service................................................................................................................
Agriculture............................................... ....................................... ................. ........ .
Industry (including home-industries)...........................................................................
Hotels, taverns, and restaurants................................. ........... ......... ............................
Trade* and transportation.................................. ............ ........................................ .......
Delivering goods............................................................................................. ................
Other occupations..........................................................................................................
Domestic service combined with agriculture............................................. ................
Other combinations of the above...................................................................................
286
229
266
2
6
16
1
215
20$
23.3
18.6
21.6
.2
La
.1
IT. 5
16.9
In addition to the 266 school children o f this Province found to be
employed exclusively in industries, there were 161 others who worked
part o f the time in industries and part of the time in some other occu
pation or occupations; and o f the total 427 industrially employed,
401, or 93.9 per cent, were employed in the manufacture o f textiles—
179 boys and 222 girls. Nearly all o f these children help to make
embroidery, being largely employed in certain preparatory labor such
as winding bobbins, reeling, filling shuttles for looms, and threading
for satin-stitch embroidering machines. The larger children “ watch ”
the machines and attend to broken needles and torn threads. Some
o f them are employed at “ finishing ” the embroidery, i. e., repairing
defective places, cutting off margins, etc.
With regard to the reported effects o f child labor on the physical
condition and development o f the children it is unnecessary to go
into the details given for this Province, so closely do they resemble
the reports made for the other Provinces. O f the children engaged
solely in domestic service, 26.2 per cent, and o f those engaged exclu
sively in farm labor, 17.9 per cent, were said to be in an unsatisfactory
physical condition. The reporting physicians (four in number) all
regarded industrial labor, particularly at embroidering, as injurious
to the children, largely because it involves sitting down for many
hours and in the winter is carried on in poorly ventilated rooms.
Twenty-seven school superintendents report no noticeable effects of
child labor, while 10 report injurious and 5 report beneficial effects,
the latter referring, however, exclusively to agricultural labor.
O f the children engaged in domestic service, 27.3 per cent, and of
those engaged in agriculture, 15.3 per cent, are reported as unsatis
factory in their school attendance or in their behavior while at school.
It is especially noted that the children who work until late at night
in taverns or at embroidering are often tired when they come to
school in the morning, and are therefore incapable o f keeping up with
79
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA,
their classmates. It is also reported that the children who work do
not always have sufficient time to prepare the lessons assigned to
them for study at home. In one school district, for example, the au
thorities stated that during the summer months 50 per cent o f the
pupils failed to put in an appearance at the “ summer school.” In
the last three years o f school nearly all o f the working children avail
themselves o f the permission to curtail school attendance, going only
from October 15 to May 15, and in some cases only from November 1
to March 19.
The authorities o f 37 schools express opinions with regard to the
effect o f labor upon the mental development of the working children;
20 o f them detected no influence one way or the other, 13 noted an
unfavorable effect, and 4 reported that the effect was favorable. But
the 4 superintendents who noted favorable effects o f child labor upon
the mental development o f the children referred mainly to the lighter
forms o f agricultural labor. (a)
BOHEMIA.
In the investigation for Bohemia reports were received from 708
schools, having 170,351 pupils. Not all o f these reports, however,
were used in the final and detailed compilation, either because the
data were in some cases incomplete or because conditions were so much
alike in a large number of the schools that not all o f them had to be
included in order to present a correct picture o f actual conditions.
The material was fully worked up for 416 schools, having 107,056
pupils, or 9.7 per cent o f the school population o f Bohemia. O f this
total, 32,631 were found to be at work—17,279 boys, and 15,352 girls;
that is, to say, 32 per cent o f the boys included in the detailed investi
gation, 28.9 per cent o f the girls, and 30.5 per cent o f both sexes. The
proportion o f working school children in Bohemia, therefore, is ap
proximately the same as in Lower Austria, Upper Austria, and Salz
burg, but less than in Silesia and in Carniola. Concerning the loca
tion o f the schools in which working children were found, the follow
ing table is given;
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF SCHOOL CHILDREN AT WORK, BY LOCATION OF
SCHOOLS.
Children at work.
Location of schools.
Total
children.
Number. Percent.
Cities.................................................................................................................
Villages............................................................................................................
Country districts.............................................................................................
64,825
10,349
31,882
15,496
3,804
13,331
23.9
36.8
41.8
Total.......................................................................................................
107,056
32,631
30.5
a Soziale Rundschau, July, 1909, pp. 56-81.
80
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
The proportion o f school children at work, as in nearly all o f the
other Provinces, is smallest in the cities and greatest in the country
districts, because the children who frequent the country schools are
largely drawn upon for agricultural labor.
Distinguishing the children according to the legitimacy or illegiti
macy o f birth, etc., it appears that in Bohemia, as in most o f the other
Provinces, the illegitimate children furnish a larger relative quota o f
workers than those born legitimately. Orphaned children, moreover,
work more frequently than those whose parents are still living.
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF LEGITIMATE AND ILLEGITIMATE SCHOOL CHIL
DREN AT WORK, BY CONDITION OF PARENTS.
Children at work.
Condition of parents.
Total
children.
Number. Per cent.
Legitimate or legitimatized...........................................................................
Both parents living................... .............................................................
One parent living.....................................................................................
Both parents dead.....................................................................................
Illegitimate ....................................... .............................................................
Motherless.................................................................................................
103,951
91,392
11,330
1,229
3,105
441
31,403
26,651
4,259
493
1,228
253
m2
29.2
37.6
40.1
39.5
57.4
The proportion o f children who work depends somewhat, too, on
their ages; and in this respect conditions in Bohemia are similar to
those in the other Provinces already considered, save that there is a
decline in the highest age group.
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF SCHOOL CHILDREN AT WORK, BY AGE.
Children at work.
Age, December 31,1907.
Total
children.
Number. Per cent.
13 to 14 years....................................................................................................
39,091
26,814
27,077
14,074
6,858
8,502
11,698
5,573
17.5
31.7
43.2
39.6
Total.......................................................................................................
107,056
32,631
80.5
6 to 8 years.......................................................................................................
9 to 10 years.......................................................................................................
11 to 12 years............................................................................ ......................
The decline in the proportion o f children aged 13 and 14 years is
more apparent than real, because the children who remain in school
until they attain these years are usually city children, among whom
there is a much smaller number o f workers. The country children
generally leave school at the age o f 12 years. It should also be noted
that the children who work generally leave school earlier than those
who do not.
81
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
The nature of the employments in which the school children are
engaged forms the subject of the next table:
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF SCHOOL CHILDREN EMPLOYED IN EACH SPECIFIED
OCCUPATION, BY SEX.
Children employed in each specified occupation.
Occupation.
Total.
Boys.
Girls.
Number. Percent. Number. Percent. Number. Percent.
Domestic service................... ...................
Agriculture................................................
Industry (including home industries)..
Hotels and taverns....................................
Trade and transportation........................
Delivering goods......................................
Other occupations.....................................
Domestic service and agriculture com
bined........................................................
Other combinations of the above occu
pations ....................................................
5,389
4,705
6,951
245
273
641
144
Total.................................................
16.5
14.4
21.3
.8
.8
2.0
.4
1,876
3,487
3,557
213
204
468
110
10.9
20.2
20.6
1.2
1.2
2.7
.6
3,513
1,218
3,394
* 32
69
173
34
5,827
17.9
3,042
17.6
2,785
18.1
8,456
25.9
4,322
25.0
4,134
27.0
32,631
100.0
17,279
100.0
15,352
100.0
23.0
7.9
22.1
.2
.4
1.1
>2
The proportion o f children engaged in industries is somewhat
larger than in the Provinces previously considered, excepting Vorarlberg. It should be noted that the first 7 occupations given in the above
table comprise only children who are engaged exclusively in these
occupations; hence the much larger numbers which are found in the
groups o f “ combined ” occupations, since a very large number were
engaged in as many as 3 or 4 different occupations, especially at
different times o f the year. To ascertain how largely school children
are required to perform the harder sorts of farm labor, an endeavor
was made to learn just what work is done by the 4,705 school children
who work exclusively in agriculture. So far as the results o f this
inquiry admit o f tabulation, the following results were obtained for
the Province o f Bohemia. There were engaged in cleaning stables
and similar stable labor, 623 children; in picking hops, 345; cutting
straw, 172; carrying fodder and straw, 136; threshing, 108; carrying
wood and picking wood in the forests, 101; digging potatoes, 100;
picking potatoes, 97; planting potatoes and vegetables, 85; chopping
fodder, 61; hay or fodder tedders, 59; harrowing, 56; acting as
“ beaters” in hunting and carrying game, 56; helping to operate
threshing machines, 54; making hay, 50; gleaning, 45; hoeing (po
tatoes, turnips, and in vineyards), 38; carrying water, 32; plowing,
30; loading and unloading hay, 29; weeding (in vegetable gardens,
orchards, etc.), 29; auxiliary work at threshing (handling sheaves,
removing straw, binding, etc.), 28; binding sheaves, 27; nursery
gardening, 26; loading, unloading, removing, and spreading manure,
25; digging, washing^ cutting, loading and unloading beets and tur
82
BU LLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
nips, 28; watering vegetables, 20; mowing wheat, 15; chopping and
cutting wood, 14; loading and unloading grain, 13; digging holes
for planting trees, 10; removing stones from the soil, 10; carrying
sheaves, 9; sorting and chopping turnips, 9; making fagots, 8;
clearing meadows and mud raking, 6; helping wood-cutters, 5; cover
ing dunghills, 4; removing tree stumps, 8; digging in hop gardens, 2.
The industrial labor in which the school children o f Bohemia en
gage is o f the most varied character. The relative importance o f child
labor in the several groups into which industrial occupations are
divided in Austria is indicated in the next table, which takes into
account all the pupils employed industrially, whether they work ex
clusively in industries or whether they combine nonindustrial with
industrial labor.
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF SCHOOL CHILDREN EMPLOYED IN EACH SPECIFIED
INDUSTRIAL GROUP.
[The total school children at work as given in this table is 14,730* but this total repre
sents a duplication of some children who work in more than one industrial group. The
actual number is 13,991.]
School children at work in each group.
Industrial group.
Boys.
Slight modification of raw materials.........................................
Stone, pottery, and glassware.....................................................;
Metal products..............................................................................
Machines, tools, etc.......................................................................
Wood manufactures, etc..............................................................
Leather, hair, feather, and similar products...........................
Textiles...........................................................................................
Papering and upholstering..........................................................
Clothing trades..............................................................................
Paper...............................................................................................
Food products, tobacco manufactures, etc...............................
Chemicals.......... ...........................................................................
Building trades..............................................................................
Graphic industries (printing, etc.)............................................
Industrial occupations not specified..........................................
11
656
247
132
955
407
3,714
4
691
117
166
12
131
4
5
Girls.
Total.
3
525
112
43
571
536
4,775
784
62
39
10
13
5
14
1,181
359
175
1,526
943
8,489
4
1,475
179
205
22
144
4
10
Per cent.
0.10
8.02
2.43
1.19
10.40
6.40
57.63
.02
10.01
1.22
1.39
.14
.97
.02
.06
O f the 13,991 children employed industrially, 1,181, or 8.4 per cent,
work in the manufacture of pottery, glassware, and similar products.
O f this number 815 are employed exclusively in the manufacture o f
these products, whereas 366 also engage in other occupations. O f the
latter number, 22 work at other forms o f industrial labor, 179 in
domestic service, 75 in agriculture, and 65 in both domestic service
and agriculture.
In the manufacture of pottery 285 school children are employed,
144 exclusively and the others in conjunction with other employments.
They dig clay, sieve sand, carry water and clay, pug clay, strew sand,
wash off the forms, and put the wooden frames together; they mold
bricks and tiles, carry them to the drying area, “ wall ” them to dry,
load and unload them, hand them to the “ burners ” or place them in,
CHILD-LABOK LEGISLATION IN ATJSTKIA.
83
the ovens themselves, bring coal and wood to the ovens, remove ashes,
transport the baked bricks and tiles, and pile them up.
More important still is the manufacture of glassware, for in con
nection with the production o f small glass goods, notably glass beads
and artificial pearls, 644 pupils find employment; o f this number,
however, 120 give part o f their time to other occupations. Only a
few o f the children engage in the actual manufacture o f the beads.
Most o f them work as “ finishers.” They file and string the beads or
pearls, unite the strings into bands or collars, or arrange them into
funeral wreaths. Over 100 children are employed in the manufac
ture o f crystal ware, glass buttons and brooches, pocket mirrors, etc.
In the metal trades 359 children are employed, and nearly one-half
o f this number (153) are engaged in making metal buttons. In some
instances the employers place the necessary machines in the homes o f
the workers, and the children accomplish the auxiliary processes, such
as painting and lacquering the buttons, inserting cloth, and attaching
the finished buttons to cards. School children also help in making
pins and needles (46), in blacksmithing (66), tinsmithing, loeksmithing, in the manufacture o f wire goods, screws, tin toys, chains, and
gold leaf.
In the group o f “ machines, tools, etc.,” children are largely em
ployed in the manufacture o f musical instruments (146), principally
violins.
The next group {wood manufactures, etc.) includes a great variety
o f employments in which school children engage, such as the making
o f wooden boxes (671) and o f coarse wooden articles ( 19) ; work in
sawmills ( 18) and in joineries ( 63) ; chip-hat weaving ( 153) ; basket
making ( 32) ; willow ware ( 385) ; cane-seating (22) ; wooden toys
( 50) ; wooden buttons ( 59) ; and the manufacture of pipes, cigar
holders, and cigarette holders (22). In the “ leather industries, etc.,”
the following numbers o f children are employed, if we count those
giving part o f their working time to the occupations and products
hereafter named: In cleaning feathers, 808 ; in making brooms and
brushes, 24 ; in making leather pocketbooks and similar articles, 67 ;
and in the preparation o f leather, 22.
The most important group o f industrial employments for children
is that o f the textiles, in which were found 60.7 per cent o f the
13,991 industrially employed children; that is to say 8,489 boys and
girls, o f whom 3,838 were exclusively engaged in this occupation.
The kinds o f work performed by these children are exceedingly
numerous. The chief subdivision o f this group is home weaving, in
which the children carry on all sorts o f auxiliary processes, such as
reeling the material for weaving by means o f a spooling-wheel pro
pelled by foot, in which 1,716 were employed. This work is not
usually done for the mills, but for weavers who work in their homes.
84
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
O f great importance are knit goods (339), lace (996), embroidery
(293), passementerie ornaments and trimmings (452), hair nets
(2,681), buttons o f thread or linen (1,286), rope and cordage (117).
In the clothing trades, employing 1,475 children part or all o f their
working time, 530 sew buttons on cards, 218 are employed in sewing
white goods, 59 help in men’s tailoring, 116 in shoemaking, 159 in the
manufacture o f leather gloves, 263 in making artificial flowers, 42 in
wig making, and 71 in dressmaking.
In the paper industry the principal products in the making o f which
school children engage are paper bags, cardboard, and boxes. In the
manufacture o f food products, 63 children are employed in bakeries,
18 in flour mills, 20 in candy making, 66 in butcher establishments,
and 12 in beer breweries. In the building trades, employing 144
school children partly or exclusively, 56 serve as helpers to masons,
36 as roofers’ helpers, 13 as aids to carpenters.
Hotels, taverns, and restaurants give employment to 691 children,
of which number 245 are not occasionally otherwise employed. Most
frequently these children set up tenpins (443), although many serve
to wait on guests. In trade and transportation, giving employment
to 676 children still subject to school attendance, 350 help in shops and
stores, to wait on purchasers, to pack goods, etc.; 169 are engaged in
peddling and huckstering; and 157 help in transportation enter
prises by harnessing horses, taking care o f the stables, loading and
unloading wagons and driving the teams. In delivering goods and
going errands, 1,554 children are employed; they generally are hired
to deliver bread, milk, meats, groceries, newspapers, books, telegrams,
circulars—in fact, all manner o f goods. (a)
MORAVIA.
In the Province o f Moravia the investigation included 516 schools
with 102,700 pupils. For certain features o f the investigation the
returns from all o f these schools were compiled; but for the more
detailed portions the returns from only 239 schools were worked up,
the reasons for this procedure being precisely the same as in the
other Provinces. The 239 schools comprised in the detailed report
contained 48,429 pupils, or 11 per cent of the school population o f
Moravia; and o f this total number o f pupils 19,850, or 41 per cent,
were found to be engaged in gainful occupations. This is a larger
proportion than in any o f the Provinces previously considered except
Silesia and Carniola. Concerning the location o f .the schools and the
proportion o f working pupils in each group o f schools thus dis
tinguished, the following table is given.
° Soziale Rundschau, September, 1909, pp. 375-445.
85
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF SCHOOL CHILDREN AT WORK, BY LOCATION OF
SCHOOLS.
Children at work.
Location of schools.
Total
children.
Number. Per cent.
Villages - ..... ................................................................. - .................. - ...........
Country districts.............................................................................................
22,444
10,287
15,698
6,861
4,736
8,253
30.6
46.0
52.6
Total.......................................................................................................
48,429
19,850
41.0
As in the other Provinces, the proportion of working pupils is
largest in the country districts because of the large number o f coun
try children who are drawn into agricultural employments.
As for the family status o f the working children it is found here
as elsewhere that orphaned children furnished a larger quota o f
workers than those whose parents were living.
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF LEGITIMATE AND ILLEGITIMATE SCHOOL CHIL
DREN AT WORK, BY CONDITION OF PARENTS.
Children at work.
Condition of parents.
Total
children.
Number. Per cent.
Legitimate or legitimatized..........................................................................
Both parents living................................................................. ...............
One parent living........................... ........................................................
Both parents dead...............................................................................
Illegitimate.....................................................................................................
Motherless................................................................................................
46,782
40,214
5,933
635
1,647
193
19,048
15,862
2,891
295
802
106
40.7
39.4
48.7
46.5
48.7
54.0
The age o f the children is also closely connected with the extent o f
their employment, as the next table indicates.
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF SCHOOL CHILDREN AT WORK, BY AGE.
Children at work.
Age, December 31,1907.
Total
children.
Number. Percent.
6 to 8 years.......................................................................................................
9 to 10 years.....................................................................................................
11 to 12 years...................................................................................................
13 to 14 yean?.......................................................................... .................
17,968
11,842
12,064
6,555
3,951
5,357
7,097
3,445
22.0
45.2
58. a
52.6
Total.......................................................................................................
48,429
19,850
41.0
The falling off in the last age group is due to the fact that in the
country districts, which furnish the largest quota of workers, few
children remain in school beyond the twelfth year. Working chil
dren, moreover, generally leave school earlier than the others.
86
BU LLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
The nature of the occupations in which the working children are
employed was found in Moravia to be as follow s:
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF SCHOOL CHILDREN EMPLOYED IN EACH SPECIFIED
OCCUPATION, BY SEX.
Children employed in each specified occupation.
Occupation.
Boys.
Total.
Girls.
Number. Per cent. Number. Percent. Number. Percent.
Domestic service.........................................
Agriculture.................................................
Industry (including home industries). . .
Hotels, taverns, and restaurants..............
Trade and transportation..........................
Delivering goods.........................................
Other occupations.......................................
Domestic service and agriculture com
bined ........................................................
Other combinations of the above............
3,122
3,394
2,319
90
101
154
52
15.7
17.1
11.7
.4
.5
.8
.3
1,066
2,483
1,145
66
63
97
39
10.3
24.0
11.1
.7
.6
.9
.4
2,056
911
1,174
24
38
57
13
21.6
9.6
12.3
.3
.4
.6
.1
5,334
5,284
26.9
26.6
2,648 '
2,730
25.6
26.4
2,686
2,554
28.2
26.9
Total...................................................
19,850
100.0
100.0
9,513
100.0
10,337
The first seven groups o f occupations named in the table include
only those pupils who engage exclusively in those occupations. I f
we add to these numbers the school children who give part of their
working time to these occupations the number is considerably greater,
as figures to be given later will show. O f the combinations o f several
occupations, the most usual are, besides domestic service and agricul
ture; agriculture and industrial employment; domestic service and
industrial employment; and a combination o f agriculture, domestic
service, and industrial labor. The total number engaged in agricul
ture, either alone or together with some other occupation or occupa
tions, was 11,865; in domestic service, either alone or in conjunction
with other work, 12,289; and in industrial occupations, either alone
or combined with other employment, 6,780.
The kinds o f agricultural and domestic labor performed by the
children are, generally speaking, the same in Moravia as in the other
Provinces. Suffice it to say, therefore, that the data given elsewhere
upon this subject hold equally true for this Province.
The industrial labor performed by the school children o f Moravia
is o f great variety. Grouped according to the usual division o f in
dustrial occupations in Austrian official statistics and taking into
account all the children o f the Province employed industrially,
whether or not exclusively thus employed, the following table w'as
obtained.
87
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF SCHOOL CHILDREN EMPLOYED IN EACH S P E C I F I E D
INDUSTRIAL GROUP.
[The total school children at work as given in this table is 7,154, but this total repre
sents a duplication of some children who work in more than one industrial group. The
actual number is 6,780.]
School children at work in each group.
Industrial group.
Boys.
Stone, pottery, and glassware.........................
Metal products....................................................
Machines, tools, etc............................................
Wood manufactures, etc...................................
Leather, hair, feather, and similar products.
Textiles................................................................
Papering and upholstering..............................
Clothing trades..................................................
Paper...................................................................
Food products, tobacco manufactures, etc__
Chemicals...........................................................
Building trades..................................................
Graphic industries (printing, etc.) ..................
Industrial occupations not specified...............
244
92
19
770
162
1,602
296
21
127
3
171
2
26
Girls.
Total.
69
23
668
222
2,105
5
440
6
64
1
12
4
313
115
19
1,438
384
3,707
5
736
27
191
4
183
2
SO
Per cent.
4.37
1.61
.26
20.10
5.37
51.82
.07
10.29
.38
2.67
.05
2.56
.03
.42
In the first group named (pottery, glassware, etc.), 181 children are
employed in connection with the manufacture o f bricks, 93 in glass
works, and 23 in sand and stone quarries. In the manufacture o f
wood and allied products, 493 are employed in weaving straw, 354 in
caning furniture, 296 in basket making, 117 in furniture making, 14
in sawmills, and 18 in the manufacture of wooden pipes. In the
group o f leather and hair products, 182 children are employed in
the manufacture o f brushes, 53 in making brooms, and 131 in clean
ing feathers.
Far and away the most important group is that o f the textiles,
in which 3,707, or 54.7 per cent, of the 6,780 industrially employed
children are engaged. More than one-third of these children (1,305)
work exclusively in the textile industry. The variety o f their work
makes it difficult to give a complete list o f their precise occupations.
The largest number of children work at home in connection with
weaving textiles. Many of them (1,041) reel yarn for their parents,
287 knot fringes, 1,037 help make buttons o f twine and wool, 944 are
employed in making hair nets, 251 in making knit goods, 60 in lace
making, and 35 in crochet work.
In the clothing trades, 202 children manufacture cloth and felt
shoes known locally as “ Patschen,” 178 are employed in tailoring
men’s clothing, 142 in sewing white goods, 32 in sewing buttons on
cards, and 32 in dressmaking.
In the manufacture o f food products, tobacco, etc., 191 children are
employed, and o f this number more than one-third work in canning
fruit and vegetables, 35 work in butcher shops, 32 in flour mills, 29
in bakeries, and 9 in making candy. In the building trades, 117 chil
dren help masons, 17 are carpenters’ helpers, 13 are painters’ helpers,
and 16 are employed in roofing. In the other groups of industrial
88
BULLETIN OF TH E BUKEAU OF LABOR.
occupations and in the nonindustrial groups, the kinds o f work per
formed by the school children in Moravia are the same as in the
other Provinces in connection with which this subject has been
discussed. (a)
GALICIA.
In this Province the investigation included 544 schools, with about
130,300 pupils. The returns were worked up completely, however,
for only 393 o f these schools, containing 97,288 pupils, or 9.2 per cent
o f the school population o f Galicia. O f the pupils comprised in the
detailed investigation 32,031, or 32.9 per cent, were employed in gain
ful occupations. The number o f pupils, by location of the schools,
was as follow s:
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF SCHOOL CHILDREN AT WORK, BY LOCATION OF
SCHOOLS.
Children at work.
Location of schools.
Total
children.
Number. Per cent.
Villages ...................... .............................. ................. ...........................
Country districts...........................................................................................
Total
................. .................................. ........... ............................. .....
26,931
13,579
56,778
3,975
5,426
22,630
14.8
40.0
39.9
97,288
32,031
32.9
This indicates a condition similar to that of the other Provinces,
and requires no special analysis. Much the same thing is true of the
next table—concerning the family status of the working children—
save that in Galicia illegitimate children furnish a smaller quota of
workers than was noted in the Provinces previously considered.
NUMBER
AND PER CENT OF LEGITIMATE AND ILLEGITIMATE
CHILDREN AT WORK, BY CONDITION OF PARENTS.
SCHOOL
Children at work.
Condition of parents.
Total
children.
Number. Per cent.
Legitimate or legitimatized.........................................................................................
Hnt.h parents living*................................................................. ..............................
One parent living...................................................... .............................
Both parents dead............ ............................. ....................................
Illegitimate...........................................................................................
Motherless................................................................................................
92,663
81,199
10,500
964
4,625
238
30,792
26,699
3,724
369
1,239
75
33.2
32.9
35.5
38.4
37.0
31.5
The contribution o f the several age groups to the army o f child
laborers is indicated by the following table, which shows that the pro
portion o f working children increases in Galicia with the age of the
children, unlike the Provinces of Carniola, Bohemia, Moravia, Lower
Austria, and Silesia, in each of which there is a slight falling off in the
highest age grou p:
a Soziale Rundschau, October, 1909, pp. 561 to 608.
89
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
NUM BER AND PER CENT OF SCHOOL CHILDREN AT W ORK, B Y AGE.
Children at work.
Age, December 31,1907.
Total
children.
Number. Per cent.
6 to 8 years.......................................................................................................
9 to 10 years.....................................................................................................
11 to 12 years.........„............................................................. ..............
13 to 14 years.....................................................................................................
35,003
26,841
21,690
13,754
5,109
8,691
10,078
8,153
14.6
32.4
46.5
59.3
Total........................... ..........................................................................
97,288
32,031
32.9
The school laws o f Galacia, not unlike those of Carniola (see p. 72),
require that children shall begin to attend school at the age o f 6
years and remain in school seven years, if they reside in cities having
a secondary school (Biirgerschule), or six years i f they reside else
where. A fter completing this requirement they may cease attending
the “ all-day school ” if the pupil exhibits a sufficient knowledge o f
the prescribed subjects o f instruction. But they must then, i f they
do not go to some other school, attend continuation courses ( Fortbildungskurse) for three years. Concerning these courses, the law pro
vides : “ In every public school the continuation courses shall be given
at such times o f the day, o f the week, and o f the year, as not to pre
vent the young people from carrying on some practical vocation nor
from attending divine service and religious instruction. In schools
having more than one teacher the continuation courses are to be given
separately for boys and girls.”
The “ all-day pupils ” in the Galician investigation numbered 88,306
and the continuation pupils, 8,982. Both kinds o f pupils were di
vided into two age groups, those 11 to 12 years and those 13 to 14
years. It was found that o f the 20,099 all-day pupils aged 11 to 12
years 45.4 per cent (9,117) worked, whereas o f the 1,591 continuation
pupils o f the same age 60.4 per cent (961) worked. In the groups
consisting o f children 13 to 14 years old there were 6,363 all-day
pupils, o f which number 43 per cent (2,736) worked, and 7,391 con
tinuation pupils, o f which number 73.3 per cent (5,417) worked. *
The continuation-school pupils are much more largely drawn upon
for employment than the all-day pupils, although the difference be
tween the two classes o f school children is not so great in this regard
as in Carniola. In both cases the difference is largely due to three
causes: (1) Continuation pupils are more numerous in country dis
tricts, where children are more frequently required to work, than in
the cities; (2) part of the all-day school children o f the ages o f 11
to 12 years reside in the country districts; and (3) all-day school
children aged 13 to 14 years come exclusively from the city schools,
which contribute a relatively smaller quota o f workers than schools
in the country.
90
BULLETIN OF TH E BUKEAU OF LABOR.
With regard to the kinds of employment in which the working
children engage, the following table is given:
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF SCHOOL CHILDREN EMPLOYED IN EACH SPECIFIED
OCCUPATION, BY SEX.
Children employed in each specified occupation.
Occupation.
Total.
Boys.
Girls.
Number. Per cent. Number. Per cent. Number. Per cent.
Domestic service.........................................
Agriculture.................................................
Industry (including home industries)...
Hotels, restaurants, and taverns..............
Trade and transportation..........................
Delivering goods.........................................
Other occupations......................................
Domestic service and agriculture com
bined ........................................................
Other combinations of the above............
5,376
11,464
1,947
115
612
184
59
15.6
33.3
5.7
.3
1.8
.5
.2
1,513
8,204
1,312
56
347
129
44
8.5
46.0
7.4
.3
1.9
.7
.2
3,863
8,260
635
59
265
55
15
23.3
19.7
3.8
.4
1.6
.3
.1
11,078
8,579
32.2
10.4
4,648
1,591
26.1
8.9
6,430
1,988
38.8
12.0
Total...................................................
34,414
100.0
17,844
100.0
16,570
100.0
In the above table the first seven groups o f occupations include only
those children who are engaged exclusively in these occupations. A
large number o f children, however, engage in more than one kind of
work; many devote a part o f their time to domestic service and to
agriculture. I f we add to those exclusively engaged in domestic
service those who give part o f their working hours to it, the total is
18,676. Those who work partly or exclusively in agriculture number
25,054, and those who work partly or exclusively in industrial occu
pations, number 4,728.
A tabulation o f the kinds o f agricultural labor in which the school
children are employed reveals the fact that in Galicia, as in the other
Provinces for which data were given on this subject, large numbers of
children are required to perform work which is by no means “ light.”
Thus 1,006 o f them cleaned stables and performed such work as re
moving manure and feeding horses and cattle; 526 were employed in
plow ing; 489 hoeing potatoes, turnips, etc.; 417 planting potatoes and
vegetables; 840 threshing; 315 grinding hand mills; 314 digging
potatoes; 300 harrowing; 281 cutting fodder; 263 carrying water; 257
in beet and turnip culture (pulling and cleaning them, removing the
leaves, cutting, loading, and unloading); 238 weeding; 227 cutting
and mowing grain; 219 loading and unloading grain; 207 cutting
chaff; 204 picking potatoes; 203 binding sheaves; 186 sorting and
chopping beets; 183 loading, unloading, and spreading manure; 168
nursery gardening; 156 watering truck farms; 146 carrying straw and
fodder; 132 making hay; 128 tedding hay and fodder; 127 carrying
sheaves; 115 helping at threshing; 106 gleaning; 102 helping at
threshing machines; 100 loading and unloading hay; 98 helping
91
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN AUSTRIA.
woodchoppers; 81 carrying and picking wood; 76 cutting and sawing
wood; 62 loading and unloading vegetables; 60 picking hops; 52
making faggots; 35 picking cucumbers; 34 digging holes for trees;
31 digging in hop gardens; 14 removing tree stumps; 14 manuring
gardens; 7 in aiding hunters as beaters; 5 grinding millet; and 4 in
clearing meadows and mud raking.
The industrial employments in which the school children engage
are equally varied. O f the 4,728 children employed industrially,
1,947 give all o f their working hours to industrial pursuits; the
remaining 2,781 devote part o f their time to other occupations. The
number engaged in each group of industries was found to be as
follow s:
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF ^CHILDREN EMPLOYED IN EACH SPECIFIED INDUS
TRIAL GROUP.
[The total school children at work as given in this table is 4 ,82 5 ; but this total repre
sents a duplication of some children who work in more than one industrial group. The
actual number is 4,728.]
School children at work in each group.
Industrial group.
Boys.
Production of raw materials.....................................
Stone, earthenware, pottery, and glass...................
Metal products.............................................................
Machines, tools, etc....................................................
Wood products, wickerware, etc— : ......................
Leather, hair, feather products, etc ........................
Textiles .................................................................. .
Paperhanging and upholstering...............................
Clothing trades.......................................... ................
Paper............................................................................
Food products, tobacco, etc.......................................
Chemicals....................................................................
Building trades...........................................................
Graphic industries (printing, etc.)...........................
Wandering industrial occupations..........................
Industrial occupations not specifically designated
44
169
275
29
597
80
469
5
451
29
140
So
309
2
5
18
Girls.
S
88
35
230
87
1,375
1
329
83
50
1
32
3
16
Total.
47
207
310
29
827
117
1,844
6
780
62
190
21
341
5
5
34
Per cent.
0.97
4.29
6.42
.60
17.14
2.42
38,22
.12
16.17
1.29
3.94
.44
7.07
.10
.10
.71
The first group, peculiarly designated as “ production of raw mate
rials,” includes 40 children employed in digging peat. The second
(pottery, glassware, etc.) consists largely o f the manufacture of bricks
and tiles and in making common earthenware. In the first-named
industry there were employed 92 school children, and in the second 48.
In the metal trades the largest number of school children are en
gaged in loeksmithing; 131 are employed in the manufacture o f pad
locks, an industry centered at Swiatniki, in the district o f Podgorze,
where nearly the entire population is engaged in it and where the chil
dren have acquired such skill as to be able to make from 1| to 3 dozen
padlocks per week. Next to loeksmithing the children in this indus
trial group are most numerous in blacksmithing (131).
Much more important is the manufacture o f wood products, wicker
ware, etc., employing 827 children. O f this number 147 work in
joineries, where they polish, sandpaper, and stain furniture. Some of
92
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
them work at home and others in factories. In sawmills 35 boys are
employed, and at coopering 53. A t making baskets 430 school chil
dren were found working, at weaving straw and rush 40, and in cane
seating furniture 74.
O f the 117 children employed in work with leather, hair, and feath
ers, 93 were employed in cleaning, etc., feathers for sale. The feathers
have usually been purchased by the village dealers, and the work of
the children consists in removing the down and picking the barbs from
quill feathers. It is light work, requiring neither strength nor skill,
and for this reason very young children, and particularly girls, are
engaged in it.
The most important industrial group is that of textiles, employing
1,844 o f the school childreh of Galicia, or 39 per cent o f the 4,728 in
dustrially employed; only 384 o f them are exclusively so employed.
The girls in the industry outnumber the boys three to one. The main
subdivision is that of making linen and cloth. Most of the children
work in their own homes, in which are carried on all of the processes
o f manufacture, the preparation o f the material for spinning (73 chil
dren), spinning (939), reeling (266), weaving (171), finishing and
bleaching (35). In making embroidery 129 children are employed.
The national costume of the Euthenians is highly embroidered in
variegated wool, and this work is done on shirts, kerchiefs, caps,
aprons, etc., partly by young girls. They also embroider watch chains,
belts, etc., with beads of glass and imitation coral. Others, chiefly
among the Jewish population, make hair nets and gold and silver
fringe for praying mantles. The remaining children in the textile
group are engaged in rope making (44, chiefly boys), in crochet work
(33 girls), in making pillow lace (16 girls), and knit goods (13 girls
and 2 boys).
Third in importance are the clothing trades, in which 128 children
are employed in men’s tailoring, 103 in sewing white goods, 98 in
dressmaking, 65 as seamstresses’ apprentices, 288 in shoemaking, and
49 in furriers’ shops.
In the group o f food products, etc., 74 children are employed in
butcher shops, 68 in bakeries, and 21 in flour mills. In the building
trades 176 children work as helpers to masons, plasterers, etc., 73 in
the construction o f dams and dikes, 23 in carpentering, and 15 in sign
painting and house painting.
Outside o f agriculture, domestic service, and industries, the most
important group o f occupations is that of trade and transportation,
employing part or all of the labor of 1,138 children. O f this number,
929 help in shops and mercantile establishments, 106 are hucksters
and peddlers, and 103 are employed in transportation enterprises. (a)
0 Soziale Rundschau, November, 1909, pp. 749 to 802.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN BELGIUM.
9a
BELGIUM.
TH E CHILD-LAB OR LAW OF DECEMBER 13, 1889.
Before the beginning of the eighteenth century the administrative
authorities were empowered to enact measures for the protection o f
laborers in Belgian industrial establishments; but this power seems
to have been little used. At all events, one can not speak o f anything
approaching a clearly defined system o f legal intervention in the
interest of the working classes. Even the advent o f modern indus
trialism brought no conspicuous changes in this regard. Hence the
history o f labor legislation in Belgium during the first half o f the
nineteenth century is easily written. Until recently a parliamentary
majority appears always to have been opposed to legal intervention
in industrial matters except in behalf o f minors and in cases o f dan
gerous trades. Not only has the view prevailed that adult male
laborers are able to take care o f themselves, (a) but there has been little
disposition to enact any measures in behalf o f adult female laborersT
apart from the provision that mothers employed in industrial estab
lishments must not be permitted to work during four weeks following
confinement.
Certain industries, to be sure, have been recognized as offering ex
ceptional dangers to the life and limb o f employees therein. Thus, in
1813, an imperial decree established certain rules with regard to the
protection o f miners, provided for the inspection o f mines, and for
bade the employment o f children under 10 years o f age in them.
Sporadic attempts, moreover, were made from time to time to widen
the scope o f legislative intervention in industrial matters, but without
avail.
The middle o f the century, however, marks the beginning o f a
change o f attitude on the part of the legislative and executive powers.
In 1843 a commission was appointed to investigate labor conditions:
in mines and in industries generally. This commission published a
three volume report between 1846 and 1849 disclosing a condition o f
affairs that, in the opinion o f the commission, demanded legislative
action; it was proposed to limit even the workday o f adult laborers.
But the ensuing discussions, as well as those occasioned by the legisla
tive proposals o f 1859, 1869, and 1878 (which were all more moderate
than that o f 1849) failed to result in legislative action. Under the
influence o f increasing discontent among the laboring classes, in which
socialistic organization was making rapid progress, and o f occasional
labor disturbances, the authorities were finally persuaded to yield, and
in June 28, 1884, a royal decree increased the age of admission to
mines to 12 years for boys and 14 years for girls.
a The Sunday law of July 15, 1905, constitutes the first exception.
56504°— No. 89—10----- 7
94
BU LLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
In 1886 a second committee of investigation was appointed and
carried its work out on a large scale; and the movement in favor of
legislative intervention in labor matters was given a decided addi
tional impetus in September o f the same year, when a convention of
the Catholic party at Liege manifested a favorable attitude toward
government intervention in behalf o f the working classes, and subse
quently made possible that curious cooperation o f “ social Catholi
cism ” and u political socialism ” which is a noteworthy factor in the
political situation of more than one European country, and which has
contributed to the enactment of the labor laws that have since been
passed by the Belgian Parliament.
The list o f laws and decrees passed during the past twenty-five
years in Belgium is a fairly long one, and some o f them involve
benefits for nonadult laborers. One of the first Was the law o f
August 16,1887, concerning the payment o f wages and creating coun
cils o f industry and labor. This was followed by the law of May 28,
1888, for the protection o f children engaged in “ wandering trades,'”
and, most important of all, by the law o f December 13, 1889, regu
lating the employment of male persons under 16 and female persons
under 21 years o f age. The law o f 1888 forbids the employment of
children under 18 years o f age by acrobats, tight-rope walkers, and
persons engaged in similar professions, unless the employers are
parents o f the children, in which case the age limit is reduced to 14
years. This law also forbids children under 18 years o f age to take
part in public exhibitions o f strength or in like performances. Its
scope is limited to a relatively small number of persons and occupa
tions, and the law is therefore o f much less importance than that of
.December 13, 1889.
This law, supplemented by subsequent legislation and by a series
o f royal decrees is, above all else, a “ child-labor law.” It makes
no reference to adults o f either sex.(a) There are in it no provisions
applying to all laborers without exception (as in the Swiss law of
1877), nor any applying to adults who happen to be employed in the
same establishments with minors (as in the French law of 1900).
It distinguishes four main categories of workers, namely: (1) Chil
dren under 12 years o f age, for whom all industrial employment is
forbidden; (2) children between 12 and 16 years o f age, whose labor
is subject to certain specified conditions and restrictions; (3) boys
between 14 and 16 years o f age, a special category within the preced
ing one, for whom the K ing may by decree authorize certain work
that is otherwise forbidden; and (4) female persons between the ages
o f 16 and 21 years, to whom usually the same regulations apply as
those which govern children under 16 years o f age.
Except to women recovering from confinement.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN BELGIUM.
95
The law as a whole applies to labor in five groups o f establish
ments and occupations: Mines, quarries, stone yards, and building
trades; workshops, manufactures, and factories; establishments
classified as dangerous, unhealthful, or unsuitable, or employing
steam or mechanical motive power; wharves, docks, and stations;
transportation by land or water. .Public and private institutions,
even though they may be o f an educational or charitable nature, are
included in the scope o f the law if they belong to any o f the above
categories. It does not apply, however, to establishments in which
only members o f the employer’s family work under the direction o f
parents or guardians, unless they employ steam or a mechanical
motor, or unless the establishments are comprised in the list o f those
classified as dangerous, unhealthful, or unsuitable.
The list o f dangerous, unhealthful, or unsuitable establishments is
determined by a series o f royal decrees, beginning with that o f May
31,1887, and followed by a large number o f others which have gradu
ally lengthened the “ classified ” list to such an extent as to include
a large number and a great variety o f productive operations. The
list is by no means confined to industrial occupations in a narrow
sense o f the term, but extends to such establishments as theaters,
butcher shops, and laundries.
For the second and fourth categories o f employees named above—
that is, for all children under 16 and for female persons under 21
years o f age—the King may forbid work which exceeds their strength
or involves danger for them. He may forbid their employment alto
gether in occupations that are recognized as unhealthful, or authorize
such employment only for a specified number o f hours per day, or for
a fixed number o f days, or only upon certain conditions. The law,
furthermore, provides that the King shall fix the length o f the work
day for these persons, as well as the number and duration o f pauses
for rest, according to the nature of the occupations and the require
ments o f the trade or industry in which these persons are engaged.
But they must not work more than 12 hours a day, interrupted by
periods o f rest the total duration o f which shall not be less than 1|
hours; nor shall they work at night, i. e., between 9 p. m. and 5 a. m.
The King may make exceptions to the above provisions so far as
boys between 14 and 16 years and girls over 16 years o f age (but under
21) are concerned. He may, either unconditionally and in general,
or upon certain specified conditions, authorize their employment after
9 p. m. and before 5 a. m. at work which because of its nature can not
be interrupted or delayed, or which must be attended to at definite
times o f the day or night. He may also permit the employment in mines
at night o f certain sorts of laborers between 14 and 16 years of age,
as well as the employment as early as 4 a. m. o f boys not under 12
years o f age. In cases where work has been stopped by forces beyond
96
BULLETIN OF TH E BUKEAU OF LABOR.
human control, and under exceptional circumstances, the provincial
governor, after receiving the report o f the proper inspector, may
grant a similar authorization for all trades or all industries o f a
given district. But the governor’s decree to this effect loses its valid
ity i f not approved within ten days by the minister o f industry
and labor; nor may the authorization be for a longer period than
two months, although it may be renewed after consultation with the
proper inspector.
[Children under 16 and female persons under 21 years o f age shall
not work more than 6 days a week. But the K ing may authorize the
employment o f children over 14 for 7 days a week, either habitually,
or for a definite period, or upon certain conditions, in those industries
in which the nature o f the work is such as to suffer neither interrup
tion nor delay. In any case, however, these persons shall have suf
ficient time to attend to their religious duties once a week, as well as
one full day of rest in every two weeks.]
[In cases o f vis major the inspectors, mayors, and provincial gov
ernors may authorize the employment, in all industries, on the
seventh day, o f male children under 16 and. o f females over 16 and
under 21 years o f age. But the minister o f industry and labor must
be notified o f this action. With regard to females over 16 and under
21 years o f age, the minister himself may, in cases o f vis major, and
after receiving a report upon the subject by the inspector, authorize
their employment 7 days in the week for a total period not exceed
ing 6 weeks.] (a)
In the exercise o f the large discretionary powers conferred upon
him by the law, the K ing is required to consult the councils o f indus
try and labor or the sections thereof representing the trades con
cerned, as well as the permanent delegation o f the provincial council,
and the upper council o f public hygiene or a technical committee
thereof.
The law furthermore prohibits the employment o f female persons
under 21 years o f age at underground work in mines and quarries
(excepting those already so employed before January 1,1892).
Children under 16 and female persons under 21 years o f age must
have a certificate (carnet), the nature o f which is determined by royal
decree, and which shall be furnished free o f charge by the communal
authorities. This certificate must give the full name, the date and
place o f birth, and the domicile o f the bearer, as well as the full name
and the domicile o f the parents or guardian. A ll official records
needed for this purpose shall be copied free o f charge. Each indus
trial proprietor, employer, and director must keep a list containing
the above information concerning the persons in his employ belonging
to the above-named categories. He shall, moreover, post conspicu
« Tbe bracketed provisions were abrogated by tbe Sunday law o f July 17,1905.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN BELGIUM.
97
ously in the place o f work the provisions o f this law, the general
regulations passed for its enforcement, the special regulations con
cerning the industry in which he is engaged, and the rules and regu
lations o f his establishment. Copies o f the last-named document
shall be deposited with the council o f trade and the local factory
inspector.
With regard to the enforcement o f the law it is simply provided
that this shall be intrusted to officials designated by the Government,
whose powers and duties shall be fixed by royal decree. But the law
states that these officials have the right to enter all establishments sub
ject to the law and to inspect the certificates and lists o f employees
mentioned above; and industrial proprietors, employers, directors,
superintendents, foremen, and laborers are required to give the in
spectors the information they ask for in securing the observance of
the law. I f the law is violated, the inspectors shall make an official
report o f the violation, and .this report constitutes valid evidence until
proof o f the contrary is adduced. A copy thereof must be sent to the
offender within forty-eight hours, otherwise the complaint is invalid.
Industrial proprietors, employers, directors, or superintendents
who knowingly violate the law or the decrees for its enforcement are
punishable by a fine o f 26 to 100 francs ($5.02 to $19.30), payable as
many times as there are persons employed contrary to the law, save
that the total penalty shall not exceed 1,000 francs ($193). In case
o f offenses repeated within one year, however, the fine shall be
doubled. The same penalty may be inflicted upon industrial propri
etors, employers, directors, or superintendents who attempt to pre
vent the supervision for which the law and decrees provide, in addi
tion to such penalties as may be prescribed by the Penal Code. Indus
trial proprietors are liable at civil law for fines imposed upon their
superintendents or agents.
The parent or guardian who permits his or her child or ward to
work in violation o f the terms of the law may be fined from 1 to 25
francs (19.3 cents to $4.83), or double this amount in case of a repe
tition o f the offense within one year. The right to institute proceed
ings under this law expires by limitation one year after the offense
has been committed.
Finally, it is provided that certain portions of the Penal Code are
applicable to violations o f this law, and that the Government shall
make a report to Parliament every three years upon its enforcement
and its effects.
LEGISLATIVE AND ADMINISTRATIVE MODIFICATION OF THE L A W OF 1889.
The law o f 1889 gave large discretionary powers to the King, to
the Ministry o f Industry and Labor, and to mayors, provincial gov
ernors. and inspectors. In a certain sense it constituted merely a
98
BULLETIN OF TH E BUBEAU OF LABOK.
framework, to be filled out by the administrative authorities o f the
Kingdom in the light o f experience and in conformity with the dic
tates o f expediency. It thus becomes necessary to give some account
o f these administrative measures, as far as they supplement or modify
the law o f 1889. In the following section will be discussed those
legislative measures, apart from the law o f 1889, which involve more
or less protection for laboring minors.
A first series o f royal decrees was issued on December 26, 1892,
concerning the length o f the workday, the duration of the periods of
rest, night work, (°) throughout the 7 days o f the week, in certain speci
fied groups o f industries employing male persons under 16 and female
persons under 21 years o f age. These persons are hereafter desig
nated as “ protected persons.”
The principal industries affected by these decrees are as follow s:
1. Spinning flax and weaving linen, cotton, hemp, and jute. In the
cotton textile industries the maximum for protected persons must not
exceed 66 hours a week, nor must it be longer than 11\ hours on any
single day. In the other textiles named the maximum workday must
not exceed 11 hours. Children under 13 years o f age must not work
more than 6 hours a day. These total periods of work per day must
be interrupted by at least three pauses for rest, o f a total duration of
not less than 1| hours; the midday rest period must last at least 1
hour; during the pauses the machines must be stopped and the labor
ers allowed to leave the mill. For children under 13 years of age,
however, the pauses need not be longer than a quarter o f an hour.
Proprietors or employers must post up, in a conspicuous place in the
factory, a schedule showing the time at which the working periods
and the pauses begin and end; a copy thereof and notice of any
changes therein must be sent to the minister of industry and labor. ( *&)
2. Woolen industries: Maximum workday for protected persons,
11J hours. Same number and total duration of pauses as in group 1.
3. Printing newspapers: Maximum workday for protected persons,
10 hours. There must be “ several ” pauses, amounting in all to 1£
hours.
4. Art industries (typographers, lithographers, chromo-lithogra
phers, phototypists, heliogravurists, etc.; casting printer’s type;
bookbinders; precious-stone cutters and jewelers; stamping, polish
ing, engraving, and enameling precious metals; modelers, molders,
sculptors, decorators, carvers, inlayers, medal coiners, etc.; painters
on porcelain and glass, and makers o f stained glass; engravers on
___________________ ____
^
0 It should be remembered that in these decrees night work is that done be
tween 9 p. m. and 5 a. m.
6 The rules regarding the working schedule apply to all groups of industries
hereinafter enumerated, and to all establishments in which protected persons are
employed. They have therefore not been repeated for the succeeding groups.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN BELGIUM.
99
wood, copper, steel, etc.; musical-instrument makers; manufacturers
o f articles o f an artistic nature in plaster or cement; coiners o f
m oney): Maximum workday for protected persons, 10 hours; for
children under 16 in type foundries, 8 hours. Same rules concern
ing number and duration o f pauses as in group 1.
5. Paper and cardboard: Maximum workday, 10 hours for chil
dren between 14 and 16 years o f age and female persons between 16
and 21, broken by at least three pauses amounting to 1\ hours. For
children between 12 and 14 years o f age the workday must not exceed
6 hours, interrupted by one or more pauses amounting to half an
hour. Boys between 14 and 16 may be employed at night, but the
total duration o f their working period shall not exceed 10 hours.
Same rules for the number and duration of pauses as in group l . ( a)
6. Tobacco and cigars: Maximum workday for children between
14 and 16 and for girls between 16 and 21 years of age, 10 hours.
Same rules for number and duration o f pauses as in group 1. For
children between 12 and 14 years old, same workday and pauses as
for those in group 5.
7. Manufacture o f sugar: Maximum workday for protected per
sons, 10J hours. Same rules for number and duration o f pauses as
in group 1. Boys between 14 and 16 and girls over 16 years o f age
may be employed at night, but they must not work longer than pro
tected persons generally and are subject to the same rule concerning
pauses.
8. Furniture and the industries auxiliary to the building trades
(cabinetmakers, wood turners, sculptors in wood, floor makers, paperhangers, manufacturers of furnishings, furniture makers, basket
makers, looking-glass makers, picture framers, manufacturers of
marble articles, molding makers, carriage and wagon builders and
painters, wheelwrights, box makers, coopers, brush and broom
makers, billiard-table manufacturers, e tc .): Maximum workday for
children under 16 years of age, 9 hours in the 6 months from October
to March, inclusive, and 10 hours the remainder o f the year. Same
rules concerning number and length o f pauses as in group 1.
9. Pottery and earthenware: Maximum workday for protected
persons, 10 hours. Same number and duration o f pauses as for
group 1.
10. Fireproof products: Precisely the same rules as for group 1.
11. Plate gla^s and mirrors: Maximum workday for protected per
sons, 10 hours. Boys between 14 and 16 years o f age may be em
ployed at casting plate glass and mirror glass at night, but not for a
°A decree of March 31, 1903, modified this paragraph so as to apply only to
“ protected” persons employed in the following operations: Boiling the raw
materials, making pulp, bleaching, straining, paper making by hand or by
machine, pressing, calendering, sizing, drying, and cutting.
100
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
longer total period than 10 hours in any 24. Same number and dura
tion of pauses as for group 1. [One week out of two, boys over 14
years o f age may be employed 7 days per week, but they must not
work more than 6 hours on the seventh day, interrupted by a halfhour’s pause, and they must have time for religious exercises.] (°)
12. Manufacture of chemical matches: Maximum workday for
protected persons, 10£ hours. Same pauses as for group 1.
13. Building trades (navvies, stonecutters, masons, bricklayers,
carpenters and woodworkers, joiners, glaziers, slate roofers, lathers,
plasterers, plumbers, zinc workers, and their helpers): Maximum
workday for children under 16 years o f age, 8 hours in November,
December, January, and February; 10 hours the remainder of the
year; interrupted during the four months named by pauses amount
ing to 1 hour, and during the remainder of the year by pauses amount
ing to 1J hours.
14. Zinc rolling m ills: Maximum workday for children between 12
and 14 years o f age, 5 hours; for boys between 14 and 16, and female
persons between 16 and 21 years of age, 10 hours. The working
period for children under 14 must be interrupted by a pause of at
least half an hour’s duration. The workday for male and female
persons above 14 years of age must be interrupted by pauses amount
ing to at least 1^ hours, the midday pause being for at least 1 hour,
between 11 and 2 o’clock. Boys between 14 and 16 may be employed
at night, but for not more than a total period o f 10 hours, which must
be broken by pauses amounting to not less than 1J hours, including a
pause o f at least half an hour between 11 p. m. and 2 a. m.
15. Manufacture o f crystal and glass ware: Maximum workday
for protected persons, 10 hours and 20 minutes, divided by three
pauses, one o f at least 20 minutes in the morning, one o f at least
half an hour at midday, and a third of at least 20 minutes in the
afternoon. Boys between the ages o f 14 and 16 years and female
persons between 16 and 21 may be employed at night. [In alternate
weeks children between 14 and 16 may be employed 7 days a week,
but upon the seventh day they shall not work longer than 6 hours,
interrupted by a pause o f at least half an hour, and they must be
given time to attend to their religious duties.] (a)
16 and 17. Industries auxiliary to the manufacture o f clothing:
This group o f industries is divided into two classes. The first in
cludes mainly articles of wool, cotton, and linen (such as hosiery,
underclothing, lace, gauze, thread, embroidery, trimmings, etc.).
The second consists o f such occupations as tanning, leather dressing,
tawing; the manufacture o f morocco leather, portfolios, gloves,
a The bracketed provision was modified by the Sunday law o f July 17, 1905.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN BELGIUM.
101
gaiters, saddles; sheath making; boot and shoe making and repair
ing; the manufacture o f buttons, hats and caps, collars, cuffs, and
lingerie; the manufacture o f corsets and skirts (other than w oolen );
laundering, dyeing, cleaning, and bleaching wearing apparel; manu
facture o f umbrellas, canes, and parasols; and the manufacture o f
toilet articles.
In the first class o f occupations protected persons may not work
more than 11 hours a day, with pauses like those provided for group
1. In the second class o f occupations protected persons have a maxi
mum workday o f 10 hours, broken by pauses amounting to 1 hour,
during which the laborers shall be at liberty to leave the workrooms.
18. Large metal manufactures and engineering (including the
manufacture o f steam boilers; iron and copper boiler forging and
smithing; steam, pumping, hauling, winding, and blast engines; loco
motives and locomobiles; railway cars and coaches, tenders, wheels,
tires, axles, springs, buffers; casting iron and copper for building
purposes; metal vats, frames, flywheels, cylinders; bridges, scaffoldingSj and steel construction; gas and water pipes; stamping, boring,
perforating, and cutting machines; machines employed in manufac
tures, paper making, etc.; building and repairing ships; manufacture
o f cannons and pieces o f artillery): Maximum workday for children
under 14 years o f age, 10 hours; for children between 14 and 16 and
female persons between 16 and 21 years o f age, 11 hours. The work
ing period for children under 14 years o f age must be broken by
pauses amounting to not less than 1 hour, during which they must be
at liberty to leave their workrooms.
19. Small building materials and metal manufactures: These in
dustries are divided, so far as this law is concerned, into two classes.
In the first class (including the manufacture of saws, bolts, rivets*
nails, staples, files, needles, pins, small stamping and cutting ma
chines, hand tools, farming implements, scales and balances, gas and
water meters, sheet metal, wire, steel writing pens, cutlery, metallic
and enameled household utensils, blacksmithing, sewing machines*
bicycles, straps for machines, etc.), children between 12 and 14 years
o f age shall not work more than 10 hours a day; boys between 14 and
16 and girls between 14 and 21 shall not work more than 11 hours a
day. In the second class (including the construction of scientific
instruments; photographic, telegraphic, and telephonic apparatus;
watches and clocks; surgical and orthopedic instruments; small cast
ings and ornaments in iron and copper; bells, locks, stoves, and safes;
tinware and hardware; lamps and lighting appliances; portable
weapons and firearms) no protected persons must work more than 10
hours a day. In both the first and second class of industries there
must be pauses in the workday amounting to at least 1| hours, includ
102
B U LLETIN OF TH E BUKEAU OF LABOR.
ing a midday pause o f 1 hour, during which the employees shall be
at liberty to leave the workrooms.
The industries named above are all regulated by decrees o f Decem
ber 26, 1892. (a) Subsequent decrees have regulated the following
additional occupations:
20. Manufacture of enameled goods: Boys between 14 and 16
years o f age may be employed at night during alternate weeks in
attending to burning kilns, but not for a total o f more than 10 hours
out o f 24, subject to the same pauses as for group 19.
21. Manufacture of “ handmade ” bricks, tiles, and similar prod
ucts : Maximum workday for protected persons, 12 hours. Whenever
the actual working period exceeds 8 hours, it shall be interrupted by
at least three pauses, amounting to not less than
hours, including a
pause o f at least 1 hour in the middle o f the workday. Whenever the
actual working period exceeds 6 hours and is not more than 8 hours
there shall be one or more pauses amounting to at least 1 hour. The
time o f pauses may be fixed according to the weather and the exigen
cies o f production, provided that every actual working period of 4
hours be followed by a pause o f at least 15 minutes.
22. Preserving and canning fish: Maximum workday for protected
persons, 11 hours. Whenever the actual workday exceeds 8 hours
there shall be at least three pauses, amounting to at least 1J hours,
including one pause o f at least 1 hour. Whenever the actual workday
exceeds 6 but is less than 8 hours, there shall be one or more pauses
amounting to at least 1 hour. Every working period o f 4 hours must
be followed by a rest o f at least 15 minutes. Boys between 14 and 16
and girls between 16 and 21 years o f age may be employed tempo
rarily between 9 p. m. and midnight on a total number of days not
exceeding 30 per year, but under no circumstances shall they work
more than 12 hours a day nor be deprived o f the pauses above pro
vided for. The employer wTill be given a stub book containing 30
detachable pages, and whenever he desires to take advantage of the
permission granted above, he shall send one o f these pages to the
proper inspector or delegate, bearing the date o f the day upon which
this privilege is exercised as well as the number o f protected persons
concerned.
23. Manufacture o f window glass, particularly basin furnaces,
spreading ovens, and pot furnaces: Maximum workday for protected
persons, 10^ hours, broken by pauses amounting to at least 1J hours.
I f the workday is less than 10| hours, the total duration o f the pauses
may be reduced proportionately. Every actual working period shall
be followed by a pause of twrice its duration,(*) and there must be 1*6
a Modified by the Sunday law of July 17, 1905.
6 Except at the end o f the week, when shifts alternate from night work to day
work, or vice versa.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN BELGIUM.
103
complete day o f rest in 14. Children between the ages o f 14 and 1G
and female persons between 16 and 21 may be employed at night, pro
vided the above rules concerning the maximum workday and pauses
are observed. They may be employed only during 13 days out o f 14
days or
days out o f 7. These days or half-days o f rest need not
fall on Sundays nor on the same days for all employees. The weekly
halfday o f rest must be granted either before or after 1 p. m., and
at such times the work must not exceed 5 hours, interrupted by a
pause o f at least 15 minutes. Once a week all protected persons mustbe granted sufficient time to attend to their religious duties.
24. Mines, quarries, and allied industries :( a) In underground work
male persons under 16 years o f age shall not work more than 10|
hours, including the. time for descending into the mines and returning
to the surface. There must be pauses in the work amounting to at
least one-eighth o f the period o f their sojourn underground. Boys
over 12 years o f age may be employed underground from 4 a. m. on,
subject to the above rules for pauses. Boys between 14 and 16 years
o f age may be employed underground at night in passageways and
at sorting, provided the maximum workday does not exceed 10 hours
and is broken by pauses as provided for above. For protected persons
employed overground, the maximum workday is 10£ hours, broken
by pauses amounting to at least 1J hours; if the actual workday is
less than 10J hours the pauses may be reduced proportionately. Girls
between the ages o f 16 and 21 years may be employed overground at
night in attending to lamps, for a period not exceeding 10£ hours per
day, broken by pauses amounting to at least l\ hours (or propor
tionately less if the workday is less than 10J hours).
A special decree concerning the coal mines o f Mariemont permits
the employment from 9 p. m. to midnight at certain underground
work o f boys between 14 and 16 years o f age, provided the total work
day does not exceed 10 hours, including the descent and ascent, with
pauses equal to one-eighth o f the total period spent underground.
Girls over 16 years o f age may be employed aboveground at sorting
machines between 9 p. m. and midnight, but not for a total o f more
than 9 hours, broken by pauses amounting to at least 1 hour.
25. Manufacture o f coke: Maximum workday for protected per
sons, 10J hours, with pauses amounting to 1| hours, including one
pause o f not less than 1 hour. [Boys between 14 and 16 years of age
may be employed 7 days a week on alternate weeks, but not for more
than 8 hours on the seventh day, interrupted by intervals amounting
to at least 1 hour and granting sufficient time for the observance o f
their religious duties.] (&6
)
On December 31, 1909, a law was passed fixing the maximum workday for
underground workers in mines at 9 hours, even for adults, to go into effect on
January 1, 1912. These 9 hours include the time o f descent and ascent.
6 The bracketed provision was abrogated by the Sunday law o f July 17,1905.
104
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
The above rules apply to ordinary coke ovens. Concerning those
for the manufacture of by-products the same rules prevail, except
that boys between 14 and 16 years o f age may be employed at night,
but not for more than a total of 10^ hours in 24, with pauses amount
ing to 1| hours, including a principal pause o f at least 1 hour.
26. Manufactures o f combustible carbon preparations: Maximum
workday for protected persons, 10J hours, with pauses amounting to
1| hours, including a principal pause o f at least 1 hour.
27. Quarries and workshops connected therewith: Same rules for
protected persons as in group 24, save that those working overground
shall not work more than 10 hours a day, except in repair shops,
in which they may be employed 10J hours. The pauses (amounting
to 1J hours for overground work and 1 hour for underground work)
may be reduced proportionately when the workday is curtailed be
cause o f short days in winter or for other reasons.
28. Metallurgical establishments, governed by the law o f April 21,
1810 (which concerns blast furnaces; iron and steel manufacture;
iron, steel, and copper rolling m ills; zinc and lead smelting; the ex
traction o f silver, lead, etc.; and allied processes): Maximum work
day for protected persons, 10J hours. Pauses amounting to 1£
hours, including a principal pause o f at least half an hour between
11 and 2 o’clock for laborers attending the furnaces, and o f at least
1 hour, at midday for other laborers. In establishments having a
shorter workday by reason o f a division o f work among several shifts
o f employees, the pauses may be reduced proportionately. Boys be
tween 14 and 16 years o f age may be employed at night, except at
auxiliary tasks; so also may female persons between 16 and 21 year§
o f age engaged in feeding blast furnaces; provided in both cases that
the duration o f work and pauses conform to the above rules.
Quite as important as the decrees regulating the labor o f children
in the above 28 groups o f industries (a) are the decrees o f February 19,
1895, and o f August 5, 1895, forbidding the employment o f protected
persons in certain enumerated trades, and regulating their employ
ment in certain branches o f other specified trades. The decree o f
February 19, 1895, entirely forbids the employment o f all' children
under 16 years o f age and o f female persons under 21 years o f age in
the following occupations and industries: The manufacture o f
hydrofluoric acid, nitric acid, sulphurous acid, and sulphites; dis
secting rooms; arsenic products; Sanders blue and other copper
compounds; gold and silver cupellation with lead; lead ashes; white
lead; patent and lacquered leather; animal debris; fertilizer contain
ing animal matter; ether; massicot and red lead; menageries con
taining wild or poisonous animals; distilling naphtha and benzine;
a Modified
in some respects by the Sunday law o f July 17, 1905.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN BELGIUM.
105
orseille; phosphorus; preparing bristles by processes of fermenta
tion; and carbon disulphide.
The same decree forbids the employment o f children under 16 years
o f age in a long list o f occupations, consisting chiefly o f the manufac
ture o f chemical products usually made by means o f processes that
create noxious fumes or involve danger. This list is as follows:
Slaughterhouses, private or public; handling dead animals; manipu
lating and cutting hides; handling kitchen garbage; distilling and
rectifying alcohol; removing silver from copper; making cologne and
similar products by distillation; making Javelle water directly with
chlorine; the manufacture o f sulphuric and hydrochloric acid, zinc
oxide, catgut, chlorine, chloride o f lime, chromates, sulphate o f soda,
and varnish; scalding tubs for preparing and boiling intestines and
other animal refuse or in which the heads and feet of dead animals
are treated to remove the hair or fur; electrical establishments in
which accumulators are charged or in which light or motive power
is produced for distribution; manufacture o f tarred felt for lining
ships; manufacture o f lacquered or varnished felt; silvering mirrors;
distilling oil o f turpentine, spike oil, coal oil, petroleum, and shale
oil; the large-scale production o f linseed oil; the manufacture, for
sale, o f “ Liqueur de Labarraque ” by direct action of chlorine; the
storage o f inflammable materials in establishments included in the
first group o f those listed as dangerous, unhealthful or unsuitable;
manufacture o f nitrobenzol; shops for smoking and salting fish;
manufacture o f ferrocyanide o f potash by the use o f air nitrogen
on alkaline carbides, and o f other cyanides; manufacture of ferro
cyanide o f potash by calcination of animal substances with potash,
or by carbon disulphide and hydrosulphide o f ammonia; largescale manufacture o f resinous materials either by smelting and
refining o f these materials, or for extracting turpentine; distilling
resins for the manufacture o f fine oils and volatile oils; storing
and drying animal blood; manufacture o f soda ash by the decom
position o f sodium sulphate; manufacture o f caustic soda from soda
ash; manufacture of blue vitriol with sulphur and by means o f
roasting; manufacture o f blue vitriol from copper oxide or copper
carbonate and sulphuric acid; manufacture o f copperas by the
action o f sulphuric acid on iron; manufacture of sulphate o f zinc
from sulphuric acid and zinc; manufactures in which fatty sub
stances are extracted by use o f carbon disulphide; the preservation
and preparation o f meats; the application o f heated varnish, gloss,
colors, or any coating, to paper, wood, cloth, or surfaces of any other
nature.
In chemical match factories protected persons must not be em
ployed in making yellow phosphorus paste nor in the rooms in which
the matches are dried that have been dipped in this paste; nor may
106
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
they be employed in dipping such matches. Children under 14 years
o f age must not be employed at filling boxes with such matches.
In shops in which india rubber is treated with bisulphite o f carbon
the presence o f children under 16 years o f age is forbidden, and the
work o f female persons over 16 years of age is limited to 5 hours a
day, i. e., 2£ hours in the morning and 2-| hours in the afternoon.
In places where the skins o f rabbits and o f hares are carroted it is
forbidden to employ children under 16 and female persons under 21
years o f age at treating the skins with mercuric nitrate; in places
where these skins are prepared before carrotting, and in all operations
after carroting, it is forbidden to employ children under 16 years
o f age.
Children under 14 years o f age, however, may be employed at rip
ping and cleaning uncarroted skins, wrhen these operations are accom-,
plished apart from all other manipulations o f the skins (especially
dry brushing) and in places in which the dangerous emanations andj
dust are eliminated.
The same decree then enumerates about thirty industries and sorts
o f establishments, and specifies certain processes thereof or certain
parts o f the establishments, in which not only the labor but even the,
presence o f children under 16 years of age is forbidden, as follow s:'
Industry or establishment.
Parts thereof in which the labor or presence of
children under 16 is prohibited.
Manufacture of aniline dyes..................................... . Shops for nitrification and reduction.
Gold and silver plating metals................................ . Shops in which the galvanizing is done or in
which fire gilding takes place.
Bleaching thread or tissues of wool or silk with Rooms in which sulphurous acid is given off
freely.
sulphurous acid.
Bleaching thread or cloths of flax, hemp, or cot Rooms in which chlorine is given off freely.
ton with chlorine or bleaching chlorides.
Sawmills and wood cutting by machinery............ . Shops in which dangerous implements are used.'
Manufacture of cement............................................ . Rooms in which crushing, grinding, bolting,
and filling bags is done, when the dust made
by these operations is not drawn off by venti
lating apparatus.
Manufacture of felt hats............................................ Rooms in which dust is given off freely.
Manufacture of silk hats and those involving Rooms in which the polishing substances are
made or used.
similar processes.
Manufacture of animal charcoal by carbonization Rooms in which fatty substances are extracted
of old hides or other animal matter, or by car
by means of benzine.
bonization of bones and revivification of the
same product; also bone black.
Manufacture of catgut............................................... Rooms in which mucous membranes are removed
from the intestines by putrefaction.
Shops for cleaning and preparing horsehair............ Shops in which dust is formed.
Gleaning copper with nitric acid.............................. Shops in which nitrous gases are given off freely.
Scouring by means of naphtha or other hydrocar Shops in which the naphtha or other toxic mate
bons; dye works; dyeing and scouring establish
rial is handled.
ments.
Washing and bleaching sponges.............................. Shops in which fetid odors are produced by the'
decomposition and fermentation of gelatinous
animal substances.
Manufacture of all sorts of explosives...................... Dangerous rooms.
Manufacture of foot oil............................................... Rooms in which are produced the odors of ani
mal substances in putrefaction.
Manufacture of blubber.............................................. Rooms in which steeping vats are kept.
Extraction of russet oil from tallow and greasy Rooms in which the extractive processes are
carried on.
refuse at high temperature.
Manufacture of spirituous liquors by distillation... Rooms in which distillation takes place.
Rooms
in which nauseous odors are produced.
Morocco tanning shops................................................
Large-scale manipulation or mixture of mineral Rooms in which ahst, smoke, or odors are pro
and vegetable substances apt to produce dust,
duced.
smoke, or nauseative and unhealthful odors.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN BELGIUM,
Industry or establishment.
107
Parts thereof in which the labor or presence of
children under 16 is prohibited.
Tanning and leather dressing.................................. . Shops in which hides are treated with lime and
sulphide of arsenic.
Shops in which this is done by aid of acids.
Rooms in which the dust is not removed by ven
tilating apparatus.
Places in which the fresh bones are kept and in
which the sorting is done.
Places in which smelting is done.
Places in which dust is given off freely.
Rooms in which dust or acid vapors are given off
freely.
Superphosphate of lime (the preparatory treat Rooms in which dust is given off freely.
ment of phosphatic chalk).
Glass works.................................................................. Rooms in which the’ raw materials are mixed and
in which etching with hydrofluoric acid is done.
Refining precious metals...........................................
Mills for crushing dyewoods, stones, lime, cement,
plaster, sulphate of baryta, etc.
Bone yards of a capacity of more than 25 kilos (55
pounds).
Manufacture of shot....................................................
Cleaning and preparing feathers and downs..........
Manufacture of superphosphates..............................
This list is followed by another in which the presence and labor of
children under 14 years o f age is forbidden, as follow s:
Industry or establishment.
Parts thereof in which the labor or presence of
children under 14 is prohibited.
Sharpening and polishing parts of firearms by Rooms in which sharpening and polishing is
means of grinding mills.
done.
Manufacture of metal buttons.................................. Shops in which scouring and scraping is carried
on.
Breweries and distilleries.......................................... Malt cellars and places in which fermentation
takes place.
Manufacture of brushes.......................................... . Shops in which fibers and silks are prepared and
combed,
Combing and peeling (on a large scale) of hemp, Shops in which dust is set free and not removed
flax, and similar textiles; cleaning wool; spin
by means of ventilating apparatus.
ning cotton, flax, hemp, wool, and jute; manu
facture of absorbent cotton in layers; beating
wool (on a large scale); handling wool waste;
reducing woolen rags; accessory processes in tex
tile manufactures; steeping (on a large scale) of
the above textiles by means of chemical agents
and power machinery.
Rag-picking establishments with a capacity of Rooms in which the rags are stored, unpacked,
and sorted, unless the rags are new and come
over 50 kilos (110pounds).
directly from textile mills, dressmaking estab
lishments, etc.
Large-scale metal plating by dry processes; manu Shops for dipping and plating.
facture of tin plate; plating iron and steel uten
sils.
Manufacture of terra cotta and porcelain............... Rooms in which dust is caused by grinding and
bolting.
Copper, brass, lead, and zinc foundries................. . Shops in which smelting is done.
Galvanizing iron........................................................ . Shops for dipping and galvanizing.
Printing on textiles; manufacture of colored and Rooms in which is prepared the paste or coloring
substances containing poisonous ingredients.
marbled paper; printed calico; oilcloth.
Polishing nickel-plated metals by means of power Rooms in which the polishing is done.
wheels.
Glass works.................................................................. Glass-cutting shops in which polishing is done
with the aid of lead putty.
Zincking iron.............................................................. Shops for dipping and galvanizing.
Children between the ages o f 12 and 14 who work in rag-picking
establishments must be separated from the other employees in a
room properly lighted and thoroughly ventilated, adjoining which
there must be a cloakroom in which they shall be required to change
their ordinary clothes for others before beginning work.
The law o f December 13, 1889, it will be recalled, applies to certain
specified types o f industrial establishments, among which are “ those
classified as dangerous, unhealthful, or unsuitable,” Moreover, estab
108
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
lishments in which only “ members o f the family are employed under
the authority o f the father, mother, or guardian ” are excluded from
the operation o f this law, 44provided they are not classified as dan
gerous, unhealthful, or unsuitable.” Hence it is a matter o f impor
tance to inquire what establishments are thus 44classified.” The
application o f special regulations for such establishments has always
been regarded as a part of the police functions o f the administration,
but it is interesting to note that a considerable number o f estab
lishments have been 44classified ” by royal decree a s64highly unhealth
ful or dangerous ” or simply as 44dangerous, unhealthful, and un
suitable,” or as 44involving certain operations that are dangerous,
unhealthful, and unsuitable.” (a) A ll such rules as those concerning
ventilation, safety appliances, etc., manifestly redound to the benefit
o f nonadult as well as adult laborers. But no distinct and separate
standards are set up for nonadult laborers, apart from those already
mentioned; hence a discussion o f these decrees does not properly fall
wfithin the scope o f this report. ( 6)
The same is true o f the law o f June 15, 1896, concerning shop
rules ( c) ; the law o f March 10, 1900, concerning the labor contract,
which is essentially a modification o f the civil law concerning con
tractual capacities; the law o f December 24, 1903, fixing employers’
liability for accidents to employees in industrial establishments, as
well as certain classes of agricultural and commercial enterprises, and
providing for workmen’s compensation; and the law o f June 25,
1905, requiring that seats be provided for female employees in shops
and stores.
The Sunday law o f July 17,1905, and the royal decrees which have
been passed under it,(d) bear somewhat more directly upon the em
ployment o f children, particularly male children. The law o f Decem-*2
5
°T h e principal royal decrees upon this subject bear the following dates:
November 12, 1849; January 29, 1863; December 27,1886; May 31,1887; March
25, 1890; March 27, 1891; September 21, 1894; December 31, 1894; February 4
and 12, 1895; April 18, 1898; July 8, 1898; October 5, 1898; October 28, 1899;
March 30 and 31, 1905; May 13, 1905.
h Among establishments regarded as particularly dangerous are phosphorus
match factories; those engaged in the manufacture o f white lead, other lead
compounds, and window glass; loading, unloading, and repairing ships; and
certain kinds of work in the building trades. There are, also, over four hun
dred products in the manufacture o f which no person or firm may engage with
out “ administrative authorization.”
c This law requires industrial and commercial establishments to have a set
o f shop rules containing definite information upon a number o f points indi
cated by the law, such as the hours o f work, the age o f “ protected employees,”
the fines to which the laborers may be subjected, etc. Such rules must be
brought to the attention o f the employees, who must be given an opportunity
to suggest changes therein.
d These decrees are dated July 28,1906; April 15, May 27, and August 18,1907.
CHILD-LABOB LEGISLATION IN BELGIUM.
109
ber 13, 1889, and the royal decrees which supplement it were based on
the principle that males over 16 years o f age and females over 21 years
o f age require no special protection and therefore enjoy precisely the
same status as adult males. In other words, boys over 16 years o f
age are not children in the eyes o f the law, as far as the need o f
protection in industry is concerned. Hence the Sunday law, which
introduced a restriction upon the labor of adult males and females*
also introduced a modification of the conditions o f employment for
boys between 16 and 21 years o f age.
This law applies not only to industrial but also to commercial
establishments, except transportation by water, fishing, and period
ical markets and fairs.
Employees, apart from members of the employer’s family and his
domestic servants, must not be employed to work more than six days
per week. It is specifically stated that this provision is intended to
•apply to “ work done under the authority, direction, and oversight
o f an employer.” The day o f rest must be Sunday. Exceptions are
permitted in the following cases:
(1) When work is urgently necessary because o f circumstances
beyond human control or o f circumstances that can not be foreseen
in the ordinary course of business.
(2) Watching the places of business.
(3) The work o f cleaning, repairing, and caretaking necessary to
guarantee the normal continuance of business; and tasks, apart from
production, that are necessary to avoid delay in the regular resump
tion o f work on the following day.
(4) Work necessary to prevent the deterioration o f raw materials
or finished products.
The above sorts o f work may be carried on either by the regular
employees or by others; they are permissible only to the extent that
the normal transaction of business is not consistent with their per
formance on some other day o f the week than Sunday.
In a specified list o f industries and occupations the employees may
be kept at work 13 days out o f 14, or 6J days out o f 7; and in such
cases the day or half day of rest need not fall on Sundays nor be the
same for all the employees in a given establishment. The half day o f
rest must be given either before or after 1 p. m., but the working
period must not exceed five hours. This list includes:
(a) The manufacture of food products intended for immediate
delivery to consumers.
(b) The retail sale o f articles of food.
{c) Hotels, restaurants, and taverns.
(d) Tobacco stores and the sale o f natural flowers.
(e) Apothecaries’ shops and the sale o f medical and surgical ap
pliances.
56504°—No. 89—10----- 8
110
BU LLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
( / ) Public bathing establishments.
(g) The printing and sale of newspapers; public amusements.
( Ji) Loan libraries, the hire o f chairs, and means o f locomotion.
( i) Illuminating plants, and plants for the distribution o f water
or of motive power.
( j ) Transportation by land; loading and unloading at wharves,
landings, and stations.
(k) Employment agencies and agencies for the distribution o f
information.
( l) Industries in which the nature of the work is such as to suffer
neither interruption nor delay.
The lawTgives the King power to make additional exceptions to the
general principles o f the Sunday law. Thus, by royal decrees under
date o f April 15 and August 18,1907, employers in charge o f certain
kinds o f establishments in which work is carried on by two or more
relays o f laborers, may keep the night relay at work until 6 a. m. on
Sunday morning. In this case, however, these laborers may not begin
work again until fully 24 hours later. The list enjoying this privi
lege includes 23 industries, among which are the manufacture of
phosphate o f lime, saltpeter, potash, cornstarch; flour mills; the
manufacture o f lampwicks; stone cutting and polishing by machine;
and lead rolling mills.
The Sunday law expressly provides, however, that the exceptions
to the general provisions o f the law shall not apply to children under
16 years o f age, nor to female persons under 21 years of age, employed
in industries subject to the factory law o f 1889. But if the work in
any o f these industries is such as to suffer neither interruption nor
delay, the King may authorize the employment o f children over 14
years o f age* and o f female persons under 21, during seven days in
the week, either permanently or temporarily, or upon certain condi
tions. The royal decrees permitting such employment shall in all
cases provide that employees must be allowed once a week to attend
to their religious duties, and that they shall have either half a day
per week or a full day per fortnight for rest. Even in establishments
not comprised within the scope o f the law of 1889, the two provisions
just indicated shall apply to children under 16 and to females under
21 years o f age.
The royal decrees passed in conformity with the above provisions
(under date o f July 28, 1906, and May 27, 1907) concern the
children employed in the manufacture o f plate glass and mirrors; the
manufacture o f crystal and glassware; the manufacture o f window
glass; and canning and preserving vegetables. In the first, boys
between 14 and 16 may be employed seven days a week in alternate
weeks at the work o f casting the glass; on the seventh day, however,
the workday must not exceed six hours, interrupted by a pause o f at
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN BELGIUM.
Ill
least half an hour; they may be employed at this work seven days
every week provided the work on the seventh day lasts but four hours
or less, and is completed either before or after 1 p. m. In the second
occupation, children between 14 and 16 may work seven days a week
in alternate weeks in making sheet glass and in operations o f a
similar character which involve “ refining ” the glass; the work on
the seventh day must not be for more than six hours, interrupted by
at least half an hour’s pause. In the third occupation children
between 14 and 16 may work at the furnaces, glass pots, and spread
ing ovens thirteen days per fortnight or six and one-half days per
week; the half day’s rest, however, must be given entirely before or
entirely after 1 p. m., and the workday must not exceed five hours,
interrupted by a pause o f at least fifteen minutes. In canning and
preserving vegetables, children between 14 and 16 may be employed
thirteen days per fortnight or six and one-half days per week during
the period from June 10 to August 10; the half day’s rest must be
given either before or after 1 p. m., and the duration of the workday
must not exceed five hours, interrupted by a pause o f at least fifteen
minutes.
In the first, third, and last of the occupations named, ^he decrees
specifically provide that the days or half days for rest need not be on
Sundays, nor is it necessary that they be the same, in a given estab
lishment, for all the employees concerned.
AGENCIES FOR ENFORCING THE LABOR LAWS AND DECREES.
The present organization o f labor inspection in Belgium is fixed
mainly by a royal decree of October 22, 1895, modified by that of
February 20, 1899. The present labor office, combining the agencies
intrusted with the administration o f the labor laws and the collection
o f labor statistics, was organized on April 12, 1895, in conformity
with a royal decree o f the preceding year. This office also has charge
o f the collection and publication o f information concerning the con
ditions o f labor. It is empowered to make suggestions concerning the
extension and modification o f labor legislation, in conjunction with
the councils o f industry and labor, and the superior council o f
labor. (a)
The present organization o f labor inspection in Belgium provides
for two classes o f officials: Labor inspectors, under the direction o f the
labor office, and mining engineers, under the direction o f the adminis
tration o f mines. The latter are intrusted with the inspection o f
mines, quarries, and metallurgical establishments.
a The superior council o f labor ( Gonseil superieur du Travail) has 48 mem
bers appointed for a period o f four years by the King, o f which 16 represent the
laborers, 16 represent the employers o f labor, and the remaining 16 are experts
in economics and sociology.
112
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
Ill 1895 the staff o f labor inspectors consisted o f 22 persons, but
this number has been gradually increased to 40, divided into two
groups: (1) Labor inspectors attached to the central office, and (2)
labor inspectors or delegates residing in the Provinces, whose field of
activity and whose place o f residence are determined by the minister
o f industry and labor.
The inspectors at the central office are concerned particularly with
those industries and establishments that are specially designated by
the minister. It is their duty to supervise and coordinate the work
o f the provincial inspectors and delegates; to examine the reports of
the latter; and to suggest plans for the improvement of the service
generally. It is also their function to act as advisers whenever ap
peals are presented to the King with regard to the interpretation and
application o f the laws governing dangerous and insalubrious estab
lishments.
The central office includes 1 inspector-general, 1 director, 1 chief
inspector, 2 inspectors, 1 adjunct inspector, and 2 female inspectors
whose mission is to visit concerns in which only female laborers are
employed, such as dressmaking and millinery establishments.
The provincial service consists o f agents charged with inspecting
the establishments subject to the law in the 10 districts into which the
country has been divided for this purpose. Each district has at least
1 inspector, assisted by one or more “ adjuncts ” or “ delegates.” The
provincial service as a whole comprises 10 inspectors, 11 adjunct
inspectors, and 1 technical delegate; to these should be added 7 work
men delegates (delegues ouvriers) and 5 medical inspectors, mak
ing a total o f 34 officials in the provincial service.
A ll o f the officials are appointed at the free and unrestricted option
o f the minister o f industry and labor; that is to say, there are no com
petitive examinations and the choice is not limited to certain groups
o f persons. O f the 42 officials now in the service, 7 are physicians
and 23 are engineers. (a) The five medical inspectors are, by virtue of
the ministerial decree o f January 31, 1898, charged exclusively with
supervising the enforcement o f the regulations concerning the health
o f the laborers and the hygienic condition o f the places o f employ
ment. Another ministerial decree, under date o f June 17, 1902, fur
ther restricted the scope of their activity and assigned to them the
task o f investigating general or local causes o f insalubrity in indus
trial establishments, and o f making special studies o f such subjects as
may be assigned to them. The decree o f 1902 also provided for the
designation o f associate physicians to take charge o f such work as
examining laborers employed in certain particularly unhealthful
industries, like the manufacture o f phosphorus matches and o f lead
« That is to say, graduates o f a technical college or o f an engineering school
of university grade.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN BELGIUM.
113
compounds. A ministerial decree of December 31, 1902, appointed
38 (a) o f these associate physicians; they are paid, according to a scale
o f fees fixed by ministerial decree, by the employers whose establish
ments are subject to the law.
The labor inspectors and delegates receive in addition to a regular
salary an allowance for expenses o f transportation and residence
whenever they travel more than 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) away from
home.
The labor inspectors are charged with" supervising the enforcement
o f the following laws: That o f December 13, 1889, concerning the
labor o f women, adolescents, and children in industrial establish
ments; the regulations concerning establishments classified as dan
gerous or insalubrious; the law o f August 16, 1887, concerning the
payment o f wages; the law o f June 15, 1896, on factory and work
shop regulations; in a part o f the Kingdom, the law o f May 24, 1898,
concerning the police supervision of open-air quarries; the law of
July 2, 1899, concerning the health and security o f industrial and
commercial employees; the law o f March 10, 1900, concerning the
labor contract; the law o f July 30, 1901, regulating the measurement
o f w ork; the law of December 24, 1903, concerning compensation for
industrial accidents; the law o f June 25, 1905, requiring that seats
be provided for women employed in stores and shops; and the
Sunday law o f July 17, 1905.
The mining engineers, constituting the second general group o f
officials having to do with the enforcement o f labor laws, are not
appointed exclusively for this purpose. But as early as 1810 they
were required to “ watch over the safety o f employees and the pre
vention o f accidents,” and since the passage o f the law o f 1889 they
are required to secure the observance o f the law and decrees con
cerning the labor of protected persons in mines and allied establish
ments. This service in 1908 comprised 63 officials. T o these should
-be added 39 workmen delegates (clelegues ouvrievs), provided for
by the law o f April 11,1897, paid by the Government, and appointed
for 3 years. These delegates must have had at least 5 years’ expe
rience in skilled underground labor in mines, and not be engaged in
any business for profit; they must make at least 18 visits o f inspec
tion per month and record their observations. These records may be
commented upon in writing by the mine owners. Employers are
required to provide the delegates with guides in visiting mines, and
the delegates may question employees privately.
In a certain sense the local authorities in Belgium also take part
in applying labor laws, either by reporting infractions o f the law
or in giving notice o f its provisions. This is particularly true with
regard to the Sunday law.
0 In 1905 the number was 63.
114
B U LLETIN OF T H E BUREAU OF LABOR.
The rights and duties of labor inspectors in Belgium have already
been stated. They are empowered to enter all establishments subject
to the law at any hour o f the day or night, to interrogate employees
privately, and, o f course, to make a record o f their testimony. They
may demand o f employers all the information necessary to secure the
enforcement o f the law, and in case of violations their reports consti
tute valid evidence until disproved.
The penalties that may be imposed for infractions o f the law have
been stated in giving an account of the law o f 1889. For attempting
to place obstacles in the way o f an official engaged in performing his
duty, the penalties that may be imposed are provided for in the Penal
Code. As a rule, only the employer or his agent is liable to punish
ment ; but the law concerning the labor contract and the ordinary
criminal laws make it possible to punish also the employee who is
knowingly responsible for an infraction o f the law and who did not
act upon the order o f his superior.
Upon discovering a violation of the law the inspector prepares a
written report upon the matter, sends a copy to the offender, and
transmits the original to the public prosecutor (procurevr du roi),
who brings the case before the ordinary tribunals.
The results o f the activity o f the inspectors are reported annually
since 1895, and naturally constitute the main source o f information
with regard to the effects and the enforcement of the law.
The inspectors are required, moreover, after each tour of inspection
to send a report to the minister o f industry and labor concerning the
facts ascertained, adding, in case any o f the establishments have not
been visited previously during the year, a statement concerning the
number, sex, age, etc., o f the employees in such establishments on an
official form provided for this purpose and so arranged as to indicate
the infractions o f the law that have been noted and the steps that
have been taken to secure punishment or to prevent a recurrence or
continuation o f the offense. A summary o f these reports is published
monthly in the Revue du Travail, an official periodical issued twice a
month by the labor office. (a)
The increase in the number and scope of the labor laws and the
general growth o f industrial activity has led to a considerable in
crease in the number o f establishments and of laborers subject to the
supervision o f the inspectors. For the period between October, 1894,
and the end o f 1895 the number o f establishments visited was 5,791;
the number o f visits, 6,900; the total number o f employees in the es
tablishments visited, 218,826, and the number o f protected persons in
these establishments, 45,415. In the year 1907 more than 15,000
0 Revue du Travail. Publiee par l’Office du Travail de Belgique. Issued
on the 15th and the last day of each month, the summary o f inspectors’ reports
being contained in the issue for the 15th o f each month.
115
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN BELGIUM.
establishments or “ sections ” of establishments were visited, with
more than 300,000 laborers and more than 51,000 protected persons. (°)
During the course of each year the inspectors visit some establish
ments several times. Indeed, most o f the inspectors give a detailed
statement not only o f the number of establishments visited, but of
the number o f those visited two, three, and four or more times. The
great majority o f establishments, however, are visited but once in
the course o f the year.
ENFORCEMENT OF THE LAWS AND DECREES CONCERNING “ PROTECTED
PERSONS.’’
Upon one point the law of 1889 is perfectly definite and unequiv
ocal, namely, that persons under 12 years o f age must not be em
ployed in establishments subject to the law. But the employment of
such persons is not the only manner in which the law and the royal
decrees supplementing it may be violated. The absence o f the re
quired age certificate, failure to keep a list o f the protected persons,
night work after legally permitted hours, failure to grant the required
pauses for rest— these are some o f the other reasons for filing a
complaint and imposing a fine.
The following table indicates the total number o f accusations
brought for violating the law o f 1889 and the number o f separate
infractions (so-called “ contraventions” ). There may be several
contraventions for one complaint, inasmuch as the number o f contra
ventions is determined by the number of persons found employed
under conditions which violate the law. Thus, for instance, the
employment in a factory o f three children under the legal age of
admission will lead to one complaint involving three contraventions.
Year.
1896............................................
1897............................................
1898............................................
1899............................................
1900............................................
1901............................................
1902............................................
Com
Contra
plaints. ventions.
128
121
296
85
135
229
179
269
261
651
200
262
396
312
Year.
1903..........................................
1904..........................................
1905..........................................
1906..........................................
1907...........................................
1908..........................................
Com
Contra
plaints. ventions.
234
157
130
L23
148
127
373
274
207
198
238
o279
« This number is not exact because in.som e cases the Revue du T ravail, from w hich the
data are taken fo r 1908, did n ot indicate the number o f persons concerned in violations
o f the l a w ; the actual number is probably larger.
The first question that arises in connection with these figures is the
number o f cases and contraventions due to that clause o f the law
which excludes children under 12 years o f age from the factory.
« It is impossible, upon the basis o f the reports o f the inspectors, to give any
accurate figures for recent years, because some o f the inspectors give no data
whatever with regard to the total number o f laborers in the establishments
visited or with regard to the number o f protected persons in them. During
the past few years, moreover, the central office gives only a very meager annual
summary o f the results for the several districts.
116
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
Considering this question alone, and taking the reports of the in
spectors from year to year to answer it, we find that in 1895, 81 chil
dren under the required age were found at work (70 boys and 11
girls). More than half o f these were found in brickyards. This is
not a large number for 5,971 establishments; hence the inspectors
Henrotte and Kaiser, in summarizing the results for 1895, remark:
One o f the most certain results o f the law o f 1889 has been to drive
children under 12 years o f age out of the factories. A large number
o f employers, understanding the importance of the prohibition, con
formed to it even before the inspectors went to work, and many others
complied with it at the first warning * * *. We desire to note
that the inspectors have been especially severe with regard to employ
ers having children under 12 years in their employ. Eight com
plaints were filed that have thus far resulted in five sentences. (a)
For violating the provisions o f the law and decrees concerning the
maximum period of work for protected persons there were in 1895
26 cases and 143 contraventions. Failure to comply with the law
was most extensive in wood manufactures, furniture making, the
building trades, the manufacture of pottery, metal products and ma
chinery, and the clothing trades.
The regulations concerning the number and duration o f pauses for
protected persons were most frequently violated in 1895 in the textile
industry, particularly in wool spinning mills. In a total of 19
cases regarding 115 contraventions this occupation furnished 15 cases
and 103 contraventions. It should be noted, however, that the total
o f 115 contraventions brought to the attention o f the courts by no
means represents the total number discovered by the inspectors; for
the latter report 645 cases in which the periods o f repose are not long
enough, or not numerous enough, or do not amount to a sufficient total
period o f rest. But many of these cases were not followed u p ; for
first offenses the employers were warned and no further steps
taken. ( 6)
In 1895 no serious attempt was made to discover the real condition
o f affairs with regard to the night work o f protected persons, except
in glass works. In the manufacture o f crystal and glass ware 979
persons were found working one week by day and the next week at
night, and o f this total 274 were under 14 years o f age, and hence
employed contrary to the law. Concerning this state o f affairs the
inspectors report as follow s:
Serious and repeated efforts o f the inspectors have not led to the
complete observance o f the law. It must be admitted that we have
to do here with a case of vis major, namely, the insufficient supply, in
the regions where these works are situated, o f children above 14 years
a Rapports Annuels de l’lnspection du Travail, 1895, Vol. I, pp. 56, 57.
*Idem, 1895, Vol. I, p. 97.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN BELGIUM.
117
o f age willing and able to do the work. When the inspectors sought
to enforce the law strictly there were two results: (1) Children be
tween 14 and 16 years o f age were forced to work every night in order
to enable the younger ones to work only in the daytime; (2) parts of
the wTorks were shut down and the output decreased. Confronted by
this situation, the inspectors unanimously requested that the age o f
admission to night work ifl this industry be lowered to 13 years.
Petitions to the same effect were sent to the minister o f industry and
labor by many laborers themselves, and the councils of industry and
labor formally and unanimously indorsed this request.
What has been said of the manufacture o f glassware applies
equally to the manufacture o f window glass. In a total o f 2,004
protected persons employed at the end o f 1895, 700 under 14 years
o f age wrere working at night contrary to the law.(°)
A somewhat similar difficulty arose in the establishments for spin
ning combed wool in the region of Yerviers. These establishments
employ a large proportion o f girls under 21 years o f age, especially
in the operations preparatory to spinning. When large orders for the
export trade require increased productivity, extra machines for the
preparatory operations are used during the daytime, but in cases o f
very large and urgent orders these machines have to be run at night
also. Under existing circumstances, however, the number o f women
over 21 years o f age is altogether insufficient in this region during
periods o f largely increased output. As permission to employ girls
at night is difficult to obtain from the provincial governor, and can
be granted only for short periods, women over 21 years o f age are
employed only during the night, in order that those under 21 years
o f age may work only in the daytime. Says the report for 1895:
Calling attention to this disadvantage, the employers o f the region
have petitioned the minister that the age o f admission to night
work for women be lowered to 18 years. It is eminently desirable
that married women should no longer be employed at night. But it
should be noted that the woolen industry is an export industry, com
pelled to compete with foreign products protected b^ customs duties,
and that the absolute prohibition of night work might involve the
destruction o f the industry. Such a result would throw 3,000 to
4,000 laborers out o f work. Becently an important combed-wool
spinning mill at Yerviers decided to start a similar establishment
in Germany, a fact that was widely commented upon. An exodus of
the industry, if it became general, would be disastrous for the work
ing classes.
The requirement that protected persons be provided with a certifi
cate indicating their age, etc., gave rise to 19 cases and 61 contra
ventions during the year 1895. The proportion o f protected persons
found without such a certificate rose as high as 37.75 per cent in the
ceramic industries (mainly in brickyards) and 49.38 per cent in the
0 Rapports Annuels cle rinspection du Travail, 1895, Vol. I, p. 101.
118
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
manufacture o f food products; the average for all' industries was
13.65 per cent.
Many communes exhibit very little disposition to furnish protected
persons with the required certificates. Some o f them require pay
ment, whereas they should be furnished free o f charge. (fl)
The same article o f the law that requires protected laborers to
carry a certificate also obliges employers to keep a register o f these
laborers. But in 1895, 29.77 per cent o f the establishments visited
kept no such register. The great majority o f these employers were
simply warned, and 11 who had not heeded previous warnings were
brought to trial. This provision o f the law was most frequently
violated by manufacturers o f clay products, especially o f bricks, who
numbered 569 in a total o f 1,722 establishments having no register.
The reports o f the mining engineers appended to the annual reports
o f the labor inspectors deserve careful consideration for the purposes
o f the present study, not only because mining is the most important
single industry o f the Kingdom, ( *6) but because female labor and
child labor have always played an important part therein.
The report for 1895 gives the following table concerning female
persons employed at underground work in mines : ( c)
FEMALES EMPLOYED AT UNDERGROUND WORK IN MINES, BY AGE, 1890 TO 1894.
Year.
Under 16 16 to 21
years.
years.
.................
*1890
1891......................... 1
1892......................... |
945
683
219
2,285
1,957
Over 21
years.
723
719
Year.
1893.........................
1894.........................
Under 16 16 to 21
years.
years.
44
1,505
1,076
Over 21
years.
623
542
The mining inspectors remark, furthermore, that in 1895 women
were employed at underground work scarcely anywhere except in the
Hainaut region. The cases in which children under 12 years of age
were employed were rare, and the few instances noted were due
usually to the carelessness o f local authorities who had given certifi
cates to children under 12; the parents o f those children subsequently
altered them to deceive the employers. Only in quarries did there
appear to be a noteworthy proportion of children employed for a
longer period than is allowed by the royal decree governing this
occupation, namely, 8 hours per day. Here, too, the certificates that
protected persons are required to carry and the register which their
employers are supposed to keep were frequently lacking. The ina Rapports Annuels de lTnspeetion du Travail, 1895, Yol. I, p. 108.
6 The last industrial census, 1896, indicates that over 115,000 persons were
employed in the coal mines o f the Kingdom.
c During this year the inspectors o f mines visited establishments in which
121,248 persons were employed; 13,323 o f them were “ protected/' and o f this
number 1,388 worked at night.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN BELGIUM.
119
spectors also remark that during the year 1895, the first in which
the system o f inspection necessitated by the law o f 1889 and the
principal royal decrees resulting therefrom was put into practical
effect, the violations o f the law were due more largely to ignorance
o f the law and carelessness than to ill will. Hence “ the mining offi
cials have felt that the first step was to make the law known in those
establishments in which it was found to be violated, and to insist
upon the points that appear to have escaped the attention o f em
ployers and to remind them o f those points in writing. * * *
Complaints have been filed only in cases where the circumstances were
o f exceptional gravity or when the ill will o f the employer was
manifest.” («)
I f we turn now from the general sections o f the report for 1895
to the reports o f the individual inspectors, it will be found that these
reports vary considerably. Some o f the inspectors complain of a
widespread ignorance o f the law, and particularly o f the royal
decrees which supplement it, while others find little to object to in
the establishments in their districts. These differences in the general
tone o f the individual reports are probably quite as much due to
varying degrees o f vigilance and experience among the individual
inspectors as to actual differences in the observance o f the law. Cer
tainly none o f the inspectors produces an impression o f severity in
applying the law or o f a disposition to. “ make a record ” o f com
plaints filed and condemnations obtained. Quite the contrary. In
defense o f this general leniency, which to some critical readers o f the
reports might seem excessive, it may be urged with some truth that
Belgium has long been a land o f industrial liberty; that the average,
employer does not consider it one o f the functions o f the Government
to interfere in industrial matters; that laws for the legal protection
o f the working classes have not yet had time to become part of the
accustomed order o f things, fortified by a strong public sentiment;
and that such new measures must be introduced gradually and with
as little friction as possible.
The reports o f the provincial inspectors for 1895, in addition to
what has already been quoted from the general reports, prove that the
policy o f mildness was followed from the start.
Even the provision that children under 12 years o f age are ex
cluded from the industrial establishments subject to the law was not
accepted with universal and unqualified approbation.^) A ll sorts of *1
®Rapports Annuels de Tlnspection du Travail, 1895, Vol. I, p. 271.
6 Dr. Louis Varlez, in an investigation based upon information supplied in
1898 by 1,920 employees in the cotton mills o f Ghent, found that 68 had begun
work at the age o f 7 or earlier, 81 at 8 years o f age, 82 at 9, 184 at 10, 290 at
11, and 469 at 12. (Les salaires dans l’industrie Gantoise, I. Industrie Cotonni£re, p. 559, Bruxelles, 1901.)
120
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
modifications, exceptions, and exemptions were proposed. In the first
district (that o f Antwerp) brick manufacturers suggested that the
local mayors or the inspectors should be permitted to allow “ the
temporary employment o f children 11 years old to take the place o f
children that are ill and impossible to replace by others that are o f
the requisite age.” (a) According to the opinion of the inspector—
Such permission would open the door to the old abuses. The work
o f inspection would then become illusory, or at least very difficult.
* * * Our general impression is that the owners o f brickyards
have taken no serious steps to secure the observance o f the law. E x
ceptions could, o f course, be mentioned; but most o f the employers
have been content with the outer signs o f submission to the legal re
quirements : The text o f the law was posted u p ; the certificates were
duly filled ou t; a notice was placed on the walls indicating that work
can not begin before 5 a. m. nor continue after 8 p. m., and giving
the time and duration o f the pauses for rest. But no attempt is made
to familiarize the employees with the terms o f the law. Generally the
laborer is persuaded that the extreme hours mentioned in the notice
(5 a. m. and 8 p. m.) are legally fixed as the beginning and end o f his
workday. This meant for him a period o f 15 hours. The pauses
which according to the rules reduce this period o f 15 hours to 12
hours o f actual labor do not attract his attention, and the employer
does not insist upon this feature. Nor does the employer take any
pains to call the laborer’s attention to the difference which the law
makes in the hours for brick works and tile works.
Children under 12 years have disappeared from the brickyards only;
as a result o f numerous legal prosecutions. W e shall be obliged
during the busy season to employ severe measures to secure the ob
servance o f the time limit o f 12 hours a day.
In the brick works situated in the Province o f Limbourg the ap
plication o f the law has had results entirely different from those noted
in the Scheldt region. The work is differently organized. The works
are temporary, with family groups of laborers, and the number of
young carriers subject to the law is exceedingly small. The head of
the working group wants to avoid all difficulties; he wants to work, as
he has always done in the past, many hours per day, and he prefers
to get along without protected persons altogether, rather than submit
to a fixed number o f pauses which he regards as interfering with his
labor. Hence the disappearance in this region o f boys and girls carry
ing bricks from the molding table to the drying area is a direct con
sequence o f the law o f December 13,1889.
In the brick works using machinery, situated along the canal from
Antwerp to Turnhout, the law is observed perfectly. The number o f
children is very small, whereas girls and women never enter the
works. The workday, far from exceeding 12 hours, rarely lasts that
long; the average is 10| hours. The pauses for rest are strictly
observed, the machinery being stopped during these intervals. ( 6)
This rather striking contrast between the condition o f the laborers
working in establishments using machinery and those employing the
a Rapports Annuels de 1’Inspection du Travail, 1895, Vol. II, p. 7.
* Idem, 1895, Vol. II, p. 19.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN BELGIUM.
121
older hand methods is noted in almost every industry and by every
one o f the inspectors. The larger modern concerns in practically
every branch o f production not only comply more generally and more
cheerfully with the terms o f the law, but their employees frequently
have shorter hours, longer periods o f rest, and work under more
healthful and less dangerous conditions than those in the smaller
concerns employing older methods o f production. Almost every
page o f the provincial inspectors’ reports bears testimony to this
general fact.
In cigar factories the labor o f children under 14 years o f age is
limited to 6 hours; this industry, very important in this district
Antwerp], is represented by a few large establishments and by a
arge number o f small shops grouped in the northern villages o f the
"Provinces o f Antwerp and Limbourg. Immediate results were
obtained in the large concerns. * * * In the small shops the law
was more difficult to enforce. In one village containing a dozen o f
these shops with an average of 20 laborers, there was manifest
opposition to the law ; the presence o f the inspector was immediately
signaled from shop to shop in order to prevent the discovery o f viola
tions. * * * Concerning one important cigar factory where 20
children under 14 years o f age were working more than 6 hours a day,
complaint was filed; the owner had given his foreman orders to pay
no attention to the observations o f the inspectors. (a)
The typical explanations of the presence o f children under the
legal age o f admission are (1) the necessity of cheap labor in order to
compete in foreign markets, (2) the desire to keep the children from
roaming about the streets in idleness and incipient vagabondage, (3)
pity for poor parents who need the additional income prbvided by
the labor o f their children, (4) the necessity in certain trades o f begin
ning apprenticeship very early, (5) the absence of a sufficient supply
o f adult labor, and (6) the peculiar aptitude o f boys and girls for
certain kinds o f work which require small hands and superior agility.
Once, in the courtyard of a tawing shop, 2 boys under 12 were
employed in carrying into the shop the skins that had just arrived.
When I spoke o f the matter to the employer he replied that he some
times used these boys out o f commiseration, and to prevent them from
becoming vagabonds on the public streets, but that they were never
allowed to enter the workrooms. ( 6)
As brickmaking can not be carried on in closed rooms, children
between 8 and 12 years o f age may easily enter the yards, and it is
difficult to keep them out; they rarely go to school, and their presence
in the yards several times a day is justified on the ground o f having
to bring meals to their parents. Often, in spite of the employers’
orders to the contrary, they mingle with the young employees who
carry the bricks or transport the sand that has been drying in the
sun.(c)
a Rapports Annnels de l’lnspection du Travail, 1895, Vol. II, p. 23.
» Idem, 1895, Vol. II, p. 93.
• Idem, 1895, Vol. II, p. 7.
122
BULLETIN OF T H E BUREAU OF LABOR.
Some employers are frank enough in their opposition to the law.
The director of. a foreign company objected that I had no right to
visit his shops while he was away. * * * In another establish
ment, after I had stated the object o f my visits I was told that I had
come upon a mission o f inquisition. ( a)
There are some employers who are far from having any sympathy
for labor inspection, and who think that it will result in increasing
the demands made by the laborers, or who regard the provisions of
the law regulating labor as useless and annoying measures. Some, it
is true, consider the entrance o f the inspectors in their establishment
as an intrusion and an infringement o f their authority * * * .(*5
6)
Critics o f the law are found not only among the employers. Labor
ers themselves often criticise it, not on the ground that it does not
go far enough, but that it is too absolute with regard to the age o f
admission and too severe with regard to the number o f hours children
may work in the “ classified ” trades. Says one o f the inspectors:
Many laborers expressed to me their dissatisfaction with the royal
decree o f December 26, 1892, fixing at 6 hours the duration o f the
workday for children between 12 and 13 years o f age. A father said
to me: “ I f you forbid my boy to work, he will have to go on the
streets and beg, for I can neither leave my house open during my
absence nor lock my child in it.” ( c)
Some parents complain o f that article o f the law which forbids the
employment o f children under 12: They see but one aspect of this
prohibition, namely, the impossibility o f allowing these children to
earn a wage that in some big families would often be very welcome.
And some employers criticise this provision from another point of
view. In'itself, they say, the law is a good one; but would it not be
better for these children to work than to run the streets? I f they
went to school until the age o f 12 years, the provision concerning the
age limit could only be approved. (d)
In some brickyards parents have objected that certain children
under 12 years o f age are, without danger to their health, strong
enough to work in the open air during the few weeks that the busy
season lasts. («) In the tenth district (Houdeng-Goegnies) an in
spector found 34 children under 12 employed in a brickyard where
they helped their parents. When the latter were notified of the ille
gality o f this arrangement, “ they vigorously resented the suspicion
that they were overtaxing the strength of their boys and girls, assert
ing that the work was adapted to their size and amounted to play for
them.”
a Rapports Annuels de rinspection du Travail, 1895, Vol. II, p. 127.
* Idem, 1895, Vol. II, p. 177.
o Idem, 1895, Vol. II, p. 182.
5 Idem, 1895, Vol. II, p. 140.
6 Idem, 1895, VoL II, p. 193.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN BELGIUM,
123
Another aspect o f this problem o f the need o f the child’s income
to help out the family budget is suggested by the following significant
quotation from one inspector’s report:
The brickmakers in the Boom district are addicted'to strong drink.
The abuse o f alcohol makes great ravages among men. The laborer
stops work on all days of public celebration, and they are very numer
ous. On this score alone he spends more than 100 francs ($19.30) a
year; this expenditure for drink represents approximately the price
paid for the premature labor and fatigue that he imposes upon the
young son or daughter who helps him in his trade from the twelfth
year on. A t Hemixem the laborer spends 5 to 6 francs (96.5 cents to
$1.16) a week for gin; he often makes Monday a holiday, sometimes
Tuesday also, and occasionally does not go back to work until Thurs
day. A t Terhaegen there are 40 saloons for 2,200 inhabitants. (a)
„ By way o f exception, workmen who have large families express
their regret at not being permitted to let their young children work,
because the wages they would earn, however small, would help out the
family budget. They allege, moreover, that work would keep the
children from vagabondage. Employers have told me that sometimes
parents beg them to employ children under 12 years. Employers in
general are of the opinion that these very young laborers render no
real industrial services and interfere with the work of the other
laborers.
In my istrict the prohibition o f the labor of children under 12
years has given rise to no complaints on the part o f employers, but
the same thing can not be said o f the parents. One o f the children
employed in breaking flax was the eldest of a large and exceedingly
poor fam ily; as he earned a franc (19.3 cents) a day, his expulsion
gave rise to a very lively complaint. The same is true o f a boy em
ployed in a brickyard as a carrier to help his father, who was chief
molder at one o f the tables. (c)
O f a somewhat more serious character is the objection o f some em
ployers that in the industries in which they are engaged a legal limi
tation o f the hours of work for minors necessarily involves a like cur
tailment in the workday for adults, inasmuch as children and adults
work together at complementary operations. When the children
stop work the other laborers must also cease. In the manufacture of
brushes, for instance—
employers complain that the protected persons can not work so many
hours as the older employees. The division o f labor in this industry
requires the presence o f young laborers who carry the wood and the
bristles to the different workrooms as soon as those articles are ready.
I f these young people must stop after 9 hours o f work in winter and
19 hours in summer, their departure necessarily means that the whole
establishment must stop. The employers allege that it would be very
difficult for them to use two shifts o f young employees because of the
« Rapports Annuels de l’lnspection du Travail, 1895, Vol. II. p. 54 f f ; see also
p. 123.
» Idem, 1896, p. 31.
« Idem, 1896, p. 145.
124
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
disturbance this would cause in the shop. To replace the protected
persons by boys over 16 years o f age would increase the cost of pro
duction and mal
*J
1 1
J with other producers,
to say nothing
laborers could never
take the place o f the young children so far as agility is concerned. (®)
“ The employment o f young children as weavers’ apprentices has,
above all, a humanitarian and ethical purpose; it is intended to keep
them off the streets and induce them to go to school by giving them a
slight remuneration,” reports the inspector for the district o f Ghent,
who discovered 5 such apprentices under 12 years o f age in weaving
establishments and 7 in other branches of the textile industry. He
also found 11 children under 12 working in brickyards. The reason
for this, according to the employers, “ consists in the difficulty in find
ing a sufficient number o f older children to carry the bricks from the
table to the drying area.” But the inspector adds:
I think that with a little effort on the part o f the owners this diffi
culty could easily be overcome. I believe that the difference in wages
is one reason for the employment of these young laborers. (6)
For many years the brick manufacturers sought to secure a modi
fication of existing provisions, both with regard to the age o f admis
sion and the conditions governing night w ork; and some o f the pro
vincial inspectors appear to. have favored a modification o f the exist
ing regime as far as it concerned this industry. But the effort has
continued unsuccessful, and in default o f a change in the law several
employers have attempted to circumvent the law and to outwit the
inspectors.
It has been a favorite device during recent years to persuade the
chief molder at each table to sign a contract by which it appears
that he is a subcontractor in charge o f a certain portion o f the plant
as an independent enterprise. That this is a mere subterfuge is ap
parent from the facts (1) that the workman derives no profit from
the labor o f his associates, (2) that he assumes no responsibility for
the payment o f wages to his fellow-workers, and (3) that the factory
rules are signed and the wages o f the employees paid by the head o f
the plant and not by the chief molder. ( c) In some cases, however, the
courts have accepted this substitution o f a dummy culprit for the
responsible head o f the establishment. (d) But the present tendency o f
the courts in such cases is to hold both the agent and the real employer
responsible for violations of the law. Thus a decision of the court o f
appeals in 1907, regarding a case in which protected persons had been
required to begin work before 5 o’clock in the morning, condemned
a Rapports Annuels de lTnspection du Travail, 1895, Vol. II, p. 195.
Idem, 1895, Yol. II, p. 140.
0 Idem, 1903, p. 255; 1904, p. 241; 1905, p. 8.
4 Idem, 1905, p. 8.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN BELGIUM.
125
both the owner o f the plant and the chief molder, on the ground that
in spite o f all agreements that may be made with persons in his
employ the head o f an industrial establishment can not escape any
o f the responsibilities which the law intends to put upon him. (a)
Another method o f circumventing the rules which limit the work
day o f protected persons in classified trades, and one against which
it is doubtful whether anything can be done, consists in having sepa
rate workrooms, in some o f which only those processes are carried on
that are not subject to legal regulation. When, for instance, in a
wool-manufacturing establishment the protected persons have termi
nated the l l j hours o f work permitted in this industry by the royal
decree o f December 26,1892, they are simply transferred to the rooms
in which the nonclassified branches of the industry are carried on
and thus escape the supervision of the inspectors'. ( *6)
Devices for preventing the discovery o f violations o f the law are
almost as varied as the industries themselves in which protected per
sons are employed. Moreover, as the inspectors testify—
infractions are difficult to discover, for employers surround them with
a vigilance equal to that which we exert to unearth them. Employ
ers and laborers display a spirit o f solidarity in this regard. ( c) When
ever one o f us makes his appearance, alone or accompanied by a dele
gate, in the region where the brickworks are spread out over an area
o f several miles, the news o f our arrival is carried to the whole
neighborhood within a few minutes, and the children are warned,
disappear, and their places taken by adults. This year the violations
o f the law involved in the employment o f 10 children under 12 years
o f age were discovered, so to speak, by ruse, in approaching the brick
works by unusual and difficult means of access. (*)
I f we consider the territory which each inspector is supposed to
cover, the multifarious duties which he is called upon to perform, the
score o f laws and decrees which it is his duty to enforce, and the re
sourcefulness which he must display in some cases to outwit the com
bined efforts o f employers and laborers to escape the discovery o f in
fractions o f the law, it is not surprising that more violations are not
detected. One o f the inspectors very frankly states:
The law o f December 13,1889, and the decrees issued for its execu
tion have not vet attained the utmost desirable degree o f enforcement*
The service o f labor inspection is not organized in a manner to exer
cise a sufficiently active supervision. But although we have not been
able to make frequent visits with a view to the discovery o f possible
infractions, we have paid special attention to those offenses that were
®Rapports Annuels-de lTnspection du Travail, 1907, p. 16.
6 Idem, 1906, p. 108.
c As a rule the children are well coached, and as soon as they are questioned
by the inspector they run away to prevent the inquiries that are indispensable
for prosecuting the case. Rapports Annuel de lTnspection du Travail, 1898, p. 34*
d Rapports Annuels de lTnspection du Travail, 1903, p. 90.
56504°—No. 89—10-----9
126
BU LLETIN OF T H E BUREAU OF LABOR.
brought to our notice. As a consequence o f reports sent to us, some
o f the graver offenses were discovered, such as the employment o f
children under 12 years, excessive labor o f protected persons, night
work and Sunday work under conditions contrary to the law. Were
it not for reports from outside sources, these violations o f the law
would very probably have escaped our notice. (a)
In many cases, notably where children under the legal age are em
ployed, parents are quite as responsible as the employers. The sim
ple presence o f children under 12 in an industrial establishment is no
violation o f the law ; and in view o f the common practice o f having
children bring food to their parents, and the frequency with which
mothers engaged in certain open-air trades take their children with
them to the place o f work and attempt to watch over them during a
part o f the workday, it is not a simple matter for employers to exclude
children under 12 years o f age from the shop or the workyard. And
when such children are allowed to be present, it will happen that they
either voluntarily or at the injunction o f their elders perform certain
tasks that technically constitute labor. In such cases, however, the
inspectors exhibit the utmost degree o f indulgence for the employers.
Probably the only way to prevent such occurrences and to make a
more rigid but just enforcement of the law possible would be to forbid
even the presence of children under 12 in the establishments subject
to the law. This has, in fact, been suggested by some o f the in
spectors.
A partial step in the same direction is a severe holding to account
o f the parents o f the children themselves. The increasing proportion
o f cases in which parents are punished for sanctioning the employ
ment o f children under 12 years o f age indicates that this step is being
taken by the inspectors and the courts. ( *6)
But in no respect can one speak o f severity in applying the law, on
the part o f the inspectors, or o f severity in punishing its infringement,
on the part o f the tribunals. ( c) Although the labor laws provide for
penalties as high as 1,000 francs ($193), and in cases o f repeated
offenses as high as 2,000 francs ($386), small penalties are the rule;
and frequently their collection is dispensed with unless within a
given period the guilty party commits another offense.
The first volume o f the first annual report, containing a summary
o f the first year’s work o f inspection, sounds the keynote o f the general
p olicy :
The number o f prosecutions may seem small, but it should be noted
that at their first visits the inspectors, discovering the ignorance o f
the offenders with regard to the duties which the laws and regulations
a Rapports Annuels de l’lnspection du Travail, 1905, p. 3.
6 Idem, 1904, pp. 29, 37.
* The numerous quotations from the inspectors’ reports given in this section
are entirely typical.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN BELGIUM.
127
impose upon them in these matters, simply gave warning, as a fore
runner o f stricter measures. (a)
Nor has this general attitude been departed from since then.
In 1897 complaint was not made in some cases because the children
were “ only a few days under 12 years old.” ( *6) In another district,
where 4 children under 12 were working “ incidentally ” on the days
when they did not attend school, the inspector filed no complaint
because “ the previous year in a similar case a complaint had been
made and no punishment was inflicted by the court.” (c)
Six children under 12 found working in a brickyard in the third
district in 1898 were not interfered with because “ their occupations
should be regarded rather as play.” (<*)
In 1899 the inspectors found 1,049 protected persons working at
night contrary to the law. O f this total, 185 were employed in the
manufacture o f glassware, 21 in sugar manufacture, 15 in furniture
factories, and 7 in paper mills, none o f which gave rise to legal com
plaint by the inspector. In the manufacture o f window glass, 770
persons were found working at night contrary to the law and 7
complaints were filed. ( e)
Says one o f the inspectors in his report for 1900: “ We attached
no importance to the fact o f having seen some school children under
12 years o f age in stone quarries engaged under the supervision of
their fathers in cutting stone as a sort of recreation and apprentice
ship.” ^ ) “ 1 do not consider as labor the operation o f piling up a few
unbaked bricks, a child’s play that is abandoned as soon as begun.” (^)
In the same year, for 804 protected persons found working at night
contrary to the law only 12 complaints were filed; among the cases in
regard to which no steps were taken to have the offender tried at
law were those o f 503 protected persons employed in the manufacture
o f glassware, 15 in glass-bottle works, and 8 in making plate glass. (n)
Repeated warnings are given by the inspectors before steps are
taken to secure punishment.(*) I f foremen are negligent in requiring
age certificates o f children, or fail to examine them carefully, and as
a consequence children are found in the factory under 12 years of age,
inspectors are usually satisfied i f such children are sent away immedi
ately.^) Employers are usually given the benefit o f all extenuating
circumstances, even though these circumstances consist in nothing
0 Rapports Annuels de lTnspection du Travail, 1895, Yol. I, p. 140.
6 Idem, 1897, p. 59.
c Idem, 1897, p. 105.
d Idem, 1898, p. 63.
e Idem, 1899, pp. 260, 261.
f Idem, 1900, p. 178.
&Idem, 1906, p. 207.
h Idem, 1900, pp. 290, 291.
1 Idem, 1903, p. 200.
* Idem, 1904, p. 167.
128
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
more than some difficulty in understanding the rules which prescribe
a different maximum workday at different seasons of the year.(a)
Ignorance of the law, after the law has been in force for 17 years,
is still a perfectly valid excuse. ( *6*9
)
The almost universal example of leniency given by the inspectors
is followed closely by the courts. Fines o f 2 and 5 francs (38.6 and
96.5 cents) are common, those o f over 50 francs ($9.65) exceedingly
rare, and acquittals not at all infrequent.
In some cases the defendants were acquitted on the ground that the
children under 12 years of age found at work were “ not employed
regularly.” ( c) The net result o f 10 complaints against employers
made in the first district in 1899 on the score of employing children
under 12 years o f age was 7 convictions—one of them conditional—
entailing fines o f 2 to 50 francs (38.6 cents to $9.65) ;(<*) in the third
district 2 complaints of illegal night work by protected persons re
sulted in 1 conviction. ( 6) The mining inspectors also report two
prosecutions, one resulting in a fine of 1 franc (19.3 cents) and the
other in an acquittal.(f)
In 1900, a year for which the inspector o f the first district speaks
o f his “ severity,” 63 complaints were filed in this district, and at the
end o f the year the results o f 51 were known. These 51 cases resulted
in the imposition of 192 fines, 1 of 100 francs ($19.30), 3 o f 52
francs ($10.04), 71 of 26 francs ($5.02), 2 o f 20 francs ($3.86), 39 of
10 francs ($1.93), 37 o f 5 francs (96.5 cents), 12 o f 3 francs (57.9
cents), and 27 of 2 francs (38.6 cents) each.(s') The inspector of the
fourth district found 75 children under 12 at work and filed 14 com
plaints; 7 o f the cases were dismissed (sans suite) and at the end of
the year the inspector knew nothing of the results of the others. (n)
In the eighth district 3 complaints were filed. One of the employers
was sentenced to a fine o f 5 francs (96.5 cents) or imprisonment for
one day, but sentence was suspended for six months; in the second
case the sentence was a fine of 1 franc (19.3 cents) or one day’s im
prisonment, and in the third case a fine o f 20 francs ($3.86) or three
days’ imprisonment, suspending sentence for six months. (*)
In 1903 there were in the second district 29 prosecutions for violat
ing one or more provisions o f the law o f 1889, resulting in 1 acquittal,
0 Rapports Anniiels de l’lnspection du Travail, 1905, pp. 103, 197; 1906, p. 315;
1907, p. 351.
&Idem, 1906, p. 103 ff.
c Idem, 1898, p. 3.
d Idem, 1899, p. 4.
* Idem, 1899, p. 63.
t Idem, 1899, p. 298.
9 Idem, 1900, p. 3.
ftIdem, 1900, p. 90.
* Idem, 1900, p. 197.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN BELGIUM.
129
and 65 fines varying from 1 franc (19.3 cents) to 26 francs ($5.02).
O f the 65 fines imposed (the collection o f most o f them being sus
pended) 2 amounted to 26 francs ($5.02) each, 7 to 10 francs ($1.93)
each, 6 to 5 francs (96.5 cents) each, 15 to 3 francs (57.9 cents) each,
32 to 2 francs (38.6 cents) each, and 3 to 1 franc (19.3 cents) each.(a)
Data for the subsequent years are somewhat less fragmentary with
regard to violations brought to trial and the results of the trials.
Many o f the inspectors, however, continue to give no information
concerning the judicial action taken upon the cases that are brought
before the courts. In the second district protected persons were
employed in 1904 contrary to the law in 266 establishments, and only
30 accusations were filed. The results o f 4 cases are not given; there
were 2 acquittals, and 82 fines were imposed, varying from 1 franc
(19.3 cents) to 5 francs (96.5 cents). O f this total number of fines
a textile manufacturer was sentenced to pay 54 o f 2 francs (38.6
cents) each for having illegally employed 54 protected persons at
night. In this case, however, as well as in all but 12 others, the col
lection o f the fine was suspended or made conditional. No single
fine o f more than 5 francs (96.5 cents) was imposed. ( *6)
The inspector o f the Ghent district was notified by letter that a
manufacturer o f matches required several protected persons among
his employees to work until midnight. The accusation was found
to be true, and when the employer was informed that 30 o f his labor
ers had been working in violation o f the law he retorted: “ That will
make a fine o f 300 francs [$57.90]. I prefer that to not having the
work done.” ( c)
The inspector for the district o f Antwerp gives specified instances
o f exceptional judicial leniency during the year 1906. An employer
pleaded that a child under 12 years o f age in his employ had falsely
stated his age to be over 12, and that therefore the employer could
not be regarded as having knowingly violated the law. In spite of
the fact that article 10 of the law requires every child to possess
an age certificate before it may be employed, the court o f first instance
acquitted#the employer, who was, however, subsequently found guilty.
Two other cases resulted in acquittal because copies-of the birth
certificates o f the children concerned were not attached to the com
plaint, although it would have been an easy matter for the court to
obtain this information, and although the complaints filed by an
inspector legally constitute valid evidence until proof is furnished
° Rapports Annuels de lTnspection du Travail, 1903, p. 22 f f ; see also p. 223.
6 Idem, 1904, pp. 19 ff. and‘ 66 ff. The inspector for this district remarks:
“ The ordinary police tribunals sometimes display what I regard as excessive
indulgence ” (p. 37).
c Idem, 1904, p. 137. For further data concerning the fines recently imposed
by the courts consult particularly the report for 1905, pp. 74, 196, and 252; the
report for 1906, pp. 4, 46 ff., 78, and 301; and the report for 1907, pp. 4 and 80.
130
B U LLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
to the contrary. In another case a brick manufacturer who employed
a child under 12 was acquitted because he did not visit the brickyard
every day, and therefore could not be held responsible for the offense;
although this decision implied the responsibility of the foreman in
charge o f the establishment, no steps were taken to bring him to
account. Still another brick manufacturer was accused o f having
employed a child under 12 years o f age; some time later, when the
court ordered a supplementary investigation, the same child was
again found at work and a second complaint filed. But the court
condemned the employer to pay only one fine, on the ground that
there had been but one continuous infraction, and not two, punishable
separately. “ I f this interpretation o f the law should prevail,” the
inspector declares, “ any brick manufacturer who is found violating
the law at the beginning o f the season can continue to the end with
children under age, and incur but a single condemnation whenever
(often several months later) the courts are informed o f the matter.
These decisions must be deplored, for they diminish the authority of
our service and paralyze our activity.” (a)
It must, nevertheless, be admitted that, on the whole, the law of
1889 appears to be gaining a wider acceptance and to be better en
forced from year to year. A t all events, the employers who resist
the enforcement of the law and who consider its provisions as involv
ing vexatious interference with their business are not so numerous as
the earlier reports o f the inspectors indicated they once were.(*6)
EXTENT AND NATURE OF CHILD LABOR.
The law o f 1889 created a class o f so-called “ protected persons ”
consisting o f males under 16 years and females under 21 years o f age
employed in industrial establishments. It provided for the inspec
tion o f all industrial establishments in which such persons are em
ployed. Naturally, therefore, this is the group o f nonadult laborers
concerning which our information will be found to be most complete
and most recent; hence we shall first inquire into the number o f these
“ protected persons ” whose labor is regulated by the law o f 1889 and
by the decrees supplementing that law.
It must be borne in mind, however, that although Belgium is above
all else an industrial nation, not all o f the people in gainful occupa
tions are employed industrially, nor does the law o f 1889 apply to all
branches o f industrial activity. A large number o f persons are en
a Rapports Annuels de Tlnspection du Travail, 1906, pp. 105, 106.
6 Conditions are at all events immeasurably superior to those of the first half
o f the nineteenth century. According to Dr. Louis Varlez, in his official report
on the Cotton Industry o f Ghent (Bruxelles, 1901) nearly 40 per cent o f the
employees in the cotton spinning mills o f that city were under 13 years o f age
in 1817.
131
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN BELGIUM.
gaged in home industries, which, together with all agricultural occu
pations as well as the greater proportion o f commercial enterprises,
lie entirely outside the scope o f the law o f 1889. It is evident, then,
that the “ protected persons ” whose labor is regulated by that law
and the decrees based upon it are not the only nonadult workers in
the Kingdom.
It should be noted, furthermore, that the term “ protected persons ”
is not coextensive with “ industrial child laborers/’ for the very
simple reason that among males only those under 16 years o f age are
counted among the “ protected persons ” in industry. Males between
16 and 18 years o f age, who in some countries the law designates as
“ young persons,” are in Belgium not among those protected by the
law o f 1889. Indeed, males above 16 years o f age are entirely assimi
lated to adult males, and in the reports o f the labor inspectors are in
variably grouped with adult males.
W ith regard to the statistics concerning protected persons given by
the labor inspectors from year to year, it must be observed that these
figures do not necessarily indicate the total number o f such persons
employed in establishments subject to the law. For not all estab
lishments subject to the law are visited by the inspectors. Every year
a considerable number are reported as visited for the first time. Con
sequently, the actual number o f protected persons in the establish
ments subject to the law must be greater than the total number o f
such persons found in the establishments actually visited by the in
spectors. How much greater, it is difficult to judge.
From the reports o f factory inspectors the following table has been
prepared indicating the number o f protected persons in the establish
ments subject to the law o f 1889 that were visited by the inspectors.
ESTABLISHMENTS AND EMPLOYEES SUBJECT TO TH E LABOR LAW OF 1889,
FOR THE YEARS 1895 TO 1907.
Year.
1895......................................................................................................
189 6 ............................................................................... ......................
1 89 7 .....................................................................................................
1 898.....................................................................................................
1 8 9 9 ...:.............................................................................................
1900.....................................................................................................
1 90 1 .....................................................................................................
190 2 ......................................................................................................
1 903......................................................................................................
1 904......................................................................................................
1 90 5 ......................................................................................................
1 906.....................................................................................................
1 90 7 ......................................................................................................
Males un
cent of
Establish Total num der 16 and . Per
protected
ments or ber of em females un persons
(a)
sections of ployees in der 21 em (minors)
establish establish ployed in
of
whole
ments
establish
ments
number
visited.
visited.
ments
employed.
visited.
5,791
7,599
8,648
8,903
9,421
10,117
8,260
12,180
11,971
12,012
n ,4 2 1
33,797
14,505
218,826
217,872
210,767
235,867
252,965
275,363
222,820
315,045
314,412
298,912
5272,341
6279,770
6305,384
45,415
43,437
42,073
46,693
53,549
56,020
43,432
64,513
63,478
62,378
646,193
653,212
652,997
20.75
19.94
19.96
19.80
21.17
20.49
19.44
20.48
20.19
20.86
16.96
19.02
17.35
® Adult tfomen are “ protected ” only by the provision that they must not work during
the four weeks following confinement.
b The figures for one circuit are not given in the annual reports, and hence not included
in these totals. Therefore these figures are incomplete.
132
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
NUMBER AN D P E R CENT OF PR O T E C TE D PERSON S IN VARIOUS GROUPS O F
IN D U STR IE S, 1895.
Group of industries.
Total
number
of em
ployees.
cent of
Girls
Boys
Girls
Protected Per
between between between
persons. protected
persons. 12 and 16. 12 and 16. 16 and 21.
1. Textiles.........................................
2. Chemicals.....................................
3. Glass..............................................
4. Paper............................................
5. Animal and vegetable products.
6. Foodstuffs.....................................
7. Meat and fish preparations.........
8 and 9. Metal manufactures and
building materials........................
10. Pottery, e tc ........................... ....
11. Wooden manufactures (except
furniture).......................................
12. Furniture....................................
13. Building trades (exceptwood).
14. Clothing (first group) (a)...........
15. Clothing (second group) (a)___
16. Art industries (6)........................
17. Miscellaneous.............................
66,198
10,047
20,433
5,884
9,620
7,898
94
18,109
1,712
5,410
1,100
2,220
725
27.34
17.04
21.58
18.69
23.08
9.17
4,311
370
3,201
405
375
193
5,040
504
697
167
451
255
8,758
838
1,512
528
1,394
277
43,174
21,420
3,380
5,036
7.83
23.51
2,281
2,647
307
1,190
792
1,199
6,006
1,649
607
2,465
6,832
8,144
8,355
613
380
76
1,326
1,899
1,257
2,172
10.20
23.59
12.52
53.79
27.79
15.43
25.98
460
107
70
103
420
941
1,293
76
49
560
546
123
343
77
224
6
663
933
193
536
Total.........................................
218,826
45,415
20.75
17,177
10,308
17,930
a See pp. 100, 101.
&See pp. 98, 99.
The year 1895 was the first for which a system of labor inspection
was carried out, and the visits of the inspectors for that year were
made the occasion of a fairly complete statistical enumeration of pro
tected persons according to groups of industries. The officials of the
Labor Office summarized the results in the first volume of the reports
for that year, dividing the industrial establishments o f the Kingdom
into 17 groups, and indicating the total number of employees and o f
protected persons in each group, as given in the table above.
Considering the several groups o f industries in more detail, it was
found that although the average for all textile industries was 27.34
per cent, in spinning mills it was 33.01 per cent and in weaving mills
24.19 per cent; and among the spinning mills in particular the pro
portion engaged in spinning flax, hemp, and jute was, respectively,
41.93 per cent, 44.17 per cent, and 49.62 per cent o f all employees.
In spinning mills, 2,465 boys under 16, 3,367 girls under 16, and
5,451 girls between 16 and 21 years of age were employed, making a
total o f 11,283 protected persons.
In weaving mills there were 1,612 boys under 16, 1,495 girls under
16, and 2,860 girls between 16 and 21 years o f age.
Among the establishments engaged in the manufacture o f chemical
products, match factories are o f peculiar interest. The protected
persons employed in this occupation numbered 1,311, or 51.03 per
cent of the total thus employed in the establishments inspected. O f
the 1,311, 227 were boys under 16, 434 were girls under 16, and 650
were girls between 16 and 21 years o f age. (a)
a The boys and girls under 14 years o f age numbered 271.
133
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN BELGIUM.
In the manufacture o f rubber products 24.75 per cent o f the
employees were protected persons (18 boys under 16, 41 girls under
16, and 93 girls between 16 and 21 years o f age).
In glass manufactures the number o f protected persons employed
in bottle making was 65, or 45.45 per cent of the total number of em
ployees in the bottle works visited; in making crystal and glass
ware, 2,678, or 35.60 per cent; and in making window glass, 2,506, or
26.25 per cent (consisting o f 1,656 boys and 375 girls under 16 years
o f age).
In paper manufactures, 89 boys under 16 years of age in a total of
352 laborers were engaged in making wall paper.
Other occupations in which the absolute number or the propor
tion o f young laborers was considerable are as follow s:
NUMBER AN D PE R CENT OF PRO TECTED PERSONS IN SP E C IFIE D IN D U STRIES,
1895.
Industry.
Boys 12
to 16
years of
age.
Girls 12
to 16
years of
age.
14
162
16
131
260
79
150
307
911
205
43
314
1
i Per cent
Girls 16
Total
to 21
ofproyears of laborers. i tected
age.
j persons.
i
Sorting rags..................................................................
Clipping and plucking rabbit fur.............................
Chicory.........................................................................
Sorting coffee...............................................................
Metal manufactures...................................................
Making bricks by hand..............................................
Pottery and terra cotta..............................................
Mounting brushes......................................................
Tobacco and cigars.....................................................
2,281
1,882
269
47
1,151
699
402
40
50
792
683
350
173
451
2,338
1,735
329
200
43,174
11.919
2)560
558
6,266
37.61
47.46
41.03
100.00
7.83
29.16
32.19
45.33
30.68
The inspectors furnish some data concerning the duration o f the
workday in the classified industries. Thus, in the textile industries,
children between 12 and 13 years of age are allowed by law to work
not more than 6 hours a day in spinning and weaving flax, hemp,
cotton, and jute; other protected persons may work 11J hours. But
o f the 328 children under 13 years of age thus employed, 147 were
reported as having worked more than 6 hours a day before the law
went into effect. It was believed that the employers would resort to
the employment o f 12-year-old 66half timers ” after the law was
passed, employing two shifts o f children, each for 6 hours. But this
system does not appear to have been introduced in many establish
ments, and the practical consequence o f the law has been to keep
children under 13 out o f the spinning and weaving mills.
Protected persons over 13 years o f age may work 11£ hours, but the
inspectors found 2.37 per cent working in spinning mills for a longer
period, i. e., illegally, and 23.57 per cent working in weaving mills
for a longer period- than the law allows. In making linen cloth and
drills the proportion rose to 30.95 per cent.
In the woolen mills conditions were better. “ Only 2.84 per cent,”
as the report puts it, “ o f the protected persons worked for a longer
period than the legal maximum o f 11| hours per day.”
134
BU LLETIN OE T H E BUREAU OF LABOR.
In paper manufactures children between 12 and 14 years o f age are
allowed by law to work 6 hours a day, and other protected persons
10 hours. Y et 19.05 per cent of the former and 13.78 per cent of the
latter were discovered to be working for longer periods.
In tanneries protected persons may work legally 10 hours a day,
but 17.10 per cent o f them were found to be working longer.
In preparing fibers for brushes, girls between 16 and 21 years o f
age may work 12 hours a day, children under 16 may work 10 hours
in the summer and 9 in winter. O f the latter class, however, 49.02
per cent were found working in winter and 37.25 per cent in summer
longer than the law allowed in the 22 establishments that were
inspected.
In sorting rags, 844 protected persons were employed in 133 estab
lishments, and o f these protected persons 226 worked more than 12
hours a day in rooms that are reported as “ highly insalubrious.” In
making glue and gelatin, 5.56 per cent, and in making oil and
grease, 7.14 per cent, o f the protected persons employed were found
working more than 12 hours a day. In the metal trades included in
group 18 (see p. 101), 45.56 per cent o f the children under 14 years of
age were working longer than the legal maximum o f 10 hours a day,
and 5.40 per cent o f the other protected persons more than the per
missible 11 hours a day. The corresponding proportions for the
trades in group 19 (see p. 100) were 76.39 per cent and 15.43 per cent,
and in the trades o f this group in which all protected persons must
not work more than 10 hours a day, 31.31 per cent were found to be
working longer.
In tile works protected persons are permitted by law to work 8 hours
in the winter; in the summer boys over 14 and girls over 16 years old
may work 12 hours. Forty-eight manufactories in which tiles were
made by hand were visited by the inspectors and 66.01 per cent o f the
protected persons reported as working more than 8 hours a day in
winter. Eleven similar establishments using machines were also
visited, and all the protected persons employed therein were working
longer than the law allows. In the manufacture o f fireproof clay
products the proportion o f protected persons exceeding the legal
workday o f 10 hours was 74.79 per cent in the 45 establishments
visited, and in pottery and terra-cotta works, 45.63 per cent. In
making bricks “ by hand” 17.43 per cent of the protected persons
worked longer than 12 hours, but in making bricks by machine only
3 children in a total o f 144 were found working over 12 hours.
The general verdict o f the inspectors concerning wood manufac
tures produced by machinery is that “ the legal rules are little
observed.” In mounting brushes, 70 per cent o f the children under
14 worked worked longer in winter than the 9 hours which the law
allows, and in furniture making, 59.9 per cent. In tobacco and cigar
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION" IN BELGIUM.
135
manufacturing, children between 12 and 14 are allowed to work 6
hours a day, but 44.53 per cent of them worked longer.
In all o f the regulated trades a certain number o f intervals for rest
are prescribed by the royal decrees. These periods are, o f course, not
counted as hours o f work. Thus, for example, in the industries per
mitting protected persons to work 11J hours per day, and in which
the law requires intervals amounting to 1J hours, the actual period o f
sojourn in the factory is apt to be somewhat more than 13 hours in 24.
Inasmuch as the law fixes no precise time for the periods of rest, and
allows the employer within certain limits to determine the duration
o f each pause, it is manifestly very difficult to make certain that the
provisions o f the law concerning pauses are observed, and to learn
exactly what is the general practice in this regard. (a)
The prevalence o f night work among child laborers is certainly an
important aspect o f the general subject. Clearly one o f the purposes
of the law o f 1889 was to do away with such work as far as possible.
But large and numerous loopholes are provided for in some of the
classified industries. What are the results disclosed by the report
o f 1895?
In making crystal and glass ware, 979 persons worked in alternate
weeks at night, and of this number 274 were under 14 years of age,
and therefore employed in violation o f the law and o f the royal decree
which allows only boys over 14 and girls over 16 years o f age to be
employed at night.
O f the 9,547 persons o f all ages and both sexes employed in windowglass factories visited by the inspectors, 73.71 per cent worked at
night; but o f the 2,506 protected persons employed in these factories,
79.96 per cent worked at night. In other words, a larger proportion
o f the protected persons were required to work at night than o f the
adults in the factory. ( *&)
Mining and the allied occupations are so important in Belgium that
the reports o f the mining engineers concerning nonadult workers un
der their supervision deserve mention here. In 1895 there were 121
active mines in Belgium, with a labor force of 117,103 persons. The
mining engineers inspected 110 o f them, with 80,882 employees, com
posed as indicated in the table on page 136.
a Rapports Annuels de lTnspection du Travail, 1895, Vol. I, p. 97.
6 Idem, 1895, Vol. I, pp. 104, 105.
136
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
NUMBER OF DAY AND NIGHT MINE LABORERS WORKING ABOVEGROUND AND
UNDERGROUND, BY SEX AND AGE GROUPS, 1895.
Work aboveground. Work underground.
Sex and age.
Total.
Day.
Night.
Day.
Night.
Males:
12 to 14 years..........................................................
14 to 16 years............................. ..................... .
16 years and over.................................................
866
1,200
11,839
1,606
883
1,798
35,134
942
20,159
1,749
3,940
a 69,038
Total....................................................................
13,905
1,606
37,815
21,101
74,727
Females:
12 to 16 vears..........................................................
16 to 21 years.........................................................
21 years and over........................*.......................
1,242
2,624
1,000
107
85
661
410
26
1,242
3,392
1,521
Total....................................................................
4,866
192
1,071
26
6,155
Total males and females..................................
18,771
1,798
38,886
21,127
80,882
° This is not the correct total of the item s; the figures are given as shown in the official
report.
The information concerning the wages paid child laborers is frag
mentary and meager, and therefore o f relatively small value. It is
evident, moreover, that wages depend upon the nature o f the work
performed, the age of the employee, and a host o f other circumstances.
In making bricks,' an industry employing considerable numbers
o f children under 16 years o f age, and the one most frequently found
violating the law forbidding the employment o f those under 12, these
young people carry molding frames full o f bricks from the molding
tables to the drying area and bring the empty frames back again.
When full the frames weigh about 17 pounds; empty they weigh onethird as much. For 12 hours o f this work at Boom-Noeveren the
44 carriers ” get 91 centimes (17.6 cents). But the weather frequently
interferes with the 12-hour workday, and the daily output fluctuates
considerably. If, therefore, we take the whole summer season into
account, the actual working period is equivalent toi.50 days, and upon
this basis the carrier’s average daily wage for the season is 80 cen
times (15.4 cents). A t Hemixem the wages are 10 per cent lower.
At Rumpst and Terhaegen the daily wage o f a carrier for the season
averages 20 cents. Boys 14 and 16 years old who sieve coal receive
36 francs ($6.95) a month, and boy coal carriers 1 franc (19.3 cents) a
day. The seasonal character o f this occupation frequently leads to
exceedingly long workdays when the weather is good, and therefore
to frequent violations o f the rule which forbids children to work be
fore 5 o’clock in the morning. In such cases employers argue that it
is preferable during the hot summer days to begin work earlier and
to lengthen the pause at midday. Says one inspector:
In spite o f the difficulty o f discovering de visu such infractions of
the law, three cases of this sort were noted at 4 o’clock in the morn
137
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN BELGIUM.
in g ; one o f them at the moment an employer was giving a big glass
o f gin to a child 13 years old, with the remark that nothing equaled
it as a stimulus to w ork.(a)
In glass works certain processes carried on by night are said to be
better performed by young girls than by adults; hence considerable
numbers o f them, usually between 15 and 20 years o f age, spend the
nights at work under circumstances peculiarly unfavorable to their
moral development.^)
Apprentices in cotton-spinning mills earn 80 centimes (15.4 cents)
a day; in making plate glass, 1 franc (19.3 cents); boys 14 years old
in metal manufactures are paid 25 francs ($4.83) a month for 11
hours’ work per day; in iron and copper foundries boys 16 years old
who have served an apprenticeship o f a few months earn 1.50 to 2
francs (29 to 38.6 cents), and after a year’s experience, 2.50 to 3.50
francs (48.3 to 67.6 cents) a day. In making nails, apprentices be
tween 12 and 14 years old receive from 1 to 2 francs (19.3 to 38.6
cents) a day.
In an elaborate study prepared for the Labor Office in 1898 concern
ing wages in the cotton industry at Ghent, and based on answers re
ceived from 1,920 employees, Dr. Louis Varlez gives the average
weekly wages for juvenile cotton spinners and weavers as follows: (c)
A V E R A G E W E E K L Y W AGES OF COTTON SPIN N ERS AND W E A V E R S IN GHENT,
BY SEX AND AGE.
Age.
13 years.....................................
14 years.................
15 years.....................................
16 years.....................................
17 years.....................................
Males.
60.79
1.11
1.28
1.43
1.60
Females.
60.94
.98
1.18
1.34
1.64
Age.
18 years...................................
19 years...................................
20 years....................................
21 years...................................
Males.
61.98
2.06
2.33
2.69
Females.
61.73
1.91
2.22
2.31
The same author finds (*) that cotton weavers aged 13 to 16 years
average 1.30 francs (25.1 cents) per day for males, and 0.78 franc
(15.1 cents) for females, while girls 13 to 16 engaged in work pre
paratory to weaving get 1.07 francs (20.7 cents) per day, and boys
similarly engaged receive 0.68 franc (13.1 cents). In a study o f
a Rapports Annuels de l’lnspection du Travail, 1900, p. 39. In many glass
works and occasionally in other establishments employers provide the laborers
with a ration of beer or gin. In the Hainaut region it is customary for the em
ployer to provide a barrel o f beer for every 100,000 bricks molded. A decree of
March 30, 1905, forbids the introduction o f distilled alcoholic beverages into
work places subject to the law o f December 24, 1903, concerning accidents and
employers’ liability.
&Idem, 1895, Vol. II, pp. 289 ff.
c Les Salaires dans l’lndustrie gantoise: I. Industrie Cotonniere, Annexes,
pp. 110, 112. Bruxelles, 1901.
d Idem, p. 538.
138
BULLETIN" OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
wages among the flax spinners o f Ghent, Doctor Yarlez, (a) gives the
average weekly wages o f boys and girls as follows:
AVERAGE W EEKLY WAGES OF FLAX SPINNERS IN GHENT, BY SEX AND AGE.
Age.
12 years....................................
13 years.....................................
14 years.....................................
15 years.....................................
Males.
$1.26
1.17
1.29
Females.
$0.45
.89
1.19
1.39
Age.
16 years................................ .
17 years...................................
18 years............... *..................
Males.
$1.43
1.66
1.87
Females.
$1.48
1.68
1.84
The reports o f the labor inspectors for 1895, from which most of
the above data concerning wages and hours of work have been taken,
constituted the only source o f up-to-date information at the time they
were published. There had been no general census o f trades and
occupations since October, 1846. The results o f an’investigation made
in 1866 were never published, and the industrial census o f 1880 con
cerned only a few industries, and included but half the working
population o f the Kingdom. A t the time the Labor Office was created,
it was felt that a complete and careful statement o f the industrial
resources and activities o f the nation was absolutely indispensable
to the intelligent organization and performance o f the duties o f this
office, and to serve as a basis for intelligent legislation. The office,
therefore, undertook the industrial census of October 31, 1896, the
results o f which were published in 18 volumes between 1898 and 1903.
This report, together with subsequent investigations o f the labor
office concerning Sunday work, wages in coal mining, textile indus
tries and home industries, constitute the main sources o f the informa
tion concerning child labor given in the remainder o f this section o f
the present study.
The census o f 1896 indicated that (excluding home industries) on
October 31 o f that year 76,147 children under 16 years o f age were
employed industrially by other persons than their parents; that is to
say, 13.28 per cent o f the total population between 12 and 16 years o f
age. The boys numbered 50,493 and the girls 25,654. Compared to
the total population employed industrially (671,596) the child labor
ers numbered 11.3 per cent. The largest number o f child laborers
were found in the textile industries (11,863), coal mining (10,167),
the clothing trades (9,674), and glass works (4,429).
a Les Salaires dans Flndustrie gantoise: II. Industrie de la Filature du Lin,
p. 23. Bruxelles, 1904.
139
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION" IN BELGIUM.
The separate industries or occupations in which more than 500
children under 16 years o f age were employed are as follow s:
NUMBER OF BOYS AND GIRLS UNDER 16 YEARS OF AGE IN INDUSTRIES OR
OCCUPATIONS EMPLOYING A TOTAL OF 500 AND OYER, 1896.
Children under 16 years.
Industry or occupation.
Boys.
Dressmaking..............................................................................
Coal mining (underground)...................................................
Coal mining (overground)......................................................
Flax weaving (power looms).................................................
Window glass............................................................................
Crystal and glass ware........................................................... T
Cotton spinning (power looms)..............................................
Shoemafcing..............................................................................
Cigar and tobacco manufactures............................................
Carpentry and joining.............................................................
Stone cutting..............................................................................
Printing......................................................................................
Flax spinning by machine......................................................
Cabinetmaking.........................................................................
Men’s tailors..............................................................................
Locksmithing............................................................................
Sugar manufactures..................................................................
Iron puddling and rolling......................................................
C tton spinning by machine...................................................
Building trades (except masons, painters, and plumbers).
Laundering................................................................................
Machine making......................................................................
Iron and steel foundries.........................................................
Masons........................................................................................
Weaving carded wool by machine.........................................
Knitting..........................: .........................................................
Weaving combed wool by machine.......................................
Baking........................................................................................
Bookbinding............................................................................ :
Blacksmithing...........................................................................
Weaving wool by machine.....................................................
Milliners.....................................................................................
5,472
2,321
1,063 •
1,861
1,645
764
1,652
1,344
1,474
1,399
1,245
714
1,146
1,007
990
820
841
461
843
2
722
715
683
547
39
295
621
511
599
230
Girls.
8,607
44
2,330
1,850
383
366
1,093
131
401
32
529
27
60
76
26
395
806
1
4
1
119
627
361
5
89
353
510
Total.
8,607
5,516
4,651
2,913
2,244
2,011
1,857
1,783
1,745
1,474
1,399
1,277
1,243
1,173
1,067
990
896
867
856
843
808
723
719
684
666
666
656
626
600
599
583
510
In 4,681 industrial concerns employing both children under 16
and adults, and having at least 10 laborers, it was found that in 1,737
concerns, or 37.1 per cent, the children were less than 10 per cent as
numerous as adult employees; in 1,675 concerns, or 35.9 per cent,
the children were 11 to 25 per cent as numerous as adult employees;
in 821 concerns, or 17.3 per cent, the children were 26 to 50 per cent
as numerous as adult employees; in 361 concerns, or 7.9 per cent, the
children were 51 to 100 per cent as numerous as adult employees; and
in 87, or 1.8 per cent, the children were more than 100 per cent as
numerous as adult employees.
The establishments in which child laborers were more numerous
than adult workers were textile factories (26), tobacco manufactures
(10), book printing (8 ), the manufacture o f clothing (7 ), and the
manufacture o f chocolate (6).
One wool-weaving establishment and two dressmaking shops em
ployed children under 16 exclusively. Glass works with more than
10 laborers employ from one-tenth to one-half as many children as
adults.
140
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR,
Subdividing the children according to age, the results were a fol
lows in 1896:
NUMBER OF BOYS AND GIRLS UNDER 16 YEARS OF AGE AT WORK, BY AGI
Boys.
Age.
Under 12 years............................................................................... ................
12 to 14 years .................... ..................................................... ......................
14 to 16 years...................................................................................................
248
13,814
36,431
1896.
Girls.
191
6,948
18,515
Children under 14 years of age are most numerous in the foil* ving
industries:
NUM BER OF BOYS AND GIRLS UNDER 14 Y EARS OF AGE A T W O R K IN EACH
S P E C IF IE D IN DU STRY, 1896.
Children under 14 mrs.
Industry.
Boys.
Dressmaking....................................................................................................
Coal mining (overground)............................................................................
Coal mining (underground).........................................................................
Flax spinning (power looms).......................................................................
Crystal and glass ware................................ .................................................
Window glass..................................................................................................
Shoemaking.....................................................................................................
Cotton spinning (power looms)....................................................................
Cigars and tobacco..........................................................................................
949
1,285
342
681
609
596
303
446
Girls.
2,547
759
620
122
81
42
312
108
With regard to the duration o f the daily workday, the num
hours was found as a rule to be greater in small concerns tl
large establishments. Exclusive o f coal mines, the number of cl
under 16 years o f age at work each specified number of hours p
was found to be as follows:
"otal.
2,647
1,708
1,285
962
803
690
638
615
554
er o f
in in
Idren
r day
NUMBER AND P E R CENT OF BOYS AND G IR LS UNDER 16 YE A R S OF . IE A T
W O RK EACH S P E C IF IE D NUM BER OF HOURS P E R DAY, 1896.
Children under 16 yeai
Hours worked per day.
Boys.
Girls.
Total.
er cent.
8 or less...........................................................................................
8 to 9................................................................................................
9 to 10...............................................................................................
10 to 10*...........................................................................................
10* to 11...........................................................................................
11 to 11*...........................................................................................
11* to 12........................................................................................... !!
12 and over.....................................................................................ij
1,852
2,559
14,337
5,958
6,751
5,962
1,810
501
1,262
1,827
6,682
3,168
2,826
5,313
612
232
3,114
4,386
21,019
9,126
9,577
11,275
2,422
733
5.05
7.11
34.09
14.80
15.54
18.29
3.93
1.19
Total..................................................................................... j
39,730
21,922
a 61,652
100.00
a Not including 4,309 for whom hours were not reported.
It is thus apparent that about one-eighth o f the children T,500)
work 9 hours or less a day, over one-third (21,019) work bet een 9
141
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN BELGIUM.
and 10 hours a day, nearly one-third (18,703) work between 10 and
11 hours a day, and nearly one-fourth (14,430) work more than 11
hours a day.
O f the 65,961 children under 16, it was found that, not including
coal mines, 61,314, or 92.99 per cent o f the total, work only in the
daytime, 36 work only at night, and 4,611, or 6.99 per cent, alter
nately in the daytime and at night.
The longest workday for children—more than 11 hours—was found
to be most frequent in the following industries:
T O T A L C H ILD R E N UNDER 16 YEARS* OF AGE A T W ORK IN C E R T A IN INDUS
T R IE S FOR WHOM TH E NUMBER OF HOURS OF W O RK W A S KNOWN AND
NUMBER W ORKING MORE TH AN 11 HOURS EACH DAY, 1896.
Industry.
Blacksmiths....................
Locksmiths......................
Matches...........................
Spinning jute and hemp,
Weaving jute...................
Spinning cotton............ .
Weaving cotton...............
Spinning flax................. .
Making twine.................
Weaving linen.................
Spinning carded wool...
Spinning combed wool.. *2
6
Children
working
more
than 11
hours.
205
145
151
181
187
159
1,736
595
2,806
237
901
438
Total
children
employ
ed in the
industry.
578
960
161
417
269
256
1,818
856
2,913
243
1,216
621
Industry.
Weaving wool........................
Rope making.........................
Dressmaking..........................
Men’s clothing......................
Laundering...........................
Making clogs.........................
Joiners....................................
Cabinetmakers......................
Shoemaking...........................
Brush making........................
Other industries....................
Children
working
more
than 11
hours.
Total
children
employ
ed in the
industry.
480
325
661
347
175
131
266
218
432
110
3,418
641
561
8,017
1,016
777
284
1,474
1,123
1,711
332
32,395
As for night work, the 4,647 children engaged therein were largely
employed in glass works (3,262); iron manufactures come next wTith
657, and sugar manufactures with 447.
The above figures do not include coal mines, with regard to which
the industrial census of 1896 gives the following results concerning
the 10,697 children under 16 years o f age employed (out o f a total of
116,274 laborers).
Those working in coal mines exclusively by day number 9,307
(6,698 boys and 2,609 girls). No girls under 16 work at night in
coal mines, but 1,364 boys under 16 work exclusively at night, and
26 alternately by day and at night.
The duration o f the workday (for the 9,153 children concerning
whom information was obtained) was 10 hours or less for 4,482
working only by day, and for 1,294 working only at night. For
2,893 it was between 10 and 10| hours; for 330, between 10| and 11
hours; and for 152, more than 11 hours.
With regard to the wages o f child laborers the results o f the census
are based on data concerning 70,688 such laborers (45,577 boys and
25,111 girls). Dividing this total number into four wage groups the
table following indicates the number in each group.
56504°—No. 89— 10----- 10
142
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
NUM BER OF BOYS AND G IR LS UNDER 16 Y E A R S OF AGE IN EACH OF FOUR
W AGE GROUPS, 1896.
Number earning daily—
From 1
From 0.50
Under 0.50 to
franc to 1.50 francs
1
franc
franc (9.7 (9.7 to 19.3 1.50 francs (29 cents)
cents).
(19.3 to 29 and over.
cents).
cents).
Age.
Boys under 16...............................................................
Girls under 16....................................................................
o7,511
59,718
12,748
8,444
15,090
4,633
10,228
2,316
Total........................................................................
Per cent of to ta l...............................................................
c 17,229
24.37
21,192
29.98
19,723
27.91
12,544
17.74
• Including 2,844 receiving no wages.
6 Including 6,141 receiving no wages.
c Including 8,985 receiving no wages.
Thus it appears that in round figures one-fourth of the child
laborers earn no wages at all or earn less than 9.7 cents a day, more
than one-half receive from 9.7 to 29 cents a day, and less than onefifth earn 29 cents or more. In fact, of the latter group about twothirds earn between 29 and 38.6 cents arid one-third earn between
38.6 and 48.3 cents a day.
In the principal occupations employing over 500 children the wages
are as follow s:
C L A S S IF IE D
D A IL Y
W AG ES
OF C H ILD REN UNDER
IN D U STR IE S, 1896.
16
YEARS
OF
AGE,
BY
Number e a rn in g Number
for
which
Total em wages
From 0.50 From 1
1.50
ployed.
to 0.99
franc to
were Under 0.50 franc
francs
(9.7 1.49 francs (29
franc
(9.7
reported. cents).
cents)
to 19.1
(19.3 to
cents). 28.8 cents). and over.
industry.
bo ys.
Coal mines {underground)...............
Coal mines (overground).................
Stone cutting....................................
Iron puddling and rolling................
Machines..........................................
Iron and steel foundries...................
Blacksmithing......... . .......................
Locksmithing..................................
Glassware........................................
Window glass....................................
Bakeries..........................................
Sugar manufactures.........................
Cotton spinning...............................
Flax spinning..................................
Linen weaving..................................
Men’s clothing..................................
M asons.............................................
Other building trades......................
Joiners..............................................
Cabinetmakers.................................
Shoemaking.....................................
Cigars and tobacco, including cutters.
Printing and lithographing...............
Book binding....................................
6,026
2,338
1,379
833
796
743
645
996
1,584
1,786
568
767
774
1,239
849
1,117
579
1,463
1,579
1,187
1,802
1,684
1,412
542
4,830
2,206
1,240
811
765
685
447
778
445
1,609
363
751
687
1,158
584
609
561
1,286
1,033
974
1,138
. 1,359
1,266
457
2,620
1,081
2,099
689
634
8,801
600
657
755
2,508
939
2,003
568
582
2,935
225
642
683
9
292
4
151
319
350
498
366
235
129
80
734
395
95
263
312
185
379
218
116
120
64
256
374
270
204
14
266
„342
346
382
688
611
194
1,999
1,126
396
293
362
232
74
106
221
960
29
341
301
743
218
90
105
306
235
172
177
208
312
95
3
13
62
13
178
1,690
117
529
183
1,138
430
800
263
280
1,016
88
88
385
a 1,367
a 496
a 1,141
«292
ol24
0 229
a 20
o25
oll5
3
8
94
1
35
27
162
225
26
199
12
GIRLS.
Coalmines (overground)
Cotton spin nin g................
Flax spinning.....................
Linen weaving...................
Hosiery and knitting.......
Dressmaking......................
M illin ery ...........................
Corsets, e tc..........................
Laundering........................
° Number earning 1 fran c and over.
2,748
338
355
422
106
114
26
68
6
607
15
346
118
41
87
23
438
563
137
106
181
97
108
39
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN BELGIUM.
143
The above figures, it must be remembered, do not include “ home
industries ” (see p. 131) which in Belgium constitute a very important
part o f the industrial activity o f the nation. In fact, Belgium indus
tries in 1896 employed 118,620 persons working in their homes for
manufacturers or dealers. O f this total, 41,690 were males and
76,930 females. The children under 16 years o f age in home indus
tries numbered 12,098 (2,512 boys and 9,586 girls).
Home industries occupy more than one-sixth o f the industrial
population o f Belgium; out o f every 100 laborers 17 work in their
homes. (a) Moreover, in spite o f the progress of large-scale machine
production, production by hand continues to hold its own in a number
o f industries. Thus it was found that there were actually more
weavers making cotton, woolen, and silk cloths with “ hand looms ”
than with power looms (25,751 o f the former and 23,541 o f the lat
ter). And o f course home industries continue to be important in
those branches o f production in which the machine can not do the
same work as that done by hand. For instance, in the manufacture
o f lace, and embroidery on network, 49,000 persons, out o f a total of
51,000 engaged in this industry, work in their homes.
The elaborate investigation o f Belgian home industries begun ten
years ago (ten volumes of the results o f which have already been
published) furnishes comparatively little information upon the ex
tent o f the employment o f children in their homes. This investiga
tion consists mainly o f a series of monographs on home industries in
particular trades and regions, together with the budgets o f some of
the laborers engaged therein.
It should be noted, moreover, that this report, as well as the census
o f 1896, concerns only industrial laborers. Neither investigation
includes agriculture or commerce; and in default o f a general official
investigation o f child labor, as well as o f any satisfactory figures
concerning conditions later than 1896, the above data are neither com
plete nor very enlightening as to the present status o f child labor in
Belgium.
FRANCE.
BEGINNINGS OF CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION.
Four dates in the nineteenth century are o f particular importance
in the history o f child-labor legislation in France: 1841, 1874, 1892,
and 1900. But it must not be supposed that the law of March 22,
1841, was the first enactment in behalf o f the laborer. An ordinance
o f September 26, 1806, regulated the hours of labor in certain build°A . Julin, in his study on “ Les Industries h Domicile en Belgique, etc.”
(Liege, 1908), based on the official returns o f the census for 1896, calculates
(p. 11) that in reality 21.87 per cent o f the industrial laborers o f Belgium work
at their homes in the employ of manufacturers, dealers, or other intermediaries.
144
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
ing trades; the law o f November 18, 1814, inspired wholly by relig
ious considerations, regulated work on Sundays and public holidays;
and the decree of January 3, 1813, fixed at 10 years the minimum age
limit for underground workers in mines. But these three measures
were o f little practical significance.
By 1830 the industrial revolution, which greatly modified the eco
nomic life o f western Europe, had produced results in France sim
ilar to those observed somewhat earlier in England. As in England,
the discovery o f children of tender years employed under most un
favorable conditions, for shamefully long periods of work, aroused
public sentiment and provoked a parliamentary investigation. Dur
ing the reign o f Louis Philippe a number o f philanthropists and o f
public-spirited manufacturers urged the passage o f a law for the pro
tection o f young children against unscrupulous employers and those
who were forced to use child labor because others used it and against
selfish or ignorant parents. Statesmen like Sismondi and successful
manufacturers o f a humanitarian turn o f mind like Daniel Le Grand
became the vigorous protagonists o f child-labor legislation, and
pointed to the laws already enacted in England and to the measures
about to be taken in Prussia as suitable examples to be followed in
France. But in the parliamentary debates o f 1838 on this subject it
was urged by many members that the child workers o f France were
much better treated than those of England, and that legal interven
tion was not necessary. Others questioned the right o f the State to
interfere in industrial matters at all.
Probably conditions were not so appalling in French factories
as in those across the channel. But in certain parts o f France there
was abundant and reliable evidence to show that, particularly in the
cotton factories, children of 6 and even 5 years o f age were kept in
the mills for 14 and 15 hours a day; sometimes they fell exhausted
upon the machines at which they were working. There were also,
as in England, cases in which these young employees were brutally
treated. The Count o f Tascher told the House of Lords that the
owners o f some o f the smaller plants used a cowhide to secure obedi
ence among their child laborers, and that a certain employer threat
ened his young apprentices with a red-hot iron.(a) Many o f the
employers o f children, however, were among the first to deplore the
existence o f child labor and to admit its disastrous effects. But they
insisted that it was impossible for them separately to remedy the
evil, and that the necessities o f competition forced all to adopt like
methods to economize in expenses o f production. As early as 1827
a 'Mulhouse spinner, Jean Jacques Bourcart, urged the industrial
society o f that city to investigate the problem of child labor; and
®Moniteur o f 1840, p. 419. See also Levasseur: Histoire des classes ouvrferes
en France de 1789 k 1870, Vol. II, p. 124. Paris, 1904.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
145
during the ensuing ten years this society conducted a campaign of
public agitation in favor of legislation against the employment of
too young children and repeatedly presented bills and petitions to
the national legislature for this purpose.
But the national legislature, bewildered by conflicting testimony
with regard to the extent and conditions o f child labor, deemed it
wise to order an investigation before attempting to regulate it by law.
The minister o f commerce therefore, in 1834 and 1837, ordered in
quiries to be made concerning the age o f children in factories, the
hours o f work, night work, and school attendance. Traces o f this
inquiry may still be found in the archives o f some of the Depart
ments. Thus the Orleans Chamber o f Commerce, after having exam
ined three different projects sent by the minister, declared that if
the maximum workday for children were fixed at 8 hours it would
drive children entirely out o f the factory; the chamber furthermore
considered the appointment o f factory inspectors impossible outside
o f the large centers of industry, but requested that factory inspection
be carried on by the Government, i f introduced at all.
The Academy o f Moral and Political Sciences charged one of its
own members, Doctor Villerme, with the preparation of a report on
the condition o f the working-classes in textile factories. Villerme
insisted upon seeing everything himself. He questioned the employ
ers, visited the factories, went into the houses of the laborers and
took part in their amusements, seeking, as he himself put it, “ to
become the confidant o f their joys and their troubles, their sorrows
and their hopes, and the witness o f their vices and their virtues.”
His report, comparable in kind and in importance to Booth’s more
recent studies o f the life and labor o f the people o f London, was a
revelation to the academy when presented in 1839, and subsequently
to the public when published in 1840. (a)
Concerning woolen and cotton mills Villerme wrote:
These two industries, it is true, require o f the children nothing
more than simple watchfulness. But for all laborers alike, the long
working period causes excessive fatigue. They must stand for 16 or
17 hours a day, at least 13 o f these hours in a closed room, with
scarcely a change of place or o f position. This is not work, not toil,
but torture. Yet it is inflicted upon children 6 to 8 years old, badly
fed, poorly clothed, obliged at 5 o’clock each morning to walk the
long distance which separates their homes from the mill and which
completes their exhaustion every night when they return home again
* * *# The remedy for the ruin o f children in factories, and for
the murderous abuses to which they are exposed, can be provided
only by a law or a regulation that fixes the maximum workday in
accordance with the age o f the laborers. ( *6)
a Louis VillermS: Tableau de l’Etat Physique et moral des ouvriers employes
dans les manufactures de coton, de laine et de soie. 2 vols. Paris, 1840.
6 Idem, vol. 2, p. 92.
146
B U LLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
Meanwhile an official investigation o f 1837, instituted by the min
istry, showed that in wool, cotton, and silk factories, children worked
12 to 14 hours a day, exclusive of the 1J or 2 hours for meals. In
some regions children between 6 and 7 years of age were admitted
to the factories, and nearly everywhere they were admitted at 8 and 9
years. Night work was the rule in a large number o f establishments.
The results o f the official investigation, the publication o f ViUerme’s
report, and the example of England and o f several other nations that
had recently taken action in regard to child labor,(a) stimulated the
parliamentary discussions o f the subject; and although some.of the
local boards o f conciliation (Cornells de Prudhommes) and chambers
o f commerce which had been consulted upon the matter were un
favorable to child-labor regulation, declaring that it was impossible
to do without the children in the factories, the greater number o f
them suggested that it might be advisable to forbid children to work
at night, to require that they receive an education, to regulate their
employment according to their strength, and not to permit children
under 15 years o f age to be employed regularly as laborers. Where
upon the minister o f commerce asked the legislature to authorize the
Government to adopt such administrative measures as it might find
necessary to protect children under 16 years o f age against excessive
labor.
In the House o f Lords this project was opposed by two different
groups. The first o f these opposed all labor legislation as the begin
ning o f socialism. The other accepted the principle o f legal regula
tion, but objected to leaving such matters to the arbitrary discretion
o f administrative officials. The latter opinion triumphed in the dis
cussions o f the parliamentary committee, which proceeded to draft a
new bill; and the lower house approved the principle of govern
mental intervention. The debate in this house was hard fought,
manufacturers objecting particularly to the application of the law
to factories alone and not to house industries. They asked with a
touch o f irony whether the Government intended to go into the homes
o f the people and see that children were properly fed and clothed,
and whether the Government planned to drive the children to com
pulsory idleness. If, they argued, organized society can not guaran
tee the productivity o f labor, nor even guarantee to provide work,
what right has it to regulate work? But their adversaries met this
argument easily enough by calling attention to the fact that the
manufacturers themselves had frequently asked the State to come to
their aid and to interfere in economic matters on their behalf. Most
vigorously, however, did the manufacturers protest against the pro
vision for a paid corps o f factory inspectors. This, they declared,
« Prussia passed a child-labor law on March 9, 1889; Bavaria, on January 15,
1840; and Baden, on March 4, 1840.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
147
was tantamount to the creation o f a special police force to spy upon
them and infringe upon their authority. The Chamber yielded on
this point and substituted inspectors chosen from among the manu
facturers and former manufacturers, who were to perform their
services gratuitously. In this form the bill was passed with a large
majority by the Chamber and returned to the House o f Lords. Here
only the spokesman for the original bill, Ch. Dupin, objected seriously
to the changes, on the ground that the law made no provision for
adequate enforcement. The bill became a law on March 22, 1841. (a)
The provisions o f the law were very moderate. They applied only
to large and medium sized establishments; as the law put it,'wto manu
factories and shops using mechanical motors or employing continu
ous fire, and to all factories having more than 20 laborers in one estab
lishment.” In such establishments it was forbidden to employ chil
dren under 8 years o f age. From 8 to 12 years of age they could be
employed 8 hours a day, interrupted by an interval for rest. From 12
to 16 years o f age, 12 hours’ work were allowed, interrupted by
periods o f rest. Night work was forbidden children under 18 years
o f age. But children over 12 could be employed at night in establish
ments requiring continuous fire or in factories which had been
required to shut down because o f circumstances beyond human control
(vis m a jo r); 2 hours of night work were to be counted as equal to
8 hours o f work by day. Until they reached the age o f 12 years, chil
dren were obliged to go to school. After that age they did not need
to go any longer if in possession of a certificate of primary studies.
Inspectors were authorized to supervise the heads o f industrial
establishments, who were made responsible for violations of the law.
The penalties which might be imposed for violating these provisions
were slight, but gave a sort of “ moral sanction ” to the law.
The law, moreover, gave certain discretionary powers to the
officials of the Government by permitting them to extend its pro
visions to other shops and factories, to increase the minimum age of
admission in certain industries in which this might prove necessary,
and to prohibit altogether the employment o f children at certain dan
gerous tasks and in certain kinds of workshops. In a general way,
furthermore, it authorized these officials to “ secure the maintenance
o f good behavior and public decencj^ in workshops and factories; to
assure the primary education and religious instruction of children; to
protect them agaihst bad treatment and abusive punishments; and to
secure and preserve the conditions of salubrity and safety necessary
to the life and health of children.”
This law o f 1841 was bound to become a dead letter. The number
o f hours (8 per day) that children under 12 years of age were allowed
a Levasseur: Histoire des classes ourri$res eii France de 1780 a 1870, Yol. II,
p. 124 fie.
148
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
to work did not harmonize at all with the exigencies of the prevailing
organization o f industry, because only three-fourths or four-sevenths
o f the workday for adults was over at the hour the law required
the children to stop work. I f parents were to work 12 or 14 hours
a day, what would become o f the children dismissed 4 or 6 hours
earlier? Schools were needed to receive them, but there were not
enough schools, nor were they rightly located, to provide for the
70,000 children scattered in the 500 establishments to which the law
applied. Schools were started in several Departments of the coun
try in connection with factories, and received financial assistance
from the 'Government, but they were lamentably insufficient.
The law was received with favor neither by employers nor by
parents, and the difficulty o f organizing relays of laborers was so
great that the majority of employers were led to violate or circumvent
the law. Even at Mulhouse, a center of reform movements of this
sort, it was complained that the law was badly enforced. The
committees of volunteer inspectors, receiving no salary, and con
sisting o f manufacturers, performed their work indifferently. Dur
ing the first few years after the passage o f the law they met occasion
ally, but they soon ceased meeting at all.
In 1847 Dupin, who had presented the law in its original form
before it was modified by the Chamber, frankly told the House of
Lords that the law had become an absolutely dead letter, and pro
posed the enactment o f a new measure. A new bill was drawn up
and passed by the House of Lords on February 22, 1848, providing
for half-time work for children, the regulation o f female labor, and
the establishment o f a corps o f salaried inspectors. But the out
break o f the revolution of 1848 cut off further consideration o f the
matter by the Chamber.
The provisional government o f 1848 was pledged to action on be
half o f the laboring classes, who had taken an active part in the
revolution. In fact, two representatives o f the laboring classes were
members o f the Government—Louis Blanc and Albert. The first
fruit o f the new regime was the hastily framed decree o f March 2,
1848, fixing the maximum workday for all laborers at 11 hours in
the Departments and 10 hours in Paris.
The reaction in June brought with it a proposal to abrogate the
decree entirely, but a compromise was finally adopted, largely at the
instigation o f the Christian socialist Leroux, and of Senard, minister
of the interior. This compromise law of September 9, 1848, pre
served some o f the appearances o f the decree of March 2, but really
constituted, as one member o f the majority subsequently admitted,
“ a platonic concession to the excited passions” of the laboring
classes. It established a maximum workday o f 12 hours; it applied.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
149
like the law o f 1841, only to industrial concerns employing a me
chanical motor or continuous fire or having more than 20 employees
in one establishment; and it allowed employers, by using two shifts
o f laborers alternately by day and night, to keep their factories
going continuously. This law, which is still valid, doubtless owes
its continuance in force to the fact that for many years no provision
was made for its enforcement and the Government seems never to
have taken it seriously. In the first place, numerous and elastic
exceptions were provided for by the decrees of May 15, 1851, and
January 31, 1866; and, in the second place, no officials were charged
with its enforcement and no courts willing to punish violations. Not
until the passage o f the law o f February 16, 1883, which provided
for the appointment of labor inspectors charged with its enforce
ment, did the law o f 1848 acquire any practical significance.
Something, however, was accomplished in behalf o f apprentices,
who were sorely in need of protection'of some sort. The law of Feb
ruary 22, 1851, fixed the maximum workday for apprentices in all
trades at 10 hours and forbade night work for those under 16 years
o f age.
Under the Second Empire the central government exhibited the
same lack o f interest in the enforcement of labor legislation in gen
eral, and o f the provisions in favor o f children, as its immediate
predecessors. Some o f the departmental governments, however, took
it upon themselves to appoint inspectors and to pay them out of the
departmental funds, largely as a consequence of the agitation o f the
subject by philanthropic societies and of the stir occasioned by a
remarkable book by Jules Simon entitled The Eight-Year-Old
Laborer, (a) the influence o f which at this time was scarcely less con
siderable than that of Villerme’s revelations in 1840. But all this
agitation resulted, on the part o f the central government, simply in
the decree o f December 7, 1868, adding the enforcement o f the childlabor provisions o f the law to the duties of the inspectors o f steam
boilers—much against the will of those officials. Ultimately the
decree of May 27, 1869, confirmed the appointment o f existing labor
inspectors by the Departments and placed them under the direction
of the mining engineers. These almost insignificant measures, how
ever, did not satisfy the growing demand for legislative and admin
istrative intervention. Hence in 1870 a new law was .proposed, pro
viding that children between 8 and 13 years o f age be allowed to
work not more than 6 hours a day; that those between 13 and 16 be
allowed to work not more than 10 hours a day; and that a permanent,
distinct corps o f inspectors be created. But the Franco-Prussian war
0 L’oUvrier de huit ans.
Paris, 1867.
150
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
cut off the debates upon the subject, and nothing was done until after
the establishment o f the Third Republic.
Indeed, the regulation of the conditions o f labor was one o f the
first problems to occupy the attention o f the new National Assembly.
On June 19, 1871, Ambroise Joubert introduced a bill for which in
the committee an entirely new measure was substituted. Reported
to the legislature in 1872, this measure gave rise to long and tedious
debates and was not passed until May 19, 1874, after many modifica
tions had been introduced, concerning which the principal spokesman
for the bill, Tallon, remarked that they ill disguised the selfish
interests which prompted them.
The law o f May 19, 1874, which remained in force for nearly two
decades, provided for the first time in France for a really effective
system o f protection for child laborers. The age o f admission was
raised from 8 to 12 years. Children must not be employed for more
than 12 hours a day, interrupted by periods o f rest. In certain speci
fied cases, the law allowed children 10 years old to work 6 hours a
day, interrupted by an interval for rest; among the dozen industries
to enjoy this concession were silk, cotton, wool and flax spinning,
paper manufactures, and glass works. Up to the age o f 16 for boys
and 21 for girls night work was prohibited; so also was work on
Sundays and legal holidays. But these provisions, too, were subject
to certain exceptions. Underground work in mines and quarries was
forbidden for all females and for boys under 12 years of age, and
the underground work o f boys between 12 and 16 was made subject
to administrative regulation. The administrative authorities were
also emj)owrered to forbid the employment o f children in such trades
or occupations as might be declared dangerous or unhealthful.
The scope o f this law was wider than that o f 1841. It applied,
according to the “ ministerial instructions ” of May 29, 1875, not only
to wTork places containing a specified number o f laborers, but to all
children and to all female minors engaged at industrial labor in
manufactures, factories, workshops, work yards, mines, and quarries.
It did not apply to home industries, v The enforcement of the law
was intrusted to fifteen divisional inspectors having the right o f entry
to all manufacturing establishments. Apart from these inspectors,
a local “ commission ” in each Department was instituted to supervise
their activities.; and for the country as a wdiole a superior commission
was attached to the Ministry o f Commerce and appointed by the
President for advisory purposes and for presenting lists o f candi
dates for appointment as inspectors. Violations o f the law were
punishable by fines o f 16 to 200 francs ($3.09 .to $38.60), payable as
many times as there were persons found employed contrary to the
law.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
151
Hardly had the law been passed when various plans for its modifi
cation were proposed. (a) The law o f 1874 was most severely criticised
by the parliamentary “ Left,” which complained that the l^w did not
apply to so-called “ ouvroirs ”— charitable institutions in which
children were sometimes subjected to shameless exploitation; that the
law was not posted up in all factories; that children under 12 years
o f age were still being employed; that there were too many excep
tions to the law; that its provisions were being applied only half
heartedly; and that the activity of the inspectors was paralyzed by
the antagonism o f employers and by all sorts o f political considera
tions.
Some o f these criticisms were well founded. In 1876, 6.5 per cent
o f the children employed in the establishments subject to the law were
under 12 years o f age. The decree o f May 14, 1875, contained a list
o f establishments regarded as “ unsuitable, dangerous, or unhealthful,” in which the employment o f children was forbidden, and thus
amounted to an extension o f the law ; on the other hand, it contained
a list o f occupations in which, although child labor was as a rule
forbidden by the law, it might under certain conditions be permitted.
The decree o f March 3,1877 (supplemented by that o f May 14,1888),
and decrees o f November 3, 1882, increased this list o f exceptions,
while the decree o f March 27, 1875, authorized the employment o f
children between 10 and 12 years o f age in spinning mills, paper
manufactures, glass works, printing cloth, and the manufacture o f
net lace (“ tulle ” ). Under date of May 12, 1875, it was decreed that
children between 12 and 16 years o f age must not work in mines more
than 8 hours in 24. A decree o f May 13, 1875, forbade the employ
ment o f children under 16 years o f age at certain machines while the
machines were in motion, and another under date of May 22, 1875,
regulated the labor o f children in paper factories, glass works, the
manufacture o f sugar, and metallurgical establishments.
A number o f decrees were passed during the following years, some
o f them extending the application o f the law in certain directions,
others weakening it by exceptions. On the whole, it must be admitted
that the law o f 1874 was not consistently enforced in all trades or in
all parts o f the nation, although the laws o f February 16, 1883, and
March 27, 1885, increased the number o f divisional inspectors from
15 to 21 and also intrusted these officials with the enforcement of the
law o f September 9, 1848, concerning the maximum workday for
adults.
_____________________________________ ________ i--------------------------------------------.
a On December 7 , 1S74, a law was passed forbidding the employment of young
persons under 16 years o f age in “ wandering trades ” (professions ambiriantes) .
Inasmuch as this law, modified April 19, 1897, is still valid, a summary o f its
contents will be given in the next section o f this report, devoted to a systematic
exposition of the legislation now in force.
152
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
Meanwhile, the activity of the inspectors increased considerably.
In 1876 they visited 10,041 establishments and in 1891, 69,951. Par
ticularly the Seine Department (including Paris) had an efficient
corps of local inspectors, comprising, in 1891,1 supervising inspector,
30 male and female inspectors, and 12 substitutes. But the law, even
where it was put into force, had these serious defects: (1) It did not
apply to a large number o f small industrial establishments; (2) it
furnished no protection for male children over 16 years o f age; and
(3) it placed no limits upon the employment of adult women at night.
Drafts o f a new law were introduced in 1879, and in 1881 the
Chamber adopted a bill to limit the workday for women and chil
dren to 11 hours, but the Senate refused to accept it. The subject
was taken up again in 1885 but not debated in the Chamber. The
next year the radical ministers Lockroy and Demole introduced a
bill which was modified several times, sent back and forth between
the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate (which violently opposed
the suggestion to regulate the workday o f adult women), and finally
became a law on November 2,1892. Two matters deserve to be men
tioned here as contributing very essentially to the enactment o f this
measure. The first of these was the international conference on
labor regulation called by the Emperor of Germany, which met in
Berlin in March, 1890, and which attracted an unusual amount of
public attention to the evils o f child labor and female labor and to
the question o f legal intervention. The second, more important
factor, having a more immediate bearing upon French conditions,
was an investigation made by the French Government between 1883
and 1886, which showed that large numbers o f women were em
ployed at night and sometimes required to work 16, 18, and 20 hours
consecutively, and that children were found working under conditions
which, according to M. Sibille, the chief spokesman for the bill,
“ doomed them to incurable debility because o f premature and sus
tained toil.”
The law o f November 2, 1892, subsequently modified by the law of
March 30,1900, and by a series of decrees, constitutes the basis o f the
present regulation o f child labor in France. An account of its
provisions belongs, therefore, to the following section o f this report,
which summarizes existing legislation on this subject.
PRESENT LAWS CONCERNING CHILD LABOR.
It has frequently been proposed to codify the several laws and
decrees that regulate the conditions o f labor in France; but thus far
only the preliminary steps in this direction have been taken. (a) It is
a The Chamber o f Deputies accepted such a code April 15, 1905, but the
Senate has taken no action upon it.
CHILD-LABOB LEGISLATION IN FKANCE.
153
therefore necessary, in attempting to present a complete statement of
the present regulations concerning child labor, to indicate the provi
sions contained in a series o f laws and decrees stretching back over a
period o f half a century, for the apprenticeship law of 1851 still has
an important bearing upon certain phases of child labor.
The main features o f the present situation, however, are determined
by the law o f November 2, 1892, which concerns “ the labor of chil
dren, o f female minors, and o f women, in manufactures and work
shops.” (a)
The precise scope o f the law is set forth in the first article. “ The
labor o f children, female minors, and women, employed in work
shops, mills, mines, quarries, work yards, factories and the establish
ments connected therewith, is subject to the terms o f this law, no
matter what the nature of the labor may be, whether the establish
ments be public or private, secular or religious, and even when they
are o f an eleemosynary character or are designed to provide trade
or technical instruction.” It applies to apprentices and to aliens as
well as to natives. It does not apply to labor that is performed in
establishments in which only the members o f the family are employed
under the direction o f father, mother, or guardian, unless the labor
performed in these establishments is performed with the aid of steam
or o f a mechanical motor, or if the industry carried on therein is
classified among those recognized as dangerous or unhealthful, in
which cases the inspector shall have the right to prescribe what meas
ures shall be adopted to insure healthfulness and safety.
Children under 13 years o f age shall neither be permitted to work
in, nor be admitted to, any o f the establishments subject to the law.
But if they possess a certificate o f primary studies ( *6) and a certificate
o f physical fitness, the age limit is lowered to 12 years. This certifi
cate o f physical fitness shall be furnished free o f charge by any o f the
physicians in the public employ designated by the prefect. I f the
parents are unwilling to abide by the judgment o f this physician,
they may call in others to testify with regard to a child’s physical
fitness. The labor inspectors may at any time require that a medical
examination be made o f any children under 16 years of age employed
in an establishment subject to the law, in order to ascertain whether
the work they are doing does not exceed their strength. I f it does,
the inspectors may require the dismissal o f such children upon the
testimony o f any physician in the public employ designated by the
a The statements relative to the provisions o f the law of 1892 and o f other
labor laws and decrees are based on the text o f the latest official volume con
taining these measures: Lois, d£crets, arr§t£s concernant la Reglementation
du Travail et Nomenclature des etablissements dangereux, insalubres ou incom
modes. Paris, June, 1909.
6 Provided for by the law o f March 28, 1882.
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BU LLETIN OF T H E BUREAU OF LABOR.
prefect; but in this case, too, the parents have the same right as in
regard to a child’s admission at the age of 12 years. In orphan
asylums and charitable institutions providing primary instruction,
manual or trade instruction shall not exceed 3 hours per day for
children under 13 years of age, or those 12 years o f age possessing a
certificate o f primary studies.
No child under 18 years o f age, no female minor, and no woman
may be employed in any sort o f work at night, i. e., between 9 p. m.
and 5 a. m. (The law provided in this connection that work might
be done between 4 a. m. and 10 p. m. i f divided between two shifts of
laborers, each working not more than 9 hours and having 1 hour for
rest. This provision, however, was abrogated by the law of 1900.)
But permission may be granted to adult women and to girls over 18
years o f age to work until 11 p. m. at certain periods o f the year for
a total period not exceeding 60 days in certain industries determined
by an administrative regulation and under such conditions as shall
be laid down by this regulation. In no such case, however, shall the
actual working period (a) per day exceed 12 hours. Certain industries
designated by the same administrative regulation are also perma
nently exempted from compliance with the above provisions concern
ing night work; but in no such case shall the actual hours o f work
exceed 7 in 24. The same regulation may exempt certain industries
temporarily from the above provisions. Furthermore, i f accidents or
agencies beyond human control should cause the stoppage of work in
any industry, the inspector may suspend the above prohibition of
night work in that industry for a fixed period.
No child under 18 years of age and no woman shall be employed on
legal holidays, even to arrange goods, in the establishments subject to
the law. Nevertheless, in establishments with continuous fire adult
women and male children may be employed at night in such work as
is indispensable, provided they have at least 1 day o f rest per week.
The kinds o f work to which this provision applies and the daily
period during which such work may be carried on are fixed by an
administrative regulation.
The provisions concerning the duration of the daily working period
may be suspended temporarily by the divisional inspector, with regard
to women and to children under 18 years of age, in certain industries
determined by the same administrative regulation.
Children under 13 years o f age may not be employed as actors,
supernumeraries, etc., in public performances given in theaters and
music halls. B y way o f exception, however, the employment o f one
or o f several children for the performance o f a certain play may be
°T h e actual working period does not, o f course, include periods allowed for
rest according to the schedule o f work.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
155
authorized in Paris by the minister o f public instruction and the fine
arts, and in the Departments by the departmental perfects.
The employment o f any female person at underground work in
mines and quarries is forbidden. Boys between 13 and 18 years of
age may be thus employed under conditions determined by adminis
trative regulations. Such regulations may also determine what mines
need by their nature to be exempted from compliance with the pro
visions concerning night work, and may permit children to work
underground between 4 a. m. and midnight upon the express condition
that they be not employed to work more than 8 hours in 24 and that
they shall not remain in the mines longer than 10 hours. (a)
For all children under 18 years the mayors shall furnish, free o f
charge, to parents, guardians, or employers, a work book (livret) con
taining the full names, the date and place o f birth, and the domicile
o f such children. I f a child is less than 13 years old, the book must
state whether the child possesses a certificate of primary studies.
Employers must enter upon this book the dates on which the child’s
employment begins and ends. They must also keep a register bearing
the above data concerning every child in their employ.
Employers, factory owners, and persons who use mechanical mo
tive power must post up in their establishments the provisions of the
law, of the administrative regulations concerning its application, and
o f those affecting the particular industry in which they are engaged,
as well as the names and addresses of the inspectors o f the district in
which the establishments are situated. They must also post a notice
o f the precise time at which work begins and ends, and the time and
duration o f the intervals of rest. Copies of this notice must be sent
to the inspector and to the mayor’s office.
In all the working rooms o f orphanages, charitable institutions,
and similar religious or secular establishments, a notice must be posted
indicating for the children therein the hours for manual labor and
the periods for rest, study, and meals; such notice must be approved
and countersigned by the inspector. A complete list of the children
being brought up in such establishments, giving their full names and
the date and place o f birth, certified by the directors thereof, shall be
sent every three months to the inspector and shall indicate all changes
in the above data that have taken place since the last statement was
made.
The kinds o f labor that involve danger to females and children or
exceed their strength or jeopardize their morality, and in which,
therefore, they are forbidden to engage, shall be determined by ad
ministrative regulations.^) No woman or child may be employed in
unhealthful or dangerous establishments in which the laborer is ex
c See page 162 for a subsequent modification o f these provisions.
6 See page 165 ff.
156
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
posed to processes or emanations injurious to his or lier health, except
under such special conditions as are fixed for each category of labor
ers by administrative regulations. A ll the establishments to which
the law applies must constantly be kept clean and suitably illuminated
and ventilated; employers must take all measures necessary to insure
the health and safety o f their employees. In those containing power
machinery the wheels, belts, gearing, and other possible sources of
danger must be so inclosed as to prevent avoidable and unnecessary
contact with them. Shafts, trapdoors, and similar openings must be
fenced in.
Every accident resulting in the injury of one or more laborers shall
be reported within 48 hours by the employer or his representative,
together with the names o f witnesses, to the mayor of the commune.
This report shall be accompanied by a physician’s certificate, obtained
by the employer, indicating the condition o f the injured person, the
probable consequences o f the accident, and the time when it will be
possible to know the final results thereof. The mayor shall imme
diately notify the divisional or departmental inspector.
Employers and owners o f industrial establishments are responsible
for the maintenance o f moral conduct and public decency among
persons in their employ.
The execution o f this law and o f the law o f September 9, 1848,
is intrusted to labor inspectors who are also charged, together with
the police authorities (commissairets de police), with the enforce
ment o f the law of December 7, 1874, relating to the employment
o f children in “ wandering occupations.” With regard to labor in
mines and quarries, however, the execution o f the law is exclusively
assigned to the engineers and controllers of mines who are in this
matter responsible to the minister of labor and insurance. (a) This
minister also appoints the labor inspectors.
The corps o f inspectors comprises (1) divisional inspectors and
(2) departmental inspectors and inspectresses.
A decree shall determine, at the advice o f the committee on arts
and manufactures of the superior commission o f labor, in what De
partments departmental inspectors should be appointed, and shall
fix their number, salary, and allowances for traveling expenses. De
partmental inspectors and inspectresses are responsible to the divi
sional inspector. A ll labor inspectors take an oath not to reveal
manufacturing secrets or the methods of production that come to their
knowledge in the exercise o f their office. Violations o f this oath are
punishable in conformity with article 378 o f the Penal Code. No
person can be appointed a divisional or departmental inspector who
a Formerly the minister o f commerce and industry. This new ministry was
created October 25, 1906, under the title “ Ministere du Travail et de la Prevoyance Sociale.”
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
157
does not fulfill the conditions prescribed by the superior commission
and pass a competitive examination. The inspectors have the right
to inspect the register of employees, the work books ( livrets), and
factory rules provided for by the law, and, should there be occasion
for it, the certificates o f physical fitness o f children under 13 years
o f age. Violations of the law shall be recorded in writing by the
inspectors and inspectresses, whose reports are valid evidence until
proof is furnished to the contrary. Two copies are made o f each
such report, one o f which is sent to the prefect o f the Department
and the other to the magistrate (parquet) . The rules of the common
law apply to the proof and prosecution o f infractions o f the labor
laws. It it also a duty o f the inspectors to prepare statistics o f
the conditions o f industrial labor in the regions assigned to them.
A general report summarizing these communications is published
annually by the minister o f labor and insurance.
The superior commission already referred to consists o f 9 members
without salary, 2 senators and 2 members o f the Chamber o f Deputies
elected by their colleagues, and 5 other persons appointed for a
period o f four years by the President o f the Republic. Its functions
are: (1) To supervise the uniform and vigilant application of the
law ; (2) to furnish advice concerning the regulations to be issued, and
in general upon such questions as concern the laborers protected by
the law ; and (3) to fix the conditions that shall be fulfilled by candi
dates for the positions of divisional and departmental inspectors, and
the nature o f the competitive examination they are required to pass.
(Inspectors already in the service were not required to take an
examination.)
The president o f the superior commission shall each year send a
report to the President of the Republic concerning the results o f labor
inspection and o f the enforcement of the law. The general
council (a) o f each Department is required to appoint one or more
committees to present reports to the minister o f labor and insurance
concerning the enforcement o f the law and possible improvements
therein; these reports are communicated to the superior commission.
Each Department also has committees to look after the interests o f
apprentices and children employed in industrial establishments, as
well as the development of their technical and trade education
(comites de patronage).
Manufacturers, directors, and superintendents of the establish
ments subject to the law, who violate its provisions or those of the
regulations concerning its execution, shall be tried in a police court
(tribunal de simple police), and are liable to a fine of 5 to 15 francs
(96.5 cents to $2.90), payable as many times as there are persons
°An elective administrative body in charge o f certain local interests.
56504°—No. 89—10----- 11
158
BU LLETIN OF T H E BUREAU OF LABOR.
employed contrary to the law. But the penalty shall not be imposed
if the infraction o f the law was the result o f an error due to false age
certificates or to work books containing incorrect information or in
the possession o f other persons than those entitled to them. The
owners o f industrial enterprises are liable at civil law for the fines
imposed upon their agents or superintendents.
In case an offense is repeated within a year the offender is tried
before a lower criminal court, (a) and is liable to a fine o f 16 to 100
francs ($3.09 to $19.30). The fine is imposed as many times as there
are cases o f conduct contrary to the law. That is to say, for example,
if, after having been once punished for employing children under the
legal age o f admission, an employer repeats the offense within one
year by employing 10 children not o f legal age, he is liable to a fine
o f 16 to 100 francs ($3.09 to $19.30) multiplied by 10. The court
may, however, in case o f repeated offenses give the defendant the
benefit o f the provisions of article 463 o f the Penal Code, concerning
extenuating circumstances; ( *&) but in no case may the fine for each
infraction o f the law be less than 5 francs (96.5 cents). The court
may order the sentence to be publicly posted and to be inserted in one
or more newspapers o f the Department, at the expense o f the offender.
Whoever places any obstacle in the way o f an inspector engaged in
the performance o f his duties is punishable by a fine of 100 to 500
francs ($19.30 to $96.50), and in the event that this offense is re
peated, by a fine o f 500 to 1,000 francs ($96.50 to $193).( c)
This law o f 1892, which went into effect on the 1st o f January o f
the following year, immediately gave rise to numerous objections. It
must be admitted that in spite o f the good intentions o f those who had
formulated it, many o f the objections to the law were both serious and
well founded.
In the first place, the law was complicated and difficult to apply be
cause it recognized four distinct provisions with regard to the dura
tion o f the workday. For adult laborers, the old law o f 1848, which
limited the workday to 12 hours, continued to be binding. For women
over 18 years o f age the new limit was 11 hours. For young people
between 16 and 18 years o f age, it was 60 hours a week and not more
than 11 hours a day.(d) For children under 16 years o f age, it was
a French criminal jurisprudence recognizes three grades o f violations o f the
la w : “ Contraventions,” “ dSlits,” and “ crimes.” The first are tried before ordi
nary police courts (tribunaux de simple police) ; d&lits are tried before lower
criminal courts (tribunal*% correctionnels) ; and crimes, the most serious grade
of offenses, are tried in the higher criminal courts (tribunaux criminels).
&This article will be referred to later on in discussing the enforcement of
labor laws in France.
c Article 463 of the Penal Code applies to this offense also.
d This provision it was expected would introduce the English system o f a half
holiday on Saturdays.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
159
10 hours. Thus, in an establishment employing these four classes of
laborers, there were four different working regimes— a situation still
further complicated, i f possible, by the requirement of 1 day’s rest
out o f 7 (not necessarily Sunday) for children and all female persons.
Many o f the partisans of the law had hoped that the multiplicity o f
regimes would result practically in the general and gradual introduc
tion, at least in the industries in which child labor played an im
portant part, o f the 10-hour workday. As a matter o f fact, however,
what took place in many establishments was precisely the reverse.
At first, children were kept at work an hour longer than the law
allowed, and ultimately all employees alike—men, women, and
children—were in many mills kept at work 12 hours a day. A large
number o f employers flatly declared that it was not practicable to
comply with the law and that therefore its execution was impossible.
This was not strictly true, for there were undoubtedly some em
ployers who complied with it by means o f more or less ingenious
relays and combinations o f the rest periods for different classes of
laborers.
Spinning and weaving mills organized their hands in alternating
shifts by means o f which it was possible to keep the machines going
14 hours a day, and still remain within the limits o f the law, by means
o f different resting periods at various hours of the day for small
fractions o f the labor force.
The inspectors complained o f this cutting up o f the periods o f rest,
and the retention o f all laborers in the mill for 13 or 14 hours. It
was, at all events, manifestly impossible to attempt a rigid enforce
ment o f the legal provisions concerning the length of the workday,
when the employer was in a position to say with regard to the chil
dren entering the factory at 6 a. m. and leaving it at 8 p. m. that they
had had 4 hours o f rest and had therefore not been employed longer
than the law allowed.
Nor could much be said in favor o f the relay system, by which
employers were authorized to keep the factories going day and night,
and which made it practically impossible in many cases for all the
workers o f the laborer’s family to get together at any time during
the day or night. In the Loire region, for example, where the system
o f two relays was widely practiced and legally permitted for female
laborers, one o f the relays worked from 4 a. m. until 1 p. m. and the
other from 1 to 10 p. m. This system really sanctioned night work,
inasmuch as the women had to get up at 3 o’clock in the morning
in order to begin work at 4. In certain wool-combing establishments
in the north the work never ceased; the girls between 16 and 18
years o f age remained in the factory 12f hours, working from
5.30 until 8 a. m., then from 8.30 to 11.30 a. m., then from 1 to 4.30
p. m., and again from 5 to 6 p. m., a perfectly legal arrangement;
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BULLETIN OE TH E BUBEAU OF LABOR.
the shift o f adult men worked from 6 p. m. to midnight and from
1 to 5 a. m. Under such an arrangement the employer attained a
maximum productivity. But at certain seasons o f the year there
were long and trying periods o f idleness. This condition o f affairs
resulted in numerous strikes, and led the inspectors to ask with some
degree o f appropriateness whether such a system was one of the
objects aimed at by the law o f 1892.
In a large number o f establishments, moreover, the practice o f a
uniform 11-hour workday became established for all persons alike,
men, women, and children, the law to the contrary notwithstanding.
Indeed, Senator Lecomte introduced a bill providing for a uniform
workday o f 11 hours for all employees alike on November 14, 1893,
largely on the ground that a uniform workday was necessary, and
that 11 hours conformed to the prevailing practice in a large number
o f manufacturing enterprises.
As a countermove, M. Bicard a week later introduced a bill in the
Chamber o f Deputies providing for a uniform workday o f 10 hours
for all laborers alike. Upon this basis attempts were made to obtain
an agreemnt o f both branches o f the legislature. A joint commission
o f both houses agreed, in March, 1894, upon 11 hours to start with
and a gradual reduction to 10 hours. In July o f the same year the
Senate voted for 11 hours and the suppression of relays, but the
committee on labor o f the Chamber o f Deputies considered 11 hours
excessive for children and refused to agree. This debate continued
until 1900, when M. Millerand, the newly appointed minister o f com
merce, after an investigation o f the matter, reached the conclusion
that a uniform workday was really necessary in establishments em
ploying both children and adults. (a) But instead o f drawing from this
premise the conclusion that therefore children in such establish
ments must be allowed to work as many hours as seemed reasonable
for adults, he reached the opposite conclusion, viz, that the working
hours for adults in such establishments must be reduced to the num
ber that is reasonable for children. He proposed that the workday
be fixed at 11 hours, and gradually reduced in six years to 10 hours
for all establishments employing both adults and children. The
Chamber, however, accepted an amendment to complete the change
in four years instead o f six by means o f half an hour’s reduction in
1902 and a further reduction to 10 hours in 1904. This, o f course,
a Upon his appointment in 1899, M. Millerand learned that the labor inspectors
had been “ confidentially ” advised by the Government not to prosecute employ
ers employing children fo r 11 hours, although the law fixed the limit at 10
hours. M. Millerand repudiated these confidential instructions and ordered
inspectors to file a complaint in all cases violating the law. The resulting
protest from manufacturers employing children contributed to the agitation for
a new law.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
161
was not radical enough for the socialists of the Guesde stripe, who
proposed to forbid entirely the labor o f children under 16 years o f
age and to establish a legal maximum workday o f 8 hours for all
laborers. Indeed, they succeeded in getting 115 votes in favor o f
this proposal in the Chamber, 25 more than a similar proposal had
obtained in 1896.
Despite the opposition o f the “ Liberal” leaders, who condemned
the increasing interference o f the Government in industrial matters
and asserted that it would reduce the productivity o f labor and hence
the wages o f the laborer, the bill was passed by a large majority in
the Chamber and adopted by the Senate, becoming the law o f March
30,1900, frequently called the Millerand law.
This law, modifying in some respects that o f 1892 (in the account
o f which the provisions that were entirely abrogated by the law of
1900 have been omitted), declares that laborers o f both sexes under
16 years o f age, and females above 16, shall not be employed to work
for a longer period than 11 hours per day (reduced to lOf hours on
the 1st o f April, 1902, and to 10 hours on the 1st o f April, 1904). The
working period must be interrupted by one or more pauses for rest
amounting to at least 1 hour, during which all labor is forbidden.
The pauses for rest must be the same for all persons employed in
establishments subject to the law, excepting mines and those employ
ing continuous fire.
The law o f 1892 had permitted children under 18 and women to
work between the hours o f 4 a. m. and 10 p. m. if the work was car
ried on by means o f two relays, each working not longer than 9 hours,
interrupted by a pause for rest o f at least 1 hour. The law o f 1900
did away with this permission except for males under 18 employed in
underground work in mines and quarries.
Whereas the law of 1892 provided simply that children under 18
years o f age and all female persons must not work on legal holidays,
the law o f 1900 added that they must not work more than 6 days
a week, and that the day of rest must be indicated by a notice posted
up in the places o f work. This additional provision, however, was
subsequently modified by the Sunday law o f July 13,1906, o f which a
summary is given later on.
The employment of relays, except in establishments employing con
tinuous fire and such others as are determined by an administrative
regulation, is forbidden female persons and all male persons under
18 years o f age. When relays are permitted by this regulation during
certain seasons o f the year, work shall never continue later than 11
p. m., nor shall the total period for which such permission is granted
exceed 60 days; and when the said regulation authorizes relays.per
manently, night work shall not exceed 7 hours in 24. In other words,
as a general principle, shifts were allowed, but relays forbidden; or,
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BU LLETIN OE TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
as Prof. Raoul Jay puts it, the law established the rule: “ Work must
start for all laborers at the same time; the rest periods must be at the
same time for all; and all must be allowed to leave the mill at the
same time.” (a)
The basis, then, for the present system o f labor regulation is fur
nished by the laws o f 1848,1892, and 1900. The first relates to adults
and fixes a maximum workday o f 12 hours; the law o f 1892, modified
by that o f 1900, fixes a maximum workday o f 10 hours for all laborers
in establishments subject to the law in which there are child laborers
as well as adults. These three laws, however, by no means contain
all the provisions now governing the employment o f children. Hence,
before undertaking to set forth the machinery, the difficulties, and
the results o f the enforcement o f these laws, it will be necessary to
give some account o f the other laws that involve benefits for working
children, as well as the numerous decrees and ordinances bearing
upon this subject.
The law o f 1848, fixing the maximum workday at 12 hours for
adult laborers, is still valid for adults working in establishments
employing no persons affected by the laws o f 1892 and 1900. ( *6) More
over, for the employees in mines-who are engaged in the work o f
actual mining ( abatage) the maximum workday was fixed by the
law o f June 29, 1905, at 9 hours, including the time for descent
and ascent, with the provision that it be further reduced to
hours
in 1907 and to 8 hours in 1909. This law consequently instituted the
8-hour workday for this particular category o f workers, whether
adult or nonadult, and hence modified in this respect the decree o f
May 8, 1893, concerning the labor o f children in mines.
This decree o f May 3, 1893, provided that boys under 16 years o f
age must not work underground in mines for more than 8 hours out
o f 24; that boys between 16 and 18 years o f age must not work more
than 10 hours per day nor more than 54 hours per week; and that in
counting these hours o f work the time required for descent and ascent,
the time required for going to and from the place o f work, and the
periods o f rest (which must not amount to less than 1 hour per day)
shall not be included. These children may be employed at sorting
and loading, at attending and moving the wagons, at watching and
attending doors, at attending to “ hand ” ventilators, and at other
auxiliary tasks which do not overtax their strength. They must not
operate ventilating fans for more than half a workday, interrupted
by a pause o f at least half an hour for rest. Young persons between
16 and 18 years o f age must not be employed in the actual work o f
a R. J a y : La Protection lggale des Travaiileurs, p. 86. Paris, 1904.
6 The present exceptions to the 12-hour limit are enumerated by the decree o f
March 28, 1902.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
163
mining except as assistants or apprentices, and then only for a
period not exceeding 5 hours a day. Apart from the above provisions,
all children and young persons are forbidden to work in the under
ground galleries o f mines. In coal mines with small veins, however,
employing two shifts o f laborers, one o f which is employed at remov
ing the rock bedding and waste which could not be attended to by
the extracting shift, children may work between 4 a. m. and midnight
{but not for more than 8 hours nor be detained in the mines more
than 10 hours out o f 24).
The law o f 1892 provided, it will be remembered, for the enactment
o f a number o f “ administrative regulations ” concerning the indus
tries that might be exempted from compliance with certain provisions
o f the law, and concerning the establishments and occupations to be
regarded as dangerous or unhealthful for women and children. The
latter subject is regulated by the decree o f May 13,1893, subsequently
modified by the decrees of June 21,1897; April 20,1899; May 3,1900;
November 22, 1905; March 7, 1908; September 10, 1908; and Decem
ber 15, 1908. These successive decrees have as 4a rule gradually in
creased the number of “ classified ” trades and establishments, and
are thus tantamount to a gradual extension o f the scope o f the meas
ures for protecting laboring women and children.
The main provisions o f these decrees are as follows;
No women and no children under 18 years o f age may be em
ployed to oil, to clean, to inspect, or to repair machinery in motion;
nor may they be employed in establishments in which dangerous ma
chinery is not provided with safety appliances. Children under 18
are not allowed to operate machines propelled by foot, nor to turn
horizontal wheels. Children under 16 must not be employed to turn
vertical wheels for longer than half a workday, interrupted by at
least half an hour’s rest; nor to work at circular saws, band saws,
shears, or other cutting machines propelled by steam or similar mo
tive power; nor to work the pedals o f so-called “ hand-looms; ” nor
to attend to steam stopcocks; nor to serve as doublers in wire rolling
and drawing mills, unless this work is safeguarded by protective ap
paratus; nor to work on hanging scaffolding at cleaning or repairing
buildings; nor to blow glass by mouth, in bottle glass and window
glass works. Children under 13 years o f age in glass works must not
be employed to manipulate liquid glass nor at glass blowing; between
the ages o f 13 and 16 they must not manipulate a quantity weighing
more than 1 kilogram (2.2 pounds). In works where glass is blown
by mouth each employee under 18 years of age shall have his own
blowing apparatus.
No male employee under 18 years o f age or any female employee in
an industrial establishment is permitted, either inside or outside o f
164
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
the work place, to carry, draw, or push loads in excess o f the follow
ing weights :( a)
(1 )
(2 )
(3)
(4 )
(5 )
(6 )
Carrying loads:
Pounds.
Boys under 14 years o f age----------------------------------------------------------22.0
Boys 14 and 15 years o f age----------------------------------------------------------33.1
Boys 16 to 18 years o f age------------------------------------------------------------44.1
Girls under 14 years o f age--------------------------------------------------------11.0
Girls 14 and 15 years o f age--------------------------------------------------------17.6
Girls 16 and 17 years o f age______________________________________
22.0
Girls 18 years o f age and over____________________________________
55.1
Transportation by means o f wagons on rails:
Pounds.(*)
Boys under 14 years o f age_______________________________________
661.4
Boys 14 to 18 years o f age------------------------------------------------------------ 1,102.3
Girls under 16 years o f age______________________________________
330.7
Girls 16 and 17 years o f age--------------------------------------------------------661.4
Girls 18 years o f age and over-------------------------------------------------------- 1,322. 8
Transportation by wheelbarrows:
Boys 14 to 38 years o f age________________________________________
88.2
Girls 18 years o f age and over____________________________________
88.2
Transportation by means o f vehicles with 3 or 4 wheels (carts,
etc.) :
Boys under 14 years o f age_______________________________________
77.2
Boys from 14 to 18 years o f age---------------------------------------------------132.3
Girls under 16 years o f age_______________________________________
77.2
Girls 16 years o f age and over-------------------------------------------------------132.3
Transportation by means o f two-wheeled carts (handbarrows,
handcarts, etc.) :
Boys 14 to 18 years o f age________________________________________
2S6.6
Girls 18 years o f age and over_____________________________________
2SG. 6
Transportation by tricycles propelled by foot:
Boys 14 and 15 years o f age--------------------------------------------------------110.2
Boys 16 to 18 years o f age________________________________________
165.3
Boys under 14 and girls under 18 years o f age must not be em
ployed to transport goods by the methods numbered 3 and 5. No boy
under 14 or female person o f any age may be employed to transport
goods by tricycles propelled by foot; nor may boys under 18 or
female persons o f any age transport goods by means o f truck wagons.
Girls under 16 must not be employed at sewing machines propelled
by foot.
A decree under date o f December 28, 1909, extended the scope of
the above provisions beyond industrial establishments. They now
apply to “ manufactures, factories, workshops, work-yards, work
rooms, laboratories, kitchens, cellars, stores or shops, offices, loading
and unloading goods and the establishments connected therewith,
no matter whether their nature may be private or public, secular or
religious, educational, eleemosynary, or commercial.”
« Decree of March 7,1908.
6 Vehicle included.
Weights have been changed from kilograms to pounds.
CHILD-LABOB LEGISLATION IN FRANCE,
165
It is forbidden to employ children or female persons in the produc
tion o f writings, printed matter, posters, notices, drawings, pictures,
paintings, emblems, images, or other objects the sale, offer for sale,
exhibition, or distribution o f which is punishable by law as contrary
to public decency and morality. Nor may children under 16 or non
adult female persons be employed in work places in which objects are
produced that are apt to offend their sense of decency and morality.
The decrees concerning dangerous and unhealthful trades provide
also that in a long list o f occupations, comprising 46 processes that
are dangerous because o f the production of deleterious gases and dust
or because o f the risk o f poisoning, children under 18 and female
persons o f all ages are forbidden to enter the places in which these
processes are carried on. A second list o f occupations enumerates
other dangerous sorts o f work and provides that children under 18
years o f age are not allowed to enter the places in which such work is
carried on. A third list designates nearly a hundred establishments,
occupations, and processes in which children under 18 and women
may be employed only under certain conditions stated in connection
with each enumerated occupation or establishment.
T able A.— OCCUPATIONS IN WHICH CHILDREN UNDER 18 YEARS OF AGE, AND
FEMALES OF ALL AGES, ARE FORBIDDEN TO ENGAGE.
Industry or occupation.
Aeid, arsenic, manufacture of, by the use of arsenious and
nitric acid.
Acid, hydrofluoric, manufacture o f..............................................
Acid, nitric, manufacture of...........................................................
Acid, oxalic, manufacture of..........................................................
Acid, picric, manufacture o f.........................................................
Acid, salicylic, manufacture of, by means of carbolic a c id ___
Acid, uric. (See Murexide.)
Alkaline chlorides, Javelle water, manufacture o f ...................
Aniline. (See Nitrobenzine.)
Aqua fortis. (See Acid, nitric.)
Arseniate of potash, manufacture of, from saltpeter.................
Benzine, derivatives of. (See Nitrobenzine.)
Blue, Prussian, manufacture of. (See Cyanurate of potas
sium.)
Ceruse or white lead, manufacture of..........................................
Reasons for prohibition.
Danger of poisoning.
Noxious gases.
Do.
Danger of poisoning; noxious gases.
Noxious gases.
Injurious gases.
Injurious emanations.
Danger of poisoning; noxious gases.
Special diseases due to injurious ema
nations.
Injurious gases.
Do.
Do.
Injurious gases.
Special diseases due to emanations.
Special diseases due to injurious
emanations.
Curing of skins or fur of hares or rabbits.................................... Injurious or poisonous dust.
Danger
of poisoning.
Cyanurate of potassium and Prussian blue, manufacture o f...
Cyanurate of potassium, red; or red prussiate of potash..........
Dyestuffs, manufacture of, from aniline and nitrobenzine....... Injurious emanations.
Enamels, pulverizing of, in the manufactories of fine glass. . . Injurious dust.
Fertilizer, depots and factories, from animal matter............... Injurious emanations.
Flesh, fragments and offal, depots of, from slaughtered
animals.......................................................................................... Injurious emanations; danger of in
fection.
Founding and rolling of lead........................................................ Special diseases due to emanations.
Fulminate of mercury, manufacture of....................................... Injurious emanations.
Glass, dry polishing o f ........................................................... ........ Dangerous dust.
Javelle water, manufacture of. (See Alkaline chlorides.)
Lace, bleaching of, with white lead............................................
Do.
Lead, founding and rolling of. (See Founding.)
Lead, red, manufacture o f ............................................................. Special diseases due to emanations.
Lead, white. (See Ceruse.)
Litharge, manufacture o f ............................................................... Special diseases due to emanations.
Massicot, manufacture o f ...............................................................
Do.
Chlorine, manufacture o f ..............................................................
Chloride of lead, foundry of...........................................................
Chloride of lime, manufacture o f .................................................
Chlorides of sulphur, manufacture of..........................................
Chromate of potash, manufacture of............................................
Cinders, goldsmith’s, treatment of, with lead.............................
166
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
T able A.— OCCUPATIONS IN W HICH CHILDREN UNDER 18 YEARS OF AGE, AND
FEMALES OF ALL AGES, ARE FORBIDDEN TO ENGAGE— Concluded.
Industry or occupation.
Reasons for prohibition.
Meat cutting, butcher shop...........................................................
Nature of the work; injurious emana
tions.
Dangerous dust.
Metals, sharpening and polishing of....................................... .
Millstones, quarrying and manuiacture of..................................
Mirrors, coating of with quicksilver, manufacture of.............. .
Murexide, manufacture of. in closed vessels by the reaction
of nitric acid and the uric acid of guano.
Nitrate of methyl, manufacture o f . . ............................................
Nitrobenzine, aniline, and derivatives of benzine, manufac
ture of.
Oils and other fatty extractives from animal refuse.................
Phosphorus, manufacture o f ........................................................
Prussian red and English red........................................................
Pmssiate of potash. (See Cyanurate of potassium.)
Purpurate of ammonia. (See Murexide.)
Rags, cutting and tearing of..........................................................
Refining of metals in the furnace. (See Roasting of ores.)
Refuse of animals, depots of. (See Fish, etc.)
Roasting of sulphurous ores (except the case specified in
Table C).
Skins of hares or rabbits. (See Curing.)
Sulphate of mercury, manufacture o f....................... .................
Special diseases due to emanations.
Noxious gases.
Do.
Injurious gases.
Injurious emanations.
Special diseases due to fumes.
Noxious gases.
Injurious dust.
Injurious emanations.
Special diseases due to the emana
tions.
Sulphide of arsenic, manufacture of ........................................... Danger of poisoning.
Sulphide of sodium, manufacture o f........................ ................... Deleterious gases.
Treatment of lead zinc, and copper ores to obtain the crude Injurious emanations.
metals.
T able B.— OCCUPATIONS PROHIBITED FOR CHILDREN UNDER 18 YEARS.
Industry or occupation.
Reasons for prohibition.
Air, compressed, work i n ...............................................
Cartridges, ball, factories and magazines of.................
Celluloid and similar niter products, manufacture of.
Cocoons, extraction of silky portions of........................
Dogs, hospital for.............................................. .............. .
Dynamite, factories and storehouses............................
Operation and supervision of electrical apparatus, machines,
and transmission devicesof all kinds, the potential of which
with respect to the earth exceeds 600 volt3 for direct cur
rents, and 150 volts (effective potential) fox alternating
currents.
Fireworks, manufacture of.............................................................
Mining powder, compressed, manufacture of cartridges of—
Percussion caps, manufacture o f...................................................
Percussion caps for toy pistols, manufacture o f ..........................
Quick matches, manufacture of, with explosive materials.......
Danger involved.
Necessity of careful and attentive
work.
Do.
Injurious emanations.
Danger of bites.
Necessity of careful and attentive
work.
Do.
Do.
Do.
Do.
Do.
Do.
T able C.— ESTABLISHMENTS IN W HICH THE EMPLOYMENT OF •CHILDREN
UNDER 18 YEARS, OF MINOR GIRLS, AND OF WOMEN IS AUTHORIZED UNDER
CERTAIN CONDITIONS.
Establishment.
Conditions.
Reasons.
A labaster, sawing and dry polish Children under IS years shall not be em Injurious dust.
ing of.
ployed in workshops where dust is freely
given off.
Acid, hydrochloric, production Children under 18 years, minor girls, and Danger of acciden ts.
of, by the decomposition of
women shall not be employed in the work
the chlorides of magnesium,
shops where fumes are generated and acids
aluminium, etc.
are handled.
Acid, muriatic. (See Acid, hy
drochloric.)
Acid, sulphuric, manufacture of.
.do
Do.
Bark, grinding mill. (See GrindBeating of carpets on a large
scale.
Children under 18 years shall not be employed in workshops where dust is freely
given off.
Injurious dust.
167
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE,
T able
C.— E S T A B L IS H M E N T S IN W H IC H T H E E M P LO Y M E N T OF C H IL D R E N
U N D E R 18 Y E A R S , OF M INOR G IR L S, A N D OF W O M E N IS A U T H O R IZ E D U N D E R
C E R T A IN CO N D IT IO N S— Continued.
Establishment.
Conditions.
Benzine, manufacture and stor
age of. (See Petroleum, etc.)
Bladders, cleaning of and re Children under 18 years, minor girls, and
moval of membranous ma
women shall not be employed in the work
of inflation.
terial from (shop for the infla
tion and drying of).
Bleaching, cloth, straw, paper.. Children under 18 years, minor girls, and
women shall not be employed in work
shops where the chlorine and sulphurous
acid are given off.
Bolt making and other machine Children under 18 years shall not be em
metal working.
ployed in workshops where dust is freely
given off.
Bristles, hog’s, preparation of___ .......d o..................................................................
Cakes, olive, treatment of, by Children under 18 years, minor girls, and
women shall not be employed in work
carbon sulphide.
shops where the carbon sulphide is handled.
Caoutchouc, application of coat Children under 18 years, minor girls, and
women shall not be employed in work
ings of.
shops where the fumes of carbon sulphide
and of benzine are given off.
Caoutchouc, work in, with em Children under 18 years, minor girls, and
women shall not be employed in work
ployment of essential oils or
shops where fumes of carbon sulphide are
the sulphide of carbon.
given off.
Carding of wool. (See Picking.)
Carpet beating on a large scale.
(See Beating.)
Catgut factory................................. Children under 18 years, minor girls, and
women shall not be employed at sufllation.
Cement ovens................................ Children under 18 years shall not be em
ployed in workshops where dust is freely
given off.
Chromolithography...................... Children under 16 years shall not be em
ployed in machine bronzing.
Cleansing of woolens and cloth Children under 18 years, minor girls, and
women shall not be employed in work
by the wet method.
shops where acid fumes are present.
Cloth, oil. (See Taffetas, etc.)
Cloth, print, factory...................... Children under 18 years, minor girls, and
women shall not be employed in work
shops where poisonous materials are used.
Children under 16 years shall not be em
Collodion, manufacture of
ployed in workshops where the raw ma
terials and solvents are manipulated.
Copper, scouring of, with acids.. Children under 18 years, minor girls, and
women shall not be employed in work
shops where acid fumes are given off.
Copper, trituration of the com Children under 18 years shall not be em
pounds of.
ployed in workshops where dust is freely
given off.
Cork, shops for the grinding o f.. .......d o ..................................................................
Cotton, bleaching of waste......... Children under 18 years, minor girls, and
women shall not be employed in work
shops where sulphide of carbon is used.
Dye works
Children under 18 years, minor girls, and
women shall not be employed in work
shops where poisonous materials are used.
Enamel,application of, to metals. Children under 18 years, minor girls, and
women shall not be employed in work
shops where the materials are pulverized
ana sifted.
Enamels, manufacture of, with .......d o . . . . . ..........................................................
furnaces that are not smoke
consuming.
Fabrics, glazed, manufacture of.
(See Taffetas.)
Faience ware factory................... .......d o..................................................................
Felt and glazed visors, manu Children under 18 years shall not be em
facture of.
ployed in the preparation and use of the
lacquer.
Felt hats, manufacture of............ Children under 18 years shall not be em
ployed in workshops where dust is freely
given off.
Flax, wet spinning
Children under 18 years, minor girls, and
women shall not be employed when the
outflow of water is not provided for.
Flax, stripping of, on a large
scale. (See Stripping.)
Fluids, illuminating, s to r e - Children under 16 years shall not be em
houses of, compounds of alco
ployed in the stores.
hol and essential oils.
Reasons.
Danger of pulmo
nary diseases.
Injurious fumes.
Injurious dust.
Do.
Injurious e m an a
tions.
Injurious fumes.
Do.
Danger of pulmo
nary diseases.
Injurious dust.
Do.
Injurious e m a n a .
tions.
Danger of poisoning
Danger of fire.
Injurious fumes.
Injurious dust.
Do.
Injurious fumes.
Danger of poisoning.
Injurious dust.
Do.
Do.
Danger of fire and
injurious fumes.
Injurious dust.
Inj urious dampness.
Danger of fire.
168
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR,
T able
O.— E S T A B L IS H M E N T S IN W H IC H T H E E M P L O Y M E N T OF C H IL D R E N
U N D ER 18 Y E A R S , OF M IN O R G IR L S, A N D OF W O M E N IS A U T H O R IZ E D U N D ER
C E R T A IN C O N D IT IO N S— Continued.
Establishment.
Conditions.
Reasons.
Foundries for the second fusion Children under 16 years shall not be em Danger of burns.
ployed in fusing metals.
of iron, zinc, and copper.
Furnaces, blast........................... ...... d o ...................................................................
Do.
Glass works, flint and plate glass Children under 18 years, minor girls, and Injurious dust.
women shall not be employed in work
factories.
shops where dust is freely given off and
where poisonous materials are used.
Gold and silver plating,
Children under 18 years, minor girls, and Injurious e m a n a
women shall not be employed in work
tions.
shops where acid or mercurial vapors are
produced.
Greasy liquids; extraction of oils Children under 18 years, minor girls, and
Do.
( contained in them for the
women shall not be employed in work
' manufacture of soap and for
shops where sulphide of carbon is used.
other purposes.
Children under 18 years shall not be em Injurious dust.
Grinding o f bark in the cities..
ployed in workshops where dust is freely
given off.
Hair, dyeing of.
(See Dyeworks.)
Hemp, impervious. (See Tarred
felt.)
Hemp, stripping of, on a large
scale. (See Stripping.)
Hog’s bristles. (See Bristles.)
Horn,bone, and mother-of-pearl,
.do
Do.
dry working in.
Children under 18 years, minor girls, and
women shall not be employed in work
shops where acids are used or their fumes
are present.
Iron, scouring of........................... .......do........................ ....................................... .
Jute, stripping of. (See Strip
ping )
leather, dressing of................... . Children under 18 years, minor girls, and
women shall not be employed in the
depilation of skins.
Children under 18 years shall not be em
Limekilns
ployed in workshops where dust is freely
given off.
Marble, sawing and dry polish ....... d o................................................................
ing of.
Matches, chemical, manufac Children under 18 years shall not be em
ture of.
ployed in mixing and dipping the paste.
•Iron, galvanizing of.
Matches, chemical, storehouses Children under 16 years shall not be em
of.
ployed in the stores.
Menageries.................................... Children under 18 years shall not be em
ployed when the menagerie includes sav
age beasts or venomous reptiles.
Metallic nitrates, obtained by Children under 18 years, minor girls, and
the direct action of acids,
women, shall not be employed in work
manufacture of.
shops where the fumes are evolved and
where the acids are handled.
Mills for crushing plaster, lime, Children under 18 years shall not be em
gravel, and pozzuolana.
ployed in workshops where dust is freely
given off.
Mineral black, manufacture of, .......do..................................................................
by grinding the residuum of
the distillation of bituminous
schist.
Mortars, mechanical, for drugs.. .......d o..................................................................
Mustard plasters, manufacture Children under 18 years, minor girls, and
of by means of hydrocarbides.
women shall not be employed in work
shops where the solvents are handled.
Oakum, shredding of cordage, Children under 18 years shall not be em
tarred or otherwise, into.
ployed in workshops where dust is freely
given off.
Oils, essential, or essences of
turpentine, lavender, etc. (See
Oils, petroleum, etc.)
Oils, extracts, etc. (See Oils,
petroleum, etc.)
Oils, petroleum, bituminous oil, Children under 16 years shall not be em
oil of tar, essences and other
ployed in the distillation shops or in the
hydrocarbides used for light
storage houses.
ing, heating, the manufacture
of colors and varnish, the re
moval of grease, etc. (Whole
sale manufacture and distilla
tion of.)
Injurious fumes.
Do.
Danger of poisoning.
Injurious dust.
Do.
Special diseases due
to th e emana
tions.
Danger of fire.
Danger of accidents.
Injurious fumes.
Injurious dust.
Do.
Do.
Injurious f u m e s ;
. danger of fire.
Injurious dust.
Danger of fire.
169
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE,
Table
C.— E S T A B L IS H M E N T S IN W H IC H T H E E M P LO Y M E N T OF C H IL D R E N
U N D ER 18 Y E A R S , OF M INOR GIR LS, A N D O F W O M E N IS A U T H O R IZ E D U N D ER
C E R T A IN CO N D IT IO N S— Continued.
Establishment.
Olive cakes. (See Cakes.)
Ores, dry crushing of.......
Paper, manufacture of.................
Papers,print. (SeeCloth,print.)
Patent leather, manufacture of.
(See Felt ana glazed visors.)
Petroleum. (See Oils, petrole
um, etc.)
Picking, carding, and cleaning
wool and cleaning of hair and
feathers.
Plaster kilns..................................
Porcelain, manufacture of..........
Potteries, earthenware, manu
facture of, with furnaces that
are not smoke consuming.
Pozzuolana, artificial, kilns of.. .
Rags, storehouses o f.....................
Rags, treatment of, with the va
por of hydrochloric acid.
Refining gold and silver with
acids.
Refrigeration, apparatus fo r ,
with sulphurous acid.
Roasting of sulphurous, nonarsenious ores.
Sandstone, quarrying and dress
ing of.
Sheet iron and lacquered metals.
Silk or other hats, in the mak
ing of which shellac is used,
manufacture of.
Silk waste, carding of................. .
Conditions.
Children under 18 years shall not be em
ployed in workshops where dust is freely
given off.
Children under 18 years shall not be em
ployed in sorting and preparing rags.
Injurious dust.
Injurious dust.
Children under 18 years shall not be em
ployed in workshops where dust is freely
given off.
___ d o.................................................................
.......d o ..................................................................
.......d o................................................................ .
Do.
.......d o ................................................................ .
Children under 18 years shall not be em
ployed in sorting and handling rags.
Children under 18 years, minor girls, and
women shall not be employed in work
shops where acids are used.
Children under 18 years, minor girls, and
women shall not be employed in work
shops where the fumes are generated and
acias are handled.
Children under 18 years, minor girls, and
women shall not be employed in work
shops where acid fumes are evolved.
Children under 18 years, minor girls, and
women shall not be employed in work
shops where the roasting is done.
Children under 18 years shall not be em
ployed in workshops where dust is freely
given off.
Children under 18 years, minor girls, and
women shall not be employed in work
shops where poisonous materials are used.
Children under 18 years shall not be em
ployed in workshops where shellac var
nish is made and applied.
Children under 18 years shall not be em
ployed in workshops where dust is freely
given off.
Do.
Do.
Silver plating of metal. (See
Gold and and silver plating.)
Singeing and gassing of fabrics.. Children under 18 years, minor girls, and
women shall not be employed while the
products of combustion remain in the
workshops.
Skins, glossing and finishing of.. Children under 18 years shall not be em
ployed in workshops where dust is freely
given off.
Skins of rabbits and hares, press .......do..................................................................
ing and cutting of the fur of.
Skins, woolen goods, and wool Children under 18 years shall not be em
waste, cleaning of, with pe
ployed in workshops where the materials
troleum and other hydrocar
are treated with solvents or where sort
ing, cutting, and handling of waste are
bides.
going on.
Smoking pipes, manufacture o f.. Children under 18 years shall not be em
ployed in workshops where dust is freely
given off.
Soldering conserve boxes............ Children under 16 years shall not be em
ployed in soldering boxes.
Stone, cutting and polishing of.. Children under 18 years shall not be em
ployed in workshops where dust is freely
given off.
Stove maker, furnace maker;
stoves and furnaces in faience
and terra cotta. (See Faience.)
Strings of instruments. (See
Catgut factory.)
Stripping of flax, hemp, and jute ----- d o..................................................................
on a large scale.
Sulphate of peroxide of iron, Children under 18 years, minor girls, and
manufacture of, from sulphate
women, shall not be employed in work
shops where acid fumes are given off.
of iron protoxide and nitric
acid (nitro-sulphate of iron).
Reasons.
Do.
Do.
Do.
Injurious fumes.
Danger of accidents*
Injurious em an a
tions.
Do.
Injurious dust.
Danger of poisoning.
Noxious fumes.
Injurious dust.
Injurious e m a n a
tions.
Injurious dust.
Do.
Danger of fire; in
jurious dust.
Injurious dust.
Injurious gases.
Injurious dust.
Do.
Injurious fumes.
170
BU LLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR,
T able C.— ESTABLISHMENTS IN WHICH THE EMPLOYMENT OF CHILDREN
UNDER 18 YEARS, OF MINOR GIRLS, AND OF WOMEN IS AUTHORIZED UNDER
CERTAIN CONDITIONS— Concluded.*2
6
Establishment.
Conditions.
Reasons.
Sulphate of protoxide of iron or Children under 18 years, minor girls, and Injurious fumes.
women, shall not be employed in work
green copperas by the action
shops where acid fumes are given off.
of sulphuric acid on scrap iron.
Do
Sulphate of soda, manufacture ....... d o ..................................................................
of, by the decomposition of sea
salt through the agency of
sulphuric acid.
Sulphide of carbon (factories in Children under. 18 years shall not be em Deleterious ga s es;
ployed in workshops where injurious
danger of fire.
which it is used on a large
fumes are given off.
scale).
Do.
Sulphide of carbon, manufac ....... d o...................................................................
ture of.
Do.
Sulphide of carbon, storehouses ....... d o ...................................................................
Superphosphate of lime and
potash, manufacture of.
Taffeta and oilcloth or glazed
fabrics, manufacture of.
Tan, mills for grinding................
Tanneries .. ________ __________
Tarred felt, manufacture o f .......
Tin fo il..........................................
Tobacco, manufactures o f ..........
Turpentine, d is tilla t io n and
wholesale manufacture of.
(See Oils, petroleum, etc.)
Varnish, alcoholic, manufac
ture of.
Varnish, shops where applica
tion is made of, to leather,
felt, taffeta, cloth hats. (See
these words.)
Visors, glazed, manufacture of.
(See Felt ana visors.)
Wadding, manufacture o f ..........
Wool waste, scouring of. (See
Skins, woolen goods, etc.)
Zinc white, manufacture of, by
burning of the metal.
Children under 18 years, minor girls, and Injurious emana
women shall not be employed in work
tions.
shops where acid fumes and dust abound.
Children under 16 years shall not be em Danger of fire.
ployed in workshops where the varnishes
are prepared and applied.
Children under 18 years shall not be em Injurious dust.
ployed in workshops where dust is freely
given off.
....... d o ...................................... ....... ...................
Do.
....... d o ................................................................... 1
Do.
Children under 16 years shall not be em
Do.
ployed in bronzing the tin foil by hand.
Children under 16 years shall not be em Injurious emana
tions.
ployed in workshops where the breaking
bulk or opening up is done.
Children under 16 years shall not be em
ployed in workshops where the varhish is
prepared and handled.
Danger of fire.
Children under 18 years shall not be em
ployed in workshops where dust is freely
given off.
Injurious dust.
Children under 18 years shall not be em
ployed in the burning and condensing
shops.
Injurious fumes.
With regard to the exceptions to the law o f 1892 allowed by admin
istrative regulation, decrees have been issued on July 15, 1893; July
26, 1895; July 29, 1897; February 24, 1898; July 1, 1899; A pril 18,
1901; July 4, 1902; August 14, 1903; November 23, 1904; December
24,1904; July 3, 1908, and February 7,1910. These decrees institute
five groups o f exceptions:
(1)
Those in which female employees over 18 years o f age may
work until 11 p. m. at certain seasons for a total period not exceeding
60 days in 1 year, provided the actual working period be not more
than 12 hours in 24. These are: Tailoring and dressmaking for women
and children; the manufacture o f hats for men and women; making
fur wearing apparel, embroidery, and trimmings for dressmaking;
and folding, rolling, and packing ribbons. A decree under date o f
February 17, 1910, however, withdrew this privilege for all o f these
occupations except millinery and dressmaking for “ deep mourning.”
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
171
(2) Those in which night work is permitted regularly for adult
women, on condition that the actual working period lasts not more
than 7 hours in 24. This group consists o f scalding and drying corn
starch, sewing or stitching printed matter, folding newspapers, and
lighting miners’ lamps.
(3) Those in which night work is permitted temporarily for
women and children, but not for a longer working period than 10
hours in 24. This group includes fish, fruit, and vegetable canning;
the industrial manufacture o f butter and cheese; the treatment of
milk in industrial establishments; extracting perfumes from flowers;
making biscuits and pastry involving the use o f fresh butter; the
manufacture o f glue and gelatin; making confectionery; the urgent
repair o f ships and o f machines for the production o f motive pow er;
cooperage for packing the products o f fisheries. The maximum
period during which in any year this group o f occupations may carry
on night work varies from 30 days for pastry bakers to 120 days for
urgent repairs to ships, etc., in which last-named occupation, however,
only persons over 16 years o f age may work at night.
(4) In establishments with continuous fire employing adult women
and male children at night, the following kinds o f work are per
mitted for these classes o f laborers: For both women and children,
certain specified auxiliary labor in sugar-beet distilleries, in paper
mills, in sugar refineries, and in glass works; for children alone, cer
tain specified auxiliary labor in the manufacture of enameled ware,
in the extraction o f oils, and in metallurgical establishments. When
ever adult women and children are employed all night their work
must be interrupted by periods o f rest amounting to at least 2 hours,
and the duration o f actual work for these persons must not exceed
10 hours in 24.
Plants with continuous
operations.
Beet-sugar working—
Workers.
Work permitted.
Children and women. Washing, weighing, sorting of the beets; operating
the water valves and sirup valves; working around
the diffusion boilers and the distilling apparatus.
Children..................... Working at a distance from the doors ox the furnaces.
Iron and enameled
castings
(factories
making articles of).
Oils (plants for tlie ex ....... d o.......................... Replacing the bags; drying them after compression;
carrying the empty bags and the sieve frames.
traction of).
Paper products............ Children and women. Helpers to operators of the machines; cutting, sort
ing, arranging, rolling, and finishing the paper.
Washing, weighing, sorting the beets; operating the
Sugar (factories and re .......d o.....................
water valves and sirup valves; watching the filters;
fineries of).
working around the diffusion boilers; cutting the
filter cloths; washing the apparatus and the work
rooms; working up the sugar into tablets.
Metallurgical plants... Children..................... Aiding in preparing the mixing beds, in work acces
sory to the refining; rolling into sheets, hammer
ing, and drawing; in preparing the molds for the
articles to be melted; in arranging the bundles, the
sheets, the tubes, and the wires.
----- d o .......................... Presenting the tools, making the gathering, aiding
Glass works.
in the first blowing and in the molding, carrying
into the annealing ovens, withdrawing the articles;
all such work to be done under the conditions pre
scribed by article 7 of the decree of May 13,1893.
Women........................ Sorting and arranging the bottles.
Do
172
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
(5)
The industries in which divisional inspectors may temporarily
suspend the provisions o f the law concerning the maximum workday
for children under 18 years of age and for women, constitute a list o f
approximately 50 specified occupations, as follow s:
Furnishings, upholstering, fringe for
furniture.
Orthopedic apparatus.
River boats (construction and re
pair work on the outside o f).
Building work (outside work in the
work places).
Creameries.
Jewelry, working o f precious stones.
Biscuits using fresh butter (fa c
tories, for).
Bleaching of fine linen.
Boxes (and cans) for fruits, vege
tables, etc. (factories for, and printing
on metals fo r).
Fine hosiery.
Brickmaking in open air.
Stitching of printed matter.
Embroidery and fringe for garments.
Paper boxes (factories fo r) for toys,
bonbons, visiting cards, ribbons, etc.
Hats (manufacture o f) o f all kinds
for men and women.
Foot wear.
Glues and gelatins.
Coloring by stencils or by hand.
Garment making, sewing and making
o f white goods for women and chil
dren.
Garment making for men.
Fur garments.
Preserves of fruit and confectionery,
canned legumes and fish.
Rope making in the open air.
Corsets (manufacture o f).
Funeral wreaths (factories fo r).
Removing wool from hides o f sheep.
Gilding for furnishings.'
Gilding for frames.
Industrial establishments in which
is executed work on the order o f the
Government and in the interest o f the
national safety and defense, upon the
opinion o f the ministers interested ex
pressly confirming the necessity o f the
exemption.
Spinning and twisting o f crepe
threads (curled, thrown, and colored).
Flowers (extracting perfume o f).
Flowers and feathers.
Cheese making conducted as a busi
ness.
Sheath making.
Printing o f combed wool, bleaching,
dyeing, and printing o f yarns of wool,
cotton, and silk intended for the weav
ing of novelty fabrics.
Letterpress printing.
Lithographic printing.
Printing from copper plates.
Toys, playthings, etc., articles o f
Paris (factories fo r ).
Jewelry (polishing, gilding, engrav
ing, chasing, engine turning, etc.).
Paper (manufactures o f), manufac
ture o f envelopes, cardboard, school
copy books, blank books, and fancy
papers.
Paper hangings.
Perfumery.
Porcelain and earthenware (shops
for decorations on).
Bookbinding.
Urgent repairs on ships, engines, and
agricultural machinery.
Silk (reeling o f) for fancy fabrics.
Dyeing, finishing, bleaching, print
ing, figuring, and watering o f fabrics.
Weaving o f fancy fabrics intended
for clothing.
Nets, laces, and widths of silk.
Sails o f vessels equipped for deepsea fishing (making and repairing o f).
It is also provided by decree that whenever employers take ad
vantage o f the privileges granted them in groups 3 and 5 with regard
to continuing work during the night hours, they must notify the in
spector every time they propose to make use o f this privilege. Such
notice shall be given, before the extra work begins, by mail or tele
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
m
graph, in order that the time at which it is sent may become a matter
o f record. A copy o f the notice must be promptly and conspicuously
posted in the work places, and remain there during the entire period
o f extra work.
Reference was made in the preceding section o f this report to the*
law o f December 7, 1874, concerning children employed in “ wander
ing ” occupations. This law as modified by the law o f April 19,1897,.
imposes imprisonment o f 6 months to 2 years and a fine of 16 to 200
francs ($3.09 to $38.60) upon any person who shall require
children under 16 years o f age to perform acrobatic feats; and.
upon any acrobats, mountebanks, animal tamers, menagerie direct
ors, or circus managers employing children under 16 years o f ageT
unless these children are their own, in which case the age limit is 1%
years. The same penalty may be imposed upon parents, guardians,,
employers, or any other persons having the care o f children under 10
years o f age or authority over them, who place them either gratu
itously or for a remuneration in charge o f persons exercising the
above vocations, or o f vagabonds or persons making a business o f
mendicity. The same penalty may be imposed upon any agents o r
intermediaries who induce children under 16 years o f age to leave
home to follow individuals engaged in the above vocations. This*
offense may, moreover, involve the withdrawal o f parental authority"
or guardianship. Whoever employs children under 16 years o f age
as habitual beggars, either openly or under the guise o f a trade, shall
be considered as the author of, or accomplice in, the crime o f
habitual mendicity, punishable according to article 276 o f the Penal
Code; and parents or guardians committing this offense may be di
vested o f parental authority or the rights o f guardianship.
Every person exercising one o f the vocations mentioned above must
have a birth certificate for each of the children in his charge, and
render account o f their origin and identity. Violations o f this pro
vision are punishable by imprisonment o f 1 to 6 months and a fine o f
16 to 50 francs ($3.09 to $9.65).
For violation o f any provisions o f this law the municipal author
ities shall forbid the guilty parties to give any performancesWhenever French children are found abroad in violation o f this law,
the French authorities shall be informed thereof by the consular
agents, who shall take the steps necessary to send the children home(Article 463 o f the Penal Code also applies to offenders against this;
law.)
The oldest law still in force that applies particularly to children
is the apprenticeship law of February 22, 1851. A large part of it
has to do with the form, nature, and conditions o f the contract o f
apprenticeship, and sets forth the duties o f the master to the appren
tice and vice versa. Some o f its provisions furnish scarcely so large
56504°— No. 89—10----- 12
174
BULLETIN OF T H E BUREAU OF LABOR.
a measure o f protection for children as the laws o f 1892 and 1900.
The master must treat his apprentices as a good father would treat
his own children. He must not employ them, unless otherwise
agreed, for any other work than that o f his trade or profession.
No apprentice under 16 years o f age shall be required by his master
to work at night. Nor may he work on Sundays or on legal holidays,
unless it be to clean up and make order, in which case he shall not
work later than 10 a. m. I f an apprentice under 16 years has not
learned to read, write, and count, or i f he has not yet terminated his
primary religious education, the master must give him opportunity to
attend school during the working hours; but the time granted for
this purpose shall not exceed 2 hours a day.
The law o f 1851 is the oldest French law now in force that par
ticularly concerns nonadult workers. On the other hand, the most
recent law concerning this class o f persons is that o f A pril 30, 1909.
This law relates to the work in commercial establishments in which
women and children are forbidden to engage. The latest in a long
series o f laws and decrees designed to insure the health and safety
o f employees, it is o f particular interest because it applies to com
mercial establishments. A ll the laws previously referred to apply
only to industrial establishments. The law o f April 30, 1909, to be
sure, is not the first concerning commercial establishments; but it is
the first to recognize that women and children in stores and mercan
tile enterprises are as much in need o f special protective measures as
those employed in factories and workshops. Just what degree of
special protection the law wrill introduce in mercantile establishments
can not yet be stated, for it provides that “ the different kinds o f work
which are forbidden women and children under 18 years o f age because
o f the danger they involve, or because they overtax the strength o f
women and children, or because they are morally harmful, shall be
determined by administrative regulations issued upon the advice of
the superior commission o f labor and the consulting committee o f arts
and manufactures.” But no such regulations have yet been issued.
Meanwhile women and children continue to benefit in the same way
as adult male laborers by the provisions of a score o f laws and decrees
concerning the hygiene and safety o f industrial and commercial
establishments,^) and nearly a dozen laws and decrees concerning
accidents to laborers. ( *6)
° The provisions now in force are contained in the laws o f June 12, 1893;
July 11, 1903, and April 30, 1909; the decrees o f June 29, 1895; July 18,
1902; November 21, 1902; March 27, 1904; June 28, 1904; July 15, 1904; July
28, 1904; November 29, 1904; March 2, 1905; April 4, 1905; July 11, 1907;
April 23, 1908, and December 15, 1908; and the ordinances of March 21, 1906,
and December 28, 1908.
6 Under date o f April 9, 1898; June 30, 1899; March 22, 1902; March 23,
1902; March 31, 1905; April 12, 1906; April 17, 1906; July 18, 1907; and March
26, 1908.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
175
Legislation concerning the hygiene and safety o f work places
is o f very recent date in France, except as regards mines, quarries,
and establishments using steam engines. It began with the law
o f June 12, 1893, (a) which at first applied only to individual estab
lishments and commercial establishments using mechanical motors,
but which was subsequently modified (by the law o f July 11, 1903)
to include all mercantile shops, stores, and commercial enterprises
employing persons not belonging to the immediate family o f the em
ployer. Enterprises employing only members o f the family are also
included i f work in them is carried on by means o f steam or mechan
ical motive power and i f they are classified among the dangerous or
unhealthful establishments. The law also includes theaters, circuses,
and similar enterprises, whenever they make use o f mechanical motive
power. But it does not apply to transportation, agriculture, govern
ment offices, or working places subject to special legislation.
In general these laws and decrees concern safety appliances, clean
liness, regular inspection by government officials, the prompt declara
tion o f all accidents, the nature and condition o f dormitories for
employees and inmates, fire escapes, ample exits, and provisions for
heating and lighting.
In terminating this account o f French legislation affecting the
employment o f children brief reference must be made to the enact
ments concerning weekly rest, to the law o f December 29, 1900 (con
cerning female employees in stores and mercantile concerns), and to
the laws concerning accidents and workmen's insurance. These
measures necessarily redound to the benefit not only of adult laborers,
but o f children also; a detailed account of them, however, lies beyond
the scope o f the present study.
The measures concerning weekly rest ( *&) provide in general that
every employee in an industrial or commercial establishment shall
have at least 24 consecutive hours o f rest each week; that unless other
wise provided this day o f rest shall be Sunday; that in certain
specified enterprises which do not admit o f interruption different
groups o f employees may be given their period o f rest on different
days; and that in other specified enterprises laborers may be given
Sunday afternoons for rest and a whole weekday every other week.
The law o f December 29, 1900, provides that in mercantile estab
lishments ( “ wherever goods are exhibited and offered for sale” )
there must be as many seats as there are saleswomen, and that the
a Earlier enactments, such as the decree o f October 15, 1810, protected the
public against certain dangerous, disagreeable, or unhealthful enterprises, but
did not concern the laborers employed therein.
6 Under date of July 13, 1906; August 24, 1906; July 13, 1907; August 14,
1907.; March 16, 1908; September 10, 1908; and April 30, 1909.
176
BULLETIN O F TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
saleswomen must be permitted to use these seats to the extent that the
nature o f their employment permits. ( a)
The laws concerning accidents and workmen’s compensation,^)
which, o f course, apply equally to children and to adults, fix the
liability o f employers and provide for the payment o f benefits and
pensions to injured laborers or, in case o f death due to accident, to
their heirs. The amounts paid are determined according to the wages
o f the employee. For apprentices and employees under 16 years of
age the basis for calculation is the wage received by the lowest-paid
adult laborer in the establishment; provided that in cases o f tempo
rary disablement the allowance paid workers under 16 years o f age
must not exceed their regular wage when at w ork.(c)
ORGANIZATION AND WORK OF THE LABOR INSPECTORS.
It has already been stated that the law of 1892 intrusted the enforce
ment o f the labor laws to a corps o f divisional and departmental
inspectors. (d) In fact, the law o f 1874 had already provided for
salaried inspectors. But the present system of inspection was estab
lished by the decrees and ordinances o f May 17,1905; July 11,1906;
May 3,1907; March 19, 30, and 31,1908; and April 3 and 4,1909.
These measures provide for 11 divisional inspectors and 128 depart
mental inspectors (o f which 18 are women). The number o f depart
mental inspectors varies in different “ divisions ” from 6 in the ninth
division to 34 in the first division (which includes Paris).
The total number o f inspectors has increased from 106 in 1893 to
139 in 1909. This increase, however, is by no means proportionate
to the increased work that devolves upon the inspectors. A t the
present time these officials are intrusted with the enforcement o f the
laws o f 1874, 1892, and 1900 (concerning the labor o f women and
children), the laws o f 1848 and 1900 (concerning the labor o f adults),
the laws concerning hygiene and safety in industrial and commercial
establishments, and the laws on weekly rest. They must also keep a
record o f accidents reported; these in 1908 numbered 354,027. It is
their duty to examine and take action upon requests to prolong the
working period or to suspend Sunday rest; upon this score alone the
inspector at the head o f the first division (Paris) granted 6,114
authorizations in 1907, which presupposes at least 6,114 investiga
tions, or an average o f nearly 17 per day. In the same division, for
1907, the inspectors prepared 766 reports on violations o f the law.*6
° It is generally conceded that this law is o f little or no practical significance
because o f nonenforcement. Consult— Ferrette: Manuel de legislation industrielle, p. 186. Paris, 1909. “ La Protection L§gale des Travailleurs, III s£rie,”
p. 349. Paris, 1907.
6 See note, p. 174.
c Article 8 o f the law o f April 9, 1898.
* See p. 156 ff.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
177
The number o f establishments subject to inspection has risen
(largely because o f new legislation increasing the scope o f the labor
laws) from 267,906 in 1894 to 545,932 in 1908; and the number o f
persons employed therein increased during the same period from
2,454,943 to 4,048,312. It appears, then, that while the number o f
inspectors increased only 31 per cent, the number of establishments
subject to inspection has doubled, and the number of laborers em
ployed therein increased 65 per cent.
The service o f inspection is in a sense under the central direction
o f the director o f labor, an official o f the Ministry o f Labor and Insur
ance. The rules for admission to the service are determined by the
superior commission of labor. In 1907 the nature o f these examina
tions was somewhat changed in order to make it possible for intelligent
laborers with considerable practical experience to become inspectors.
In 1907 the best examination was passed by a laborer.
Candidates must be French citizens not under 26 nor over 35 years
o f age. The examination is in part written and in part oral. The
written examination consists o f three essays—the first on a question
concerning the labor laws and their enforcement, the second con
cerning a topic in industrial hygiene, and the third on some subject
in mechanics and electricity. The oral examination concerns: (1)
The labor laws and the criminal laws relative to their violation;
(2) the general principles of labor legislation; (3) the elements o f
industrial hygiene; (4) the elements o f mechanics and electricity;
(5) applied hygiene; (6) applied mechanics; and, i f the candidate
desires, (7) the practical management o f a selected industry. The
last-named subject is counted to a candidate’s credit only if he pos
sesses a “ very satisfactory ” knowledge o f a specified industry, and
receives in this subject a mark o f at least 75 per cent. The written
test precedes the oral test, and no candidate is admitted to the oral
examination who did not receive a mark o f at least 65 per cent in
the written test. To facilitate the admission o f persons with long
practical experience, however, the minimum mark for the written test
is reduced to 35 per cent for candidates who are able to prove that
they have had at least ten years’ experience in some industry as
employer, engineer, foreman, or laborer.
The labor inspectors have charge alone o f the enforcement of the
laws o f 1848, 1892, and 1900. The enforcement o f the remaining
labor laws is intrusted to them in cooperation with the ordinary
local police authorities. The laws concerning labor in mines and
quarries are enforced by mining engineers and controllers. In estab
lishments belonging to the navy or the war department, and in other
government establishments, special officials are designated to super
vise the application o f the labor laws.
178
BU LLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
Three provisions o f the law are designed to facilitate the work
o f the labor inspectors: (1) The requirement that children under
18 years o f age carry a work book (livret) indicating name, date,
and place o f birth. (2) The requirement that the employer having
women or children at work in his establishment shall post up a
working schedule indicating the precise times at which the working
periods and the pauses for rest begin and end. By means o f this
schedule the inspector can more easily discover whether the law is
being violated. (3) Provisions for keeping the inspectors in touch
with labor organizations. Manifestly, the laborers themselves are
best able to keep the inspectors informed o f violations o f the law.
T o facilitate the cooperation o f inspectors and groups o f laborers,
several ministerial “ circulars ” (a) require the inspector to maintain
permanent relations with the secretaries o f labor exchanges {bourses
du travail), local trade unions, and labor organizations not affiliated
with the exchanges or unions. The principal object o f this arrange
ment is to obtain information concerning infractions o f the law.
Unfortunately, the requirement of a working schedule (which ap
plies only to establishments employing women and children) has
been robbed o f much o f its value by court decisions. A judgment
handed down by the court o f appeals {cour de cassation) on Novem
ber 30, 1901, declared that in establishments employing adult males
as well as women and children the schedule did not apply to the adult
males and need contain only the names of the women and children
working therein. A still more important decision o f the criminal
court, on May 6,1902, declared that if women and children are found
working at times not indicated in the posted working schedule this
does not constitute a violation o f the law unless it is proved that the
employer required them to work more than 10 hours per day. Be
cause o f these decisions the posted working schedule loses its sig
nificance as an aid to the enforcement o f the law. Apart from
altogether exceptional circumstances, the only way inspectors can
discover how long the workday lasts is by consulting the posted
schedule. Hence it has been suggested that the law o f 1892 should
be so modified as to specifically require adherence to the schedule o f
hours and make it an offense i f laborers are found working at other
hours than those indicated in the schedule.
Commenting upon the present attitude o f the courts in this respect,
M. Eugene Petit, former chief secretary of the minister o f commerce*
remarks:
Article 11, section 2, o f the law o f November 2, 1892, prescribes
that the hours o f work shall be posted. The posted schedule is oblig
atory; but, we are told, its observance is not. I f we agree with the
court o f appeals, the legislators who enacted the law o f 1892 intended
0 The most important are those o f January 19,1900, and November 22,1906.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE,
179
to compel employers to post up a schedule having precisely the same
significance as a blank sheet of paper. The legislator, in other words,
indulged in the following admirable line of argument: The schedule
is indispensable to the discovery o f violations, but it will serve to
discover violations only if its observance is obligatory; therefore the
observance o f the schedule shall not be obligatory. It seems impos
sible to conceive a worse breach o f common sense or to go further in
the art o f killing the spirit o f the law by adherence to the letter. (a)
M. Petit also calls attention to the decision o f the court o f appeals
under date o f July 12, 1902, in which it is declared that an inspector
has no right to enter an establishment at night unless he is reasonably
certain that night work is being carried on therein. “ But how,” M.
Petit asks, “ is the inspector to acquire this quasi certainty unless he
can enter the establishment ? ”
It has already been pointed out that the enforcement o f the labor
laws concerning mines and quarries is in charge o f mining engineers
and controllers. The organization o f this branch o f the service is im
portant and interesting for more than one reason.
In the first place, the number o f mines, quarries, and enterprises
connected therewith is quite considerable; so also is the number o f
laborers employed therein. In 1908 the officials in charge o f this
service reported the existence o f 39,279 mines, quarries, etc., having
a total o f 359,408 employees, o f which 29,340 were under 18 years
o f age.
In the second place, the inspection o f mines is more intensively or
ganized than the general service o f inspection. Whereas there are
139 officials in the general service, having charge in 1908 o f the appli
cation o f the law in 545,932 establishments, there are 175 officials for
the inspection o f less than 40,000 mines. The enforcement o f the
labor laws, to be sure, is not their sole function; but it is none the less
true that they are able to make many more visits per year to the enter
prises under their control than are the inspectors in the general
service.
In the third place, the engineers in charge o f inspecting mines and
quarries are assisted by approximately 500 delegates (delegues
mineurs), appointed for the purpose o f securing compliance with the
laws regarding the safety and the hygienic condition o f mines, inves
tigating the nature and causes o f accidents therein, and reporting vio
lations o f the Sunday law .(**6) These delegates are paid by the Gov
ernment, elected by the miners themselves, and must have had at least
5 years’ experience at underground work in mines. This system of
a La Reforme de l ’lnspection du Travail en France, Report to the French
Association for Labor Legislation, fifth series, p. 50. Paris, 1909.
6 Laws o f July 8, 1890; March 25, 1901; May 9, 1905;-July 13, 1906; and
July 23,1907. The law o f March 12, 2910, also requires them tareport violations
o f the general labor laws of 1892 and 1900, and o f the law o f June 25,1905, con
cerning the duration o f the workday in mines.
180
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
active and paid cooperation o f representatives o f the laborers them
selves is o f particular interest because it is proposed to institute a sim
ilar arrangement in connection with the general service.
The main sources of information concerning the activity o f the
inspectors are the annual reports on the application o f the laws regu
lating labor. (a) These volumes contain an admirable critical sum
mary o f the results for the year, presented by the superior commission
o f labor; the annual report o f the minister o f labor on the enforce
ment o f the laws of June 12, 1898, and July 11, 1908; reports on the
application o f the labor laws in establishments belonging to the min
istries o f war and the navy; a report on the application o f labor laws
in Algeria; the annual reports o f the divisional inspectors and of
the chief mining engineers; and numerous statistical tables.
These annual volumes are supplemented by the following official
publications containing additional information with regard to the
enforcement o f the labor laws: The Bulletin de l’lnspection du Tra
vail et de l’Hygiene Industrielle, published every two months; the
minutes ( compte-rendus) o f the sessions o f the superior council o f
labor (an investigating and advisory body consisting o f 27 delegates
chosen by employers’ organizations, 3 senators, 5 deputies, and 5
other persons representing various organizations o f employers and
employees); and the monthly bulletin o f the Labor Office ( Bulletin de
VOffice du Travail).
The following table indicates the recent annual changes in the
number o f establishments and employees affected by the labor laws
now in force (excluding mines, quarries, and establishments con
nected therewith):
NUMBER
OF ESTABLISHMENTS AND OF EMPLOYEES
LAWS, 1896 TO 1908.
Year.
1896.......................................
1897.......................................
1898.......................................
1899.......................................
1900.......................................
1901.......................................
1902.......................................
Establish Employees.
ments.
296,797
290,305
299,468
309,675
309,377
327,703
322,289
2,673,314
2,591,228
2,633,570
2,715,569
2,802,006
2,865,832
2,888,687
COVERED BY
Year.
1903.....................................
1904.....................................
1905.....................................
1906.....................................
1907.....................................
1908......................................
LABOR
Establish Employees.
ments.
528,703
508,849
511,783
548,225
552,130
545,932
3,550,829
3,66*2,167
3,726,578
3,864,007
3,999,402
4,048,812
The increase in the number o f establishments during this period
is due to three factors. In the first place, the industrial and com
a Rapports sur 1’Application des lois RSglementant le Travail. Minist&re du
Travail et de la PrSvoyance sociale. Direction du Travail. Paris, Imprimerie
nationale. The latest report, issued a few months ago, is for the year 1908. The
most compact, systematic summary o f French labor laws known to the author
is Ferrette’s Manuel de Legislation Industrielle. Paris, 1909.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
181
mercial development o f the nation is responsible for part o f the
growth in the number o f establishments, and especially for the in
creased number o f employees. In the second place, nearly every
year brings to the knowledge o f the authorities additional establish
ments subject to the law that were not previously noted, even though
they are not new. In the third place, and most important o f all, the
ever-widening scope o f labor legislation inevitably results in an
increase in the number o f establishments made subject to inspec
tion .^)
The third factor is alone sufficient to explain the jumps made in
1901, 1903, and 1905. In 1901, 17,487 establishments were subjected
to inspection by virtue o f the law o f December 29, 1900, concerning
seats for saleswomen; had this law not been enacted, the number o f
establishments for 1901 would have been only 839 more than in 1900.
The remarkable increase between 1902 and 1903 from 322,289 to
528,703 establishments is due very largely to the law o f July 11,
1903, which extended the scope o f the law o f June 12, 1893 (concern
ing hygiene and safety), to commercial and mercantile establish
ments, and enterprises connected therewith. The increase o f nearly
30.000 between 1905 and 1906 consisted in part o f the nearly 20,000
establishments brought under inspection by the law o f July 13, 1906,
concerning Sunday rest.
The above table indicates that at the end of 1908 there were over
500.000 establishments subject to the law, employing 4,000,000 labor
ers. It must not be supposed, however, that all o f these establishments
were inspected during the year. That would have been a physical
impossibility for the 128 officials then constituting the force o f de
partmental inspectors, who, it must be noted, have a considerable
amount o f correspondence and office work to attend to, in addition to
their tours o f inspection. It would have meant that each o f these
officials inspected, in the course o f the year, an average o f 4,265 estab
lishments. As a matter o f fact, very many o f the enumerated estab
lishments have never been visited at all. A t the end o f 1908 there
were still 173,136 such establishments, concerning which the service
possessed only such indirect information as could be obtained from
the mayors o f towns, from census reports, trade annuals, directories,
aA fourth source o f changes in the number o f establishments may consist in
varying interpretations o f the term “ establishment.,, Until 1901 there seems
to have been no precise agreement with regard to its significance. Take, for
instance, a plant having three separate buildings, each devoted to a distinct
branch of production, but all belonging to the same firm or company. Have
we to do with three establishments or one? In 1901 definite rules were laid
down to the effect that in such a case as this the inspectors report one estab
lishment. See Rapports sur 1’Application des lois Reglementant le Travail,
1901, p. xi.
182
BULLETIN OF T H E BUREAU OF LABOR.
etc. Furthermore, many o f the “ visited ” establishments have not
been inspected for two or three years, for in 1908 the officials were
able to inspect only 162,059 establishments. That the inspection o f
many o f these must have been very cursory indeed requires no fur
ther proof than the simple statement that each departmental in
spector visits annually, at least once, an average o f more than 1,250
establishments. Many o f these, to be sure, like many o f the establish
ments that have never been visited at all, are small and o f compara
tively little importance. But it is certainly not in harmony with the
spirit o f the law that it be applied only to the larger concerns, and it
is hardly probable that the law was strictly observed in the 383,873
establishments not visited at all during the year 1908. F or this
reason the superior commission, as well as the French section o f the
International Association for Labor Legislation, has persistently de
manded that the force o f inspectors be very considerably increased.
For the purposes o f the present article, however, the total number
o f establishments and the total number o f laborers employed therein
are not as important as the number o f nonadult workers in these
establishments. In 1908, 270,629, or nearly half o f the total number
o f enumerated establishments, contained only adult male employees;
the remaining 275,303 employed women and children, and were there
fore subject to the laws o f 1892 and 1900. The following table indi
cates for the past nine years the absolute number and the proportion
o f the several age and sex groups o f these persons:
NUMBER AND PER CENT OF EMPLOYEES IN ESTABLISHMENTS SUBJECT TO
INSPECTION BY LABOR INSPECTORS, BY AGE GROUPS AND SEX, 1900 TO
1908.
N U M BE R .
Employees 18 years
and over.
Employees under 18
years.
Total em
ployees.
Year.
Male.
Female.
1,719,916
1,716,890
1,747,860
2,216,135
2,293,725
2,363,457
2,462,868
2,564,504
2,586,109
1900.
1901.
1902.
1903.
1904.
1906.
1906.
1907.
1908.
623,565
667,835
670,413
782,291
801,037
797,483
826,689
846,313
861,079
Male.
Female.
238.498
246,719
236,425
297,573
301,066
300,988
302,907
313.499
321,778
220,027
234,388
233,989
254,830
266,339
264,650
271,543
275,086
279,846
P E R CENT.
Employees.
Under 18 years:
Male.................
Female............
18 years and over:
Male.................
Female............
1900.
1901.
1902.
1903.
1904.
1905.
1906.
1907.
8.5
7.8
8.6
8.2
8.2
8.1
8.4
7.2
8.2
7.3
8.0
7.1
7.8
7.0
7.8
6.9
61.4
22.3
59.9
23.3
60.5
23.2
62.4
22.0
62.6
21.9
63.4
21.5
63.8
21.4
64.1
21.2
2,802,006
2,865,832
2,888,687
3,650,829
3,662,167
3,726,578
3,864,007
3,999,402
4,048,812
183
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
From this table it appears that the proportion o f boys has decreased
in nine years from 8.5 per cent o f the whole number o f laborers to
7.9 per cent, and the girls from 7.8 per cent to 6.9 per cent. There
has, however, been a slight increase in the absolute number o f boys
and girls employed, except in the years 1902 and 1905. These ex
ceptions may be attributed, at least in part, to the law o f 1900, which
provided that the workday for all persons in establishments employ
ing women and children should be reduced to 10J hours on April 1,
1902, and to 10 hours on April 1,1904; employers who were unwilling
to reduce the workday o f their adult employees to 10 hours, simply
discharged the women and children in their employ.
The above figures do not include employees in mines, quarries, and
the establishments connected therewith, which are not subject to in
spection by the labor inspectors, but by the mining engineers and
controllers. These officials, have, during the periods since 1901, had
charge o f the inspection o f the establishments and employees indi
cated in the following table:
NUMBER OF ESTABLISHMENTS, OF EMPLOYEES, AND OF CHILDREN UNDER 18
YEARS OF AGE, SUBJECT TO INSPECTION BY MINING ENGINEERS AND CON
TROLLERS, 1901 TO 1908.
Children under 18
years.
Year.
1901..........................................................................
1902..........................................................................
1903..........................................................................
1904...........................................................................
1905..........................................................................
1906..........................................................................
1907..........................................................................
1908..........................................................................
Establish Employees.
ments.
39,743
39,983
39,985
38,555
38,912
38,747
39,166
39,279
320,272
322,057
327,218
329,850
330,7%
339,171
349,849
359,408
Total.
Over
ground.
Under
ground.
8,678
9,152
8,547
9,324
9,134
9,826
10,662
11,287
13,706
13,567
14,157
14,278
14,925
15,779
17,122
18,053
22,384
22,719
22,704
23,602
24,059
25,605
27,784
29,340
The reports o f the mining engineers are separate from those o f the
general labor inspectors, and an examination o f them will be deferred
until the activity o f the general service with regard to the enforce
ment o f the labor laws has been discussed.
The first important feature o f the law o f 1892 was that it raised
the age o f admission to 13 years, except for children possessing both a
certificate o f primary studies and a physician’s certificate o f physical
fitness. In practice, the latter certificate is so easily obtained that it
is usually a mere formality. As for the certificate o f primary studies,
the school law o f France requires children to attend school as a rule
from the sixth to the thirteenth year; they may, however, take an
examination to obtain the certificate o f primary studies at the age o f
11 years, and if they pass they are no longer required to attend school.
Children possessing this certificate may go to work in any establish
184
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
ment subject to the law as soon as they are 12 years o f age. The
following table indicates how many in recent years availed them
selves o f this privilege:
NUMBER OF CHILDREN BETWEEN 12 AND 13 YEARS OF AGE AT WORK, 1901
TO 1908.
Year.
1901................................................................................. .................................
1902 ...................................................................................................................
1903....................................................................................................................
1904.....................................................................................................................
1905....................................................................................................................
1906.....................................................................................................................
1907....................................................................................................................
1908.....................................................................................................................
Boys.
1,041
1,080
«951
1,277
1,518
1,165
1,433
2,076
Girls.
955
1,187
ol,213
2,179
3,745
2,547
2,689
3,772
Total.
1,996
2,267
02,164
3,456
5,263
3,712
4,122
5,848
° Excluding those subject to the law of July 11, 1903.
The increase o f over 50 per cent in the number o f children under
13 in the year 1904 is largely due to the law o f July 11, 1903, which
for the first time subjected a large number o f commercial establish
ments, shops, stores, and offices to the provisions o f the law o f June
12, 1893, concerning hygiene and safety.
The provision that children under 13 years o f age must possess the
two certificates was intended to give an opportunity to strong chil
dren to start work at 12, provided they had satisfactorily completed
their elementary education. It was assumed that the physical exami
nation would amount to a careful selective proceas. But in reality
it is nothing o f the sort. The certificate o f physical fitness is often
given by physicians who are not legally qualified to grant it; and
in very many cases it is given for the mere asking, and without even
taking the trouble to examine the child carefully. In his report for
1901 one o f the inspectors relates, as an altogether exceptional-occur
rence, the refusal o f a physician in the department o f Haute-Vienne
to give a certificate to a 12-year-old child whose parents wanted to
send him to work in a paper m ill.(a) The same inspector merely
echoes the statements o f his colleagues when he says that “ the guaran
tee furnished by a medical certificate is illusory. * * * The
parents always succeed in finding a complaisant physician.” The
. superior commission speaks o f “ the deplorable facility with which
most o f the physicians designated for this purpose deliver certificates
o f physical fitness. * * * It seems that the opportunity to have
the children examined by any one o f a large number o f physicians,
at the choice o f the parents, results in the suppression o f all responsi
bility, and prevents the uniformity o f action in this regard that could
be had i f one physician in each canton or commune were designated
for examining children.”
0 Rapports sur 1'Application ties lois Regleinentant le Travail, 1901, pp. xxxvii
and 53.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
185
“ For several years,” said the commission in 1902, “ there have
been hardly any cases o f a refusal to grant certificates to children
between 12 and 13 years of age. It is, on the contrary, to be noted
that the physicians in charge o f the delivery o f these certificates
regard this function more and more as a simple formality. A few
o f the reports mention physicians who hesitated at first to grant
certificates, but who were ultimately moved by the supplications or
the poverty o f the parents to deliver them.” (a)
In view o f the manifest futility o f this provision o f the law regard
ing children under 13 years o f age, many of the inspectors and the
superior commission have suggested its abrogation. “ This provision
appears all the more useless because another clause o f the law o f
November 2, 1892, permits the inspectors to require a medical certifi
cate concerning any child under 16 years of age engaged at work
which seems to exceed its strength. This provision, properly applied,
offers a better safeguard than the certificate for children under 13
years; for the latter certificate makes no mention o f the kinds o f
work in which the child may engage without danger to its physical
development, whereas the certificate that the inspector may insist
upon having must indicate the kinds o f work in which the child can
safely engage.”
Unfortunately, however, this provision, too, has been o f little more
practical consequence than the first-named one. Occasionally, it is
true, inspectors have found weak and sickly looking children at work
and have insisted upon a medical examination. But the examination
almost invariably results in a more or less laconic statement by the
physician that the children are fit to work. Says one inspector, for
example:
The medical examination was insisted upon in the cases of 4 chil
dren, 1 in a glass factory and 3 in a metallurgical establishment. In
all 4 cases the physicians delivered favorable certificates. One o f the
children, however, looked exceedingly weak, even sickly. But the
certificate concerning this child stated: “ I have examined the said
--------- , 14 years o f age, and have only discovered slight symptoms
o f systolic breathing, which place no obstacle in the way or his con
tinuing work.” The result o f these examinations seems to prove that
this provision o f the law is applicable only to children absolutely
incapable o f doing any work at all, in which case the intervention o f
a physician is not necessary. ( 6)
Most o f the inspectors have had similar experiences and have there
fore rarely considered it worth while to ask for a medical examina
tion o f the children that seem physically unfit for the work in which
they are engaged.*
o Rapports sur l’Application des lois Reglementant le Travail, 1902, p. xxx.
* Idem, 1902, p. 118.
186
BU LLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
In view o f the facility with which the medical certificate is ob
tained for children under 13 years o f age, it is fortunate that only
5,848 such children were, according to the reports o f the labor inspec
tors for 1908, employed in the establishments subject to their super
vision,^) and that their number does not increase. As a general rule,
children do not begin work in these establishments until they are 13
years old, the normal age o f admission fixed by the law o f 1892.
T o what extent is this provision o f the law violated ? The follow
ing table indicates the violations discovered by the inspectors during
the past nine years and the principal industries concerned:
VIOLATIONS OF THE LAW CONCERNING TH E AGE OF ADMISSION, 1900 TO 1908.
1900.
1901.
1902.
1903.
1904.
1905.
1906.
1907.
Glassworks..........................................
Charitable institutions......................
Brick and tile works.............. .........
Cardboard and paper mills................
Clothing and dressmaking................
Rope making.......................................
Hosiery.................................................
Printing...............................................
Boots and shoes..................................
Wool spinning and combing............
Silk weaving.......................................
Sugar manufacturing........................
Network and curtains........................
Metallurgy..........................................
Canning fish, fruits, and vegetables.
Other establishments..........................
223
210
11
13
22
23
4
14
9
22
7
13
7
7
8
195
552
68
49
23
22
20
17
13
12
12
12
3
7
6
3
200
193
49
18
11
51
9
11
4
.4
9
7
21
16
1
142
103
39
10
25
21
16
18
6
6
15
34
31
45
65
150
10
21
14
10
15
10
3
5
12
12
47
32
64
17
28
16
3
17
16
5
8
9
41
7
173
10
129
151
37
51
15
29
7
9
17
1
1
13
6
33
16
217
28
31
49
38
16
9
9
9
19
1
6
9
15
1
15
179
170
191
18
10
6
15
23
13
18
6
5
175
Total..........................................
783
1,019
621
639
611
434
480
577
470
Industry.
1908.
90
2
55
8
26
Conspicuous offenders against the provision o f the law fixing the
age o f admission are the owners o f glass works and brick manufac
turers.
Concerning these two occupations and the reasons why so many
children under the legal age are found in them, the annual reports of
the inspectors give abundant information.
For the year 1907 the divisional inspector at Lille notes that—
in glass works the persistent employment o f children under age must
be attributed to the difficulty in finding laborers, the competition
o f the mines, and the deplorable conditions o f labor. Workmen’s
families, even those which include glass workers, hesitate more and
more to send their children to the glass works, where for a meager
wage they often have bad examples and difficult and disagreeable
work to execute. Whoever visits a manufactory o f glass must, he
declares, be unfavorably impressed by the appearance o f the scantily
clad children and their ill-developed but agile bodies, many o f which
bear the marks o f burns on their faces or hands. The glass-making
trade, moreover, is a dangerous one, especially for children. Proof
o f this is furnished by the accidents reported. In 1907, 16 per cent
a In mines and quarries there were 171 children between 12 and 13 years o f
age in 1908. Idem, 1908, p. cvi.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
187
o f the boys and 10 per cent o f the girls employed in glass works were
reported," in conformity with the law o f April 9, 1898, as having been
injured in the course o f their employment.
The employment o f children is found desirable, wherever possible,
principally because o f the low rate o f wages paid them. For this
reason they are most frequently found in glass Works and in brick
yards. In other industries, like the manufacture o f network, lace,
and gauze, employers declare that, in view o f the dexterity which
these occupations demand, children can not start too early to learn the
trade. It should be added that the birth rate in France does not keep
pace with the development o f industry, and that therefore the supply
o f child labor in certain regions has become insufficient. Hence the
illegal employment o f children under age and the importation o f
foreign-born children.
The number o f violations detected every year in glass works, large
as it is, falls far short o f the reality. T o quote upon this point from
recent reports o f the inspectors:
The increase in the number of children employed under age is con
siderable. This need occasion no surprise, for this condition o f
affairs has long existed in the north, and it is our conviction that the
numerous infractions discovered by means o f the vigilance o f the
service and special devices to unearth them have not yet revealed the
whole truth. The motives that lead employers to prefer child labor
ers are always the same—above all the desire to obtain cheap labor.
The tricks used by a large number o f glass manufacturers to conceal
the children when the inspectors arrived led us to believe that there
had been some improvement and to hope that soon there would be no
more children under 13 engaged in the irksome toil o f this industiy.
But such was not the case. On the contrary, the proportion o f chil
dren between 9 and 12 years o f age exceeded 50 per cent in certain
establishments, and for a number of years even little girls have been
found among the employees. Inasmuch as threats and numerous
prosecutions by the inspectors at each o f their frequent visits pro
duced no salutary effect, a minute inspection o f all the glass works
was made in October (in 1901 in the Lille division). Visits in the
daytime and at night during the working periods o f all the shifts
were made by several cooperating inspectors in order to learn the real
condition o f affairs, with the result that 300 boys and 100 girls under
age were found at work. Complaints were filed in every instance,
and, inasmuch as the employers had previously been found guilty o f
the same offense, every case was prosecuted before a lower criminal
court (tribunal correctionnel) . Several interesting condemnations
ensued.
With regard to such wholesale violations o f the law the superior
commission remarks:
There is no use attempting to conceal the gravity o f this state of
affairs. A ll that the commission can do is to call attention to this
veritable revolt against the law, to note again the necessity o f putting
an end to practices that are dangerous for the health and development
of these young laborers and to express its complete approval o f the
measures taken to remedy such conditions. It hopes that a consider
able increase in the number o f labor inspectors in the north, which is
188
BU LLETIN OF T H E BUREAU OF LABOR.
recognized as the center o f infractions of this sort, will bring about
a prompt change in a state o f affairs that can not continue without
grave injury to the good reputation of French industry. (a)
In 1906 the divisional inspector at Lyon reported that in the glass
works o f Rive de Gier 16 children under age were found, 14 o f them
in possession o f work books ( livrets) which did not belong to them.
According to the local inspector who discovered this—
It is useless to point out how much time and how many investiga
tions were necessary to discover these frauds. The children are well
coached and lie glibly with regard to their names and the names o f
their parents. The work books circulate from hand to hand with
deplorable facility. W e found some that had served consecutively
fo r three children. It may be affirmed without exaggeration that the
work book has ceased to be a satisfactory means of control and regu
lation. It is necessary to change the conditions of its delivery and
to take measures to prevent its use by any other child than the one
for whom it is intended. A t the present time the habit o f deceiving
the inspectors is spreading rapidly. From Savoy and Ardeche
numerous children come to the glass works of Rive de Gier equipped
with false age certificates, and we lose valuable time making fruitless
investigations with insufficent means o f action at our disposal. ( 6)
In the manufacture o f tile and brick almost as many children
are found under the legal age, and there is every reason to believe
that the number o f infractions discovered in these establishments by
the inspectors constitutes but a fraction o f the number actually com
mitted. Said the divisional inspector at Dijon in his report for 1904
concerning the illegal employment o f children in tile works:
The illegal employment o f 24 children (9 o f which were not yet 10
years old, 5 between 10 and 11, and 10 under 12 years old) was con
fined almost exclusively to the tile works. In spite of the severity o f
the inspectors and, one may add, in spite o f numerous condemnations
already pronounced, the employment o f children under age persists like
an incurable disease. Children employed as carriers or rollers earn
from 1.15 to 1.25 francs (22.2 to 24.1 cents) a day, and most frequently
work longer than the law allows. One-third o f them can neither
read nor write, and attend school only during the dead season and
only at very long intervals. The employers who at first gave supple
ness and dexterity in handling the tiles as the only reason for em
ploying these young children now allege that it is necessary to have
them begin work between the ages o f 10 and 12 years, because as
soon as they get older they leave the tile works to go to the farms
and to other workshops. This appears to be true, and is due to the
fact that on farms and in other workshops the children get better
wages. ( c)
The same abuses are found in the Lille division, where, in 1904,
226 children between 8 and 12 years of age were found at w ork; the*1
c Rapports sur TApplication des lois Reglementant le Travail, 1901, p. xxxv.
1 Idem, 1906, p. xxviii.
€ Idem, 1904, p. xxii.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
189
preceding year, 354 such children were found, but the divisional in
spector, far from concluding that conditions had meanwhile improved,
states that the evils will continue as long as the penalties imposed are
not more proportionate to the gravity of the offense. In a flax-spin
ning mill near Lille, frequently visited by the inspectors, nothing
abnormal was noted, and the inspector assumed that no children
under age were employed in it. But at the beginning o f the year
1905 the employment of a little girl 11£ years old was accidentally
discovered; and an investigation, made at once with great circum
spection, disclosed the presence of 25 children under legal age.
These unfortunates were detained 10 hours a day in combing and
dry spinning rooms full o f dust, or in rooms where moist flax is spun
in an excessively hot and damp atmosphere. After such discoveries,
is it surprising that the health o f laborers in certain branches of the
textile industry does not improve ? There can be no doubt that phys
ical overwork in such an environment, begun in the tenderest years
o f childhood, combined with nourishment that is not substantial and
sometimes insufficient, together with other causes, is favorable to the
spread o f tuberculosis. (a)
The considerable number of violations for which charitable insti
tutions are responsible will occasion some surprise on the part o f per
sons unfamiliar with the numerous instances o f cruel exploitation o f
children discovered in these institutions. (6) There seems to have been
good reason for having the law of 1892 specifically include institu
tions o f an eleemosynary character. In 1900 these institutions in 210
cases violated the provision concerning the age of admission, out of a
total o f 783 cases in all establishments. In 1901, thanks to the vigi
lance o f the inspectors, the number decreased to 68; but soon there
after it increased again, and in 1903 reached 103. The superior com
mission at that time remarked that this figure “ proves conclusively
that the exceptionally strict supervision o f these institutions is en
tirely justified.”
The laws concerning these institutions (the number o f which has
considerably decreased lately) are sufficiently complex to warrant a
brief summary. Children under 13 years o f age in such institutions
may work not more than 3 hours a day, provided their labor pos
sesses the character of training for a trade. They must also receive
the equivalent o f a primary school training and are in this respect
subject to the school law o f 1882. Children between the ages of 13
and 18 years, as well as female persons over 18 employed therein, are
subject to the law o f 1892, precisely as in any industrial establish
ment. This law requires also that the conditions o f employment be*
0 Rapports sur l’Application des lois R€glementant le Travail, 1905, p. xxiii.
* This subject is discussed by Dr. H. Thulie in a book entitled “ La Charity
Criminelle.” Paris, 1905.
56504°—No. 89—10-----13
190
BU LLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
posted, including the hours o f work, the rest periods, and the times
for study and for meals. The heads o f charitable institutions in
which such persons work must furthermore send a complete and cor
rect list o f inmates to the labor inspector every three months.
A large percentage o f the inmates o f orphanages and other chari
table establishments are under 13 years o f age.(a) The provision per
mitting these children to be employed at work for not more than three
hours a day, provided the work is o f an educational character, is
not interpreted to mean that the products must not be sold; and, as a
matter o f fact, most o f them are sold or produced on behalf o f con
tractors or dealers. Several inspectors report that they encounter
considerable difficulty in gaining access to the workrooms o f these
establishments, and that when conducted to them by the persons in
charge, after all manner o f delays, they are sometimes led through
circuitous ways o f approach.
Other inspectors, to be sure, report that they are well received, and
allowed to enter the workrooms at once. But one o f those who re
ported thus in 1902 had occasion to add that when he arrived 3 boys
under 13 years o f age were concealed in a cellar. The inspector at
Chartres reported that many o f the children under 13 years of age
are employed at work that has nothing to do with their training, and
that he was admitted to the workrooms only after waiting for some
time in the parlor.
In one such establishment I waited 20 minutes in the parlor before
the portress concluded to open the double and triple gates that confine
the poor children as in a cloister. Meanwhile there was an infernal
noise o f little girls moving chairs about and descending stair
cases * * *; when this noise ceased the doors were opened for
me * * *. There is no doubt that the little girls had been sent
into the garden before I was admitted to the workrooms. ( *6)
In 1901 a charitable institution near Yichy refused to admit the
inspector, on the ground that no “ industrial ” work was done therein,
and the courts upheld the directors o f the institution after hearing the
testimony o f witnesses called by the defendants. (c) To enter such
establishments at night, moreover, is practically impossible, according
to a number o f inspectors, because o f bolted and locked doors, and the
removal at night o f doorbells, knockers, and other means o f attracting
the attention o f the doorkeepers. (d) In 1902 an inspector was told by
the head o f a religious institution at Villefranche-de-Rouergue that
there was no orphanage and no workroom connected with the estab
a In 1908 these institutions subject to the law numbered 1,207 and contained
17,183 children under 13 and 19,556 between 13 and 18 years o f age, a total of
36,739 minors under 18, o f which 32,833 were girls.
6 Rapports sur l’Application des lois RSglementant le Travail, 1902, p. 160.
« Idem, 1901, pp. 53, 78.
d Idem, 1901, p. 306.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
191
lishment, but an investigation disclosed a workroom in which little
girls were working, 13 of them employed illegally. Similar establish
ments at Limoges, which in 1899 gave rise to 13 prosecutions concern
ing 130 violations of the law, were prosecuted during the succeeding
year for 195 contraventions o f the following character: Employment
o f children under 13 years o f age solely for profit, 53; overwork for
children under 13 years o f age, 40; overwork for children under 18
years o f age, 32; for working on the 14th o f July, a national holiday,
42; missing work books and registers, 23; failure to post up the law, 4;
placing obstacles in the way o f the inspector, l.(«)
Says an inspector in the third circuit:
Four times I visited an establishment called The Good Shepherd,
and each time I was led to the workrooms through so many halls and
doors, and by such different ways, that at the present moment I would
not know how to get to them directly. ( 6)
And an inspector in the fifth circuit reports:
Behind the walls of these charitable and religious institutions,
whose doors are hermetically closed, the workrooms are far in the
rear, and the doorbells removed at night. How can there be any
“ presumption ” (such as the courts require) that work is being done
inside? These institutions can do what they please at night, and a
visit during the daytime * * * does not enable the inspector to
discover exactly what takes place. ( c)
The most redoubtable adversary o f the inspectors is certainly
electricity, in the shape of telephones and electric bells. It is used not
only in orphanages, but also in certain industrial establishments. In
religious establishments electric bells take the p>lace o f the old door
bell which warned all the inmates o f the arrival o f an inspector.
Hence he is no longer required to wait at the door or in the parlor;
but no matter how quickly he hurries to the workrooms, an electric
bell gives the warning before he reaches them, and it is very excep
tional for him to discover contraventions o f the law. Moreover, the
working women and children are advised to answer the questions o f
the inspectors evasively. (d)
Very frequently the children are found working on legal holidays
in these institutions, and at times even on religious holidays, such as
Easter Monday, in violation o f the law .(e)
Charitable institutions are required by the school laws to give their
wards an education at least equivalent to that provided by the public
primary schools. In practice, however, this requirement is often
ignored.
The inspectors o f the tenth circuit visited 123 orphanages in 1901,
containing 2,511 children between 13 and 18 years o f age, and not
one o f the children had a certificate o f primary studies.
a Rapports sur 1*Application des lois R&glementant le Travail, 1900. p. 85.
6 Idem, 1904, p. 67.
o Idem, 1904, p. 192.
* Idem, 1904, p. 165.
e Idem, 1903, p. 235, and 1902, p. 59.
192
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
This fact shows clearly that primary instruction is neglected in
all o f these institutions. (a)
Primary instruction is given, but not with the desire to have the
children profit by it. Several directresses declared to me that 44the
girls will know enough, anyway, to do what is required o f them when
they leave the establishment.” ( *6*9
)
Primary instruction is provided, but the time devoted to it some
times does not exceed 4 hours a day, whereas in the public schools
6 hours are usually given. ( c)
It was found that although (in the seventh circuit) the time de
voted to instruction seems normal, the instruction itself is often in
sufficient and given under deplorable conditions. The inspector at
Brest found the children in one o f the largest orphanages in his
district writing their exercises on old shreds o f paper from all con
ceivable sources—laundry bills, order blanks, printed reports from
the barracks o f the town, etc. The books provided for the children
were in a pitiable condition. To justify these unhappy expedients,
the need ox economy was urged. (d)
Yet the children usually receive no pay for their labor, and the
institutions sometimes refuse to relieve parents o f the care o f their
children unless they are allowed to work 8 to 10 hours a day.(e) In
a charitable institution in the Haut-Rhin district the written exer
cises o f the girls during six months amounted to 15 pages in their copy
books. ( 0 In an orphanage in the sixth circuit an inspector found
5 little girls between 12 and 18 years o f age washing linen. He was
told by the directress that this work was assigned to them to give
them exercise and to promote their physical development. (^) In an
other similar institution 11 children, aged 8, 9, and 10 years, were
required to work from 5 to T hours.a day.(ft) The White Sisters, at
La Rochelle, let the children in their charge work in cold rooms,
heated only during the coldest weeks o f the winter, and then by
means o f large pans o f burning coals. (*) In the same region the
directress o f an establishment named The Child Jesus was sentenced
to pay three fines for the illegal employment o f children under 13
years o f age. (*) In another charitable institution, although the work
ing schedule showed that girls worked 11 hours a day, not counting
the periods o f rest, and that some o f the girls were at work even at
the times indicated by the schedule as resting periods, the directress
was acquitted. ( ')
a Rapports sur l’Application des lois RSglementant le Travail, 1901, p. 400.
6 Idem, 1902, p. 206.
c Idem, 1900, p. 123.
d Idem, 1904, p.,165.
* Idem, 1906, p. 204
f Idem, 1903, p. 56.
9 Idem, p. 102.
RIdem, p. 131.
i Idem, 1900, p. 346,
i Idem, p. 476.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
193
In 1902 an orphanage near Chateauroux kept little girls between
12 and 13 years o f age at work longer than the 3 hours permitted by
law, and the persons in charge of it were found guilty and fined; in
1903, less than a year later, 4 little girls were again found working
longer than the law allows, 3 o f whom had been found doing the same
thing the year before. Whereupon the lower criminal court imposed
the same fine as for the previous offense, 5 francs (96.5 cents) for each
child. “ This mild punishment,” says the inspector, “ is not apt to
discourage the exploitation o f childhood, for the illegal employment
o f a child for one year is certainly worth more than 5 francs.” (®)
In view o f the vigilance and ruses which the inspectors must occa
sionally employ in order to discover violations o f the law, and the
number o f violations that probably escape detection, such penalties
seem altogether inadequate. Not only in charitable institutions, but
particularly in commercial and industrial establishments, the devices
employed to prevent the detection o f the employment of children
under age are as numerous as they are ingenious. Time and again
the inspectors learn of the presence o f such children in mills, and
particularly in glass works, only when accidents happen to them and
must be reported to the authorities, who institute an investigation
that frequently reveals the correct age o f the children.
The complicity o f parents, moreover, is in some cases shocking.
Sometimes it is attributable to the desire for the small wage the
children earn; sometimes peculiar conditions o f employment are
responsible. In his report for 1900 one inspector remarks:
We call attention to the complicity o f parents, especially when
they are employed in glass works and are paid by the piece. They
have every interest in encouraging the employment o f their own
children or o f young relatives, for if there are not enough children
the output is diminished and adult laborers are the first to suffer.
Such infractions o f the law, moreover, are difficult to detect, for the
work places have several outlets that permit the children to leave
hastily. By watching the furnaces that are in operation it is, o f
course, easy to note how many carriers are missing, but as they do
not return it is impossible to file a complaint. Sometimes it is neces
sary to send two or three inspectors in order to discover the actual
facts. ( *6)
Says the superior commission in its report for 1903:
The inspectors’ visits are not always frequent enough to enable them
to discover the illegal employment o f children under 13 years o f age.
Often their employment is known only by means o f complaints sent
to the inspectors by outside persons. * * * In the Vosges
region the labor inspector first examines the school records, and
by this means is able to unearth a certain number o f children under
age employed in his district. * * * The divisional inspector
a Rapports sur l’Application des lois Reglementant le Travail, 1903, p. 30.
6 Idem. 1900, p. xxxvi.
194
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
at Lille considers that “ in view o f the ingenious methods employed
to prevent the inspector from discovering children when he visits
an establishment—methods that are being improved upon from day
to day— it is impossible to state even approximately how many are
really employed before they have attained the requisite age.” There is
reason to believe that the service is still far from having learned the
whole truth. * * * In one case an electric bell warned employees
o f the arrival o f the inspectors; the children disappeared by means o f
a trapdoor and were stowed away in a cellar under the furnace. A
premium was paid them for passing rapidly through this door, and
stimulated their zeal and their agility. As a consequence it was very
difficult, not to say impossible, to enter the establishment suddenly
enough to catch them. (a)
It has already been noted that as a means o f facilitating the work
o f the inspectors, the law o f 1892 (like that o f 1874) requires children
under 18 years o f age to carry a work book (livret) indicating the
full name and age o f the bearer, his place o f birth and residence, and
similar data concerning the child’s parents or guardian. Nor is this
all. Employers are required to keep a register o f all such children
in their employ, and the employment o f a child having no work book
constitutes a violation o f the law. To facilitate compliance with the
requirement o f a work book, the law provides that the mayors o f all
communes shall furnish this document free o f charge to parents or
guardians requesting it. One o f the chief functions o f the mayor is
to act as custodian o f the records o f births, deaths, and marriages,
which in France, as in most European countries, must be made a
matter o f public record. The mayor o f the commune in which the
child is domiciled is the competent authority to issue the work book;
i f the child was not born in the commune in which he or she works,
the mayor o f the domiciliar commune sends to the mayor o f the
commune in which the child was born for the information necessary
to prepare the work book. I f the child in question is not 18 years old
the work book must also state whether he possesses a certificate of
primary studies.
So much for this ^provision o f the law, which is being better ob
served from year to year, as the following table shows:
PE R CENT OF C H ILD R E N POSSESSING T H E R E Q U ISIT E W O RK BOOK FOR T H E
Y E A R S 1900 TO 1908, B Y CIRCU ITS.
Circuit.
Paris.................................
Limoges...........................
D ijon................................
Nancy ..............................
L ille.................................
Rouen..............................
Nantes..............................
Bordeaux..........................
Toulouse...........................
Marseille...........................
Lyon.................................
1900.
90.6
86.0
95.0
96.0
93.0
95.0
84.0
81.0
89.8
97.9
98.0
1901.
91.5
92.2
86.2
96.7
97.6
94.5
77.0
79.6
88.0
97.1
97.2
1902.
92.3
91.0
96.0
96.6
97.2
95.5
93.3
77.5
92.1
96.3
97.3
1903.
93.3
94.6
95.5
96.3
98.0
93.8
91.4
93.7
91.2
96.3
99.3
1904.
96.6
94.2
95.4
98.2
98.7
94.4
92.0
92.7
92.1
98.1
98.1
1905.
1906.
94.6
95.9
96.0
98.8
98.7
94.8
92.4
92.3
93.1
98.1
97.6
a Rapports sur l’Application des lois Reglementant le Travail,
94.0
96.6
95.8
98.8
98.9
96.2
94.3
93.9
95.7
98.0
93.0
1907.
94.6
97.6
97.0
92.7
99.0
95.8
95.3
94.5
95.3
98.3
98.3
1908.
94.6
96.3
97.4
96.3
99.0
96.7
95.8
95.8,
94.8
97.2
97.6
1903, p. xxiv.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
195
The total number of violations o f the provisions concerning work
books and concerning registers required o f employers during the past
nine years were:
1900.
1901.
1902.
3903
1904.
2, 264
3,164
2, 246
2,568
2,239
1905.
3906.
1907.
3908.
2,744
2, 541
2,199
2,266
Considering the increase since 1900 in the number o f laborers under
18 years o f age subject to the law o f 1892, and assuming that the serv
ice o f inspection is at least as well performed now as then, the above
figures indicate a certain degree o f improvement.
Unfortunately, however, all manner of frauds and subterfuges are
resorted to in connection with the work books, and the mayors in
delivering them sometimes exhibit almost criminal carelessness in
neglecting to investigate the truth o f statements made with regard to
children. (a) In 1907, the superior commission, looking back over the
experience o f several years with regard to the provisions o f the law
regarding work books and registers, declared:
The same irregularities occur again and again in spite o f the
repeated instructions given by the inspectors. Sometimes the mayors
deliver work books to children under 13 years o f age who have no
certificate o f primary studies, and without requiring the presentation
o f a certificate o f physical fitness; sometimes the work books signed
by the mayor are not filled out, but given in blank to the parents or
even to employers, who fill them out to suit themselves; sometimes the
mayors, in spite o f the terms o f the law, ask to be paid for the work
books they deliver, or refuse to grant them at public expense; some
times, finally, the work books contain false data concerning the age o f
the children. ( &)
A t times it happens that several work books are obtained for the
same child, a possibility which gives rise to curious abuses, one of
which is reported by the inspector at Valenciennes.
Several times it was learned that children under 18 years o f age,
victims o f a slight accident, stay away for a certain number o f days
from the mill in which the accident took place; but a day or two later,
armed with a new work book, they take work elsewhere until com
pletely cured, thus receiving half a wage from one employer and a
whole wage from the other. Then, according to whether or not they
like the new job, they decide whether or not to go back to the first
one.(c)*1
a la the Lille circuit a mayor deliberately changed the records concerning the
date o f birth o f children, and a mayor’s secretary was fined 100 francs ($19.30)
for altering work books by modifying the date o f birth, so as to make the bear
ers appear older than they were.
1 Rapports sur l’Application des lois Beglementant le Travail, 1907, p. lxi.
c Idem, 1907, p. lxii.
196
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
Another equally reprehensible practice is that by which some
smaller establishments ask for a child’s work book only after one or
two months o f trial employment.
The owners o f glass works sometimes keep the work books o f chil
dren leaving their employ, and subsequently exhibit them to the
inspectors as belonging to other children, generally children under 13
years o f age.(a) To remedy this evil, an inspector requested the
mayor to investigate whether each child asking for a work book had
already received one, and in this case to ask him to get a certificate
from his last employer to the effect that the work book had been
returned. Since then, the inspector reports, books are more fre
quently solicited by the children and returned by the employers.
Says the divisional inspector at Lille, concerning frauds with
regard to work books:
Several processes are employed. The most usual one consists in
delivering work books to children between 10 and 12 years old bearing
their correct date o f birth, and the parties concerned scratch out the
date and substitute another. In other cases a duplicate birth cer
tificate is delivered to persons bearing the same family name as
younger relatives, and then transferred to the latter to be used as their
own. Sometimes the old style work book is delivered, which merely
states that the bearer is over 13 years old, without indicating the date
o f birth. Frauds o f this sort have been committed by the hundreds
in this region, and in spite o f the minute investigations that have been
made it is not always possible to punish the guilty parties. ( 6)
Probably the most serious abuses in connection with the require
ment o f a work book arise in the case o f foreign-born children, par
ticularly those o f Italian birth. The immigration o f large numbers
o f Italian children under the direction o f persons who contract with
French employers for their services has in some, instances acquired
the proportions o f a veritable traffic. ( c) Many o f these strangers are
under 13 years o f age. (d) Some o f them pretend to have no proofs of
their age; others submit foreign documents o f doubtful relevancy
and still more doubtful authenticity; and still others are provided
with work books purchased or stolen from other children.
A ministerial circular, under date o f April 20,1899, concerning the
delivery o f work books to foreign-born children requires that the
identity o f such children be established by means o f papers approved
and countersigned by the consul o f the nation to which they belong.1
a Rapports stir VApplication des lots Reglementant le Travail, 1901, p. Ixxv.
1 Idem, 1903, p. lxii.
c This evil is the subject o f a well-known novel by Edouard Rod, entitled “ Le
Vainqueur.”
d Italians constitute the most numerous element of the foreign-born popula
tion of France. In 1901 there were 330,465 o f them, or 32.3 per cent o f the total
foreign-born population, and 19.61 per cent were under 15 years of age.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
197
But this measure has not put a stop to the abuses practiced. The
children obtain the birth certificates o f friends or relatives, usually
persons older than themselves, and present them as their own.
“ W e had great difficulty,” says the inspector at Marseille in his
report for 1901, “ in a bottle-glass works in establishing the identity
o f foreign-born children. Nevertheless, after a minute inquiry we
learned that 4 Italians under 18 years o f age gave their employer
work books bearing the names o f much older children who had left
that region. Thus 1 child 11 years old had a book whose real owner
was 16 years o f age * * *. The investigation which we under
took after the discovery o f these frauds disclosed the presence near
Marseille o f several recruiters o f Italian children for glass works,
chimney sweeps, and bootblacks. These recruiters, after providing
the glass works o f Marseille with children, send the rest o f them to
the glass works o f Lyon, to the Loire region, and to the neighbor
hood o f Paris. It appears that they purchase the labor o f these
children for 100 francs ($19.30) a year, which sum they do not even
pay to the family, but always pretend lack o f work and the child’s
illness. The food given the children is neither nourishing nor
sufficient.” (*)
In 1907 the divisional inspector at Paris reported the organized
theft o f work books from the mayor’s office and the discovery of the
stolen work books in the hands o f a dozen Italians who pretended
to be over 13 years old, but several o f whom were under 10. An in
vestigation proved that the stolen books had been sold by an Italian
at a price o f 7 to 8 francs ($1.35 to $1.54) each. “ Where,” exclaims
the inspector, “ will the inventive genius o f these malefactors stop ?
All possible means are used to exploit the children; after the substi
tution o f names, the falsification o f dates, and the commerce in work
books at the frontier, the padrones now resort to stealing them from
the mayors’ offices.” (l)
A treaty between France and Italy signed at Rome on April 15,
1904, provided that steps be taken by the Governments o f the con
tracting nations to prevent errors and false declarations, to decide
upon the papers to be presented to the Italian consuls by Italians
working in France, and also to determine the form o f a certificate to
be furnished by these consuls before an Italian child may receive a
work book. In fulfillment o f this treaty, agreements were made
under date o f January 20 and June 9, 1906, which seem to have
already resulted in abolishing some o f the previous abuses.
Equal in importance to the provisions o f the law o f 1892 concerning
the age o f admission o f children to industrial labor are the provisions*&
o Rapports sur 1’Application des lois R£glementant le Travail, 1901, p. lxxvii.
&Idem, 1907, p. 5.
198
BU LLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
concerning the duration o f the workday for those whose employment
is permitted. It is upon this point that the laws o f 1892 and o f 1900,
like the law o f 1874, provoked most criticism and the greatest number
o f difficulties. In the law o f March 30, 1900, declares one author,
44there is not a single provision that has not given rise to diffi
culties,” ^ ) although that law was passed to remove the difficulties
which stood in the way o f applying the law o f 1892, which it modi
fied. It has already been pointed out (p. 158) that the law o f 1892
established (in connection with that o f 1848) four different regimes
with regard to the duration o f the workday— for children under 16,
10 hours a day; for children between 16 and 18 years o f age, 60
hours per week, but not more than 11 in any single day; for female
persons over 18 years o f age, 11 hours; and for adult males, 12 hours
a day. Practically, however, as a modus vivendi, an 11-hour work
day was adopted in establishments employing women and children
as well as adult males, until M. Millerand became minister o f com
merce and insisted that the law be strictly applied. Whereupon the
general recognition o f the fact that in many industrial establishments
the workday must necessarily be the same for all employees alike led
to the adoption o f the law o f 1900, which by steps introduced the
uniform 10-hour workday in all so-called 44mixed ” establishments—
that is to say in those employing women and children as well as
adult males—and required that all the employees therein begin work
simultaneously, stop work simultaneously, and have their intervals
o f rest simultaneously.
The law o f 1892, like that o f 1874, gave rise to a chorus o f protesta
tions from many o f the employers affected; and certain eminent
economists prophesied the approaching ruin o f French national in
dustry. Some employers refused to reduce the day o f labor for
children to 10 hours. Others, on the ground that a decrease in the
hours o f work necessarily involved a decrease in productivity, at
tempted to reduce wages proportionately. Hence a recrudescence
o f strikes, which made such an impression on the authorities that
they permitted women and children to work 11 hours, until the advent
o f M. Millerand. With regard to the effect o f the law upon industrial
conditions, the reports o f the superior commission o f labor for 1898
and 1899 are particularly convincing. 44The speeding-up o f the
machines,” declared the divisional inspector at Lyon in 1898, 44less
loss o f time, more genuine periods o f rest, have kept the productivity
o f the establishments not only from diminishing or remaining sta
tionary, but even led to a steady increase.” ( *6)
®Jacquier: La Limitation Legale de la Journee de Travail en France, p. 79.
Paris, 1902.
6 Bulletin de l’Office du Travail, 1898, p. 30.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
199
Similar protestations and identical prophesies were uttered when
the law o f 1900 went partly into effect in 1902, and fully in 1904.
T o be sure, the two steps toward a 10-hour workday for mixed estab
lishments were not taken without some difficulties nor without trouble
some readjustments. The change occasioned numerous strikes in
1900, 1902, and 1904, some o f which were serious, especially in the
textile industry. According to the report of the superior commission
for 1903 the new provisions affected about 80,000 establishments,
causing 30 strikes in 532 establishments in 1900 and 22 strikes in 54
establishments in 1902. A number o f employers, especially those
having small and medium-sized plants, discharged their child laborers
in order to escape subjection to the law. Others, especially in Paris,
simply violated the law, when orders were numerous and urgent, and'
paid the penalties.
Upon the various and rather complex problems raised by the law
o f 1900, the annual reports o f the inspectors and o f the superior
commission furnish interesting and detailed information. From
these reports, therefore, the following paragraphs concerning the
duration o f the workday, particularly as regards laborers under 18
years o f age, are taken:
It may be said that as a general rule the duration o f the workday
tends to vary inversely with the number o f persons employed; hence
excessively long hours o f work are usual in the very establishments
which it is most difficult for the inspectors to supervise. Rather than
reduce the workday to the legal limit some employers have preferred
to discharge the employees whose presence in the work places would
compel them to reduce the workday to 11 hours. (a)
Therefore many establishments in which only a few women and
children were employed in addition to a considerable number o f adult
males discharged the former in order that the latter might legally
continue to work 12 hours a day. Thus, for example, the inspector at
the head o f the seventh circuit reports that—
Several tanneries employing 3 or 4 children in a force of 90 or 100
laborers preferred to send the children away in order to retain the
workday o f 12 hours for the adults. The same is true for outdoor
industries, such as the building trades, which work hardly 8 hours a
day during the bad season and want to make up for this bv working
12 hours in summer; it is for this reason that young laborers are more
and more rare in this trade.
Nevertheless, according to the superior commission, these unfor
tunate measures seem far from being general; and the inspector at
Marseille states:
We have not noted that, in order to escape the new obligations con
cerning employees in mixed work places, the employers have dis
missed the women and children. Employers who hire children and
a Rapports sur l’Application
des lois Reglementant le Travail, 1900, p. xliv.
200
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
women have their own interest in view, and one may rest assured
that as long as the employment of these persons is economical, em
ployers will not dispense with their services. We are persuaded,
moreover, that in all mills and workshops in which women and chil
dren are indispensable, and where the increasing demand for their
services is intimately related to the cost o f producing the manufac
tured article, no protective law will eliminate them; lor these indus
tries would surely disappear i f the wages o f men had to be paid
instead o f those o f women and children. (a)
Particularly in small workshops having no mechanical motor, the
general dismissal of children is much more to be expected, because
the owners o f such shops are entirely beyond all legal regulation with
regard to hours o f work whenever they employ only adult male
laborers.
As for the effect of a shorter workday on the output, many o f the
inspectors reported in 1900 that stricter discipline in the factories
prevented productivity from decreasing. Smoking during working
hours was forbidden; employees were not allowed to change clothes
until the time to stop work; and they were required to report more
punctually when work begins. Many employers state frankly that
the twelfth hour had been o f practically no use. In those industries,
however, in which the workman simply supervises a machine, and
the output is determined by the time the machines run, a decrease in
the workday necessarily involves a corresponding curtailment in the
product.
It should be noted that during the period between 1900 and 1902
the maximum workday for children was fixed at 11 hours, and be
tween 1902 and 1904 at 10J hours, whereas before the law of 1900
was passed it was only 10 hours (according to the law o f 1892).
Hence a temporary step backward was taken during these four years,
so far as the children were concerned; this was done partly in order
to obtain an advantage for adult laborers, and partly in order to
inaugurate a regime that would render possible a more efficient
enforcement of the law by the inspectors.
There are manifestly certain industries the nature o f which is such
that while some o f the workers are resting others must be allowed to
take their places. The same is true of the work of firemen and engi
neers in establishments where there are steam engines, no matter
what the. product may be. For such industries and such occupations,
it has already been stated, exceptions are allowed and the work may
be attended to continuously by means o f relays. But the adminis
trative authorities have endeavored to counterbalance the granting
o f such exceptional privileges by the imposition o f certain compensa
tory restrictions, regarding such matters as the periods of rest and
the total duration o f work for each relay o f workers.
a Rapports
sur l’Application des lois Reglementant le Travail, 1909, p. xliv.
201
CHILD-LABOR. LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
The following table indicates the number of violations during the
past eight years o f the provisions concerning the duration o f work,
and the principal industries concerned:
V IO LA T IO N S OF T H E L A W CONCERNING DU RATION OF W ORK FOR WOMEN AND
CH ILDREN , 1901 TO 1908, B Y P R IN C IP A L IN D U STRIES.
Principal industry.
1901.
Spinning hemp, flax, tow, and jute.
Dressmaking.......................................
Spinning and combing wool............
Network and curtains......................
Cotton spinning and combing.........
Sawmills..............................................
Weaving silk.......................................
Dye works................. : .......................
Laundering.........................................
Weaving woolen cloth......................
Confectioneries..................................
Machine shops...................................
Cotton weaving..................................
Printing...............................................
Paper mills..........................................
Other industries................................
1,106
856
366
422
353
40
313
135
191
130
191
90
76
55
19
229
Total..........................................
4,572
1902.
1903.
1904.
1905.
1906.
259
940
180
13
112
16
95
81
193
97
12
19
291
134
80
676
1,261
1,027
227
81
709
27
162
78
296
133
8
18
406
203
56
1,429
132
1,382
106
115
76
107
213
179
527
213
215
67
87
151
181
1,606
777
1,455
55
44
125
23
109
93
404
12
4
93
439
264
91
1,429
592
1,314
108
2
5
15
254
134
382
31
37
94
295
96
40
1,018
3,198
6,121
5,357
5,417
4,417
1907.
1908.
377
119
732
722
204
ol99
58
110
158
6 284
58
9
11
56
110 1
Q7 A
0 /1
262 f
126
(«)
d 175
50
35
97
44
(«)
173
135
82
55
412
936
3,319
2,844
• Including weaving woolen cloth.
Including cotton weaving.
c Included in spinning and combing wool.
d Including bakeries and certain other establishments.
* Included in cotton spinning and combing.
A glance at this table is sufficient to show that it is o f very little
help in attempting to gauge the actual number o f violations in d if
ferent industries. For it is manifestly absurd to believe that such
abrupt jumps and drops are possible from one year to another as we
find, for example, from 1901 to 1904 in spinning hemp, etc., or from
1901 to 1906 in the manufacture o f network and curtains, and in
cotton spinning; or between 1901 and 1903 in the manufacture o f
confectionery. As a matter of fact, these otherwise incomprehensible
fluctuations are due largely to the varying activity of the inspectors.
It has already been stated that the inspectors each year visit approxi
mately only 27 per cent o f the establishments subject to the law. In
one year they may visit a large number o f dressmaking establish
ments; in the next year perhaps their attention is accidentally or
intentionally more largely directed to textile factories.
I f we consider, instead o f the several industries, the total number
o f violations from year to year, it is almost as unwarranted to draw
conclusions with regard to the actual degree o f observance o f the law.
From 1905 to 1908, for instance, there appears to have taken- place a
steady and remarkable decline in the number o f infractions o f the
provisions regarding the maximum workday. A decline o f 1,000 or
more per year in the number o f such offenses, if indicative o f the
actual and general state o f affairs, would be a very good sign indeed.
But can the figures be so interpreted ?
202
B U LLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
“ Must we suppose,” the superior commission asks in its report for
1906, “ that the decrease o f a thousand in the number o f violations
o f the provision regarding the length o f the workday for children
* * * is imputable to a better observance o f the law? There is
nothing to justify such a conclusion, especially in view o f the de
cisions o f the court o f appeals (cour de cassation) , which have made
the task o f the inspectors so difficult in this respect. * * * The
decrease must be attributed solely to the work that devolves upon the
inspectors in assuring the application o f laws that are more and more
numerous and difficult to apply, particularly that of July 13, 1906
(on weekly rest), which during the second half o f the past year en
grossed the entire activity o f the service. Given the conditions that
now prevail, the application o f such future laws as Parliament may
intrust to the labor inspectors will only be assured (unless the service
is increased in proportion to the new obligations that are imposed
upon it) by the neglect o f those already enacted.” (a)
But as there was a further notable decrease in 1907 the superior
commission felt called upon to refer in these terms to the subject in
its report concerning that year:
It would be rash to affirm that this considerable diminution in the
number o f detected offenses is due solely to better compliance with
the laws. Although increasing watchfulness and public opinion may
have caused some decrease in the number o f infractions, this cer
tainly can not have been on so large a scale. Nothing sanctions such
a supposition, especially in view o f the increasing difficulties which
the inspectors encounter in detecting the actual facts concerning the
duration o f work. * * * It should be noted, finally, that the laborers
themselves, now more familiar with the details o f the labor laws,
have sometimes refused to carry on work under illegal conditions. (b)
It does not fall within the scope o f the present study to discuss
many difficult problems which have resulted from the provision that
in mixed establishments adult workers must not work longer than
children, i. e., 10 hours a day, particularly the much-mooted question
o f the general effect o f this provision on productivity, and the court
decisions which have made it possible to escape the 10-hour limit by
having the adult laborers work in rooms separated from those in
which children are employed, or even by merely separating the
former from the latter by a partition or a curtain, on one side of
which the workday may legally last 12 hours and on the other side
only 10 hours.
The law o f 1892 did not make the 10-hour maximum workday oblig
atory in all establishments. It provided that in certain industries,
enumerated by subsequent decrees, the inspectors may suspend this
provision temporarily. In thus arranging for exceptions to the
° Rapports sur 1’Application des lois Reglementant le Travail, 1906, p. xli.
&Idem, 1907, p. xlvii.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
203
general principle enunciated by the law, the legislature appears to
have had fish canning primarily in mind, and particularly the sar
dine-canning industry. “ This work,” as M. Waddington explained
to the Chamber o f Deputies, “ begins with the return o f the boats and
continues until the sardines are removed. Whenever there has been
a big catch—which, unfortunately, is not often enough—this process
takes longer than the 10 hours fixed by the law as a maximum work
day for women and children. W e have therefore been obliged, in
order to avoid violations o f the law in this particular case, to permit
a modification o f the maximum limit.” The legislature also had in
mind fruit and vegetable canning, and the perfume distillers o f the
Alpes-Maritimes where the sorting o f the flowers at the time the
orange blossoms, roses, and jessamines are plucked is done by young
women and children, and it is claimed that this work must be done
immediately in order to prevent deterioration. But the law, instead
o f enumerating such apparently imperative exceptions, left them to
be determined by the administrative decrees to which reference was
made in the preceding section o f this study. Neither these decrees
nor the law itself placed any limits upon the extent to which the
workday in these privileged industries might be lengthened by the
divisional inspectors; but ministerial circulars and instructions pro
vide that it must not exceed 12 hours, and that the number o f days
upon which the privilege is exercised must not exceed 60 days in a
year, for most o f the excepted industries, or 90 days for masons,
roofers, brickmakers, and tile makers working in the open air.
The following table shows to what extent the divisional inspectors
granted these exceptional privileges during the years 19Q0 to 1908:
NUM BER
O F W O RK D AYS IN W H IC H A LE G A L E X TE N SIO N OF HOURS W A S
GRAN TED EACH CLA SS OF EM PLOYEES, 1900 TO 1908.
Days for which an extension of the
workday was granted.
Year.
1900
1901
1902
1903
1904
1905
1906
1907
1908
Establish
ments.
For children For females
under 18
over 18
years.
years.
1,912
1,917
3,611
4,451
6,209
6,284
7,053
6,826
6,852
505,656
482,190
841,695
966,600
1,399,388
1,785,222
1,585,052
1,522,502
1,429,747
1,450,311
1,410,484
2,111,943
2,376,340
3,491,651
4,234,293
3,955,377
3,743,393
3,392,165
For adults
under the
law of 1900.
490,699
985,110
2,050,357
2,647,874
3,891,053
4,368,893
4,448,737
4,435,592
3,964,693
To understand these figures it must be borne in mind that the
44total number o f days” is obtained by multiplying the number o f
laborers concerned by the number of days for which an extension o f
the workday was permitted. Thus a permission to have 500 children
work overtime a single day is counted as 500 days in the above totals.
204
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
The industries making the largest use of the privilege o f lengthen
ing the workday beyond 10 hours are practically the same each year*
Hence only the industries and the number o f instances o f workday
extension for 1908 are given, and are as follow s:
Laundries---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1,076
Clothing for women and children________________________________________
801
Open-air brick manufactures___________________________________________
776
Building trades_________________________________________________________
510
Weaving cloth for wearing apparel______________________________________
303
Canning fruit, fish, and vegetables_______________________________________
354
Printing________________________________________________________________
353
Men’s clothing---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------265
Shoemaking____________________________________________________________
232
Hatm aking_____________________________________________________________
217
It is, o f course, natural that many industries not enumerated in the
list o f those for which an extension of the workday may be granted
have made persistent efforts to be included in this list; and it must
be admitted that in many instances the petitioners for this privilege
are able to make out quite as good a case as the industries already in
cluded. It is none the less evident, however, that the legislature in
tended this privilege to be an exceptional one, and that its extension
to a large number o f trades would be tantamount to a partial or
nearly complete abrogation o f the legal provision for a maximum of
10 hours’ work per day.
Indeed, it may well be asked whether children 12 or 13 years o f
age are as a rule capable o f sustaining 10 hours o f work per day with
out serious harm to their development. The French law, to be sure,
provides that the inspectors may require a medical examination to be
made o f any child under 16 years o f age whose physical condition does
not seem to warrant employment at the labor in which such a child
is engaged; and, i f the child be found unfit for such work, the inspec
tor may require that he be dismissed or given such other work as he
may perform without harm. But this provision of the law, as has
been pointed out, is of little or no practical significance. The ques
tion whether children 12 or 13 years old should be allowed to work
10 hours a day as a general rule is therefore an appropriate one, and
has been discussed at some length by the French section o f the Inter
national Association for Labor Legislation. In a report made to the
French section upon this subject, M. Martin Saint-Leon in 1903 had
collected the opinions o f a number o f prominent French physicians
with regard to the physiological effects o f child labor. It may not be
out o f place to quote a few o f the typical answers received.
I do not hesitate to reply that 10 full hours o f work required of a
child 13 or 14 years old is a physiological blunder. These children
need half a ration of work and a double ration o f food. At 14 years
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
205
a child can hardly sustain 8 hours of work, to say nothing o f 10
hours. (°)
It is criminal to condemn a child o f 12 to 15 years o f age to daily
work in a mill or factory. For a boy or a girl all manual labor in
a closed space, prolonged for several hours, presents dangers to his
or her physical health, and must injure bodily development. Chil
dren should not work in closed rooms. They need air and freedom in
their movements and in their play, because play and the muscular
expenditure which it occasions are physiological necessities as indis
pensable to the life of the child as pure air, abundant and varied
food, and prolonged sleep. The child needs its share o f play as well
as its share o f joy. The gloom o f the mill is a source o f death as
surely as hunger. ( 6)
I believe it is in general excessive to require a child 12 or IS
years old to work 10 hours a day. But when it becomes necessary
to state exactly the number o f hours a child o f that age may work
it is apparent that any limit would be arbitrary and impossible for
children o f 12 to 13 years, all o f whom do not possess the same
strength, nor the same powers o f resistance, nor the same degree o f
physical development. Again, the work they are called upon to
perform is riot always the same. In certain industries it requires only
a small amount o f exertion; in others it overtaxes their strength.
Some mills are healthful; others are not.(c)
It seems to me probable that if hygienists and the physicians who
make a specialty o f the physical development o f children had been
consulted the legal duration o f the workday in mills and in more or
less hygienic establishments would have been reduced. It seems to
me that the question should be examined according to industries—
some o f which are more difficult than others, and more or less health
ful— and according to the seasons o f the year. In winter there are
not more than 10 hours o f daylight, and it is truly unfortunate that
children are sequestrated for so long a period. It is true, as I pointed
out in my report to the committee on depopulation, * * * that
at the age o f 10 to 14 years mortality is lowest in all the countries o f
Europe. But this period, during which life seems to be most tena
cious because o f the activity of the nutritive process, is also the period
o f puberty and o f the termination o f the development o f the skeleton
and organs. Hinder this physiological development by means o f
sequestration and premature overwork and you are preparing the
soil, as it were, for the rapid growth o f all morbid germs, and espe
cially for tuberculosis. It seems to me, therefore, indispensable to
lower by several hours a day the amount of industrial labor now
fixed for children, no matter what may be the nature o f the industry
in which they are employed. (d)
A t the age o f 12 years human beings enter upon one o f the most
difficult periods o f life, from the physical and moral points o f view—
the period o f adolescence, which requires several years before its coma Professor Grancher, o f the University of Paris and the Academy o f Medi
cine.
*Dr. Maurice Letulle, a staff physician of the Paris public hospitals.
c Professor Hutinel, o f the University o f Paris, in charge o f the “ Hospice
des Enfants assistSs.”
d Doctor Variot, expert of the committee on depopulation.
56504°—No. 80— 10----- 14
206
B U LLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
plete termination, that is to say, until the age o f 16 to 18 years for
some persons ana later for a larger number. During this whole
period the organism has to bear the cost o f a complex and intense
transformation, and it is doubly imperative to ensure the integrity
o f the several organs and their functions. Hence the necessity o f
living under absolutely normal physical and moral conditions. But
these conditions are neglected in mills and workshops. The environ
ment they provide is essentially harmful in all respects: stuffy air,
surcharged with toxic gases and pathogenous dusts, all influences
which are not easily resisted by organisms in process o f development
and therefore very vulnerable. Need I add the deplorable influence
o f bad examples and enticements which young persons are incapable
o f resisting: the irrational food regime, the frequent and premature
abuse o f alcohol and tobacco, too early sexual indulgence with all its
sad consequences ? How can we dare to ask 10 hours’ work o f crea
tures whose powers o f resistance are already subject to such severe
tests? * * * A t this age one often notes a disturbance o f the
nutritive process characterized by excessive organic wear and tear,
and manifested by demineralization, frequently combined with de
fective utilization o f the nitrogenous elements. This disturbance o f
nutrition demands the avoidance o f fatigue, o f wear and tear, and o f
excitement, that is to say, a regime altogether irreconcilable with the
method o f living o f a child laborer. (a)
Not only is a long workday apt to be injurious in its effects upon
young children, but so also is night work, the injurious consequences
o f which led to the prohibition o f such work even in the laws of 1841
and o f 1874. The law o f 1892 merely maintained this prohibition and
raised the age o f children for which night work was forbidden from
16 to 18 years. ( *6)
But the prohibition o f night work was not absolute, for the law of
1892 permitted the employment o f children as early as 4 a. m. or as
late as 10 p. m.— although night work was defined by the law as that
between 9 p. m. and 5 a. m.—provided that in such cases the work
be divided between two shifts o f laborers, each shift working not
more than 9 hours, and having at least 1 hour for rest. This provi
sion was introduced into the law mainly at the request o f the silkribbon manufacturers o f St. Etienne, and with the hope that it would
result in 9 hours o f work and 1 hour o f rest for each o f the shifts, or
only 10 hours’ sojourn in the factory. But instead o f having the
shifts follow each other and stopping work entirely during the rest
ing period o f each shift, the employers had the shifts work alter
nately for 4 or 5 hours; so that the factory was kept running 18 hours
consecutively, and each shift detained for 13 or 14 hours in order to
work during 9 o f them. Moreover, during the intervals o f rest, cer
tain employers, whose establishments were near each other, exchanged
®Dr. George Bandouin, o f the Hopital St. Louis.
6 The apprenticeship law o f 1851 had forbidden apprentices under 16 years
o f age to be employed at night.
207
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
shifts, and in this wise required double the period o f work contem
plated by the law. Inasmuch as the intentions of the law were thus
entirely unrealized and this system made the efficient enforcement o f
the law well-nigh impossible, the law o f 1900 put an end to devices o f
this sort (except in mines). But the law of 1892 contained three
other provisions concerning the night work o f children (and women)
that were left intact by the law o f 1900. In the first place, certain
industries were authorized by administrative decree to employ children
at night temporarily. A list o f these industries has already been given
(see p. 171). In the second place, it was provided that in establish
ments with continuous fire adult women and male children may be
employed at night in such work as is indispensable, provided they be
given at least 1 day o f rest every week. In the third place, the inspect
ors may authorize for a fixed period the employment o f children at
night in any industry whenever accidents or agencies beyond human
control cause the stoppage o f work (cases o f so-called vis m ajor).
The number o f violations of the general prohibition o f night work
for women and children during the past nine years is shown by the
following statement:
1900 ___________________________ 1,584
1901 ___________________________ 1,349
1902 ___________________________ 1,160
1903 __________________________
823
1904 ___________________________
813
________________________ 1,009
________________________ 1,260
_______________________
509
_______________________
969
1905
1906
1907
1908
W ith regard to the principal industries participating in the above
totals, the following table is compiled from the inspectors’ reports:
V IO L A T IO N S
OF
T H E P R O H IB IT IO N OF N IG H T W O RK FOR
CH ILD REN , 1900 TO 1908, BY IN D U STRIES.
Industry.
Dressmaking........................
Laundries.............................
Confectioneries...................
Crystal and glassware.........
Network ana curtains.........
Brick and tile making.........
Paper mills...........................
Printing................................
Canning fruit, vegetables,
and fish.............................
Food products......................
Metal manufactures............
Sugar......................................
Manufacture of hats............
Shoemaking..........................
Cotton weaving...................
1900.
819
68
2
33
29
15
65
68
61
17
58
1
7
50
1901.
1902.
606
67
35
329
10
721
110
9
91
12
13
18
27
23
2
7
1
4
2
34
34
49 ............
1903.
385
23
88
16
48
9
1
81
1904.
1905.
WOMEN
1906.
21
5
11
3
6
13
87
566
34
1
2
12
42
19
64
640
68
14
50
42
29
45
1
6
11
25
49
7
1
39
6
4
32
97
7
66
1907.
269
88
18
17
6
11
8
(a)
4
3
1
AND
1908.
387
89
(•)
16
12
185
6
40
(«)
6108
6
11
34
8
• Included under Food products.
6 Including Bakeries, Confectioneries, and Canning fruit, vegetables, and fish.
The fluctuations indicated by these tables are altogether too fan
tastical to justify any but the most general conclusions with regard
to the actual number o f violations committed in the industries named.
The same explanation may be offered for these fluctuations as for
208.
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR,
those noted in the tables on page 201 concerning violations of the
provision regarding the maximum workday for women and children.
For instance, the increase in 1905 from 813 to 1,009 infractions o f the
law on this score is said by the superior commission in its report for
1905 to be “ due in a large measure to the exceptional supervision
exercised this year with regard to night work in dressmaking estab
lishments. (a) In 1906, when a further increase was noted, the superior
commission remarked that “ the attention o f the inspectors was
turned particularly to the night work o f women and children.” (b)
With regard to the astounding decline in 1907 the commission refuses
to offer any explanation other than “ accidental circumstances.” ( c)
The increases in 1905 and 1906 are probably due in part to the
improvement in industrial conditions in the north. Says an inspector
at L ille:
The period of prosperity now enjoyed by industry has resulted in a
certain expansion o f night work. In the fifth section almost all the
machine shops have organized night shifts. I f we add the establish
ments classified as having continuous fire, more than half o f the
employees o f this section have to be watched day and night. * * *
The difficulty experienced by employers in finding laborers has even
led children to alter their work books in order to join the night shifts
in mills for spinning carded w ool.(d)
The prohibition o f night work has been found by the inspectors
especially difficult to enforce, and the principal reason for this is fur
nished* by a court decision o f July 12, 1902, part o f which is here
quoted:
Charged with securing the enforcement o f the provisions concerning
work by day and by night, the inspectors have at any time o f the day
or night the right to enter establishments in which work is carried on
by day and night. But it would be an abusive extension o f the scope
o f these provisions to decide that they confer the same right upon
these officials in the case o f establishments in which work is organized
only during the daytime. * * * These establishments are safe
guarded by the constitutional inviolability o f the domicile. * * *
An inspector may during the night claim admission to them whenever
he possesses knowledge that leads him to believe the law is being
violated.
In other words, the inspectors may insist upon admission to any
establishment at night only when there are strong presumptions in
favor o f the belief that night work is being actually performed
therein.
« Rapports sur rApplication des lois R£glementant le Travail, 1905, p. xlv.
6 Idem, 1906, p. xliii.
c Idem, 1907, p. xlix.
<*Idem, p. xlvi.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN EKANCE.
209
Concerning this decision the superior commission remarks, in its
report for 1902:
There can be no doubt that the protective measures adopted in
favor o f women and children by the legislature in 1892 were designed
essentially to limit the duration o f the workday and to forbid as a
rule their employment at night. But these two fundamental pro
visions o f the law are precisely those that the decision o f the court o f
appeals weakens most seriously. The decision in effect prevents the
detection o f the gravest violations o f the law o f 1892 at the very time
that those violations most generally occur. * * * It is as a rule
at the end o f the workday that the illegal prolongation o f labor takes
place, but during part of the year it is night (in the sense o f article
1037 o f the Code o f Criminal Procedure) at the time work ought to
cease. From the special standpoint of the inviolability o f the domi
cile taken by the court, night begins at 6 p. m. during the months o f
October to March, inclusive. Now, it happens frequently that in
industrial establishments the 10J hours o f lafoor permitted by law (a)
are not finished at 6 p. m. The consequence is that the inspector can
not enter a work place in winter after 8 o’clock except during such
time as the working schedule furnished by the employer indicates that
work continues after 6 o’clock. It follows that in most cases of illegal
prolongation o f the workday the inspectors can take no steps to detect
such violations without coming into conflict with the decision o f the
court; and that, apart from certain exceptional cases referred to in the
decision, they must refrain from all investigations at night.
What are the signs sufficient to furnish the necessary “ presump
tion ” that work is being done illegally at night, and to justify the
inspector’s insistence upon admission to the work place ? According
to the decision o f the Court of Nancy, confirmed by the court of
appeals, the signs are “ light, the noise of machinery, or o f the going
and coming o f laborers.”
It is certain that employers who knowingly violate the law easily
succeed in concealing all the outer signs that work is being carried
on. Indeed, they are often able to do this without .taking any meas
ures whatever. In the cities, most work places are concealed by
other buildings and can not be seen from the streets; and a large
number o f operations, especially in small-scale plants, are carried on
noiselessly. * * * The opportunity to escape detection is greatest
in orphanages and the workrooms of charitable and religious insti
tutions, that are usually surrounded by walls designed to prevent
intercourse with the outside. The work that is ordinarily done
therein—sewing, embroidering, etc.— causes no noise and no move
ment on the part o f the workers, who generally eat and sleep in the
institution; so that their coming and going is infrequent, and fur
nishes no clue to the inspectors. The same is true in silk-spinning
establishments in which the hands are lodged by their employers.
It should be noted, moreover, that the prolongation of work during
the night may be altogether exceptional; it may, for example, take
place for a very short time, to finish urgent orders. Under such con
ditions the inspector, deprived of the right to make a night visit
0 Between April 1,1902, and April 1,1904.
were allowed.
After the latter date only 10 hours
210
B U LLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
without having previously discovered sufficient signs that the law is
being violated, is very rarely able to catch laborers in the act o f work
ing ; for he can not learn long enough in advance that the violation is
to be committed. This is especially true in view o f the fact that the
news o f such violations usually reaches him anonymously, and that
anonymous information would not be considered by the courts a suffi
cient sign to justify demanding an entrance into the work place.
In brief, then, the restrictions imposed by the court of appeals upon
the rights o f inspectors to enter work places at night compel these
officials to confine their intervention to quite rare cases, and cover with
a lamentable impunity the very grave infractions o f the essential pro
visions o f the law that were enacted for the protection o f women and
children employed industrially. (a)
Not only is it difficult, then, to enforce this general prohibition of
night work, but there are, so to speak, three loopholes in the prohibi
tion; that is to say, three groups o f exceptions. These exceptions
have already been referred to. (See pp. 154, 171.)
The first and most easily justifiable group consists o f authorizations
for night work issued by the inspectors because o f accidents, or cir
cumstances beyond human control (vis m ajor), that have caused an
interruption o f work. The inspectors appear to have been very care
ful in granting authorizations for cases o f this sort. Only 22 estab
lishments obtained the privilege in 1907, and the number o f children
affected was 3,955; the principal industries concerned were the textile
industries, in which, moreover, all but 67 o f these 3,955 children were
employed.
The principal reason why there are so few establishments enjoy
ing this privilege, it must be admitted, is that comparatively few ask
for i t ; for the simple reason that permission to work at night in no
wise abrogates the provision that the workday must not exceed 10
hours. It follows therefore that the same laborers can not be em
ployed at night as have worked during the d a y; other employees must
be found to take their places, and this is usually so difficult or so
expensive that employers prefer to ask for a prolongation o f the
workday ( if they ask for any privilege at all) rather than permission
to introduce night work for their child laborers.
A second group o f exceptions to the prohibition of night work for
children includes a list o f industries enumerated by administrative
decrees (see p. 171), in which the prohibition o f night work may be
suspended for a fixed period indicated by these decrees. The list
includes about a dozen occupations, and the maximum period for
which the prohibition o f night work may be suspended varies in d if
ferent industries from 30 days to 120. The practical significance o f
this group o f exceptions is shown by the table following.
a Rapports sur 1’Application des lois Reglementant le Travail, 1902, p. lxv ff.
211
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
NUM BER OF E ST A B LISH M E N T S IN C E R TA IN E X C E P T E D IN D U ST R IE S EM PLOY
ING C H ILD R E N AN D P E R M IT T E D TO O PE R A TE A T NIGH T, AND NUMBER OF
C H ILD R E N EM PLOYED, 1900 TO 1908.
Years.
1900.....................................
1901.....................................
1902.....................................
1903.....................................
1904.....................................
Establish Children
under 18
ments.
employed.
87
85
118
135
178
10,727
12,540
9,472
3,471
22,130
Years.
1905..... „............................
1906___..............................
1907...................................
1908....................................
Children
Establish under
18
ments.
employed.
127
108
97
177
6,835
14,509
8,278
18,605
The establishments in this group making most frequent use o f the
privilege to employ children at night are those engaged in canning
fish, fruit, and vegetables; these establishments, moreover, employ
over 90 per cent of the children under 18 years of age indicated in
the above table.
The third and most important group o f exceptions to the prohibi
tion o f night work for children is that which applies to industries
“ with continuous fire.” These are, according to the decree o f July
15,1893, seven in number: Beet distilleries, manufactures o f enameled
metal ware, the extraction o f oils, paper mills, manufacturing and
refining sugar, metallurgical works, and glass works. It should be
noted that the permission to employ children at night in these indus
tries applies only to male children.
The extent to which these seven industries make use o f the privi
lege conferred is shown by the following tables, the first o f which
gives for the past five years the total number o f establishments work
ing at night and the number o f children concerned, and the second
indicates for the year 1907 the participation o f each of the industries:
E ST A B L ISH M E N T S W IT H “ CONTINUOUS F IR E ” PE R M IT T E D TO EM PLOY C H IL
DREN A T N IG H T, AN D NUMBER OF C H ILD R E N EM PLOYED A T N IG H T W ORK,
1904 TO 1908.
Year.
1904
..........
1905....................................
1906....................................
Establish
ments.
Male
children
under 18
employed.
1,726
1,741
1,777
10,619
10,530
11,162
Year.
1907..................................
1908..................................
Establish
ments.
1,766
1,792
Male
children
under 18
employed.
11,688
10,464
212
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
ESTABLISHMENTS W ITH “ CONTINUOUS FIRE ” PERMITTED TO EMPLOY CHIL
DREN A T NIGHT, AND NUMBER OF ADULTS AND OF BOYS EMPLOYED AT
NIGHT WORK, BY INDUSTRIES, 1907.
Industry.
Establish Boys under Adults
18 em
ments.
employed.
ployed.
Beet distilleries.....................................................................................
Enameled metal ware...........................................................................
Extraction of oils.................................................................................
Paper mills.......................................................................................... .
Sugar manufacturing and refining.....................................................
Metallurgical works.............................................. .............................
Glass works.............................................................................................
238
40
365
372
374
226
151
54
201
128
677
271
4,968
5,389
4,328
555
4,037
9,475
32,088
53,679
27,699
Total.............................................................................................
1,766
11,688
131,861
The number o f children employed at night is considerable in only
two o f these industries—in metallurgical works and glass works— and
the proportion o f children under 18 years o f age employed therein
at night is in the first about 10 per cent and in the second about 20
per cent o f the whole number o f laborers thus employed. (a)
So much for the exceptions to the general prohibition of night
work, which, considered as a whole, constitute a noteworthy modifica
tion o f the general rule, inasmuch as in 1907 the total number o f chil
dren working at night by virtue o f these exceptions numbered 23,921
(4.16 per cent) out o f a total of 574,450 children employed indus
trially.
Far more important numerically than the exceptions to the prohi
bition o f night work for children is the group o f industries—num
bering 52( h) — for which the divisional inspector may temporarily
suspend the legal limit o f 10 hours to a workday for women and
children (and for men working in the same places). This list con
fers upon the divisional inspectors a discretionary power which, if
granted too generously, would be equivalent to a partial abroga
tion o f the law. It is therefore o f interest for the purposes o f the
present study to inquire how many children are affected by the exemp
tions granted under this head by the inspectors.
a The prohibition of night work for children does not apply to those working
in underground mines. Although a discussion o f this exception might properly
be given here, it has been deemed advisable to treat this subject in connection
with the general topic o f child labor in mines. See p. 222.
6 These industries are as follow s: Furniture and furniture trimmings; or
thopedic appliances; construction and repair of river boats; outdoor work in
the building trades; industrial manufacture of butter; jew elry; manufacture
of biscuits with fresh butter; laundering; linen for personal wear ( “ linge
fin” ) ; manufacturing and labeling tin cans; fine hosiery; open-air brickworks;
folding and stitching printed matter; embroidery and trimmings for dress
making; cardboard and boxes for toys, candies, visiting cards, and ribbons;
manufacture and trimming of hats o f all materials for men and women; boots
and shoes; glue and gelatine; staining by stencils or by hand; dressmaking for
women and children; tailoring for men; fur wearing apparel; canning and
preserving fruit, candies, vegetables, and fish; outdoor rope w orks; manufacture
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
213
The number o f establishments concerned, and o f days for which a
prolongation o f the workday was allowed for the children affected,
has been shown in the table given on page 203.
Children under 18 years o f age furnish annually a total of about
150 million days o f industrial labor. Hence the average number o f
days on which they worked overtime in 1908 was about one onehundredth o f the total number of days worked, or approximately
three days in the year per child laborer.
The law o f 1892, it will be remembered, provided that children
under 18 years o f age (and women) employed in industrial estab
lishments must not work more than 6 days per week or on legal
holidays. This provision was subsequently modified in two impor
tant respects by the law o f July 13, 1906, concerning Sunday rest.
In the first place, it provided that the day o f weekly rest be Sunday,
except when otherwise provided by law. In the second place, it ex
tended the requirement o f one day’s rest per week to commercial
as well as industrial establishments. This extension o f the scope of
the law involved an addition o f 19,834 establishments in 1906, o f
322 more in 1907, and 261 more in 1908. In other words, 20,417
establishments not previously affected by any of the labor laws were
in 1908 subject to inspection by virtue of the law o f 1906. But a
large proportion o f these establishments are small shops and stores,
employing very few children under 18 years of age. In fact, the
number o f children brought for the first time within the scope o f the
labor laws in 1906 was only 869 and in 1907 only 498, an almost
insignificant fraction of the total o f 588,575 subject in 1907 to inspec
tion. It must not be supposed, however, that the Sunday law affected
only this small number o f children; a very large number o f them
were previously included among those subject to inspection by virtue
of one or more o f the laws or decrees previously enacted. For this
large number o f children the Sunday law simply meant a modifica
tion or extension o f the protection already provided.
of corsets; funeral decorations; shearing and cleaning w ool; gilding furniture;
gilding picture frames; industrial establishments executing orders for the
Government in the interest o f national defense, upon the express statement of
the minister concerned to the effect that exemption from the law is necessary;
spinning and doubling craped, napped, twisted, and variegated yarn; weaving
stuff for dress goods; network, laces, and silk bands; extracting the perfume o f
flowers; flowers and feathers; industrial manufacture o f cheese; sheath w orks;
printing, bleaching, and dyeing wool, cotton, and silk yarn for dress goods;
printing, typography, lithography; copper-plate printing; toys and “ articles o f
P aris; ” the treatment o f milk for industrial purposes; goldsmithing; manu
facture of paper envelopes; cardboard, blank books, account books, and other
paper objects; wall paper; perfumery; porcelain decorating; bookbinding;
making and repairing sails for sea-fishing boats; urgent repair o f ships and
machines for producing motive power; reeling silk for dress goods; dyeing,
finishing, bleaching, printing, embossing, and watering cloths.
214
B U LLETIN OF T H E BUREAU OF LABOR.
How well are the provisions concerning the weekly day o f rest
observed ? In partial answer to this question the number o f detected
violations is given in the following table:
V IO LA TIO N S
OF L A W
PR O V ID IN G A W E E K L Y
CH ILDREN .
Year.
Violations.
1900...........................................................
1901...........................................................
1902...........................................................
1903...........................................................
1904...........................................................
1,968
1,379
o2,175
3,034
2,790
R E S T D A Y FOR WOMEN AND
Year.
Violations.
1905........................................................
1906........................................................
1907........................................................
1908........................................................
2,746
8,191
10,918
8,262
° Including violations of the prohibition of work on legal holidays.
The law o f 1900 did not modify the provision o f 1892 forbidding
children and women to work on legal holidays. The violations o f
this rule since 1900 have numbered as follow s:
V IO LA TIO N S
OF
LAW
P R O H IB IT IN G W O R K BY WOMEN AND
PU B LIC H OLIDAYS.
Year.
1900 .........................................................
1901...........................................................
1902...........................................................
1903...........................................................
1904...........................................................
Violations.
952
724
o2,175
380
228
C H ILD R E N ON
Year.
Violations.
1905........................................................
1906........................................................
1907........................................................
1908........................................................
a Including violations of the provisison for a weekly day of rest.
offenses are not distinguished in the report for 1902.
765
1,350
956
823
The two groups of
The reports o f the inspectors furnish no means of ascertaining how
many children are concerned in these infractions of the law concern
ing weekly rest and the cessation o f work on legal holidays.
The industries guilty o f the most frequent infractions o f these pro
visions o f the law in 1907 were as follows:
V IO LA TIO N S IN 1907, B Y P R IN C IP A L OFFEN DING IN D U STRIES.
Nature of business.
Minor commercial establishments___
Tf^sportiitinii______«_.... .....................
Dressmaking...........................................
Bakeries..................................................
Food products.........................................
Barbers..................................................
Violations.
1,196
1,016
710
697
536
440
Nature of business.
Department stores.................................
Restaurants and hotels........................
Machine shops......................................
Masons...................................................
Gas works..............................................
Metallurgy............................................
Violations.
407
366
348
300
281
267
The law o f 1906 has not been easy to enforce, in spite o f its pro
visions for various modifications o f the general principle o f Sunday
rest. Its enforcement is most easily assured in the case o f establish
ments in which all employees are given their day o f rest simultane
ously. But not all establishments are required to do this, nor would
it be possible in certain occupations (such as transportation). Hence
215
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
the law provides that in certain enumerated trades and certain speci
fied operations (a) the day o f rest need not be Sunday nor need it be
the same day for all employees.
When the day o f rest is not the same for all employees the law is
hardest to enforce. The difficulties are well described by the divi
sional inspector o f Limoges in his report for 1907:
Alternation in the day o f rest may be carried out in two ways.
Either the day o f rest is the same for a given group o f laborers, or
the day o f rest for each laborer may vary from week to week. The
first method easily admits o f supervision, but the second is almost
impossible for us to supervise and is perhaps employed for that very
reason. I f the laborer is in collusion with his employer, it is impos
sible for the inspector to ascertain whether the day o f rest has actu
ally been accorded. There is, o f course, a register which is supposed
to indicate the precise days o f rest for every employee, but for a
shrewd employer this is no obstacle. ( 6)
Employer and employee simply agree to state that the day o f rest
for the current week has already been granted i f the inspector comes
at the end o f the week.
The numerical importance o f the exceptions permitted to the Sun
day law is indicated by the following table, which shows the number
o f establishments concerned and the total number o f times that the
weekly day o f rest was suspended in the cases o f children:
NUMBER OF T IM E S LE G A L R EQ U IREM EN T OF W E E K L Y D A Y OF R E ST FOR
WOMEN AN D CH ILDREN W A S SUSPENDED, 1900 TO 1906. («)
Year.
Estab
lishments
con
cerned.
Number of
times day of
rest was sus
pended for
children un
der 18.
1,309
1,491
2,091
2,525
40,229
36,766
37,969
38,910
1900................................
1901.................................
1902................................
1903................................
Year.
1904...............................
1905...............................
1906...............................
Estab
lishments
con
cerned.
2,944
3,248
3,373
Number of
times day of
rest was sus
pended for
children un
der 18.
38,143
51,125
41,956
"T h e reports for 1907 and 1908 do not distinguish between women and children
affected by the suppression of the weekly day of rest.
Before the law o f 1906 was passed there .was no limit to the num
ber of times that the weekly day o f rest might be suspended, and in
some years this was permitted in certain industries 39 times and in
others as often as 45 times. But the law o f 1906 fixed the maximum
"T h e enumerated trades include: Transportation; the manufacture o f food
products for daily use; hotels, restaurants, and taverns; tobacco stores; sale
o f natural flowers; hospitals and pharmacies; bathing establishments; news
papers, theatrical performances, museums, and expositions; renting books,
chairs, and vehicles; distribution o f light, water, and motive power; industries
employing material subject to rapid deterioration, and those in which the inter
ruption of work would involve the loss or depreciation o f the product in course
o f manufacture. The enumerated processes in other trades which may be
executed on Sundays number approximately 150.
6 Rapports sur 1’Application des lois RSglementant le Travail, 1907, p. lxxxix.
216
BU LLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
at 15 times. The trades and industries that now most frequently
ask and receive permission to suspend the weekly day o f rest are
printing offices, dressmaking establishments, laundries, hat makers,
and shoemakers.
In the preceding section o f this study, devoted to a summary o f
the child labor legislation now in force, reference was made (1) to
the laws and decrees concerning hygiene and safety, and (2) to the
provisions concerning the employment o f children in theaters and
“ wandering trades.”
Under the first heading there are not only numerous general pro
visions which redound to the benefit o f children as well as o f adult
laborers, but also special measures with regard to the work that' may
be required o f women and children. (See p. 165.) Among the gen
eral provisions in behalf o f all laborers alike are those concerning
safety appliances, employers’ liability, workmen’s insurance, clean
liness and decency in the work places, and the requirement that if
the employer provides lodging for his laborers they must have a
certain amount o f room and separate beds.
Under the second heading there are the provisions o f the law o f
1892 concerning theatrical performances and music halls, and the
law o f December 7, 1874 (modified by the law o f April 19, 1897),
regarding so-called “ wandering trades.” (See p. 173.)
The work o f the law o f 1892 would have been incomplete if, after
having enacted measures intended to prevent the overwork o f women
and children employed industrially, it had neglected to safeguard
their health and protect them against the accidents to which they are
exposed even more largely than adult male laborers. Hence the
provisions concerning hygiene and safety contained in articles 12 to
16 o f the law o f 1892, supplemented by decrees and industrial ordi
nances. These provisions were not rigorously enforced until 1900.
At all events, before that time the employers found violating these
provisions were first warned and given a certain period within which
to conform to the law. But in 1900 the practice o f warning offenders
(mise eh demeure) was abandoned, for it permitted employers to
continue violating the law until a specified date, and i f an accident
occurred meanwhile, the inspectors shared the responsibility— at least
morally— with the employer. The practice o f preliminary warning,
however, is sanctioned with regaad to infractions o f the law o f July
12, 1893, and the decree o f 1894; but these measures apply to laborers
generally, and not, like the law o f 1892, only to women and children.
The existing provisions that apply particularly to the labor o f
women and children have already been summarized. (See p. 163 ff.)
The decree o f May 13, 1893, enumerates, in the first place, the
kinds o f work that are forbidden women and children because o f the
dangers they present, or because they require too much strength, or
because they are morally injurious; in the second place, it determines
217
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE,
the conditions under which women and children may be employed in
places where the laborers are exposed to accidents or to influences
apt to injure their health. In 1908 there were 655 and in 1907
968 violations o f these provisions, consisting in 1907 o f the following
items:
Violations.
Inspecting and oiling machinery while in motion--------------------------------Absence o f safety appliances__________________________________________
Operating pedal machines_____________________________________________
Children under 16 working “ vertical wheels ” ________________________
Children under 16 operating so-called “ hand ” looms__________________
Children under 16 working at circular saws___________________________
Children under 16 working at cutting machinery______________________
Children under 16 employed at steam engines_________________________
Children under 16 working on hanging scaffolds_______________________
Children carrying too heavy burdens--------------------------------------------------Children under 16 at sewing machines________________________________
Manufacture o f objects apt to offend the sense o f decency___ __________
Engaged in work forbidden women and children_______________________
Engaged in work forbidden children under 18-------------------------------------Violating the conditions under which children and women may engage
in certain operations------------------------------------------------------------------------
22
428
2
4
19
19
9
1
1
139
7
196
4
3
118
The manifest object o f most o f the provisions violated is to offset
the greater risk to which industrial employment exposes children.
Adult laborers usually realize the risks o f their trade more fully than
children, and are more apt to be cautious. But in spite o f the legal
measures designed to furnish special protection for child laborers
there are still a number o f industries in which the children furnish
more than a proportionate quota o f the victims o f accidents, as the
following table for 1907 shows:
NUMBER OF BOYS, GIRLS, AND ADULTS INJURED BY INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENTS
AND PER CENT OF TOTAL EMPLOYED, BY INDUSTRIES, 1907.
Boys under 13. Girls under 18. Females over 18. Males over 18.
Industry.
Per
Per
Per
Per
cent of
cent of
cent of
cent of
In
total
In
total
In
total
total
In
jured. number jured. number jured. number jured. number
em
em
em
em
ployed.
ployed.
ployed.
ployed.
Metallurgy.......................................... 2,991
Work in common metals................. 10,564
524
Chemical industries................. .
622
Manufactures of paper and rubber.
Work in stone ana clay..................... 2,159
Digging and stone masonry.............. 1,440
Textile industries............................... 3,139
Work in fine metals...........................
163
1,597
Wood manufactures.........................
Book printing and binding............
779
Various commercial establishments 1,409
506
Leather manufactures......................
1,093
Foodstuffs..........................................
39
Straw and feather manufactures . . .
868
Other industries................................
Total..........................................
27,893
34.4
17.0
14.7
11.2
9.9
8.1
6.8
5.8
5.3
5.6
4.3
4.0
4.4
3.8
.3
7
563
149
175
311
3
1,796
16
136
88
115
119
264
41
375
5.4
7.9
5.0
2.1
5.2
9.4
2.2
.9
2.8
1.8
.6
1.8
1.9
.7
.1
58
1,391
900
535
467
22
4,136
31
455
205
981
333
1,343
73
1,379
8.9
4,158
1.5
12,308
6.7
6.4
4.1
2.0
2.6
23.9
1.6
.7
2.5
1.2
1.0
1.4
2.5
.9
.2
28,119
66,291
16,204
5,245
11,177
42,440
14,448
399
20,681
1,961
25,489
8,871
16,615
171
62,277
29.7
15.8
18.2
12.1
9.6
15.4
5.5
3.5
8.4
3.8
8.6
4.3
6.8
3.6
2.4
1.5 315,388
12.3
218
BULLETIN OP T H E BUREAU OP LABOR.
According to these figures boys employed in metallurgical estab
lishments are one-sixth more likely to be injured by accidents than
adult males. A t work in common metals the accidents to boys com
pared with accidents to men are in a ratio o f about 17 to 16; in tex
tiles the ratio is 68 to 55; in fine metals, 58 to 35; and in bookmaking,
56 to 38. The average for all occupations, however, indicates that
adult males are more subject to injury by accidents than any other
group in the above table.
In terminating this section it is necessary to refer to the enforce
ment o f the provisions concerning children employed in theaters
and in the so-called “ wandering trades.”
Concerning the employment o f children in theaters and similar
establishments, the law o f 1892 provided that “ children under 13
years o f age shall not be employed as actors, supernumeraries, etc.,
in public performances given in theaters and music h&lls.” But this
rule was not absolute, because “ the minister o f public instruction and
the fine arts may authorize, by way o f exception, the employment o f
one or more children in the performance o f specified plays at Paris,”
and in the Departments the same authorization may be granted by the
departmental prefects. A t the time these provisions were discussed
in the Chamber o f Deputies M. Paulin-Mery declared that this excep
tion amounted to the actual abrogation o f the rule itself. “ Do you
think,” he asked, “ that children who have passsed a large part o f
the night at the theater will go to school the next day ? ” And when
the law was passed a ministerial letter to the prefects declared, “ The
part you are asked to take in carrying out the law is considerable,
and I count upon your cooperation in assuring the success of these
measures enacted by Parliament in the interest of hygiene and
morality.”
Every year since 1893 the inspectors report the number o f permits
granted under these provisions. The figures given, however, do not
indicate the exact number o f children affected, inasmuch as the same
child may be concerned in several permits. But they are none the
less interesting. In 1893, 66 permits were granted concerning 331
children. In 1894, 87 permits were granted concerning 285 children;
and in the reports for 1894 the superior council remarks that permits
are very rarely refused, and their granting is a mere formality.
In 1895, when 87 permits were granted for 558 children, some o f
the inspectors protested against this practical nullification o f the law ;
and the inspector o f the first circuit, after giving a list o f the permits,
the plays, and the number o f children concerned, adds:
This list will certainly produce an unpleasant impression. Is it
not sad that little boys and girls 4 to 6 years old appear upon the
stage? What are the artistic or literary considerations which make
it necessary to exhibit these little creatures on the platform o f a
music hall or even on the boards o f the large theaters? One fails to
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
219
see, for instance, what a play like Rip Van Winkle would lose in the
eyes o f the public if the three little girls aged 4, 5, and 6 years, who
figured with a dozen others slightly older, had been replaced by
children not quite so young—to say nothing o f the little boy 5 years
old playing a part in a play given in a music hall.
In the second circuit the inspector reports the employment o f two
boys between 6 and 7 years old to imitate the “ fin-de-siecle ” songs
given at one o f the most notorious Paris music halls, and of two other
children employed to dance under circumstances “ in flagrant viola
tion o f health, morality, and public decency.”
In 1896 the number o f permits rose to 144 and the children con
cerned to 641. One inspector writes in his report for this year:
Last year I spoke o f a boy 5 years old performing in a music hall.
This year I find something still worse—the Theatre du Gymnase was
authorized to employ a little girl 3 years old in Zola’s play Au
Bonheur des Dames.
Such occurrences appear to have evoked unfavorable comment;
for on November 7, 1896, the minister o f commerce informed the
divisional inspectors that on account o f abuses which had been called
to his attention the minister o f public instruction and the fine arts
had decided no longer to authorize children to sing in music halls;
and under date o f January 25, 1897, the latter official in a circular
letter to the departmental prefects wrote as follow s:
The permits given for children under 13 years o f age to play in
theaters and music halls have, in general, been much too numerous.
In order as far as possible to avoid these exhibitions, that are often
unnecessary and always regrettable, you are requested to restrict the
number o f permissions and to grant them only for parts which in
your judgment it is absolutely necessary to confide to very young
children. (a)
Commendable as this letter undoubtedly was, it unfortunately did
not have the anticipated effect, for in 1896 there were 144 permits
granted for 641 children under 13 years of age; in 1897, 166 permits
for 775 children; and in 1898,160 permits for 902 children.
Again the inspectors and the superior commission protested. “ The
employment in theaters o f children who are not more than 5 or 6
years old constitutes an abuse that must be stopped,” the commission
declared in 1899, and in 1900 the inspectors were unanimous in recog
nizing that the ministerial letter o f January 25, 1897, had been
almost entirely ignored. During 1900, in Paris alone, 132 children
under 13 years o f age appeared on the stage as actors or supernu
meraries. Among these was a girl 3 years old, another 3| years old, 2
boys 5 years old, and 12 boys between 6 and 6| years old. In the
eighth circuit a boy 8 years old was authorized to appear as an
acrobat in a music hall.
a Bulletin de lTnspection du Travail, 1897, p. 3.
220
BU LLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
“ The exception,” says the superior commission, “ has become the
rule. The permit is hardly more than an administrative formality,
always given as soon as asked, whereas it should be refused every
time the presence of children under 13 years o f age is not indis
pensable.5^®)
Not only are these permits obtained with deplorable facility, but
they are sometimes granted illegally. In 1900 one prefect gave a
theatrical director permission to employ children under 13 years o f
age “ whenever it might be necessary.” ( **) Sometimes it is not the
prefect himself who attends to the matter, but “ prefectorial agents
or clerks who issue permits after the children have actually appeared
on the stage. Thus two cases were noted, one in a music hall at
Orleans, where 4 girls, aged 15,10, 8, and 6 years, sang questionable
songs accompanied by appropriate gestures. No permit had been
obtained, and a complaint was filed. But the next day the permit
was granted without any investigation, and the prefect, consulted by
the inspector, declared that he did not bother with these permits
himself.” ( c)
The following table indicates the number o f permits granted since
1898:
NUMBER OF PERMITS GRANTED TO CHILDREN UNDER 13 YEARS OF AGE TO
APPEAR IN THEATRICALS AND NUMBER OF CHILDREN CONCERNED, 1899
TO 1908.
Year.
1899.....................................
190ft............ : .....................
1901.....................................
1902.....................................
1908....................................
Permits
granted.
144
121
137
190
188
Children
concerned.
800
646
712
909
888
Year.
1904...,...............................
1905.....................................
1906.....................................
1907.....................................
1908.....................................
Permits
granted.
Children
concerned.
156
170
141
114
118
626
807
694
420
600
The reiteration in 1904 of the circular o f 1897 may be in part
responsible for the decrease noted since 1905. But every year there
are cases o f employment o f exceedingly young children. In 1907 the
inspector at Troyes reported that a little girl 5 years old was per
mitted to sing obscene songs on the stage o f a music hall under her
father’s direction. (d)
In view o f the facility with which such permissions continue as a
rule to be granted, it is not surprising that the violations o f the rule
requiring a permit to employ children under 13 years o f age are not
numerous. Their number since 1900 has been as follows in table on
page 221.
« Rapports sur l’Application des lois Reglementant le Travail, 1900, p. cvi.
6 Bulletin de lTnspection du Travail, 1910, p. 19.
Rapports sur 1’Application des lois Reglementant le Travail, 1900, p. 86.
* Idem, 1907, p. cii.
221
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
NUMBER
OF VIOLATIONS OF THE LAW REQUIRING PERMITS TO
CHILDREN UNDER 13 YEARS OF AGE, 1900 TO 1908.
Year.
1900..............................................................
1901..............................................................
1902..............................................................
1903..............................................................
1904..............................................................
Viola
tions.
14
3
22
3
10
EMPLOY
Year.
Viola
tions.
1905............................................................
1906............................................................
1907.............................................................
1908.............................................................
23 .
13
6-
10
Similar in many respects to the moral and physical consequences,
apt to result from the employment o f children in theaters and* music
halls are those o f the so-called “ wandering trades,” regulated by the
law o f December 7, 1874 (see p. 173), modified by that o f April 19,
1897. In France, as in most countries, there are nomads who make
it a business to exploit the curiosity o f the populace by means o f
perilous feats, the exhibition o f trained animals, street parades, and
harangues o f questionable taste and even more questionable truth
fulness. To the same general group o f occupations may be added
vendors o f patent medicines, who hold forth at the street corners*
Those who engage in these occupations wander from town to town
and are often accompanied by children whom they employ in their
business, which in default o f a better general designation, the law o f
1874 calls “ professions ambulantes.”
As has already been pointed out, this law forbids children under lfi
years o f age to be thus employed except by their own parents, in which
case the age limit is 12 years instead of 16. The punishment for vio
lating the law is imprisonment for 6 months to 2 years and a fine o f
16 to 200 francs ($3.09 to $38.60).
The enforcement o f the law is intrusted to the labor inspectors,
although the ordinary police authorities, who are also supposed to
see that it is not violated, are in a much better position to secure its
observance. As a matter o f fact, the inspectors report few violations
o f the rule prohibiting the employment o f children under 16 in peril
ous acrobatic performances. In 1900 and 1901 they reported none;
in 1902, 7; in 1903, 2; in 1904, 8; in 1905, 3; in 1906, 3; in 1907, 1;
in 1908, 4.
The small number o f these offenses reported by the inspectors, how
ever, is by no means due to their infrequency, but to the fact that the
inspectors have altogether too much else to do. They are themselves
the first to admit the present inefficiency, or rather insufficiency, of the
inspectors to enforce this law. As the divisional inspector at Bor
deaux in 1905 frankly declared—
As for the law o f December 7,1874, the activity o f the service con
tinues to amount to zero.(°)
a Rapports sur TApplication des lois Reglementant le Travail, 1905, p. Ixx.
56504°—No. 89—10----- 15
222
BULLETIN OF T H E BUREAU OF LABOR.
ENFORCEMENT OF THE CHILD-LABOR LAWS IN MINES.
It has already been pointed out that the law o f 1892 contains sev
eral provisions regarding the employment o f women and children at
underground work in mines; that for overground work in mines the
general provisions o f the law o f 1892 apply; that the law o f June
29, 1905, reduced to 8 hours the maximum workday o f laborers en
gaged in the actual work o f mining; that a decree o f May 8, 1893,
fixed the conditions under which children may be employed in mines
and the kinds o f work in which they may engage; and that the en
forcement o f the labor laws in mines, quarries, and establishments
connection therewith is not intrusted to the labor inspectors, but to
mining engineers and controllers.
In 1908 the 175 mining engineers and controllers, assisted by ap
proximately 500 delegates (see p. 179) had charge o f the supervision
o f 39,279 enterprises and 359,408 laborers.
During the past nine years the laborers in mines and quarries have
numbered as follow s:
NUMBER OF WOMEN AND CHILDREN AND OF MALES OVER 18 YEARS OF AGE
EMPLOYED IN MINES AND QUARRIES AND PER CENT OF WOMEN AND CHIL
DREN OF TOTAL EMPLOYEES, 1900 TO 1908.
Women Males over
and
18 years
children.
of age.
Year.
1900.....................................................................................
1901.....................................................................................
1902.....................................................................................
1903....................................................................................
1904....................................................................................
1905.....................................................................................
1906.....................................................................................
1907.....................................................................................
1908.....................................................................................
35,500
35,034
34,374
34,085
34,823
35,461
36,903
39,008
40,805
Total.
278,684
285,239
287,683
293,133
295,027
295,335
302,268
310,841
318,603
314,184
320,272
322,057
327,218
329,850
330,796
339,171
349,849
359,408
Per cent
of women
and chil
dren of
total.
11.20
10.90
10.65
10.41
10.55
10.72
10.88
11.17
11.35
Considering more particularly the children the following changes
have taken place from year to year since 1900.
NUMBER OF BOYS AND GIRLS IN EACH SPECIFIED AGE GROUP AT WORK IN
MINES, 1900 TO 1908.
Number of children employed.
12 years of age.
Boys.
1900.
1901.
1902.
1903.
1904.
1905.
1906.
1907.
1908J
75
75
56
86
118
184
160
170
165
13 to 16 years of age.
Girls.
Boys.
1
1
12
10
2
3
1
6
10,774
10,496
10,315
10,462
10,813
11,426
12,232
12,964
13,282
Girls.
1,633
1,550
1,568
1,621
1,558
1,805
1,815
2,129
2,565
16 to 18 years of age.
Boys.
10,497
10,174
9,663
9,306
9,851
9,376
10,030
10,925
11,544
Girls.
1,183
1,088
1,117
1,217
1,252
1,266
1,365
1,615
1,778
223
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
The law makes an important distinction between underground and
overground work in mines, and only male children may be employed
in the former. Neither girls nor women may work underground.
The following table shows the number o f boys employed underground
in three different age groups.
TOTAL MALES UNDER 18 YEARS OF AGE WORKING UNDERGROUND IN MINES
AND NUMBER IN EACH AGE GROUP, 1900 TO 1908.
Males under 18 years of age employed
underground in mines.
Year.
12 years of 13 to 16
16 to 18
age.
years ofage. years ofage.
1900.....................................................................................
1901.....................................................................................
1902........................................................... ........................
1903....................................................................................
1904.....................................................................................
1905.....................................................................................
1906....................................................................................
1907....................................................................................
1908.....................................................................................
19
18
16
18
28
47
31
30
41
6,158
6,320
6,331
6,819
6,813
7,518
7,838
8,543
8,901
7,287
7,368
7,220
7,320
7,437
7,360
7,910
8,549
9,111
Total.
13,464
13,706
13,567
14,157
14,278
14,925
15,779
17,122
18,053
It is apparent from these tables that few children under 13 years
old are employed in mines or quarries, and that about half the total
number o f children employed are between 13 and 16 years o f age. As
for the medical certificate required o f children under 13, it may be
said that this provision is as illusory for mines as for factories, and
has here, too, become a mere formality.
For boys under 16 years o f age working underground, the work
day must not exceed 8 hours o f actual work in every 24. The time
necessary for ascent from and descent into the mine is not included
in the hours o f work, nor the time consumed in going to and from the
mine, nor the pauses for rest. For boys between 16 and 18 years o f
age the workdays must not exceed 10 hours each, nor 54 hours per
week. The periods of rest must amount to not less than 1 hour per
day, but they need not be simultaneous for all laborers. (a) Nor need
the times for rest be posted. The decree o f May 3, 1893, enumerates
certain kinds o f mining work in which children may not be em
ployed at all and others in which they may not be employed con
tinuously for more than half a workday, i. e., 4 hours. “ Children
and young laborers,” it is stated, “ may be employed to sort the min
eral and load it on wagons, to propel the wagons, to watch and take
charge o f ventilating doors, to take charge o f hand ventilators, and
to perform other auxiliary tasks, provided they do not exceed the
strength o f the children thus employed. They must not have charge
o f hand ventilators more than half a workday, interrupted by at least
half an hour for rest.” In order to make apprenticeship possible, it
a Rest periods for all workers at the same time is considered impossible in
mining.
224
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
is permitted to employ boys over 16 years o f age in the work of mining
proper, but not for a longer period than 5 hours per day.
Night work underground, which is permitted by way o f exception,
is, as a matter o f fact, very uncommon at the present time. In 1907
no permission for such work was granted; and in 1908 but once, on
account o f broken machinery. Most o f the provisions o f the law of
1892 regarding workbooks, registers o f children employed, etc., are
better observed in the larger and permanent mines and quarries than
in those that are small and temporary.
The number o f reported cases in which the laws were violated, since
1900, and the outcome o f these cases has been as follow s:
NUMBER AND DISPOSITION OF CASES OF VIOLATION OF THE LAW RELATING
TO EMPLOYMENT IN MINES AND QUARRIES, 1900 TO 1908.
Year.
1900
...................
1901......................
1902......................
1903 .....................
1904 .........................
1905
.....................
1906 ....................
1907......................
1908......................
Number of Acquittals.
cases.
«23
13
9
7
8
8
5
11
17
1
l
1
1
1
Not termi Dismissed Dismissed
nated at
by the
by the
Total fines.
end of year. inspectors.
courts.
Found
guilty.
16
1
2
2
6
7
7
5
3
7
12
1
6
3
2
2
2
2
3
1
1
861.95
2.90
14.09
73.34
11.19
11.19
58.29
12.35
45.55
° Including 5, disposition of which was not reported.
The fluctuations in the total amount o f fines imposed in these nine
years is in part due to differences in the total number o f “ infrac
tions,” which, as has been already explained, need not correspond to
the number o f “ cases.” One case may involve but a single infrac
tion and a small total fine, while another may involve a considerable
number o f infractions, each o f which is fined no more heavily than in
the case o f a single infraction, but the total amount o f which may be
much greater. As a matter o f fact there were 398 infractions in
1901, 15 in 1902, 72 in 1903, 16 in 1904, 15 in 1905, 50 in 1906. 22 in
1907, and 26 in 1908.
THE COURTS AND THE LABOR LAWS.
Without entering into any problems o f criminal jurisprudence, it is
evident that one o f the purposes o f the fines and penalties imposed
for the violation o f laws is to act as a deterrent. The question
whether the penalties imposed for violating the child labor laws are
apt to have this effect is therefore an appropriate one. It is evident,
moreover, that next in importance to the vigilance o f the inspectors
in detecting violations o f the law comes the intelligence and severity
o f the courts in punishing such violations. The first o f these fac
tors has already been discussed in the light o f official and statistical
records, from which it is probably warranted to deduce the conclusion
225
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
that in view o f the numerous tasks that devolve upon them, and the
grave difficulties that beset them, the labor inspectors are as a whole
a conscientious and efficient body o f officials. W e come now to con
sider the second factor.
In connection with the discussion o f each o f the main provisions o f
the laws concerning the labor o f children the number o f violations
detected from year to year has been given. It has been deemed more
important to give the number o f violations ( contraventions) than the
number o f complaints (proces verbaux), for one complaint may in
volve a single violation or it may involve a score o f them. It has
already been pointed out that the fines imposed for infractions o f
the law have reference not to complaints filed, but to the number of
violations, i. e., the number o f persons found working under condi
tions contrary to the law.
A t the end o f each year the inspectors report the results o f the
cases tried by the courts, stating how many terminated in acquittal,
how many in the condemnation o f the offender, and upon how many
no action was taken by the courts.
Considering all the “ cases” brought to the attention o f the tri
bunals during the past eleven years, we find the following results:
NUMBER AND DISPOSITION OF CASES OF VIOLATION OF THE LAWS RELATING
TO CHILD LABOR, 1898 TO 1908.
Year.
1898......................
1899......................
1900......................
1901......................
1902......................
1903......................
1904......................
1905......................
1906......................
1907......................
1908......................
Total cases. Violations.
1,352
1,837
2,776
2,836
2,478
2,980
3,233
3,835
5,443
6,237
5,394
6,033
11,607
25,418
20,829
16,466
22,699
21,095
25,599
28,634
28,953
24,320
Found
guilty.
1,119
1,584
2,246
2,525
2,248
2,751
2,899
3,303
4,402
5,343
4,536
Not termi
nated at
Acquitted. the
end of
the year.
21
44
101
109
54
61
90
79
161
117
93
105
123
40
102
111
75
150
263
278
289
485
Dismissed
by the in
spectors.
57
19
6
20
32
32
33
34
165
58
40
Dismissed
by the
comts.
50
67
383
80
33
61
61
156
437
430
240
The proportion o f acquittals has fluctuated during these years as
follow s: 1898, 1.55 per cent; 1899, 2.39 per cent; 1900, 3.64 per cent;
1901, 3.84 per cent; 1902, 2.18 per cent; 1903, 2.05 per cent; 1904,
2.78 per cent; 1905, 2.06 per cent; 1906, 2.96 per cent; 1907, 1.88 per
cent; 1908, 1.72 per cent.
The increase in the number o f cases is attributed by the superior
commission on labor mainly to the better application of the laws by
the inspectors (which is in turn attributable to increases in the num
ber o f inspectors) and the increasingly active collaboration o f labor
organizations in the enforcement o f the law. The considerable in
crease in 1900 and 1901 is largely due to instructions issued in 1900.
Previous instructions under date o f October 20, 1897, had ordered
226
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
the inspectors not to file complaints o f infractions o f articles 12, 13,
and 14 (concerning unhygienic and dangerous occupations and work
places) o f the law o f 1892, without first warning the parties and
giving them time to conform to the law. The minister canceled these
instructions o f 1897, and required the inspectors to file a complaint,
without previous warning, for every violation of the law o f 1892,
including articles 12, 13, and 14, as well as those relative to the age
o f admission, the hours o f work, and night w ork.(ff)
It must not be supposed that the acquittals indicated in the above
table necessarily terminate the cases in which the defendants are
acquitted. Frequently the inspectors take the case to a higher
tribunal, and sometimes obtain a reversal o f the original decision.
A few years ago it was sometimes difficult to secure an appeal, because
the inspectors were informed o f the court’s decision after the maxi
mum period allowed for an appeal to the higher court had expired.
Since 1900, however, magistrates are required to report decisions
immediately to the divisional inspectors. ( *6) Some o f the acquittals
are roundly called illegal by the superior commission. ( c) Thus, for
instance, the police courts sometimes undertake to pass upon repeated
violations o f the law, over which only the lower criminal courts
(tribunaux correctionnels) possess jurisdiction. A t times acquittals
are due to incomplete data furnished by the inspectors in their com
plaints. In its report for 1902 the superior commission says upon
this point:
A large number o f decisions acquitting employers during the past
few years may be attributed exclusively to the imperfect legal form
o f complaints, or at least to their excessive brevity. A ministerial
circular o f February 15 henceforward requires the inspectors to indi
cate exactly the facts which enable them to conclude that the estab
lishments concerned in their complaint are subject to the law. They
must indicate the nature o f the work places in which the offenses
are discovered, the kind o f work carried on, and its general manage
ment. Upon all these points it is important that the employers should
not be able to assert, in the absence of precise statements to the con
trary, and without contradicting the report o f the inspector, that the
facts reported do not constitute a violation o f the law because the
work place is not industrial or because of the nature o f the work
carried on therein.
The inspectors are advised to indicate exactly what provisions o f
the law have been violated, and to use the terminology o f the law
itself, thus conforming to the court doctrine that the judge “ is
concerned only with the offenses with which the defendant has been
specifically charged, and upon which the latter has been enabled to
prepare his defense.” (a)
a Rapports sur FApplication des lois R£glementant le Travail, 1901, p. civ.
6 Idem, 1900, p. cxxi.
c Idem, 1906, p. cx.
d Idem, 1902, p. ciii.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
227
A few years ago the attitude o f some o f the courts toward the in
spectors was rather antagonistic. They sometimes refused to accept
the inspectors’ reports as evidence without abundant corroboration—
corroboration sometimes difficult to obtain because o f the intimidation
o f the laborers concerned or because of collusion between employers
and employees.
It is well known how reticent the workers generally are in answer
ing questions concerning their hours o f work. This reticence— com
prehensible because o f possible retaliatory measures on the part o f
employers—would soon disappear i f the principle underlying a re
cent decision o f the “ tribunal correctionnel ” o f Besangon were gen
erally accepted. A working woman had refused to answer the in.
spector’s questions concerning her daily work. The court sentenced
her to pay a fine o f 16 francs ($3.09), thus sanctioning the doctrine
that it is the duty o f employees to reply to questions asked by the
inspectors in the performance o f their functions. (°)
The superior commission reported in 1900 that—
In certain regions the courts accept too readily the excuses offered
by the employer. Sometimes the latter wins his case by alleging
that a child injured while performing work not allowed by law had
not been told to do this work. Sometimes, in cases o f nonobservance
o f the intervals for rest, he is acquitted upon declaring that the rest
was given at other times than those indicated in the schedule. Some
times he merely makes statements contrary to those o f the inspector,
and the court believes him .(6)
The divisional inspector o f the third circuit declared in the same
year that—
Thus far the inspectors have hardly any opportunity to uphold
the accusations they make, since their role as witnesses permits them
simply to testify, and very rarely are they permitted to furnish de
tails concerning the case on trial. * * * Whoever has attended
a trial o f this sort will not be surprised when I say that not only
does the inspector have no real opportunity to substantiate his
charges, but the concealed or open hostility o f the magistrate makes
it appear as though the inspector were the real culprit. ( c)
A word o f explanation is necessary with regard to the last two
columns o f the table on page 225, headed 44Dismissed by the inspec
tors ” and 44Dismissed by the courts.”
The cases dismissed by the inspectors are those reported by the
departmental inspectors to the divisional inspectors, which the latter
officials decide not to prosecute. The cases 44dismissed by the courts ”
consist partly o f cases not terminated because o f the death or disap
pearance o f the defendant; they consist mainly, however, o f cases
dismissed because o f 44amnesty laws ” voted from time to time by the
a Rapports stir l’Application des lois Reglementant le Travail, 1905, p. lxxvii.
* Idem, 1900, p. cxix.
c Idem, 1900, pp. cxix, cxx.
228
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
national legislature. This curious practice, frequently resorted to in
France, consists o f the wholesale exculpation o f certain groups o f
offenders or o f all persons guilty o f certain specific categories o f
offenses. Thus, on April 1, 1904, an amnesty law was passed apply
ing to persons who had committed offenses falling within the juris
diction o f the ordinary police courts and justices o f the peace, except
ing offenders who had committed more than one misdemeanor during
the preceding two years, and persons guilty o f offenses for which the
law imposes a fine exceeding 600 francs ($115.80).(a)
In 1905 about 100 cases o f violations o f the labor laws were thus
“ disposed o f ” by another amnesty law. “ Such methods,” says the
superior commission in its report for that year,(6) “ which tend to
recur periodically are not without their effect upon the practice pur
sued for several years by some employers, who exhaust all the re
sources o f the law to delay the decision o f their cases until such time
as a new amnesty law dismisses them.” In 1906, “ 437 cases were
dismissed by a recent amnesty law.” ( c) The amnesty law o f April 10,
1908, disposed o f a large portion o f the 240 cases dismissed by the
courts in 1908. (<*)
That these periodical “ amnesties,” discounted in advance, inter
fered greatly with the activity o f the inspectors is suggested in the
following statement made by one o f their number:
Apart from the moral effect o f this custom, most injurious to our
prestige, it constitutes an absurdity, a lack o f equity, and an encourage
ment to deceit. An absurdity, because the pecuniary fines involved
are very small; a lack o f equity, because by a mere difference in dates
it permits one offender to profit by it while another does not; finally,
an encouragement to deceit, because employers get accustomed to it
and count upon future amnesties. As for the general effects of the
amnesty law it may be said that they are evil. In the first place, if,
asswe are told, the defendant is not notified that the charge against
him has been disposed o f by act o f Congress, he may believe (espe
cially if he belongs to the class o f people who read little and do not
keep track o f current political events) that the prosecution was
abandoned because it was “ ill founded,” a supposition apt to diminish
in his eyes the prestige and legal authority of the labor inspector. On
the other hand, the working classes look with justifiable disfavor upon
these amnesties for the benefit o f employers. ( e)
It should be noted, furthermore, that the French Penal Code in its
omnimerciful Article 463 gives magistrates the power to impose a
smaller penalty than that provided by the law, in all cases in which
there are extenuating circumstances. According to the reports o f the*1
a Rapports sur TApplication des lois R£glementant le Travail, 1903, p. lxxxi.
1 Idem, 1905, p.* Ixxxix.
c Idem, 1906, p. cix.
^Idem, 1908, p. c.
e Idem, 1905, p. lxxx.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
229
labor inspectors, such circumstances are detected by the judges in
many cases in which they wholly escape the notice of the inspectors.
French criminal jurisprudence has another institution by virtue o f
which persons found guilty of violating the laws may escape punish
ment, namely, the so-called “ sursis,” or suspended sentence. Defend
ants in cases falling within the jurisdiction o f a lower criminal court
(tribunal correctionnel) may, at the option o f the court, if there are
extenuating circumstances, be sentenced conditionally—that is to say,
the sentence is not executed unless the guilty party subsequently
commits a second offense, in which case the sentence for the first infrac
tion may be added to that for the second and both are executed—
unless the court again suspends sentence, which it may do indefinitely
in case o f offenses punishable only by fines. Curiously enough, first
offenses against the labor laws fall within the jurisdiction o f the
ordinary police courts, and not within that o f the “ tribunaux correctionnels.” Repeated offenses, though they fall within the jurisdic
tion o f the latter, constitute u first” offenses before these courts;
whence the strange result that an offender can not, under the law
concerning the “ sursis,” be exempted from paying the fine for a first
offense, but may be exempted “ conditionally ” from paying the
penalty for subsequent offenses.
Upon this extraordinary and probably unintentional condition o f
affairs the divisional inspector at Lille reported in connection with
the offenses committed by a certain employer in 1902:
Between June 28 and November 29, 6 complaints were filed with
regard to 304 infractions of the law in this establishment; all of them
were serious offenses, such as the employment o f children under
age, the suppression o f the weekly day o f rest for women and chil
dren, etc. Three of the complaints were tried before a “ tribunal
correctionnel ” because they involved repeated offenses. But in each
case the court found extenuating circumstances and passed sentence
conditionally. (a)
And another inspector states very clearly that the law o f 1891 con
cerning the suspended sentence may involve the following results:
(1) In cases o f a repeated offense the culprit receives the benefit of a
suspension o f sentence, not admissible for a first offense; hence the
second offense is less severely punished than the first. (2) Inasmuch
as the penalty o f imprisonment is never imposed for violation o f the
labor laws, the suspended sentence is applicable indefinitely; the of
fender, in spite o f successive infractions of the law, may still have his
sentence suspended. (5)
In 1902, therefore, the minister o f commerce urged upon the minis
ter o f justice the necessity o f a less frequent application o f the sus
pended sentence.
« Rapports stir 1’Application des lois Reglementant 3e Travail, 1902, p. 129.
®Idem, 1902, p. cvi.
230
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
In several cases, it is declared, the courts called upon to interpret
the labor laws have done it in such a manner as to seriously hamper
the activity and efficiency of the inspectors. Some examples o f this
have already been referred to. Although many o f these decisions
doubtless affect the scope and the enforcement o f the provisions con
cerning the labor o f children, the discussion o f them would be too
extensive for this study. Two decisions, however, merit particular
reference.
(1) The law o f 1892 stated that between A pril 1, 1900, and April
1, 1902, women and children may not be “ employed to work more
than 11 hours a day, interrupted by one or more periods of rest
amounting to not less than 1 hour.” An employer was prosecuted
for employing women and children 8 hours uninterruptedly without
giving them any interval for rest. The court decided that the pro
vision for an hour’s rest applied only to the cases in which women and
children work the maximum number o f hours stated in the law ;
whence it concluded that the period o f rest might legally take place at
any time, provided it interrupts the day o f w ork.(a)
(2) In 1903 the Paris court o f appeals decided that the require
ments o f a work book and inscription in the register o f employees are
not applicable to laborers engaged from day to day, or employed in
several establishments as occasional helpers paid by the piece or by
the day (according to the nature o f their work). The superior com
mission protested vehemently against this precedent, which, as a mat
ter o f fact, does not appear to have been generally followed, for it
would amount to the suppression o f these two provisions o f the law
in most establishments.^)
With regard to the severity o f the courts in imposing fines for
proved violations o f the labor laws, the following table is suggestive:
TOTAL AND AVERAGE AMOUNT OF FINES IMPOSED FOR VIOLATION OF THE
LABOR LAWS, 1900 TO 1908.
Year.
1900..........................................................................................................
1901...........................................................................................................
1902...........................................................................................................
1903...........................................................................................................
1904...........................................................................................................
1905...........................................................................................................
1906...........................................................................................................
1907..........................................................................................................
1908..........................................................................................................
Total cases
in which
defendants
were found
guilty.
2,246
2,525
2,248
2,751
2,899
3,303
4,402
5,343
4,536
Amount of fines im
posed.
Total.
$15,497.71
17,133,00
14,464.19
17,811.58
16,082.11
18,029.29
15,703.83
18,495.96
15,057.47
Average.
$6.90
6.78
6.43
6.47
5.54
5.46
8.57
3.46
3.32
Every year there are cases in which the courts impose fines o f 1
and 2 francs (19.3 to 38.6 cents) for each infraction, in spite o f the
a Rapports sur 1’Application des lois Reglementant le Travail, 1902, p. cvii.
6 Idem, 1903, p. Ixxxiv.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN FRANCE.
231
legal minimum o f 5 francs (96.5 cents). These mistakes, however,
are usually committed by new judges, unfamiliar with the laws.(a)
But the cases o f excessive indulgence appear to be increasingly rare,
and the imposition of fines of 200 francs ($38.60), o f 300 francs
($57.90), and even 500 francs ($96.50) somewhat more frequent, espe
cially in cases o f repeated offenses.
GERMANY.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY.
The introduction o f the factory system does not appear to have
caused such abuse o f child labor in Prussia as in England, for in
many Provinces the school laws were well enough enforced to inter
fere seriously with the industrial exploitation o f children. As sub
stitutes for the ordinary schools, however, the authorities permitted
employers to establish schools in connection with their factories. It
is not improbable that in some o f these improvised factory schools
the children actually received an equivalent for a common-school
education. But this was certainly not always the case.
In 1818 the government at Diisseldorf took occasion to speak in
glowing terms o f the “ factory school ” established by a Rhenish
manufacturer for the young children in his employ, and the eulo
gistic reference attracted the attention o f King Frederick William II I,
who expressed his satisfaction in a public declaration. Subsequently
the Prussian minister o f education, Von Altenstein, conceived the
idea that perhaps this Diisseldorf factory school might serve as a
model for other manufacturers throughout the Kingdom. Where
upon he requested a detailed report concerning the school, to the
great embarrassment o f the Diisseldorf officials, who had mean
while learned that the “ model ” school was far from being a philan
thropic enterprise. The u pupils ” had to work in the factory 11
hours a day, and many o f them were employed at night. Their em
ployer owned two embroidery mills. In one, 96 school children
worked by day and 65 at night; in the other, 95 were employed by
day and 80 at night. Those employed by day worked in the summer
from 7 o’clock in the morning until 8 at night and in winter from 8
in the morning until 9 at night, at which hour night work began.
“ School ” was held at the end o f the day’s w ork; for those employed
in the daytime it lasted 1 hour and for those employed at night
2 hours.
This revelation led in 1824 to a general investigation with regard
to the age o f working children and the effects o f their employment
° Rapports stir rApplication des lois Reglementant le Travail, 1900, p. c x ix ;
1901, p. cv iii; 1902, p. c iv ; 1904, p. lxxxii.
232
BULLETIN OF TH E BUBEAU OF LABOB.
upon their physical, educational, and moral development, and to a
request for suggestions concerning the remedy for such evils as might
be discovered. This investigation disclosed the employment of
children in industrial centers under most shameful conditions—
unhealthful workrooms, long hours o f daily labor in companionship
with coarse and foul-mduthed adults, miserable and insufficient food,
consisting mainly of potatoes and chicory broth. The work in
which many o f the children under 6 years o f age were employed
lasted as a rule from 6 a. m. to 8 p. m. In some places children
4 years o f age worked in cotton and woolen mills. In the adminis
trative district o f Diisseldorf alone 3,300 children worked in the
textile mills, and like conditions were found in nearly all of the
Provinces.
Yon Altenstein, who became the champion o f child-labor restric
tion in Prussia, thereupon issued a letter o f instruction on April 27,
1827, insisting that the education o f young children must not be
neglected. But so mild a measure was o f no avail; and conditions
might have long continued as they were had it not been for the decla
ration o f the military authorities that the factory districts wTere
unable to furnish their quota o f young men fit for admission to the
army. In a military nation such a state o f affairs called for imme
diate action. The King in 1828 instructed his ministers to “ make an
inquiry with a view to the adoption o f vigorous measures to put a
stop to such conditions,” and the combined influence o f the educa
tional and military authorities led in eleven years to the first Prus
sian child-labor law, that o f April 6, 1839.
Briefly summarized, this law provided that in factories, mines, and
metallurgical establishments the age o f admission to regular employ
ment was 9 years; children under 16 years o f age employed therein
must have attended school 3 years or be able to read and write, ex
cept when factory owners provided equivalent instruction; for chil
dren under 16, 10 hours’ work per day were allowed, but the local
police authorities could permit 11 hours per day for 4 weeks in cases
o f accident; there must be an hour’s pause at midday and a quarter
o f an hour in the morning and in the afternoon; night work (i. e.,
between 9 p. m. and 5 a. m.) and work on Sundays and holidays was
forbidden; factory owners were required to keep a correct and com
plete list o f the children in their employ; the ministers o f medical
matters, o f police, and o f finance were empowered to enact such addi
tional regulations as they might consider necessary in the interest o f
the health and morality o f factory employees.
The effects o f this law were reported by the administrative officials
of the different circuits as eminently satisfactory. Unfortunately,
however, the optimistic reports made by the local governments are
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
233
not altogether above suspicion, for within comparatively few years
it was discovered that no effective provision had been made for the
enforcement o f the law, and that the law itself was not sufficiently
severe. A t all events, a series o f investigations and reports made
between 1845 and 1851 proved to the satisfaction of the central gov
ernment the insufficiency o f the provisions enacted in 1839. Moreover,
the revolutionary movement in the late forties gave a new impetus
to the agitation for legislation in behalf of the working classes, and
after numerous projects had been considered by the ministry and
discussed by the legislature the law o f May 16, 1853, was passed,
modifying some of the provisions o f the decree o f 1839. This law
provided that children should not be admitted to labor in factories
under the age o f 12 years; the workday must not exceed 6 hours for
laborers under 14 years o f age, who must be given 3 hours per day to
attend school. The law o f 1853 furthermore introduced a more strin
gent regulation with regard to pauses for rest and with regard to the
work books which child laborers were required to possess. Most
important o f all, however, was the introduction o f factory inspection,
although the law simply stated that inspectors should be appointed
“ wherever they might be necessary.” But only three circuits in the
Kingdom saw fit to appoint factory inspectors.
The reports o f these inspectors threw an altogether new and in
teresting light upon the attitude o f employers toward the law. In
his report for 1858 the inspector at Aix-la-Chapelle complained
that—
manufacturers with few exceptions show no disposition to take the
law seriously. They manifest a general antagonism toward it. Inas
much as repeated visits o f inspection have led to the detection o f
infractions, factory owners made arangements to signal the arrival
o f the inspectors by means o f bells, outposts, and similar devices. In
one factory where the bells were prevented from giving the usual
signal, all the employees were dismissed when I made my appearance
in order that I might not complete my investigation. In other cases
doorkeepers were ordered to admit no one, not even the inspector,
until the superintendent had been informed.
Historians o f labor legislation in Prussia agree that, generally
speaking, the new law was a dead letter. (®) Factory owners opposed
the appointment o f inspectors. In one o f the three circuits in which
an inspector had been appointed, the office was soon permitted to
remain vacant at the instance o f influential manufacturers. At
Berlin no attempt whatever was made during three years to apply
the new law, and in 1862 the city magistrate requested that the law
be modified in such a manner as to increase the workday to 10 hours
for children under 14, and to substitute for daily school attendance
« Anton: Geschichte der preussischen Fabrikgesetzgebung, etc.
Leipzig, 1891.
234
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
the provision that attendance on Sunday would suffice. The number
o f reported violations o f the law fluctuated most erratically from
year to year. In 1855, 894 “ contraventions ” were reported; in 1865,
73; in 1866,26; and in 1874, 7,268. It would require a strange variety
o f optimism to assume that in 1866 there were actually only 26
violations o f the law. Wherever there were no inspectors the law
remained a dead letter.
The Industrial Code o f 1869 extended the territorial scope o f the
child-labor law to all the countries o f the North German Confeder
ation, and at the same time modified the provisions o f the law in some
respects. Among these modifications was the regulation that every
industrial employer must, at his own cost, provide and maintain such
safety appliances and arrangements as are necessary to protect his
employees against danger and disease. The provisions concerning
factory laborers were also made to apply to laborers in mines and
quarries.
Upon the establishment o f the German Empire the Industrial Code
o f the North German Confederation was extended to the newly ac
quired territories, in 1871 to South Hessia, in 1872 to Wurtemburg
and Baden, in 1873 to Bavaria, and subsequently (1889) to AlsaceLorraine. In some of these countries there had previously been
little or no protective legislation in behalf of child laborers. It
should be noted, however, that the Kingdom o f Saxony passed a law
in 1865 forbidding the employment o f children under 12, fixing the
maximum workday for children under 14 at 10 hours, including
pauses, and prohibiting night work; but these provisions applied
only to “ factories,” which were defined as a industrial establishments
with more than 20 laborers.”
The rapid economic development o f the Empire following the
Franco-Prussian war brought with it a great increase in the number
o f children employed industrially, and in 1873 the Imperial Diet
directed the chancellor to investigate whether or not further meas
ures should be adopted in regard thereto. During this investigation,
which was made in 1874 and 1875, it was pointed out that the factory
laws would continue to be merely “ on paper ” unless compulsory
inspection be introduced. But Bismarck then took little interest in
labor laws, and nothing further was accomplished until the passage
o f the amendment to the Industrial Code ( Gewerbe-Novelle) o f
1878, which provided above all for compulsory inspection. It also
introduced a better regulation o f apprenticeship; it gave the Federal
Council the power further to restrict the employment o f women and
children in all industries involving danger to their health or m orality;
and it widened the scope o f factory legislation so as to include all
establishments using steam as a motive power, as well as metallurgical
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
235
works, places for the preparation of building materials ( Bauhofe),
and docks.
These measures were far from satisfying the advocates o f labor
legislation, and not a session o f the Imperial Diet was held without
producing its quota o f labor bills, especially projects for regulating
the employment o f adult women, for limiting work on Sundays and
holidays, and for extending the scope as well as increasing the
severity o f the provisions concerning the labor of children. But
Bismarck and the Federal Council blocked the way.
A change took place in the attitude of the Government in the last
decade o f the century, marked by the international conference for
the protection o f laborers held at Berlin in March, 1890, at the insti
gation o f William II. Fifteen European nations were represented
at this conference. Among the measures it declared to be “ desirable ”
was 46the prohibition o f the industrial labor o f children under 12
years o f age; the prohibition o f night work, work on Sundays, and
o f unhealthful or dangerous occupations for children under 14; the
limitation o f their workday to 6 hours with a half-hour’s pause for
rest; and insistence upon a sufficient elementary education before
children are allowed to work.” (a)
Having taken a leading part in the advocacy o f the legal protec
tion o f laborers, it was entirely logical to expect that Germany would
be among the first nations to take a further step forward along the
lines suggested by the Berlin conference. This was done by the
Gewerbe-Novelle o f June 1, 1891, which went considerably further
than the recommendations o f the conference in regard to the regula
tion o f child labor.
The new law forbade the employment in factories o f children
under 13 years o f age, and children above 13 could be employed only
after having fulfilled the requirements o f the school laws. This
prohibition, moreover, was unconditional. No legislative or adminis
trative “ exceptions ” robbed it o f its practical significance. The
maximum workday was 6 hours for children under 14, interrupted
by a pause o f at least half an hour for rest. Exceptions were allowed
in the matter o f pauses. Children could not be employed on Sundays
or holidays or during the hours required for the usual religious in
struction. They were not allowed to begin work before 5.30 a. m.
nor continue work after 8.30 p. m.
The Federal Council was empowered to forbid the employment o f
children in those branches o f industry that involved exceptional dan
ger for the health or morality o f those engaged therein. The police
® See Evert’s article on “ Fabrikgesetzebung ” in tbe second edition o f Con
rad’s Handworterbucb der Staatswissenschaften.
236
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
authorities must be notified of the provisions contained in the factory
or workshop rules ( Arbeitsordnung) in all industrial establishments
having laborers under 14 years of age, and employers must keep a
list o f all such laborers. Every employer o f children under 18 years
o f age must have due regard for the hygienic and moral conditions
o f their employment. The penalties for violating these provisions
consisted of fines up to 2,000 marks ($476) or imprisonment for a
period not exceeding six months.
Especially important was the provision that the requirements o f
the law might be extended to apply to handicrafts ( Ilandwerk) and
to home industries. Among the reasons given for this it was stated
that “ large numbers o f children are employed in those branches o f
home industry that compete with the factories, and in which the
danger o f excessive child labor is greatest. This danger would
become much greater still if a severer regime is applied to the facto
ries without at the same time regulating child labor in home indus
tries.” This argument, at least so far as it went, was eminently valid.
Even the milder factory legislation o f previous years had to some
extent not only driven children out o f the factories, but it had driven
them, so to speak, into home industries which escaped the restrictive
influence o f the law.
The law o f 1891 did not go into effect at once, but by stages; some
o f its provisions went into force April 1,1892, others (like those con
cerning Sunday rest) in 1895, and still others (e. g., those concerning
the application o f the law to all establishments with mechanical
motors) not until January 1, 1901.
O f the power to forbid or limit the employment o f children in dan
gerous trades the Federal Council made frequent exercise. On July
8,1893, the provisions o f the law were extended to the home industry
o f cigar making; and an imperial ordinance o f May 31,1897, included
the home manufacture o f clothing and underclothing except when
carried on in a given work place by members o f the family alone. It
was still felt that the law should not step beyond the limits o f the
family, nor infringe upon the right o f parents to employ their own
children at home as they pleased; although, as a matter o f fact, these
limits had already been overstepped by the law o f May 13, 1884,
which forbade parents to employ even their own children, at home
or elsewhere, in the manufacture o f phosphorus matches.
Reference should also be made to the law o f August 6,1896, which
forbids the employment o f children under 14 years o f age in public
streets or highways for the sale o f goods or as peddlers and huck
sters, except for a period o f not more than 4 weeks with the express
consent o f the local police authorities.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
237
An instructive commentary upon the effects of the law is furnished
by the following table concerning the number o f children employed
in factories:
NUMBER OF CHILDREN UNDER 14 YEARS OF AGE EMPLOYED IN FACTORIES
1886 TO 1897.
Children
employed.
Year.
21,035
22,913
27,485
11,212
1886..........................................................
1888..........................................................
1890..........................................................
1892..........................................................
Year.
1895.........................................................
1896..........................................................
1897..........................................................
Children
employed.
4,327
5,312
6,151
In Saxony, the great industrial kingdom, the figures were as fol
lows:
Year.
Children
employed.
1890..........................................................
1892..........................................................
12,855
5,428
Year.
1893..........................................................
1895..........................................................
Children
employed.
1,865
930
Note the decline between 1890 and 1892, the latter being the year
following the enactment o f the new law. The further decline be
tween 1892 and 1895 is due to the fact that certain parts o f the law
went into effect, as explained above, during this period. It would
be a mistake to suppose that the decline o f the number o f children,
employed in establishments subject to the law necessarily meant a
corresponding diminution in the total amount o f child labor. That
this was far from being the case is the emphatic opinion o f
Agahd in his remarkable study o f child labor in Germany. (a) “ The
few police ordinances passed before 1898,” says this writer, “ have
hardly touched the evil [o f child labor in home industries]. Child
labor was transferred from the factory to the home. * * * It is
certain that the employment o f children in factories no longer exists
in Germany on the same scale as before the new labor laws were
passed, * * * but in home industries, in commerce, in transporta
tion, and in nearly all gainful occupations it is more widespread
than ever before.” ( *6)
Indeed, after 1896 even the number o f children in factories in
creased, without, however, again approaching the large number noted
0 Konrad Agahd: Kinderarbeit und Gesetz gegen die Ausnutzung kindlicher
Arbeitskraft in Deutschland. Jena, 1902. The same writer has subsequently
written numerous works on various phases o f the same subject.
6 Idem., pp. 16, 17.
56504°—No. 89—10----- 16
238
BU LLETIN OF T H E BUREAU OF LABOR.
in 1890. Thus in Prussian factories alone there were employed in
1895, 847 children; in 1899,1,421 children; and in 1900,1,794 children.
The year 1895 appears to have been the turning point with regard
to the number o f children employed in factories. Yet the statistical
authorities o f the Empire reported that at that time 214,954 school
children under 14 years o f age were employed in gainful occupa
tions— 135,125^ in agriculture, 38,267 in industry, and 33,501 in
domestic service. These figures admittedly understated the actual
number. A Prussian investigation made in 1896 furnished abundant
evidence to this effect, evidence so overwhelming and so convincing
that the demand at once arose for further restrictive legislation.
Typical among the mass o f facts disclosed by this investigation are
the following:
In the textile industries many school children worked 6 hours or
more a day, before and after school hours. A t Aachen-Burtscheid
2,000 children, many o f them under 6 years o f age, were regularly
employed to work early in the morning and late at night. In the
manufacture o f cigars, bricks, cement, in weaving, and in agriculture,
many parents were in the habit o f employing their own children or
o f hiring them to other persons. For violations o f the law the pen
alties imposed were ridiculously low. A Diisseldorf police ordinance
required that school children working for wages in certain home
industries (in textiles, metallurgy, clothing, underclothing, and
match boxes) must not be employed before school hours in the morn
ing, nor between morning and afternoon classes, nor after 7 p. m.
Yet at Elberfeld and Barmen a thousand children were employed in
the above-named home industries and only 5 per cent o f them com
plied with the terms o f the police ordinance.
Outside o f Prussia, in the other States o f the Empire, conditions
were no better. In Baden 390 school children were employed indus
trially, most o f them contrary to the law, especially in cigar making.
The mayors o f communes facilitated violation by delivering work
books that did not fulfill the terms o f the law. A t iron forges
children worked 12 hours a day at most difficult and fatiguing tasks.
During the school vacations they were employed in brick works for
14 or 15 hours a day. Parents and employers seemed to care little
whether the work imposed upon children was commensurate with
their strength or not. Even little girls were found helping masons,
working in stone quarries, in flour mills, in breweries, and in the
manufacture o f cutlery. Employers made agreements with parents
to pay the fines that the latter might incur in having their children
violate the law.
More detailed investigations at Hamburg, Altenburg, Leipzig, and
Stettin aroused public opinion to demand further legislative inter
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
239
vention; but the most convincing plea for such intervention came
from Rixdorf, a suburb of Berlin. It was here that Agahd (to whose
first book on child labor reference has already been made), a publicschool teacher, became alarmed at the fatigue and inattention of
some o f his pupils, anjl made an investigation with regard to their
labor and home life. The results of Agahd’s investigation were
such that he made it his mission to arouse public sentiment, and
particularly teachers’ organizations, to the dangers and the disastrous
physical, moral, and educational consequences o f excessive child
labor.
In 1897 the imperial chancellor ordered the States o f the Empire
to make an inquiry into the nature and extent o f the employment
o f children under 14 years o f age outside of the factories, including
those employed in home industries by their parents. The results,
published in 1898, (a) showed that 532,283 children were employed
outside o f the “ factories.” This was 5.18 per cent of all children
o f school age. They were distributed among the several occupations
as follows:
NUMBER OF CHILDREN UNDER 14 YEARS EMPLOYED OUTSipE OF FACTORIES,
IN 1897, BY OCCUPATIONS.
Occupation.
Gardening and horticulture...............
Stock breeding and fishing...................
Mining.....................................................
Pottery and stone works......................
Metallurgy..............................................
Machines and tools...............................
Chemicals..............................................
Forestry products..................................
Textiles.............. ....................................
Paper......................................................
Leather...................................................
W ood_____________ _______ _______
Food products.......................................
Children
employed.
808
511
468
12,890
14,358
4,914
509
329
143,710
8,970
2,944
41,801
27,645
Occupation.
Children
employed.
Clothing trades....................................
Building trades....................................
Graphic industries (printing, e tc.)..
Art industries.......................................
Other industrial occupations............
Commerce............................................
Transportation................................ .
Restaurants, hotels, and taverns___
Distributing goods..............................
Running errands..................................
Other occupations...............................
40,997
4,225
718
101
1,425
17,623
2,691
21,620
135,830
35,909
11,787
Total............................................
532,283
The conditions under which many of these children were employed,
the hours o f work, and the effects o f employment, were considered to
be such as to furnish ample justification for regarding child labor—
especially in home industries—as a national evil. The official investi
gation was supplemented by another made by the National Teachers’
Association, which showed that in the large cities 10 to 13 per cent o f
the boys and 6 to 9 per cent o f the girls under 14 were employed
regularly; in manufacturing centers 30 to 50 per cent o f all children
under 14, and in industrial villages 80 per cent. W ith regard to the
age o f working children, it was found in a few typical cities that the
a Vierteljahrsliefte zur Statistik des deutschen Reichs, IX , No. 3, pages 97 ff.
An excellent discussion o f the main results o f this investigation is given by
Agahd in the book already referred to.
240
B U LLETIN OF T H E BUREAU OF LABOR.
number o f those under 10 years o f age employed in gainful occupa
tions was as follows:
NUMBER OF BOYS AND GIRLS UNDER 10 YEARS OF AGE AT WORK IN GAIN
FUL OCCUPATIONS IN SPECIFIED CITIES.
City.
Charlottenburg...............
Dresden....................................
Boys.
334
1,888
Girls.
136
674
City.
Hanover..................................
Schmolln................................
Boys.
295
472
Girls.
178
325
With regard to such work as delivering milk, bread, etc., in the
morning (considered to be 44light ” work very well suited for young
children), it was found in 1896 that at Charlottenburg 20 boys began
this work at 4 a. m., and 85 boys and 10 girls began at 4.30 a. m. In
Berlin 428 children (147 o f them under 10 years o f age) had to climb
innumerable flights o f stairs to deliver bread, etc.. The work o f some
o f these children was further inquired into, and it was proved that 51
o f them climbed between 20 and 40 flights o f stairs in 1 hour, and 1
child had to climb up and down 120 flights in 2 hours. This work, it
should be borne in mind, is done before the children have had any
breakfast. On Sundays they work longer than other days under the
pretext that there is no school that day.
With regard to the effects o f such labor, and o f child labor gen
erally, upon the attendance o f children at school and upon their
educational development, most o f the teachers did not need to be
enlightened by a formal investigation, which simply disclosed the
universality and intensity o f evils already known to exist.
The National Teachers’ Association (having 82,000 members)
passed a series o f resolutions at Breslau in 1898 demanding that steps
be taken to suppress entirely the employment o f children of school
age in gainful occupations. These resolutions declared that
“ although the labor o f children may be made a valuable means o f
education i f carefully determined and properly supervised, their
employment as wage-earners in gainful occupations almost necessarily
involves an abuse o f their strength, and must be condemned from the
pedagogical point o f view.” It was furthermore declared that the
regulation o f child labor should be extended by law to home indus
tries and to agriculture.
W ith the cooperation o f the press, o f the clergy, o f newly formed
organizations for the defense o f children, o f congresses, and o f several
political parties, an active propaganda was inaugurated in the latter
part o f the nineties which led to the elaboration o f a new law, despite
the protests o f a certain number o f employers’ organizations. An
organization o f master bakers in. Saxony manifested what a pedagog
ical journal called 44pronounced symptoms o f abnormal acquisitive
ness and a feebly developed social conscience ” by petitioning the Im
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
241
perial Diet to permit the employment of children for 2 hours in the
morning before school. But a large number o f employers’ and em
ployees’ organizations became fervent advocates o f a better regulation
o f the gainful employment o f children, and in 1903, under date of
March 30, the law now in force was passed. A statement o f the pro
visions o f this law and o f such other measures as now regulate the
employment o f children in Germany forms the following two sections
o f this study.
THE INDUSTRIAL CODE.
The German labor laws now in force are both numerous and com
plex. They contain, in the first place, provisions which apply to
certain groups o f occupations without regard to the age o f the laborers
engaged therein. These provisions necessarily redound to the benefit
not only o f adult laborers but also o f child laborers. In the sec
ond place, Germany possesses a number o f important regulations
concerning the labor o f female persons. It is evident that these apply
equally to nonadult and to adult female laborers. Above and beyond
the provisions concerning the employment of laborers generally and
o f female laborers, there are, in the third place, numerous provisions
that apply particularly to children and to young persons; that is to
say, to persons under 13 years o f age or persons who have not yet com
pleted their elementary education (called 44children ” ), and to per
sons between 14 and 16 years o f age (called 44young persons ” ).
Many o f the provisions concerning child labor are contained in the
so-called 44law for the protection o f children ” under date o f March
30,1903, but by no means all o f them. The Industrial Code, particu
larly as modified by the lawc o f 1891 and 1908, contains a number of
important provisions for the regulation o f child labor, especially in
what are called 44larger industrial establishments.”
In the present section an account will be given of the general pro
visions o f the labor laws (involving benefits for child laborers as well
as for adults) and o f the provisions of the Industrial Code concerning
children and young persons. The following section will be devoted
particularly to the law o f March 30,1903.
The Industrial Code, together with the numerous modifications
that have been made in it and the various ordinances that have been
passed under its provisions, contains a considerable number o f sec
tions and clauses that confer important benefits upon persons under
16 years o f age and upon women. These sections and parts of sec
tions are as follows:
Section 6: This code does not apply to fisheries, apothecaries,
educational institutions, advocates and notaries at law, emigration
enterprises and agencies, insurance, transportation and railway
enterprises.
242
BU LLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
Section 14: Whoever starts an independent industrial establish
ment must report it to the local authorities. This obligation applies
also to whoever has been permitted to engage in a “ wandering”
trade.
Section 16: The erection o f plants the situation or character o f
w hich'is such as to cause injury, danger, or damage to the owners
or occupants o f adjoining property or to the public generally, can not
be undertaken without the permission o f the authority designated
by the laws of the State.
Section 41b: In trades supplying a public want which must be
satisfied daily or that is especially important on*Sundays or holidays
the higher administrative authorities may prescribe, upon the peti
tion of at least two-thirds o f the employers concerned, that in any
community or group o f adjoining communities business shall be
carried on on Sundays and holidays only at such times as are in con
formity with the provisions of the second paragraph o f section 105b.
(See p. 243.)
Section 42b: Children under 14 years o f age must not offer goods
for sale on public roads, streets, or-places, nor peddle them from
house to house. In localities in which such sale or peddling is cus
tomary, the local police authorities may permit it for certain periods
o f time not exceeding a total o f four weeks in any calendar year.
Under this provision there was considerable street trading, espe
cially in the larger cities. In Berlin, for instance, during the weeks
preceding Christmas numerous children under 14 were thus employed.
Protests against the practice were made by the Consumers’ League
and similar organizations, and resulted in the passage o f a police
regulation for its restriction; and in 1909 a further step was taken
by providing that no exceptions of this sort be thereafter permitted,
so that now the employment of children under 14 years of age in
street trading is absolutely forbidden in Berlin.
Section 55a: On Sundays and holidays it is forbidden to carry
on “ wandering trades,” except musical, theatrical, and other like
performances. Further exceptions may be permitted by the lower
administrative authorities.
Section 5Tb: A certificate permitting the bearer to carry on a
wandering trade ( Wandergewerbeschein) may be refused persons
having one or more children for whose support no adequate provision
has been made, or whose education, i f they are still o f school age, is
Hot adequately provided for.
Section 60b: Certificates permitting wandering trades {Wandergewerbescheine) may contain restrictions to the effect that minors
shall not engage therein after sunset; that female minors may carry
them on only in public roads, streets, and places, but not from house
to house; that after sunset minors must not sell the unmanufactured
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
243
products o f the forest, farm, or garden, nor such goods of their own
production as are staples of the weekly markets; and that female
minors must not peddle the above-named goods from house to house.
The local police authorities, moreover, may forbid children under 14
to engage in the wandering trade of selling these goods.
Section 62: It is forbidden to take children along for business pur
poses in the wandering trades; nor may children be taken along that
are still required to attend school, unless adequate provision is made
for their education.
Section 105b: W ork on Sundays and holidays is prohibited in
mines, salt works, ore-dressing works, quarries, metallurgical works,
building enterprises and places for the preparation o f building mate
rials, factories, workshops, potteries, and docks and wharves.
The period o f rest for each Simday or holiday must be at least
24 hours; for two consecutive holidays, 36 hours; and for the Easter,
Christmas, and Whitsuntide holiday periods, 48 hours. In establish
ments regularly employing night shifts and day shifts the weekly
day o f rest may begin at 6 a. m., provided the establishment stops
work for the 24 hours following. In factories and similar estab
lishments persons under 16 years o f age may not be employed on
Sundays or holidays nor during the hours required for religious
instruction in preparation for “ confirmation,” confession, or com
munion. In mercantile establishments employees are not allowed to
work on the first day o f the Christmas, Easter, or Whitsuntide holi
days, or for more than 5 hours on other holidays, or on Sundays.
This limitation may be modified by the authorities o f any commune,
provided the modification be a reduction o f the working period.
During the four weeks preceding Christmas, and for particular
Sundays and holidays upon which local conditions give rise to an
exceptional amount o f business, the police authorities o f the com
munes may increase the number o f hours during which mercantile
establishments are allowed to keep their employees at work, but in
no case may the number o f hours per day exceed 10.
Section 105c: The provisions o f section 105b do not apply to—
(1) Work which in cases o f accident or public interest must be
attended to immediately.
(2) Taking the legally required inventory once a year.
(3) Watching and taking care o f the establishments, cleaning
them and keeping them in repair, provided this is necessary to the
normal continuance of business on the succeeding week day and pro
vided that these operations can not be performed on ordinary work
days.
(4) W ork that is necessary to prevent the deterioration o f raw
materials or destruction o f value in partly finished products, pro
vided this work can not be done on ordinary workdays.
244
BULLETIN OF TH E BUBEAU OF LABOR.
(5)
Supervision o f such work as is executed on Sundays and holi
days according to the above enumeration.
Laborers employed in the third and fourth kinds o f work on Sun
days or holidays for more than 3 hours, or who are prevented from
attending divine service, must either be given 36 hours off every three
weeks, beginning on Sunday, or be let off on every alternate Sunday,
at least, during the time between 6 a. m. and 6 p. m.
Exceptions to the last-named provision may be granted by the
lower administrative authorities, provided the laborers are not pre
vented from attending church on Sundays and are given 24 hours’
rest on a week day instead o f on Sunday.
Section 105d: The Federal Council may grant exceptions to sec
tion 105b in the case o f specified trades, and particularly establish
ments in which the work does not permit o f interruption or delay,
or establishments that because of their nature operate only during
certain seasons o f the year, or establishments which are exceptionally
active at certain seasons o f the year.
Section 105e: For trades which must be exercised on Sundays and
holidays to satisfy a daily need o f the public, or which are necessary
to satisfy a public demand that is of exceptional importance on Sun
days or holidays, as well as for enterprises which depend partly or
wholly on wind or water as a motive power, the higher administrative
authorities may grant exceptions to section 105b.
Section 105f: Such exceptions may also be granted, in writing, for
a stated period by the lower administrative authorities if the employ
ment o f laborers on Sundays or holidays should become necessary,
through circumstances that could not be foreseen, to prevent extraor
dinary damage.
Section 105g: The prohibition o f work on Sundays and holidays
may, furthermore, be extended to other occupations by imperial
decree with the consent o f the Federal Council.
Section 105h: The separate States may impose further limitations
upon Sunday work and work on holidays than those set forth in
sections 105b to 105g.
Section 105i: The provisions o f sections 105b to 105g do not apply
to hotels and restaurants; to musical, theatrical, or similar perform
ances and amusements; nor to transportation enterprises.
Employers in these enterprises can not require their employees to
work on Sundays and holidays except at the kinds o f labor that in
the nature o f the enterprise do not permit of postponement or inter
ruption.
Section 107: Unless the law specifically provides otherwise, non
adult persons must not be employed as laborers unless they are
equipped with a work book. Upon employing such persons the
employer shall take charge of the work book; he shall keep it,
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
245
exhibit it at the requisition o f the officials, and at the legal expiration
o f the period o f employment return it either to the parent or guard
ian o f the employee, if he demands it or i f the employee is not yet
16 years o f age, or to the employee himself.
The foregoing provisions do not apply to children who are still
required to attend the common schools.
Section 108: The work book shall be provided gratis by the police
authorities o f the place in which the laborer had his latest legal resi
dence. It is furnished upon the request or with the consent o f the
laborer’s parent or guardian. * * * Before it is furnished, how
ever, it must be shown that the laborer is no longer required to attend
the common schools and that no work book has previously been
issued for him.
Section 110: The work book must contain the name o f the laborer,
the date and place o f his birth, the name and last domicile o f his
parent or guardian, and his signature. It must bear the signature
and seal o f the authority issuing it. The latter shall keep a list of
the work books issued.
Section 111: When he begins to employ a laborer, the employer
shall record upon the work book, in the place provided for this pur
pose, the date o f the beginning o f employment and the nature of the
work to be done by the employee. He shall also record therein any
changes in the nature of the employment and the date o f its ter
mination.
Section 119a: Any community or group o f communities may pro
vide by statute that the wages earned by nonadult laborers shall be
paid to the parents or guardians of these laborers; or that the wages
shall be paid to these laborers directly only upon the written author
ization o f the parents or guardians, or upon their written acknowl
edgment o f the receipt of the wages previously paid. The same
authorities may also provide by statute that nonadult employees
shall make a report at regular intervals to parents or guardians with
regard to the wages that have been paid them.
Section 119b: The above provisions (o f section 119a) apply also
to persons employed by particular enterprises outside o f the em
ployer’s establishment to manufacture industrial products, even
though the laborers provide their own raw materials and other ma
terials for production.
Section 120: Industrial employers are required to grant to their
laborers under 18 years o f age who attend a continuation school,
recognized as such by the State or the community, the necessary time
for attending such schools during the hours fixed by the proper au
thorities thereof. Instruction may take place on Sundays only when
the hours are so arranged that pupils are not prevented from attend
ing the religious services o f the church to which they belong.
246
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
Should the laws of the State not provide for such compulsory
attendance at continuation schools, any community or group of
communities may provide by statute that male laborers under 18
years o f age and female employees and apprentices in mercantile
establishments shall be required to attend a continuation school.
Section 133h: The following provisions o f sections 134 to 134h
apply to industrial establishments in which as a rule at least 20
laborers are employed. It applies also to establishments in which
the number o f employees is increased as a rule at certain seasons of
the year and their number at such times is at least 20.
Section 134: In establishments for which the law does not specifi
cally provide otherwise, the employer must at his own cost furnish
every nonadult employee with a wage book. On each pay day the
amount o f the employee’s wages must be entered in this book, and
the book handed to the employee or his parent or guardian, to be
returned to the employer on the following pay day.
Section 134a: Every existing establishment and every newly
started establishment must have a working schedule. There may be
different working schedules for different parts o f the establishment
or for different groups o f laborers. They must indicate the date upon
which they go into effect, and be signed and dated by the persons issu
ing them.
Section 134b enumerates the required contents o f the working
schedule—hours o f work, pauses, rules concerning fines and the pay
ment o f wages, discharge o f employees, etc. Sections 134c to 134h set
forth certain provisions with which the working schedule must
comply.
Section 134i: The provisions o f sections 135 to 139aa apply to
establishments in which as a rule not less than 10 laborers are em
ployed ; this includes those in which as a rule the number of laborers
is increased at certain seasons o f the year and at such times amounts
to at least 10.
Section 135: Children under 13 years o f age shall not be employed
in industrial establishments. Children over 13 may be employed
therein only when they are no longer required to attend the “ common
schools.” (a)
Children under 14 may not work more than 6 hours a day. Young
persons, between 14 and 16, must not work more than 10 hours a day.
Section 136: Young persons (i. e., those between 14 and 16) must
not be employed after 8 p. m. or before 6 a. m .(6) During the work-*1
° The school laws vary throughout the Empire from State to State. In
some, attendance is required until children are 14 years old. In others, as in
Bavaria, children finish school at the age of 13.
1 Before the law o f December 28, 1908, was passed this provision read “ after
8.30 p. m. nor before 5.30 a. m.” The new provision went into effect on Janu
ary 1, 1910.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
247
day there shall be regular intervals for rest. . For young laborers who
work only 6 hours a day this interval must last at least half an hour;
for other young persons there must be at least an hour’s pause at noon
and a half hour’s pause in the morning and in the afternoon. The
morning and afternoon pauses need not be granted if the work does
not last longer than 8 hours and i f the morning and afternoon work
ing periods do not exceed 4 hours each.
During the pauses young laborers must not be employed at any
kind o f work, nor may they remain in the work places unless that
part o f the establishment in which they are employed ceases work
entirely during these pauses or unless it is impracticable for the em
ployees to remain in the open air and other suitable rooms can not be
provided for them without exceptional difficulty.
A t the termination o f the day’s work, young laborers must be given
an uninterrupted rest period o f at least 11 hours. They must not
be employed on Sundays or holidays, nor during the hours fixed for
religious instruction.
Section 137: Female laborers shall not be employed at night be
tween 8 p. m. and 6 a. m., nor after 5 p. m. on Saturdays and days
preceding holidays.
The employment o f female laborers must not exceed 10 hours a
day, nor 8 hours on Saturdays and days preceding holidays.
The workday for female laborers shall be interrupted by a midday
pause o f at least 1 hour.
After the termination o f the workday, they must be given an
uninterrupted period of at least 11 hours for rest.
Female laborers who have to take care o f a household must upon
their request be permitted to leave half an hour before the midday
pause, unless this pause amounts to at least 1J hours.
No female persons may be employed in coke manufactures or in
transporting or carrying materials for building enterprises o f any
kind. (a)
Section 137a: Young laborers and female laborers must not be given
work to do outside o f the regular work place after they have been
employed during- the maximum period per day allowed by law ; nor
may they undertake such work for other employers. On days when
the working period is shorter than that allowed by law, this addi
tional outside work is permissible only to the extent that it can be
performed by a laborer o f average ability during the unused part o f
the maximum workday allowed by law. On Sundays and holidays,
such outside work is forbidden entirely.
Section 138: Whenever it is proposed to employ women or young
people as laborers, the employer must first notify the local police
authorities in writing, indicating his business, the days on which it is
0 The last part o f this provision does not go into effect until April 1, 1912.
248
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
proposed to employ these laborers, the beginning and end o f the
workday and pauses, as well as the nature o f the work to be per
formed. Changes in these matters— apart from the substitution o f
other laborers for those who have been unable to work—shall not be
made without notifying the authorities.
In every establishment the employer must have posted conspicu
ously, in the rooms in which young persons are employed, a list of
these young persons, indicating the days upon which they are em
ployed, the time at which they begin and stop work, and the time and
duration o f the pauses. He must also post up the provisions o f the
law concerning the employment o f women and young laborers, as
prescribed by the central authorities.
Section 138a: In cases of an exceptional accumulation o f work the
lower administrative authorities may, upon the petition of the em
ployer, permit the employment o f female laborers over 16 years of
age until 9 p. m., on week days other than Saturdays, for a period of
two weeks; provided, that the daily period o f work shall not exceed
12 hours and that the period o f rest after the day’s work be not less
than 10 hours. Such permission may be granted an employer for
his entire plant or for any part thereof not longer than for a total
period o f 40 days in any calendar year. I f the period o f this per
mission exceeds 2 weeks, it may be granted only by the higher adr
ministrative authorities, who shall not grant it for more than 50
days in the year unless the average duration o f the workday through
out the year does not exceed the legal maximum. The petition must
be made in writing and must state the reason for which it is made,
the number of female laborers concerned, the extent o f additional
work and the period during which it is to take place. The decision
o f the lower administrative authorities must be rendered in writing
within three days. An appeal from this decision may be made to
the higher authorities.
The lower administrative authorities may grant written permission
for female laborers over 16 years o f age, who have no household to
care for and who do not attend a continuation school, to remain after
5 p. m. on Saturdays and days preceding holidays, at the kinds o f
work numbered 3 and 4 in paragraph 1 o f section 105c; but upon
condition that this work shall not continue later than 8 p. m. and
that the female persons thus employed shall have no work on the
succeeding holiday or Sunday.
Section 139: I f occurrences beyond human control or accidents
interrupt the operation o f an establishment, exceptions may be
granted to the above provisions in sections 135 (except as to the age
o f admission), 136, and 137 (except as regards coke manufacture and
building enterprises) by the upper administrative authorities for
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
249
four weeks, or for a longer period by the imperial chancellor. In
urgent cases o f this sort, or in order to prevent accidents, the lower
administrative authorities may grant such exceptions, but not for
longer than 14 days.
I f the nature o f the establishment or the interests o f the laborers
make it desirable to regulate the workday o f female laborers and
o f young persons, otherwise than provided in sections 136 and 137,
modifications may be made upon special petition, in the matter o f
pauses, by the higher administrative authorities, and in other respects
by the imperial chancellor. But in such cases young persons must
not be employed more than 6 hours unless there are pauses in the
working period amounting to at least 1 hour. Moreover, such modi
fications must not be made without prior consultation with repre
sentatives o f the laborers concerned.
Section 139a: The Federal Council is given the following powers:
(1) To forbid the employment o f women and young persons en
tirely, or to permit their employment only under certain conditions, in
occupations that involve special danger to their health or morality.
(2) To grant exceptions to the provisions concerning hours of
work, pauses, night work, and daily periods o f rest, in the case of
establishments using continuous fire or required to operate regularly
by night and by day, as well as those not permitting a division of
the work into shifts of equal duration, and those establishments whose
work is o f such a nature as to be restricted to certain seasons o f the
year. An exception to the provision that young persons must be
given at least 11 hours for rest at the end of the day’s work may be
made only for males.
(3) To permit the curtailment or omission of the pauses prescribed
for young persons in certain branches o f industry if the nature of
the industry, or regard for the laborers, makes it desirable.
(4) To permit exceptions to the first, second, and fourth para
graphs o f section 137 in those industrial branches in which there is
an exceptional demand for labor at certain seasons o f the year. But
these exceptions are subject to the following restrictions: They must
not exceed a total period o f 40 days in any calendar year; the daily
working period must not exceed 12 hours, nor 8 hours on Satur
day ; the period o f rest following the day’s work must amount to at
least 10 consecutive hours and must include the hours between 10 p. m.
and 5 a. m.
(5) To permit exceptions to the first, second, third, and fourth
parts o f section 137 in those industrial branches in which night work
is imperatively necessary to prevent the deterioration of raw material
or of partly finished goods, but upon the condition that the uninter
rupted period o f rest shall not be reduced to less than 8J hours in 24,
250
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
and that the frequency o f such exception shall not exceed GO days in
any calendar year.
In the cases enumerated above under (2) the hours o f work per
week must not exceed 36 for children, 60 for young persons^ and 58 for
female laborers. The duration of night work must not exceed 10
hours in any 24, and must be interrupted by pauses amounting to at
least 1 hour for each shift o f laborers. Day and night shifts must
alternate every week.
In the cases enumerated under (3) young persons must not be
employed more than 6 hours unless they are given one or more inter
vals for rest amounting to at least 1 hour.
In the cases enumerated under (4) permission may be granted for
overtime work during a period o f more than 40 days, but not more
than 50, provided the working period is such that the average number
o f hours’ work per day throughout the year does not exceed the usual
legal limit.
The regulations which the Federal Council is empowered to enact
shall be valid only for stated periods o f time, and may be made to
apply only to particular regions of the Empire. They must be pub
lished in the Imperial Gazette and communicated to the Imperial
Diet.
The remaining sections o f the Industrial Code have no specific
reference to nonadult workers, and except for the provisions regard
ing the general enforcement o f the law and the penalties which may
be imposed for its violation they lie outside the scope of the present
investigation. It should be borne in mind, moreover, that the pro
visions o f the code do not apply equally to all sorts of employees.
Industrial employees in establishments having, as a rule, less than 10
laborers are not subject to the law unless it is specifically so provided.
Nor does the law apply to employees in sanatoria, drug stores, mer
cantile establishments, musical or theatrical performances, gardening,
hotels, taverns, restaurants, and transportation enterprises. The pro
visions o f sections 135 (except as regards the age o f admission), 136,
and 138 do hot apply to young persons of the male sex employed in
bakeries or in establishments in wThich bread and pastry are made
unless distinct shifts of day laborers and night laborers are regularly
employed. Nor does the provision that female laborer^ must not be
employed after 5 p. m. on Saturdays and days preceding holidays
apply to baking establishments.
A ll o f the provisions contained in sections 135 to 139a do apply,
however, to metallurgical plants, to places for the preparation of
building materials, to docks, and to workshops for the manufacture
o f tobacco products, even though they employ as a rule less than 10
laborers. They apply to brick works and overground mines and
quarries in which at least 5 laborers are employed as ai rule. They
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
251
apply to mines, salt works, ore-dressing works, and underground
quarries, even though they employ as a rule less than 10 laborers;
and no female person may be employed underground in such enter
prises, nor in loading and unloading or transporting the products
thereof. They apply, furthermore, to workshops regularly using
steam, wind, water, gas, air, electricity, etc., as a motive power, even
though less than 10 laborers are employed therein as a rule, subject
to certain exceptions that may be granted by the Federal Council.
They may be made to apply, in part or in their entirety, by resolu
tion of the Federal Council, to other workshops in which as a rule
less than 10 laborers are employed, and to places for the preparation
of building materials in which as a rule less than 10 laborers are
employed. But workshops in which only members o f the employer’s
family are employed are not subject to the code.
O f the right to extend the provisions o f the Industrial Code to
other workshops in which as a rule less than 10 laborers are employed
(provided the laborers are not members o f the employer’s family)
the Federal Council has made occasional use.
By an ordinance o f May 31, 1897, modified and extended under
date o f February 17, 1904, the provisions of the code concerning the
employment o f women, young persons, and children were applied to
the following workshops:
1. Those in which men’s and boys’ clothing is made wrholesale.
2. Those in which women’s and children’s clothing is made whole
sale or to measure (upon the order and for the use o f customers).
3. Those in which hats for women and children are trimmed.
4. Those in which underclothing is made wholesale.
To these four kinds of establishments the provisions o f sections
135, 136, 137, 138, 138a, and 139 o f the Industrial Code apply in
their entirety.
By an ordinance o f February 21, 1907, the Federal Council ex
tended the provisions o f the Industrial Code to “ all workshops in
which is carried on the labor necessary for the manufacture o f cigars,
cigarettes, smoking tobacco, chewing tobacco, and snuff, or in which
these products are sorted.” This ordinance applies to “ workshops
using motive power, even i f they usually employ less than 10
laborers,” but not to “ workshops which employ only persons belong
ing to the family o f the employer.”
O f the power to forbid the employment o f women and young per
sons in occupations involving exceptional danger to their health or
morals, or to permit their employment only upon certain conditions
(see sec. 139a, already quoted), the Federal Council has also made
frequent use (p. 252).
Numerous provisions concern the protection o f employees against
the danger o f accident, disease, and immoral influences. These pro
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BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
visions require in general that the workrooms, the machines, and the
devices employed in all industrial establishments must be of such a
character and so arranged as to prevent injury to the life and health
o f the employees (so far as the nature o f the industry permits). It
is especially provided that there must be sufficient light, air, and
ventilation, and that noxious gases, dust, and refuse be removed.
So far as the nature o f the occupation permits, male and female em
ployees must be separated, and in establishments in which employees
need to change clothes there must be separate dressing rooms for
males and females. Employers are particularly required to preserve
conditions o f safety and decency whenever they employ women or
persons under 18 years o f age.
The Federal Council, the central authorities o f the separate Prov
inces, and the police authorities are empowered to prescribe specific
ally the conditions which must be observed in fulfillment o f the above
provisions. In the exercise o f this power special rules have been
established in the following occupations: The manufacture o f lead
colors and other lead products; the manufacture o f cigars; the manu
facture o f alkali-chromates; printing offices and type foundries; the
manufacture o f electric accumulators with lead and lead compounds;
horsehair spinning, and the manufacture o f hair and bristle goods
and brushes; making phosphatic manure out o f basic slag from the
Bessemer process; zinc works; the manufacture of vulcanized rub
ber products; glass works, glass cutting, glass etching, and sand
blasting; quarries and stone cutting; the manufacture of sexual
appliances, etc.; lead works; enameling, lacquering, sign painting,
house painting; whitewashing and pargeting; rolling mills and
forges; brick works; the manufacture o f chicory; sugar refining and
the manufacture o f raw sugar; bakeries; the manipulation o f fibrous
materials, animal hair, refuse, and old rags; hotels and taverns; flour
mills; canning and preserving fish, fruit, and vegetables; dairies;
chemical cleaning establishments; gas power plants; the manufacture
o f mirrors; spinning m ills; the manufacture o f heavy iron products;
coal mines; and the manufacture o f water gas. A law under date
o f May 10, 1903, entirely forbids the manufacture o f white phos
phorus matches.
In all o f these trades and occupations the Federal Council has
established more or less definite and elaborate rules with regard to
the precautions which must be taken to prevent occupational diseases
and accidents, and to safeguard as far as possible the health, safety,
and morality o f the employees. In many o f them it is provided that
the laborers shall be examined from time to time by accredited
physicians designated for this purpose by the higher administrative
authorities, and i f any of the employees are found to be ill or in a
physically unfit condition they shall be kept away from dangerous
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
253
or unhealthful workrooms or processes. These provisions o f course
apply to nonadults as well as to adults. Concerning women and
children employees, moreover, certain additional restrictions are im
posed in a number o f these trades and occupations. These are as
follows:
1. In the production o f electrical accumulators with lead or lead
compounds it is forbidden to employ children under 16 years o f age
or female laborers at work which brings them into contact with lead
or lead compounds.
2. In brick and tile works it is forbidden to employ females or chil
dren under 16 at procuring or transporting the raw materials, includ
ing the prepared clay; at molding by hand, except roof tiles and
scouring stones; at work in the ovens or in firing them, except to fill
and empty smother-kilns that open at the top; or at transporting
molded, dried, or burnt bricks, etc., when done by means of wheel
barrows or similar vehicles and there are no rails or hard flat surfaces
for moving them.
3. In establishments in which basic slag is ground, or basic slag is
stored, the presence or employment o f females or o f boys under 18
years o f age is forbidden in the rooms in which loose slag is brought;
nor may laborers under 18 be employed to beat sacks which have
already been used.
4. In zinc works, female persons and children under 16 years of
age must not operate distilling furnaces, nor remove the ashes, nor
sieve or pack the by-products o f zinc smelting.
5. In establishments for the manufacture o f chicory, the labor and
presence o f women and o f children under 16 is forbidden in the rooms
in which drying kilns are in operation.
6. In the several branches o f glass manufacture there are distinct
and somewhat detailed provisions regarding the employment of
females and o f children under 16. (c)
A.
The work or presence o f females and of boys under 14 is for
bidden in rooms in which work is done in front o f the ovens (for
smelting, cooling, annealing, and flattening) and in which the tema To determine the frequency with which young persons were legally employed
at night in glass works and in rolling mills and iron forges, the German division
of the International Association for Labor Legislation in 1909 had the labor
inspectors collect data upon this subject. The results indicated that in 1909
there were employed the following numbers o f persons under 16 years o f age in
?lass w orks: Prussia, 1,871; Bavaria, 314; Hesse, 40 ; Wurttemberg, 36 ; Saxony,
L73; Baden, 35; Sachsen-Weimar, 52; Saehsen-Meiningen, 14; Oldenburg, 20;
Schaumburg, 30; and Hamburg, 6. The duration o f night work for these per
sons varied considerably. In many instances it did not amount to more than
one or two hours o f work beyond the hour fixed by law as marking the begin
ning o f “ night; ” but in many cases full advantage was taken of the maximum
allowed by the Federal Council. (Soziale Praxis for September, 1910.)
56504°—No. 89—10-----17
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BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
perature is exceptionally high (because o f pot furnaces and the lik e );
but exceptions may be allowed by the Federal Council.
The work or presence o f females or o f boys under 16 is forbidden
in the rooms in which raw materials or cullet are broken up or mixed,
or in which work is done with liquid hydric fluoride; nor may such
persons be employed at sand blasting. Boys under 16 and females
must not be employed at grinding lathes. Nor may adult women be
employed at cutting glass when the glass is dry or the cutting wheel
is not worked by motor pow er; the higher administrative authorities
may, however, upon request o f the employer permit their employment
at dry cutting whenever suitable apparatus has been provided to
draw off the dust which is generated.
Males under 16 years o f age, so far as their employment is per
mitted at all by the above regulations, may be employed only if
equipped with a medical certificate made out by the physicians desig
nated for this purpose by the higher administrative authorities to the
effect that their employment is admissible without menace to their
health or physical development.
B.
In glass works in which the glass metal is melted and worked
up— apart from plate-glass works in which rolled glass is produced—
the provisions o f section 136 o f the Industrial Code are suspended as
regards male laborers under 16 years o f age working in front o f the
ovens (fo r smelting, cooling, annealing, and flattening), save for the
following modifications: Shifts o f laborers engaged in this work
must not be employed for a longer period than 12 hours, including
pauses, or 10 hours, excluding pauses; the total hours o f work per
week must not exceed 60, excluding pauses; the work o f every shift
must be interrupted by one or more pauses having a total duration
o f not less than 1 hour; interruptions o f less than a quarter o f an
hour shall not, as a rule, be counted as part o f the required pauses, one
o f which must last at least half an hour; the higher administrative
authorities, however, may allow such short interruptions to be counted
as part o f the pauses i f the young persons concerned are employed
in shifts working 8 hours or less and are engaged in work which
is so light and interrupted by so many sufficient pauses for rest that
there is no danger to their health; but even in such cases there must
be one pause o f at least half an hour. Such permission, moreover,
may be granted only on condition that the young persons concerned
be given a pause between the two shifts of at least 24 hours’ duration
in plate and window glass works, and at least 16 hours’ duration in
bottle glass works.
I f the works are operated by day and night there must be a change
o f shifts every week. This does not apply to those glass works in
which the work is so arranged that the young laborers have a rest o f
at least 24 hours between each two days o f work. The young labor
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
255
ers must not be employed during the pauses for adult laborers. Be
tween every two shifts there must be a rest period of at least 12
hours. On Sundays and holidays there shall be no work between
6 a. m. and 6 p. m .; should two or more holidays come together, this
rule applies only to the first.
C. In glass works in which the melting processes and manufactur
ing processes are carried on by alternating shifts, the employment of
boys under 16 years o f age at work in front o f the ovens (for smelt
ing, cooling, annealing, and flattening) is not governed by section
135, paragraph 2, and section 136 o f the Industrial Code, save for
the following modifications:
The total duration of employment must not exceed 60 hours a week,
excluding pauses. Not more than half o f the total duration of em
ployment within two weeks shall fall between the hours o f 6 p. m. and
.6 a. m. The total duration of pauses must be at least 1 hour for
shifts working not more than 10 hours, or one and a half hours for
shifts working more than 10 hours. Interruptions o f less than a
quarter o f an hour shall not be counted as part o f the pauses, one
o f which shall last at least half an hour. In the period between
6 p. m. and 6 a. m. the duration o f employment must not exceed 10
hours, exclusive o f pauses. During the pauses for adults the young
laborers shall not work. Between each two days o f work there must
be a rest period o f at least the duration, o f the preceding day’s work.
During the rest period it is permitted to employ the young persons at
auxiliary occupations, provided that before or after their employment
they are not required to do any work at all for a period equivalent
to that o f the last day’s work. Work at these auxiliary employments
shall be counted as part o f the week’s work. On Sundays the work
may occur between 6 a. m. and 6 p. m. only once in two weeks.
D. In glass works taking advantage o f the exceptions allowed
under B and C, the provisions o f section 138, paragraph 2, o f the
Industrial Code apply with the following modifications: The list of
employees under 16 years o f age, that must be posted up in the work
places, must be so arranged that the laborers employed in separate
shifts shall be listed separately.
The list for glass works indicated under C need not indicate, for
the young persons who work in front o f the ovens, the days on which
they are employed, the time of work, nor the pauses; but instead of
this the law prescribes a chart upon which certain items must be
entered for each shift, during the time it is at work or immediately
at the end o f each working period. This chart shall contain the pre
scribed data for at least the last fourteen working shifts and the
name o f the person who made the entries. The higher administra
tive authorities may suspend the rule regarding the chart, upon
request, in the case o f individual works, so far as certain specified
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BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
kinds o f work are concerned in which the young persons employed
therein are regularly granted pauses at least equivalent to those set
forth under C. But this suspension o f the rule concerning the
required charts is subject at all times to repeal.
It is provided, finally, that the above provisions sanctioning certain
exceptions to the general rule regarding the employment o f young
persons shall be conspicuously posted up in the works which take
advantage o f these exceptions.
7. In raw-sugar factories, sugar refineries, and establishments for
the extraction o f sugar from molasses, the employment o f females
and o f children under 16 years o f age is subject to the following
rules: Female laborers and children under 16 must not be employed
at hoppers and washing machines, at elevators, or at transporting
beets and sliced beets in vehicles that are hard to move. In the fill
houses, centrifugal rooms, crystallizing rooms, exsiccating rooms,
macerating rooms, the rooms for clarifying loaf sugar, for rasping,
and for drying strontia muffles, as well as other work places in which
an exceptionally high temperature prevails, the work or presence of
young persons and o f women is forbidden while these processes are
being carried on.
8. In metal rolling mills and forging works operating with con
tinuous fire, the employment o f women and young persons is subject
to the following limitations:. Women must not be employed at work
directly connected with the furnace (rolling, forging, e tc.); children
under 14 years o f age must not be employed in these works at all.
In rolling and forging works making iron or steel products with
continuous fire employing young persons o f the male sex at work
directly connected with the furnaces, the provisions o f section 136 of
the Industrial Code apply only with the following modifications:
No young person may be employed without a medical certificate
from an accredited physician authorized by the higher administrative
authorities to issue such certificates, attesting that the bearer’s phys
ical condition is such as to permit his employment in the works with
out danger to his health.
The duration o f each shift o f work shall not exceed 12 hours
including pauses or 10 hours excluding pauses. The work o f each
shift must be interrupted by pauses o f a total duration o f at least
one hour. Interruptions lasting less than a quarter o f an hour are
not counted as part o f the pauses. But if in any establishment the
work done by the young persons is so light and involves so many
sufficient pauses for rest that any injury to their health is thereby
excluded, the higher administrative authorities may, upon request
and subject to withdrawal at any time, permit such short pauses to
be counted as part o f the required total pauses. I f young persons
work for a longer period than 8 hours, one o f the pauses must be
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
257
for at least half an hour, and must take place between the end of
the fourth and the beginning o f the eighth hour o f work. The
total working period in a week must not exceed 60 hours, excluding
pauses. I f the works are operated day and night there must be a
change o f shifts every week. In works having two daily shifts, the
hours o f work must be so arranged that employees under 16 years
o f age shall not be required to work between 8.30 p. m. and 5.30 a. m.
(night shifts) more than six times a week. Between every two shifts
o f work there must be a rest period o f at least 12 hours, during
which the laborers concerned shall engage in no work whatever.
On Sundays and holidays there shall be no work between 6 a. m.
and 6 p. m. Work may be done on Sundays before or after this
period only i f the young people are given an uninterrupted rest
period o f at least 24 hours either before or after the working period.
Young people must not be employed during the pauses for adults.
It is provided, finally, that in rolling and forging works taking
advantage o f the exceptions permitted above, there must be a list o f
the young persons employed therein, indicating separately the young
persons in each shift o f laborers, as well as the times fixed for pauses
(if such pauses occur regularly), or (if not fixed regularly) a chart
analogous to that referred to under 5 D (p. 255) and subject to
suspension at any time. The provisions sanctioning exceptions to
the general rules regarding the employment o f young persons must
be conspicuously posted up in the works which take advantage o f
these exceptions.
9. In lead works female laborers and young persons under 16 years
o f age must not be present or be employed in the rooms in which lead
ores are roasted, calcinated, or melted down, or in which crude lead
is obtained and subjected to further processes, or in which rich lead is
cupeled or litharge or other oxide compounds o f lead are produced,
ground, sieved, stored, or packed, or in which zinc scum is distilled;
nor is their work or their presence permitted in the lead-fume rooms
and flues for condensing lead fumes or in transporting fume lead.
10. In the manufacture o f lead colors and other lead products
(white lead, chromate o f lead, massicot, Naples yellow, iodide o f lead,
acetate o f lead, litharge, minium, peroxide o f lead, oxychloride of
lead, Cassel yellow, Turner’s yellow) the work or presence o f women
is permitted only to the extent that they do not come into contact with
dust, vapor, or gases containing lead or handle materials composed
partly o f lead. The presence or work o f young persons is entirely
forbidden in establishments serving exclusively or mainly for the
manufacture o f lead colors or other chemical products o f lead; in
other establishments making lead products the same provisions apply
to young persons as those above enumerated for women. A ll em
ployees engaged in the manufacture o f the enumerated lead products
258
B U LLETIN OP TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
or exposed to contact with lead gases, vapors, or materials must be
equipped with a physician’s certificate to the effect that they are
physically sound and not suffering from diseases o f the lungs, kidneys,
or stomach. Persons under 18 years o f age may not be employed at
all in filling or emptying oxidizing chambers, or in packing lead
colors and other chemical lead products in the dry state; but the
higher administrative authorities may upon request grant permission
to employ them in packing small quantities o f colors containing a
small proportion o f lead or in making small packages intended for
retail trade.
11. In the manufacture o f alkaline chromates no women or young
persons shall be employed except in operations which do not bring
them into contact with the chromates. No person shall be engaged
for work in chromate processes unless he produces a certificate o f a
qualified physician certifying that he is free from open wounds, sup
purating sores, and cutaneous eruptions.
12. A “ notification ” o f the imperial chancellor under date o f
March 4, 1896, concerning bakeries and confectioneries provides that
apprentices in these establishments shall have a maximum working
period two hours shorter than that o f adult laborers during the first
year o f their apprenticeship, and one hour shorter during the second
year o f apprenticeship, except on days when overtime work has been
sanctioned by the lower administrative authorities because o f holi
days or extraordinary occasions and on 20 other days in the year
chosen by the employer. In bakeries and confectioneries in which
apprentices are given twenty-four hours for rest, beginning not later
than 10 p. m. on Saturday, the workday may be lengthened two
hours on each o f the two preceding days; but even in such cases the
apprentice in his first year o f apprenticeship must have a rest period
o f at least ten hours between two working shifts and in his second
year at least nine hours. Apprentices are persons engaged in the
actual production o f the goods made, including even persons under
16 years o f age.
13. In printing offices and type foundries type cases must be cleaned
in the open air by means o f bellows, and this work must not be in
trusted to laborers under 16 years o f age.
14. In the manipulation o f fibrous materials, animal hair, refuse,
or old rags the work or presence o f young persons is forbidden, while
operations are being carried on, in hackle rooms, in rooms in which
are operated the machines for opening, separating, raveling, cleaning, greasing, or mixing raw or old fibrous materials, animal hair,
refuse, or rags, or in which animal hair is cleaned or separated
(felted) by hand. Carding (combing) wool and cotton is not in
cluded in the above provision; nor does it apply to establishments
employing as a rule fewer than 10 laborers or in which mechanical
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
259
motive power (steam, wind, water, gas, air, electricity, etc.) is not
used, or is used only temporarily. In rooms in which rags are opened,
sorted, torn, cleaned, greased, mixed, or packed, the presence or work
o f young persons is forbidden while these operations are carried on.
15. Concerning the employment o f apprentices and laborers ( Gehilfen) in hotels and taverns, the Imperial Chancellor issued a “ noti
fication” under date o f January 23, 1902, according to which em
ployees and apprentices under 16 years o f age must have a rest period
o f at least 9 hours at the close o f the workday. This provision may
be made to apply also, by local police ordinance, to employees and
apprentices over 16 years o f age, for whom otherwise the rest period
must be at least eight hours seven times a week, save that the begin
ning o f the first rest period may fall in the preceding week and the
end o f the last may fall in the following week. The maximum
working period o f fifteen or sixteen hours may, however, be increased
60 times a year; but every time that a laborer or apprentice is in
cluded in this arrangement it must be counted as one o f the 60 per
missible times; and even in such cases the week’s work must be
interrupted by seven rest periods o f the prescribed length.
Employees and apprentices under 16 years o f age must not be
employed in the time between 10 p. m. and 6 a. m .; nor may female
employees and apprentices under 18 years o f age who do not belong
to the family o f the employer be employed in serving guests during
this time.
The terms employee and apprentice include persons o f either sex
engaged in hotels and taverns as head waiters, waiters, or waiter’s
apprentices, cooks or cook’s apprentices, or at buffets and bars, or in
the preparation o f cold refreshments. Those persons are excluded,
however, who are employed mainly in mercantile or other industrial
occupations connected with hotels and taverns, provided their em
ployment in these other occupations is regulated by other provisions
o f imperial legislation.
The higher administrative authorities may grant permission for
health resorts and bathing resorts to curtail the daily rest period for
a period o f not over three months in the case o f hotel employees and
apprentices over 16 years o f age.
16. Employees and apprentices in flour mills must be given at least
8 consecutive hours for rest in every 24 hours following the begin
ning o f their working period. I f the mills are operated exclusively
or mainly by steam power, the daily rest period must last at least
10 hours.
In establishments regularly operating with day and
night shifts the rest period on Sundays may be curtailed to the ex
tent that this is necessary to effect the weekly change o f shifts. But
these rules shall not apply to flour mills using wind as their exclusive
motive power. For flour mills using irregular water power to propel
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BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
their machinery, and employing not more than one laborer, the
lower administrative authorities may on not more than 15 days in
the year grant exceptions to the above provisions concerning daily
rest periods.
In the meaning o f the present provisions, employees and appren
tices are persons employed to operate the milling apparatus, including
those under 16 years o f age, who have not yet become journeymen
( Gehilfen), although they may not be bound by a contract o f appren
ticeship.
17. In establishments for canning fruit and vegetables employing
as a rule not fewer than 10 laborers, the work o f female employees
over 16 years o f age may be carried on upon not more than 60 days
o f the* year, contrary to section 137, paragraphs 1, 2, and 4, o f the
Industrial Code, upon the following conditions, counting every day
upon which one or more female laborers are thus employed.
The work must not begin before 4.30 a. m. nor end later than 10
p. m. I f it is done on Saturday or the day preceding a holiday it
may be continued after 7.30 p. m. only upon the condition that the
female laborers thus employed shall do no work at all on the follow
ing Sunday or holiday. The daily working period must not exceed
13 hours. The period for daily rest must amount to at least 8J con
secutive hours. A chart must be posted up conspicuously in the work
places indicating, for each day on which female laborers are employed
contrary to section 137 of the Industrial Code, the number of hours
o f overtime work done by the female laborers working the greatest
number o f hours, as well as the precise time at which the period allot
ted for the night’s rest began and ended on each day.
18. In fish canning and preserving establishments employing as a
rule not fewer than 10 persons the employment of female laborers at
smoking, curing, and pickling sea fish is regulated as follow s:
Notwithstanding section 137, paragraph 1, o f the Industrial Code,
female laborers over 16 years o f age may be employed until 7.30 p. m.
on Saturdays and days preceding holidays. Female laborers over 16
years o f age may be employed on not more tham 60 workdays in the
calendar year, in conformity with the same restrictions as those which
apply to canning fruit and vegetables, save that the work must not
begin, before 6 a. m. nor continue after 10 p. m. The higher admin
istrative authorities may, however, determine that in certain districts
or certain parts thereof, section 137, paragraph 1, o f the Industrial
Code, shall not apply to female laborers over 16 years o f age em
ployed in handling sea fish that are delivered to the canning establish
ments by the fishermen immediately after the landing o f the boats.
19. In workshops in which painting, whitewashing, pargeting, and
lacquering is done, only male laborers over 18 years o f age may be
employed to grind lead colors by hand.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
261
20. In dairies and in establishments for sterilizing milk the employ
ment o f female laborers over 16 years of age is not governed between
April 1 to October 1 by the provisions of section 137, paragraph 1,
o f the Industrial Code, except in accordance with the following modi
fications : The hours for work must be between 4 a. m. and 10 p. m.
The female laborers who are employed after 8.30 p. m. must be given
a midday pause o f at least 3 hours.
21. In the manufacture or packing of sexual appliances, etc., the
work or presence of laborers under 18 years of age is forbidden. In
rooms in which suspensories are made or packed, all o f the employees
must be o f one sex. The presence in such places o f young persons or
o f female persons under 21 years of age is prohibited.
22. In establishments for spinning horsehair, preparing hair and
bristles, and making brushes, persons under 16 years o f age must not
handle materials that have not been disinfected if the manipulation
subjects such persons to serious risk; nor may they be employed to
disinfect the materials that are required by law to be disinfected.
23. In stone quarries and the preparation o f stone for building pur
poses the laborers employed in the actual work o f quarrying the stone
must not work more than 10 hours a day. Those who subject sand
stone to further modifications, such as dressing, must not work more
than 9 hours. Exceptions may be granted by the lower administra
tive authorities, in cases o f necessity or in cases of public interest,
for not more than two additional hours per day and for not more
than 14 days. Female laborers and young persons must not be em
ployed in stone quarries at the work o f actually quarrying the stone
or at removing stone debris or in the processes o f working at the
rough stone—that is to say, at the work o f making paving stones.
But the higher administrative authorities may for a district or a part
thereof grant exceptions permitting female laborers over 18 years o f
age to be employed in making paving stones, in which case the dura
tion o f work must not exceed 6 hours per day.
In cutting stones young persons must not be employed at work
upon dry sandstone, nor may female persons be employed at any
other kind o f work which exposes them to the effects o f stone dust.
When young persons are employed to work upon moist sandstone,
even during a part o f the day, they must not be employed more than 9
hours a day. Moreover, young persons and females must not be
employed at the transportation, loading, or unloading o f stones and
waste. In slate quarries the higher administrative authorities may
grant exceptions to the extent o f permitting young persons to be
employed at such kinds o f labor connected with transportation, load
ing, and* unloading as is suited to their strength. The same excep
tion may be made to apply to female laborers in certain districts or
parts thereof.
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BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
24. In mining coal, lead ore, and zinc ore, and in establishments for
the manufacture o f coke in the administrative district of Oppeln, it
is provided that for female employees over 18 years o f age the
provisions o f section 187, paragraph 3, of the Industrial Code shall
not apply except to the extent that the work o f these employees shall
be interrupted by pauses amounting to a total duration o f at least one
hour, and that the maximum period o f work per day shall not exceed
10 hours. I f there are several pauses, one o f them must last at least
half an hour. The first shift o f workers shall not begin work before
5 a. m. nor the second end work later than 10 p. m .; nor shall the
working period o f each shift be longer than 8 hours.
25. In the coal mines o f Prussia, Baden, and Alsace-Lorraine,
working with 8-hour shifts o f laborers, the work o f boys over 14
years o f age above the surface in operations directly connected with
the mining o f the coal is not subject to the rules of section 136,
paragraphs 1 and 2, o f the Industrial Code, save with the following
modifications:
Work must not begin before 5 a. m., and when there are two daily
shifts it must not continue after 11 p. m. No shift must work longer
than 8 hours, including pauses. On days preceding Sundays and
holidays work may begin at 4 a. m., and if there are two shifts per
day it may continue until 1 a. m. on the next workday.
Between the work of two shifts young persons must be given a
rest period o f at least 15 hours. The rest period preceding work on
days before Sundays and holidays and the rest period after work on
days following Sundays and holidays must each last at least 13 hours.
The hours for work o f young laborers must be interrupted on every
workday by one or more pauses o f a total duration o f not less than
one hour. Tw o o f the pauses must last at least a quarter of an hour
each, or three pauses must last at least ten minutes each.
In shifts working not more than six hours, boys over 14 years of
age may be employed at work, above the surface in coal mines, that
is consistent with their strength, regardless o f the provisions con
cerning pauses set forth in section 136, paragraph 1, o f the Industrial
Code, provided the character o f the work is such as to involve pauses.
The provisions already stated with regard to the time work may be
begun or terminated and with regard to rest periods between shifts
shall also apply in these cases.
Young persons employed in the designated kinds o f work must be
equipped with a medical certificate indicating that the bearer may
engage therein without menace to his health or physical development.
26. In industrial establishments for vulcanizing rubber, persons
under 18 years o f age must not be employed at the work af vulcan
ization by means o f bisulphide o f carbon or in operations which expose
the laborers to the effects o f bisulphide o f carbon.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
263
27.
Concerning factories and other industrial establishments in
which cigars are manufactured or sorted by other employees than
those belonging to the family o f the employer, it is provided that
female employees and young persons may not be employed unless
they are in the direct employ o f the head o f the establishment. It is
not permitted to have such laborers employed or paid by other
laborers or on the accounts o f other laborers unless they are direct
relatives.
The above 27 groups of occupations are regulated as indicated for
the German Empire as a whole. Additional regulations may in many
instances be established, and, in fact, have been established, by the
separate States o f the Empire or by minor political subdivisions
within each o f the States. Hence there is a great variety o f re
strictive regulation not only from State to State but within each
State o f the Empire.
In mercantile establishments (i. e., places where goods are offered
for sale, such as shops and stores) and in the storerooms and offices
connected therewith, employees must be provided with seats. (a) A t
the termination o f the day’s work, they must be given at least 10 con
secutive hours for rest. In communities with more than 20,000 in
habitants, this period must be at least 11 hours for mercantile estab
lishments employing two or more “ hands ” or apprentices. In
smaller communities, the period may be determined by local ordi
nance. During the workday, employees must be given a suitable mid
day rest. I f they take their midday meal outside o f the establish
ment, this interval must not be less than
hours; but there are a
few exceptions to this provision.
These exceptions are limited to three groups: (1) W ork that must
be done at once in order to prevent goods from spoiling; (2) taking
the inventory provided for by law or at such times as a business is
started or moved from one place to another; (3) in addition to the
above, the local police authorities may grant exceptions, for par
ticular branches o f business or for mercantile establishments gener
ally, on not more than thirty days in the year.
To facilitate compliance with the rules concerning night rest, it is
provided that mercantile establishments must be closed from 9 p. m.
to 5 a. m. It is permitted, however, for them to remain open after
9 o’clock under the following conditions: (a) In cases o f unforeseen
necessity; (6) on 40 days designated by the local police authorities,
when they may remain open until 10 p. m.; and ( c) at such times
as the higher administrative authorities may permit it in smaller
towns and country districts under circumstances set forth in the law.
Thus, if at least two-thirds o f the shopkeepers engaged in a partica By ordinance o f the Federal Council under date o f November 28, 1900.
264
BU LLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
ular line o f mercantile business in any town agree to it, the higher
administrative authorities may shorten the period during which the
establishments engaged in that business may remain open.
Thus the shops and stores in any line o f trading or in all branches
thereof may be ordered closed not only between 9 p. m. and 5 a. m.,
but between 8 p. m. and 7 a. m. during any part o f the year or during
the entire year. In this manner there were, in the middle o f the year
1908, 372 German cities with a population o f fifteen and one-half mil
lions in which the shops and stores were closed at 8 p. m. upon peti’
tion o f two-thirds o f the dealers in the communities concerned; and
in November, 1908, the city o f Berlin was added to the list.(°) On
A pril 1,1910, the neighboring cities o f Hamburg, Altona, and Wansbek adopted the 8 o’clock closing rule for all shops and stores selling
food products; only the cigar stores are permitted to remain open
until 9 p. m .(*6)
Mercantile establishments (i. e., shops and stores for the sale of
goods) in which apprentices are employed are subject to the same
rules regarding the attendance o f laborers at continuation schools,
and regarding workbooks, as the industrial concerns affected bv these
provisions.
The Federal Council is empowered by the Industrial Code to de
termine the duration o f the workday and o f the pauses for rest for
employees in any category o f industries in which an excessive period
o f labor might jeopardize the health o f the laborers engaged therein.
It is by means o f these executive ordinances that the protective
measures for child laborers are increased in number and extended
in scope without putting the whole legislative machinery into opera
tion. By the same means, the length o f the workday and the condi
tions o f labor for adults are also regulated by the Government in
spite o f the general theory that limitations must not be imposed upon
the right o f free contract for adult male laborers.
T o facilitate the work o f the authorities, and particularly o f the
labor inspectors, in securing the observance o f the provisions regard
ing the industries and occupations specially regulated by these admin
istrative ordinances, it is provided that the employers must keep a list
o f their employees and a working schedule. As a rule, it is also pro
vided in these occupations that employees under 16 years o f age must
not work between 10 p. m. and 6 a. m.
A working schedule, moreover, is required by the Industrial Code
in all establishments having at least 20 laborers. This schedule or set
o f rules, called “ Arbeitsordnung,” must be posted conspicuously in
the establishment, and must contain detailed information in regard to
such subjects as the beginning and end o f the workday and pauses,
° Soziale Rundschau for 1908, Band 2, page 730.
6 Soziale Praxis, March 3, 1910.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
265
the times and methods o f wage payment, the nature and amount o f
fines to which the laborers are subject and the use that is made of
these fines.
Under date o f December 28,1908, the Industrial Code was modified
in many important respects, particularly as regards the provisions
concerning the employment of women and children. Generally speak
ing, the code applies to all “ industrial establishments.” But it does
not define this term. Certain o f its provisions, notably those con
cerning women and children, apply only to “ factories and similar
establishments.” No definition o f “ factory ” is given. Hence all
manner o f difficulties and problems arose in the interpretation o f the
law. It was partly in order to do away with these difficulties that the
law o f December 28, 1908, was passed, abandoning the term “ fac
tory ” and using in its stead the two expressions, “ business enterprises
employing as a rule at least 20 laborers,” and 66business enterprises
employing as a rule at least 10 laborers.” Thus the new law substi
tuted for a single indefinite expression two definite ones. It extended
certain provisions o f the Industrial Code, moreover, to establishments
having less than 10 laborers. Indeed, some workshops are included
regardless o f the number o f persons employed therein. But it
should be remembered that this code, as its name indicates, applies as
a whole only to industrial establishments. It does not concern domes
tic service, agriculture, or forestry, nor does it concern domestic
workshops; that is to say, industries carried on within the home o f the
employer and with the aid o f the members o f the employer’s own
family. In the latter respect, it differs from the law o f 1903, which
for the first time boldly violated the tradition which forbade the law
to interfere with the presumably inviolate and sacred right o f par
ents to do what they please with their children.
The requirements o f the Industrial Code with regard to attendance
upon continuation and trade schools have a very important and
direct bearing upon the problem of nonadult labor. According to
section 120 o f the code (see p. 245), industrial employers are re
quired to grant to their employees under 18 yeais o f age who attend
a continuation school recognized by, the State or the community the
necessary time for compliance with the schedules o f such schools.
Another section o f the code (139i) extends the same rule to employ
ees and apprentices in commercial establishments in places where
there is a commercial or trade school recognized by the State or the
community. The term “ continuation school,” as used in the code,
includes institutions in which females receive instruction in handi
crafts or in domestic science. Attendance upon continuation or
trade schools may be made compulsory for all male laborers under
18 years o f age and for female employees and apprentices in com
mercial establishments wherever such attendance is not already ob
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BU LLETIN OF T H E BUREAU OF LABOR.
ligatory by virtue o f the law o f the State, by statute of the com
munity, or o f a group o f communities. The same authorities,xmore
over, may enact such measures as may be necessary to assure the
regular attendance o f the pupils upon these schools and to compel the
cooperation o f parents and employers. The place o f the continuation
schools may be taken by guild schools ( Innungschulen) i f the higher
administrative authorities regard them as furnishing equivalent
training. It should be noted, moreover, that the provisions o f section
120 apply to all industrial employees included within the scope of
the code; that it also includes employees and apprentices in commer
cial establishments; but that it applies neither to apprentices or em
ployees in drug stores nor to mine laborers. Section 139i o f the
code specifically requires the heads of commercial establishments to
see to it that their employees and apprentices attend the continuation
schools. It is manifest that the establishment o f these schools and
placing attendance in them upon a compulsory basis constitutes, in
effect, an important further restriction upon the employment o f
laborers under 18 years o f age.
The importance o f this restriction is clearly indicated by statistics
recently collected by the German Teachers’ Association (Deutscker
Lehrerverein) (a) in its report on the general subject o f continuation
schools in Germany. According to this report the States o f the Em
pire which still have no general rules upon the subject are few in
number—namely, Prussia, Oldenburg, Alsace-Lorraine, MecklenburgStrelitz, Anhalt, Schaumburg-Lippe, and Reuss (Senior Line).
Prussia, however, has a series o f laws upon the subject which apply
to certain kinds o f employees and laborers, particularly industrial
employees and laborers in mines.
Prussia in 1908 had 1,719 industrial and 381 commercial con
tinuation schools, with a total o f 360,000 pupils. There were, more
over, 204 technical schools in which 44,300 pupils were receiving
instruction in the building trades and the metal trades. For the
educational work under the direction o f the Ministry o f Commerce
and Industry the total State expenditure for 1910 will be more than
13 million marks ($3,094,000). Since 1884, 4,530,000 marks ($1,078,140) have been spent for the original equipment of continuation and
trades schools, and the expenditures o f the communes, which in 1885
amounted to a total o f 100,000 marks ($23,800), now amount to
nearly 2,000,000 marks ($476,000) annually for art trades schools,
handicraft schools, building trades schools, and metal trades schools
alone. It should be noted, furthermore, that the communes furnish
the buildings or rooms for the continuation schools, as a rule, and
that it is not uncommon for industrial school buildings to cost
$100,000 and in some instances $250,000.
a See Soziale Praxis for September 8, 1910, and June 30, 1910.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
267
Whereas, until a few years ago, attendance at continuation schools
was, as a rule, entirely optional and the hours of instruction few and
given at inconvenient times, the system o f compulsory attendance has
rapidly gained ground and the hours for instruction have been more
intelligently arranged. There are now few classes after 8 p. m .; the
teachers are more efficient and more carefully chosen; and a law is
now being elaborated that will require the establishment o f continua
tion schools for industrial employees in every Prussian town with a
population o f 10,000 and over.
The Prussian Industrial Office ( Landesgewerbeamt) recently re
ported that there are about 8,000,000 persons in Prussia between the
ages o f 14 and 18 years— 1,483,000 males and 1,527,000 females. O f
this number about 2,000,000 are engaged in gainful occupations—
1.250.000 males and 750,000 females—distributed as follows: In agri
culture, 205,000 males and 409,000 females; in industries, 650,000
males and 191,000 females; and in commerce and transportation,
114.000 males and 67,000 females. The number employed in occupa
tions that as a rule require special training o f some sort was, in
industry, 451,000 males and 91,000 females, and in commerce and
transportation, 63,000 males and 35,000 females. The untrained
laborers in industry between the ages o f 14 and 18 years numbered
31 per cent o f the males and 52 per cent o f the females; in commerce
the untrained males were 44 per cent, and the untrained females 48
per cent. About two-thirds o f those trained in handicrafts and about
one-third o f those trained in factories were employed as apprentices.
While there are 35,000 females between 14 and 18 years o f age in
commerce, there were only 4,600 females o f these ages, or 13 per cent,
in the continuation schools. While 764,000 males are employed in
industry and commerce and transportation, the pupils in industrial
and commercial continuation schools combined number only 361,375.
In Bavaria a royal ordinance o f June 4, 1903, fixes the required
school attendance for boys and girls at ten years, seven o f which are
passed in the common all-day schools and three in the secular Sunday
schools. Pupils may be exempted from attending these Sunday
schools i f they attend a continuation school which furnishes equiva
lent training. In the year 1907-8 these Sunday schools were fre
quented by 295,901 pupils—122,952 boys and 172,949 girls. There
were 347 industrial continuation schools with 54,774 pupils, and 44
continuation schools connected with the so-called “ Realschulen ”—
high schools with emphasis on vocational training. Commercial sub
jects were taught in 76 schools, having 6,300 male and 1,392 female
pupils. There were, moreover, 41 agricultural winter schools with
1,604 pupils, and 345 agricultural continuation schools with 6,616
pupils. The cost o f maintaining the continuation schools amounted
in 1907-8 to 1,980,143 marks ($471,274.03), o f which the State con
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BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
tributed only 111,562 marks ($26,551.76), or 5.6 per cent, the remain
der being provided by the communes and the administrative circuits
(Gemeinden and Kreise).
The school law o f Saxony, under date o f April 26, 1873, provides
that the boys who have finished the common schools shall for three
years thereafter attend continuation school—either the general con
tinuation school or an industrial or agricultural continuation school.
The school superintendents ( Schulvorstand) have the right to require
that continuation schools shall be established for girls and that girls
shall attend them for two years. In 1909 Saxony had continuation
schools for boys in 1,886 localities, and for girls in 7 localities. In
the majority o f these schools the hours for instruction were fixed on
workdays and before 7 p. m.; in 915 places no fees were charged,
while in the others the fees ranged from 75 pfennigs to 8 marks (17.9
cents to $1.90). There were also 54 industrial continuation schools,
12 industrial drawing schools, 67 commercial schools, 11 agricultural
schools, 23 general industrial continuation schools for girls, 25 schools
for training in making pillow lace, and 2 schools which gave instruc
tion in straw weaving.
The Wurttemberg law o f August 17, 1909, makes the general con
tinuation schools and the Sunday schools a continuation of the com
mon schools and requires that continuation schools for boys be estab
lished in all communes. Attendance is obligatory for two years and
may be made to apply to girls also. Under certain circumstances,
however, communes may be exempted from the obligation to estab
lish continuation schools, but in such an event three years’ attendance
at Sunday schools is required and the number o f hours o f instruction
therein must be half as great annually as in the general continuation
schools. I f there is a sufficiently large number o f persons under
18 years o f age employed in industrial and commercial establish
ments, special trade and commercial schools must be created for them.
In the school year 1908-9, the number of Sunday schools in Wurttem
berg was 1,843, with 30,542 female and 2,590 male pupils; there were
also 2,054 general continuation schools with 22,951 male and 18,797
female pupils. In the general continuation schools instruction was
in the majority o f cases given only in the winter, on workdays, and
in the evening. The trade continuation schools comprised 168 in
dustrial continuation schools, 45 industrial drawing schools, 17 com
mercial continuation schools, 33 feminine-work schools, 6 agricultural
schools, and 3 agricultural winter schools.
In Baden the law o f February 18, 1874, requires that boys who
have finished the common schools shall have a few hours o f instruc
tion per week during two years; and the same provision applies to
girls for a period o f one year. The continuation courses for girls
may be courses in domestic science. A law under date o f August 13,
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
269
1904, provided for the establishment o f special industrial and com
mercial continuation schools, with compulsory attendance, in addition
to the general continuation schools. The latter were attended in
1906 by 21,590 male and 11,012 female pupils. In 1908, 176 com
munes had 1,908 cooking schools with 7,246 pupils. There were also
in that year 139 industrial continuation schools, with 2,754 pupils;
53 trade schools, with 11,879 pupils; 41 commercial schools, with
3,365 male and 1,240 female pupils; 75 feminine-work schools, with
6,080 pupils; 9 domestic science schools, with 274 pupils; 5 domestic
science schools for peasants’ daughters, established by the adminis
trative circuits ( Kreise), with 163 pupils; and 14 agricultural winter
schools, with 516 pupils.
TH E LAW OF MARCH 30, 1903.
The Industrial Code in no case applies to domestic workshops—to
work places in which the employees are all members o f the employer’s
family. .It accepted the theory that at least in industrial matters
parents have the exclusive right o f control over their own children*
But the law o f March 30, 1903, concerning child labor in industrial
occupations, sets up rules with regard even to what a parent may
or may not do with the labor power o f his own offspring. The law
o f 1903, moreover, does this deliberately. It is weir within the truth
to add that the German legislators took this step reluctantly, and
only after the need o f it had been more than sufficiently demonstrated.
The “ Gewerbe-Novelle ” of 1891 had accomplished a great deal in
curtailing child labor in the factories and the larger industrial estab
lishments. But, as has been pointed out in a previous section, there
was abundant reason for the belief that it drove child labor out o f
the mills into the homes, and that it often substituted the domestic
workshop for the factory.
The child-labor investigation o f 1898 showed that 532,283 children
o f school age, or o f less than school age, were employed outside o f
factories and o f larger industrial establishments. This total, more
over, was admittedly below the actual number, because the investiga
tion omitted certain parts o f the Empire and did not include all sorts
o f industrial employment. The detailed reports o f the investigation
proved the existence o f most unfortunate conditions. In Prussia
110,682 children, or 41 per cent o f all those at work, were employed
more than 3 hours a day; and o f this number 55,933, or 50.54 per
cent, worked over 3 hours 6 days in the week, whereas 7,621, or 6.89
per cent, worked over 3 hours every day in the week, including
Sunday. In the report o f the committee which elaborated the law o f
1903 it is stated:
It may be taken for granted that among the children who work
more than 3 hours a day, a considerable number work 5 or 6 hours.
56504°—No. 89—10-----18
270
BU LLETIN OP T H E BUREAU OP LABOR.
Thus in Mecklenburg-Strelitz 25.8 per cent o f the children employed
for more than 3 hours daily worked 5 hours, and 14.5 per cent worked
6 hours a day. There are reports o f children working 10 hours a day
in the home industries o f Thuringia. The employment o f children
late in the night was found to be customary in many regions where
home industries are carried on.
There can be no doubt [continues the report] o f the urgent need for
proceeding to regulate the industrial labor o f children outside o f fac
tories and larger establishments. Nor can such further regulation be
confined to those cases in which children are employed outside o f
their own families in workshops, commerce, or transportation. There
is need o f intervention particularly with regard to those establish
ments in which only members o f the employer’s family are engaged
at work, and to disregard the principle, hitherto fundamental for our
labor legislation, that such legislation should not go beyond the limits
o f the family.
It must be borne in mind that o f the 306,823 children employed in
all industries, 143,710 (46.84 per cent) were employed in the textile
industry; 41,801 (13.62 per cent) in the manufacture o f wood prod
ucts; 40,997 (13.36 per cent) in the clothing and allied trades; and
27,645 (9.01 per cent) in the manufacture o f food and allied products,
o f whom 22,668 in turn were employed in tobacco manufactures.
Hence, according to these figures, nearly 83 per cent o f the children
engaged in industrial occupations are at work in those industries in
which domestic production is most common and widespread. It may,
furthermore, be taken for granted, as the reports o f the inspectors
prove, that among the home industries family production is largely
represented, i. e., the father’s employment or his own children. A
clue to the numerical extent o f this practice is furnished by the fact,
based upon official data, that in 35 school districts o f the circuit
Sonneberg, one o f the centers o f Thuringian toy manufactures, only
88 children in a total o f 3,555 employed during out-of-school hours
were not at work with their own parents; in other words, that 97£
per cent worked in their homes under the direction o f their own
parents.
It should be added that according to the available official and non
official data, the greatest evils are those found in home industries. In
one circuit, for example, children were employed from 3 o’clock in the
afternoon until late at night. In other circuits, night work lasted
at times until midnight, and even until 2 and 3 o’clock in the morning.
These facts are true o f home industries o f all sorts, and particularly
o f workshops in which members o f the employer’s family are em
ployed exclusively.
Under these circumstances, the previous laws were considered in
sufficient to remove the abuses that had been brought to light, and the
law o f March 30,1903, was passed.
This law applies to the same kinds o f work as does the Industrial
Code and defines children in precisely the same terms. A basic dis
tinction in the law o f 1903 is that between children of the employer’s
own family and other children. The employer’s “ own ” children
are, generally speaking, those who live with their parents and are
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
271
employed by them. More accurately defined, “ own ” children are, if
they belong to the household of the employer:
(1) Those related to their employer (or the employer’ s wife or
husband) to the third degree.
(2) Those who have been adopted by their employer or who are
legal wards o f their employer.
(3) Those, employed together with children o f the first or second
groups named above, who are intrusted to their employers by the
authorities or organizations having charge o f criminal or neglected
children.
A ll children not comprised in these catagories are designated as
“ other children,” including those in the first group who work for
outside persons, even though they may live with their parents, and
including those employed by a relative but not living in his household.
This distinction, although artificial—since it does not coincide with
the usual meaning o f “ own children”—is exceedingly important,
because the regulations applying to “ other children” differ from
those that apply to the employer’s “ own children.”
Articles 4 to 11 o f the law concern “ other children,” and articles
12 to 17 concern “ own children.”
Article 4. The employment o f “ other children,” as defined by law,
is forbidden in places in which building materials are prepared,
brick works, open-air mines and quarries not considered as “ facto
ries ” according to the Industrial Code, stonebreaking, chimney sweep
ing, driving wagons and handling merchandise for express companies,
mixing and grinding colors, work in cellars, and in a list o f occupa
tions appended to the law. This list comprises over 30 occupations,
including the follow ing: Workshops for the manufacture o f slate
objects, writing slates and slate pencils, except those workshops in
which the pencils are only colored, painted, glued, and packed, or in
which slates are only colored, ruled, and framed; stonecutting; drilling, grinding, and polishing stone; limekilns and plaster kilns;
blowing, etching, cutting, and grinding glass, except glass-blowing
establishments in which glass is blown exclusively “ at the lam p; ”
silvering mirrors; workshops in which objects are plated by galvanic
processes or in which objects are made by galvanoplastic means; work
shops in which lead and zinc toys are painted; smelting lead, zinc, tin,
copper, bronze, and other metals; bronze foundries; workshops for the
manipulation o f lead, copper, zinc, or alloys thereof, except those in
which only children o f the employer work exclusively at sorting and
putting together parts o f watches and clocks; grinding and polishing
metals; cutting files; manufacturing weapons and armor; workshops
employing mercury; the manufacture o f explosives, fireworks,
matches, and other inflammable objects; flaying yards; workshops in
272
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
which thread, textiles, etc., are bleached with chemicals; dye works;
sorting rags; tanneries; the manufacture o f rubber goods; upholster
ing furniture; spinning horsehair; working in mother-of-pearl; the
manufacture o f brushes with animal materials imported from abroad;
butcher shops; cutting rabbit fur; establishments for cleaning bed
feathers; chemical cleaning establishments; painting and plastering;
cleaning steam boilers. The Federal Council is empowered to forbid
other occupations and to modify the above list. Such modifications
must be published in the Imperial Gazette and communicated to the
Imperial Diet.
* Article 5: In workshops in which the employment o f children is not
forbidden by the provisions o f the preceding paragraph, as well as in
commercial and transportation enterprises, children under 12 years
o f age shall not be employed.
Children over 12 years o f age shall not be employed in the time
between 8 p. m. and 8 a. m., nor in the morning before school. Their
work must not exceed 3 hours per day, nor 4 hours during school
vacations. A t noon they must have a pause o f at least 2 hours for
rest. In the afternoon they must not begin work until one hour after
school closes.
Article 6: Children must not be employed in public theatrical
performances or other public representations. Exceptions may be
allowed by the lower administrative authorities, after consulting the
school officials, for performances or representations that possess
especial artistic or scientific interest.
Article 7: In hotels, restaurants, and taverns it is forbidden to
employ children under 12 years o f age. It is likewise forbidden to
employ girls under 13 (or girls who have not terminated the required
period o f attendance at school) to wait upon guests. With regard to
the times at which they may be employed and the number o f hours
they may work, the same provisions are valid as indicated in the
second paragraph of article 5.
Article 8: The employment o f children to deliver goods or to per
form other errands in the occupations designated in articles 4 to 7 is
subject to the provisions o f article 5.(a)
Article 9: Children must not be employed on Sundays or holidays,
except as hereinafter permitted.
With regard to their employment in public theatrical performances
and other public representations, the provisions o f article 6 apply on
Sundays and holidays.
®To art. 8 the law added a provision permitting certain exceptions to be made
by the administrative authorities during the two years following the date upon
which the law went into effect, i. e., until January 1,1906.
Statistics compiled in 1898 indicate that arts. 5, 6, and 7 then applied to nearly
200,000 children.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
273
With regard to delivering goods and performing other errands,
the provisions o f article 8 apply. But on Sundays and holidays chil
dren shall not be employed at this work for more than 2 hours, nor
later than 1 p. m .; nor may the work take place during the half hour
preceding the principal divine service, or during the time o f this
service.
Article 10: Whenever children are employed, the employers must
notify the local police authorities thereof in writing, in advance o f
their employment. The notice must indicate the place o f employment
and the nature o f the business carried on therein.
This provision does not apply when children are only employed
occasionally at individual tasks.
Article 11: The employment o f a child is forbidden if the child
is not equipped with a work card (Arbeitskarte) ^ except when the
employment is only occasional and for individual tasks.
The work cards are delivered without charge, upon the request or
with the consent o f the child’s legal representative, by the local police
authorities o f the place in which the child has last resided; if the
statement o f the legal representative is unobtainable, the communal
authorities may supply the deficiency. The cards must bear the name,
and the date and place o f birth o f the child, as well as the name,
occupation, and latest domicile o f his legal representative.
The employer must keep the work card, exhibit it at the requisition
o f the authorities, and at the termination o f employment return it
to the child’s legal representative. Should it be impossible to learn
the address o f the legal representative the card may be given to the
local police authorities referred to above.
The provisions o f section 4 o f the law o f September 29, 1901, con
cerning industrial tribunals, which deal with the jurisdiction o f these
tribunals in disputes regarding work books, are applicable to disputes
regarding work cards.
Article 1 2 :(a) In the occupations in which, according to article 4.
the employment o f other children is forbidden, as well as in work
shops in which an elementary force, such as steam, wind, water, gas,
electricity, etc., is used as a motive power (regularly, not tempo
rarily), it is forbidden to employ one’s own children.
Article 13: In workshops in which the employment o f children is
not forbidden by article 12, in commercial establishments, and in
transportation, the employer’s own children under 10 years of age
shall not be employed, and those over 10 years o f age may be em
ployed neither during the time between 8 p. m. and 8 a. m. nor before
morning school. A t noon the children must have a pause o f at least
®Arts. 12 to 17 concern the employer’s own children. It will be noted that
in some respects the provisions contained in these articles coincide with those
for “ other children.”
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BU LLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
2 hours. In the afternoon, employment must not begin until one
hour after the close o f school.
The employer’s “ own children ” under 12 years o f age shall not be
employed for outside persons in the home or the workshop o f a person
to whom they are related to the third degree.
On Sundays and holidays the employer’s “ own children ” must not
be employed in workshops or in commercial or transportation enter
prises.
Article 14:(«) The Federal Council is empowered to permit the
employment o f one’s “ own children ” in certain kinds of the work
shops using motors enumerated in article 12, i f the provisions o f the
first paragraph o f article 13 are complied with, upon the condition
that the children are not employed at the machines operated by motive
power. The Federal Council may, moreover, for certain categories
o f the workshops enumerated in article 13, first paragraph, grant ex
ceptions to the prohibition o f the employment o f children under 10
years o f age, in so far as these children are employed at particularly
easy tasks and work that is suited to their age; such employment must
not take place between 8 p. m. and 8 a. m .; at noon the children must
have a pause o f at least 2 hours; in the afternoon their employment
must not begin until an hour after the close o f school hours. The
exceptions may be general or may apply to particular districts.
Article 15: The employment o f one’s “ own children” in public
theatrical representations and other public performances is governed
by the provisions o f article 6.
Article 16: In hotels, restaurants, and taverns it is forbidden to
employ children under 12 years o f age at all, and to employ girls
under 13 years (or girls still required to attend school) to wait upon
guests. In places having less than 20,000 inhabitants by the latest
census the lower administrative authorities have the power, after
consulting the authorities in charge o f supervising schools, to grant
exceptions for establishments in which as a rule only members o f
the family o f the employer are employed. Otherwise the provisions
o f the first paragraph o f article 13 govern the labor o f the employer’s
own children.
Article 17: The employment o f children to deliver newspapers,
milk, and bread is subject to the provisions o f article 8 and the
third paragraph o f article 9 i f the children are employed to work
for third persons.
Otherwise the employment o f one’s “ own children” to deliver
goods or to perform other errands is permitted. Such employment
may be restricted by ordinance o f the competent police authorities.
Article 18: Workshops include, besides the establishments so desginated by the Industrial Code, rooms used to sleep, live, or cook in,
0 The first paragraph o f art. 14, here omitted, gave the Federal Council power
to make certain exceptions until January 1, 1906.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
275
if any industrial labor is carried on therein, as well as work places
situated in the open air.
Article 2 0 :(a) The competent police authorities, upon the suggestion
o f the supervisors of schools, or after consultation with them, may,
by means o f ordinances, restrict or forbid the employment o f certain
children in any o f the occupations permitted by the foregoing pro
visions in so far as grave evils have arisen therein; they may, fur
thermore, i f a work card has been delivered for a child, withdraw the
card and refuse to grant a new one.
The competent police authorities may also, by means o f ordinances,
further restrict or forbid the employment o f children in certain
hotels, restaurants, or taverns, in order to abolish serious evils that
violate public decency and morality.
Article 21: To the extent that it is not otherwise regulated by
decree o f the Federal Council or by the government o f the several
States o f the Empire, the provisions o f the Industrial Code govern
the matter o f supervision and inspection.
Private residences in which only children o f the employer work
may be visited and inspected at night only when facts are at hand
which justify the suspicion that these children are employed at night.
Article 23 :( *6) Violations o f articles 4 to 8 are punishable by a fine
not exceeding 2,000 marks ($476).
In cases o f habitual violation the sentence may be imprisonment
up to six months.
Article 24: A fine up to 600 marks ($142.80) shall be imposed upon
persons who employ children on Sundays or holidays contray to arti
cle 9 and upon those who violate the ordinances passed in accordance
with article 20, concerning the employment o f “ other children.”
In cases o f habitual violation the offender may be sentenced to im
prisonment for a period not exceeding six weeks.
Article 25: A fine up to 150 marks ($35.70) shall be imposed upon
persons who violate articles 12 to 16 or the first paragraph o f article
17, and upon persons who violate the ordinances passed in accordance
with article 20, concerning the employment o f one’s own children, or
the regulations passed in accordance with paragraph 2 o f article 17.
In cases o f habitual violation the offender may be sentenced to im
prisonment for a period not exceeding six weeks.
Article 26: A fine up to 30 marks ($7.14) shall be imposed upon
employers who fail to comply with the obligations imposed upon them
by article 10.
Article 27: A fine up to 20 marks ($4.76) shall be imposed upon
persons who take or retain a child in their employ contrary to the
®Art. 19 concerns differences between local time and legal time.
6Art. 22 simply states that such terms as “ competent police authorities/'
“ higher administrative authorities," etc., are to be defined in each State by
the central government thereof.
276
BULLETIN OF TH E BUBEAU OF LABOB.
terms o f the first paragraph of article 11; and upon persons who
violate the third paragraph of article 11 with regard to work cards.
Article 28: The right to prosecute offenses enumerated in article 24
expires by limitation in three months.
Article 3 0 :(a) The foregoing provisions do not preclude the enact
ment by the several States o f further restrictions upon the employ
ment o f children in industrial establishments.
In conformity with the powers granted by this law, the Federal
Council issued a list o f exceptions on December 17, 1903, supple
mented on July 11, 1904. These exceptions, however, were granted
only until January 1, 1906. Shortly before that date, the Federal
Council prepared a new list of exceptions (in conformity with
article 14), to go into effect on January 1, 1906. These exceptions
apply only to specific operations and specific places; they are, further
more, confined to children at least 9 years o ld ; and it is provided that
these children must not be employed during the time between 8 p. m.
and 8 a. m., nor before morning school, nor during two hours at mid
day, nor in the afternoon until one hour after school hours.
Concerning the enforcement o f the law of 1903 and of the ordi
nances and regulations supplementing it— which is left to the several
States— a series o f ordinances and instructions have been issued in
each o f the 25 States of the Empire, as well as for the imperial terri
tory o f Alsace-Lorraine. ( fe) A discussion of the enforcement of the
law and o f the other provisions concerning child labor will be found
in succeeding pages o f this study.
It is apparent from the above statement o f the main provisions o f
the law o f 1903 that five groups o f occupations are recognized
therein, namely:
1. Forbidden occupations consisting mainly o f those that are re
garded as dangerous or injurious.
2. Workshops, commercial enterprises, and transportation.
3. Public, theatrical, and other representations.
4. Hotels, restaurants, and taverns.
5. Delivering goods and running errands.
Again, the law recognizes three groups o f children, with regard to
their relation to the employer, namely:
(1) “ Own ” children.
(2) “ Other ” children.
(3) “ Own ” children working for third persons.*&
« Article 29, which has been omitted, provides that the responsible parties in
violations o f this law are determined in the same way as for violations of the
Industrial Code. Not only the employer’s agent or representative, but all super
intendents o f establishments or o f parts thereof are liable.
&A complete list of them up to 1905 is given in Agahd and Yon Schulz’s com
mentary to the law of 1903 (Third edition, Verlag von Fischer in Jena, 1905).
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
277
As a means o f limitation and control of child labor the law
employs:
1. The conditional or unconditional prohibition o f employment.
2. The prohibition o f employment in the case o f children under a
certain age.
3. The prohibition of work at night or early in the morning.
4. The prohibition or limitation o f work on Sundays and holidays.
5. Limitation o f the duration o f daily work.
6. The requirement of pauses during the work day.
7. Police control and public inspection.
8. Fines or imprisonment for violations.
Together with the regulations supplementing the law, several age
limits are o f importance: 9 years, 10 years, 12 years, and the termina
tion o f required school attendance (which may be at the age o f 13,
14, or 15 years).
This enumeration o f the distinctions that are o f importance in the
law suffices to show that it is somewhat complicated. That, how
ever, does not necessarily constitute an objection, if the multiplicity
o f distinctions coincides with a variety of conditions to which the law
must be adapted. To what extent this is the case will be inquired
later on.
The following table gives a general view o f the provisions, both of
the law o f 1903 and o f the Industrial Code, concerning the labor of
children:
SUMMARY OF LAWS CONCERNING CHILD LABOR.
Nature of industry or occupa
tion.
Employment of “ other”
children.
A. Factories (a) of all kinds;
building trades of all
kinds; brick works and
overground quarries not
regarded as factories; the
dangerous industries enu
merated under art. 4 of
the law of 1903.
Forbidden. (Art. 4, law of 1903,
and the Industrial Code.)
Forbidden. (Arts. 4 and 12, law
of 1903, and the Industrial
Code.)
B. Workshops (&) using a mo
tor permanently.
Forbidden.
9,1900.)
(Ordinance of July
Forbidden. (Art. 12, law of 1903.)
C. Workshops using a motor
temporarily; workshops
(b) using no motor; com
mercial establishments;
transportation enter
prises.
Forbidden children under 12.
(Art. 5, law of 1903.)
Forbidden on Sundays and holi
days. (Art. 9, law of 1903.)
Permitted children above 12 un
der the following conditions:
(а) Not over 3 hours a day;
in vacations, 4 hours.
(б) Not before 8 a. m. or after
8p. m.
(c) Not before morning
school, nor until 1
hour after school closes
in the afternoon, nor
during 2 hours at mid
day. (Art. 5, law of
1903.)
Work card required. (Art. 11.)
Notification required. (Art. 10.)
Forbidden children under 10.
(Art. 13, law of 1903.)
Forbidden children under 12
working for third persons.
Forbidden on Sundays and holi
days.
Permitted between 8 a.m . and 8
p. m., except before morning
school, or during 1 hour after
school closes in the afternoon,
or during 2 hours at midday.
No work card required.
No notification required.
Employment of “ own”
children.
• Since the passage of the law of December 28, 1908, “ factory ” means practically all
establishments of an industrial character employing, as a rule, 10 or more laborers not
exclusively members of the employer’s family.
b “ Workshops ” include any place in which work is carried on, whether kitchen, sleeping
room, or even places in the open air.
278
BULLETIN OF TH E BUBEAU OF LABOR,
SUMMARY OF LAWS CONCERNING CHILD LABOR— Concluded.
Employment of “ own ”
children.
Nature of industry or occupa
tion.
Employment of “ other ”
children.
D. Public theatrical perform
ances and other public
representations. (Art. 6.)
Forbidden, also on Sundays and
holidays. (Arts. 6, 9.)
Exceptions may be granted by
circuit authorities u high ar
tistic or scientific interests are
involved.
Work card required.
Notification required.
Forbidden, also on Sundays and
holidays. (Art. 15.)
Exceptions same as for “ other”
children.
No work card required.
No notification required.
E. Hotels, restaurants,
taverns.
and
Forbidden children under 12.
(Art. 7.)
Forbidden on Sundays and holi
days. (Art. 9.)
Forbidden to employ schoolgirls
to serve guests. (Art. 7.)
Permitted children above 12 un
der same conditions as for C,
except in the case of girls serv
ing guests.
Work card required.
Notification required.
Forbidden children under 12.
(Arts. 7,16.)
Forbidden schoolgirls to serve
guests. (Art. 16.)
Permitted children above 12, ex
cept:
(а) Before 8 a. m. or after 8
p. m.
(б) Before morning school, or
during 1 hour alter school
in the afternoon, or during
2 hours at midday.
Exceptions permitted upon peti
tion, in places of less than 20,000
population, for establishments
usually employing only mem
bers oi the family. (Art. 16.)
No work card required.
No notification required.
F. Delivering goods and per
forming other errands.
Forbidden children under 12.
(Art. 8.)
Permitted children above 12,
with following restrictions:
(а) Not over 3 hours a day;
in vacations, 4 hours.
(б) Not before 8 a. m. or after
8p. m.
(c) Not before m o rn in g
school, nor until 1 hour
after school closes in the
afternoon, nor during 2
hours at midday.
( d ) On Sundays and holi
days; but (1) not longer
than 2 hours, or before 8
a. m ; (2) not after 1 p.m.;
(3) not during the principal
church service or the half
hour preceding it.
Work card required.
Notification required.
I. For third persons.
Forbidden children under 12.
Permitted children above 12,
with same restrictions as for
“ other” children.
II. Not for third persons.
Permitted for children living
with parents or guardians,
regardless of age; but police
ordinances may introduce
limitations.
No work card required.
No notification required.
It is manifest that no simple, uniform, hard-and-fast rule would
be applicable to all cases, and the law has therefore sought to differen
tiate in conformity with social and economic conditions. But some
o f the distinctions established by the law, and some o f the deficiencies
o f German labor legislation generally, have resulted in anomalous
consequences and given rise to well-founded complaints. Upon this
subject the testimony o f Fr. Losser, a Hessian inspector o f long
experience, is particularly relevant.
The law is aimed at industrial occupations, and is far from provid
ing legal protection for all laboring children. * * * The enforce
ment o f the law encounters a serious obstacle in the public feeling
that the law, which sets up different standards for different categories
, o f children and occupations, is not always logical. It has often been
279
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
reported that parents do not understand interference with their right
to dispose o f the labor power of their children. Add to this the
poverty that makes the gainful employment of the children an urgent
necessity, and it is impossible to make parents grasp the utility o f
the law for the health and welfare o f the children. Tell a mother
that it is illegal for her to have her child deliver newspapers for third
persons—say for the publisher or an agent— and she will point to
the master baker who sends his own boy, o f the same age as hers, out
upon the streets early in the morning and in all sorts o f weather to
deliver bread, with no limit whatever upon the duration o f his labor.
For her the distinction between the employment o f her own children
for her own business, or their employment to work for outside parties,
is o f no importance. A ll she considers is the simple fact o f employ
ment and the difference in the duration and difficulty o f the work
performed.
And when she makes a comparison upon this basis, the result is in
her favor. She takes only an hour of her child’s time and gives him
the papers to deliver; but although the work is not hard the law for
bids such employment.
The agent for a periodical is punished for employing a boy not
quite 12 years old, while the country letter carrier, who is not engaged
in industry but is a government official, is allowed to require his much
younger son to help him deliver mail by day or by night, as he
pleases.
The employee o f the commune, a lamplighter, may take his boy with
him in good or bad weather, and after 8 o’clock at night, while a
mother who has worked all day in the factory and who is helping her
child wind yarn must continue the work alone after 8 o’clock because
the yarn is not intended for sale but for further productive uses by
the factory owner who employs her.
Or again, the 8-year-old peasant’s daughter is employed in the hot
afternoon sun to wash the sidewalk in front o f the teacher’s or pas
tor’s house, and the 6-year-old daughter o f a day laborer goes through
dusty, scorching streets and roads to carry dinner to her father and
perhaps other relatives working in a distant stone quarry; while in
side or the house, in a cool room, a vigorous boy must remain idle and
look on while his sick mother, with trembling hands, prepares tobacco
for manufacture without his aid, because the boy is under 10 years
old and the tobacco is intended for the factory.
Still another comparison made by the people is this: Saturday
night the tired workman brings home a few copies o f the city news
paper, and gives them to his boy to deliver. The next day he is sum
moned before the mayor and told that he must cease employing his
son for third parties. But on the way to the city hall he notices that
the neighboring farmer, because o f a storm that threatens to break,
is having his crops harvested by a horde o f working children. (®)
This is a somewhat concrete way o f pointing out that domestic serv
ice and agriculture are not included within the scope of the child-labor
laws, and that the peculiar provisions of the law with regard to the
employment o f one’s own children to do work for outside parties
°F r. Losser, Kinderschutz und Kinderarbeit in Deutschland.
1908.
280
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
result at times in apparent inequality o f treatment. But it must be
borne in mind that the latter provisions are aimed at the sweating
system, a far greater social evil than occasional inequalities of treat
ment.
T H E STAFF OF INSPECTORS.
The provisions concerning the employment o f children are, as has
been seen, contained mainly in two laws o f the Empire, the Industrial
Code and the child-labor law o f 1903. Concerning mines and the con
ditions o f labor therein, a certain latitude has been left to the separate
States. The States may, moreover, set up further restrictions than
those o f the imperial laws. But it is essentially true that child labor
legislation has been an imperial matter. Not so the enforcement o f
the child-labor laws. It is true that, as representing the imperial
chancellor, the Imperial Office o f the Interior has charge o f supervis
ing the enforcement o f the labor laws; that reports must be made
regularly to the Federal Council and the Imperial Diet with regard
to the application o f the most important provisions o f these laws; and
that these reports and the discussion o f the budget for the Office o f
the Interior furnish opportunity for a critical examination o f what
has been done to secure enforcement. But the actual enforcement o f
the labor laws is intrusted to the governments o f the several States
o f the Empire. Although the laws themselves and the ordinances
concerning their execution lay down certain general principles, the
creation and functions o f special bodies o f officials for this purpose is
left to the several States. As a result, there are not only differences
from State to State in the size and organization of the inspectorial
staff, but also noticeable differences in the spirit in which the law is
applied.
A complete presentation o f the organization and methods o f inspec
tion throughout the Empire would necessitate a separate discussion for
each o f the twenty-six Federal States, which is hardly necessary for
the purpose o f this study. It will suffice, so far as the organiza
tion o f inspection is concerned, to consider the five principal States,
namely, Prussia, Bavaria, Saxony, Wurttemberg, and Baden. To
these larger and more important parts o f the Empire, Hesse will be
added because this State is reputed to be distinguished by an un
usually conscientious and intelligent application o f the provisions
concerning child labor. Hesse, moreover, is the only German State
which issues separate annual reports concerning the application o f
the law o f 1903. These reports do not consist merely o f statistical
data, but contain rather detailed accounts o f the activity o f the in
spectors, as well as frank criticism o f the present laws and practical
suggestions for reform measures. Although not one o f the large
States o f the Empire, Hesse in 1908 had 5 inspectors, 3 male and 2
female assistant inspectors, and 5 adjunct inspectors chosen from the
working classes— an inspectorial staff o f 15 persons. Furthermore,
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
281
the inspectors have secured the systematic cooperation o f teachers
and local police officials to an exceptional degree; and their reports
furnish a much more complete and elaborate portrayal o f child labor
conditions than is given by the inspectors o f most o f the German
States.
The other five States to which attention will be mainly confined
contain 86 per cent o f the total population o f the Empire. O f the
466 inspectors for the whole Empire in 1908, they had 892— Prussia,
276; Bavaria, 30; Saxony, 57; Wurttemberg, 17; and Baden, 12. O f
the 110 inspectors o f mines these States had 92.
The enforcement o f the provisions o f the Industrial Code is
assigned, according to that code, “ to special officials to be appointed
by the governments o f the several States, working either exclusively
or in cooperation with the ordinary police officials. In the exercise
o f this function they possess all the powers o f the local police officials,
particularly the right to visit and inspect industrial establishments at
all times. They are, except in cases o f illegality, pledged not to
divulge the business or technical secrets that may come to their
knowledge in the performance o f their duties.” It is specifically
provided by the code that employers must permit them to inspect
establishments at night “ during the time that work is carried on
therein.”
For violations o f the code the penalties vary considerably. For
most offenses fines are imposed, but in the event o f inability to pay
the fine that has been imposed imprisonment may be substituted.
Should an employer fail to provide such safety appliances as the
law provides and as the authorities consider necessary the police
authorities may order his establishment to be closed.
Violations o f the provisions concerning the employment of chil
dren, young persons, or female persons may be fined up to 2,000
marks ($476), and in cases o f inability to pay the fine imposed the
offender may be sentenced to imprisonment for a period not exceed
ing six months. Violations of the provisions o f the Industrial Code
concerning Sunday work (sections 105b to 105g, inclusive) may be
fined not more than 600 marks ($142.80), or be imprisoned, in the case
o f inability to pay. Violations of the ordinances concerning appren
tices or concerning work given employees to do at home are subject to
a fine o f not more than 300 marks ($71.40) or to imprisonment. In
dustrial establishments or commercial enterprises failing to have the
required working schedule ( Arbeitsordnung) are subject to the same
penalty. A fine o f 150 marks ($35.70) or imprisonment for four
weeks is the maximum penalty for violating section 42b o f the code,
concerning children under 14 years o f age in street trades and in
wandering occupations. The maximum for violating section 120 o f
the code, concerning the attendance of apprentices at continuation
schools is 20 marks ($4.76), or imprisonment for three days in case
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B U LLETIN OF T H E BUREAU OF LABOR.
o f inability to pay. These penalties, it will be noted, are precisely
similar in range to those which may be imposed for violating the
child-labor law o f 1903 (stated on p. 275).
It is a general principle o f German jurisprudence that the police
authorities must see that all the laws are complied with. Hence it is
part o f their duty to enforce the labor laws. But inasmuch as the
Industrial Code and the law o f 1903 provided for the appointment
o f special officials to secure the enforcement o f these two laws, the
chief burden o f detecting violations devolves upon these special offi
cials, to whom the name “ industrial inspectors” (Gewerbeinspektoren) or “ industrial supervising officials” ( Gewerbe-AufsichtsBeamten) is usually given. The appointment o f such special officials
was made obligatory upon the several States in 1878, and the law o f
1891 enlarged the scope o f their functions very considerably. A t the
present time the German inspectors have more numerous duties than
the French inspectors, o f whose functions an account is given in
another part o f this study. They must secure the observation o f the
regulations concerning working schedules, concerning the payment o f
wages, concerning the discharge o f employees, and rupture o f labor
contracts; they must collect statistical data not only concerning acci
dents, but also concerning occupational diseases; they must pass
judgment upon requests to build new industrial establishments and
give their opinion with regard to the measures that should be adopted
in the interest o f the health and safety o f the employees thereof; in
some o f the States they have charge, at least in part, o f the inspection
o f steam boilers; and they must secure the enforcement o f the provi
sions concerning hygiene and safety in those trades and occupations
that are subject to special regulation in this regard. The law re
quires that the inspectors shall make an annual report o f their
activity. These reports or extracts therefrom are collected by the
Imperial Office o f the Interior and published under the title, Annual
Reports o f the Industrial Supervising Officials and the Mining
Authorities (Jahresberichte dev Gewerbeaufsichtsbeamten und der
Bergbehorden).
While the inspectors are o f course in a sense mainly responsible
for the enforcement o f the labor laws, it has always been understood
that the ordinary police authorities should by no means withdraw
their attention from matters that concern these laws. In 1878 the
Federal Council issued an order to this effect. “ These officials,”
meaning the inspectors, “ should not take the place o f the ordinary
police in the field o f their activity, but supplement the latter and
endeavor to bring about an intelligent and uniform enforcement
o f the provisions o f the Industrial Code by giving discriminating
advice to the competent higher administrative authorities.” In other
words, the inspectors are to be regarded as advisory experts, as spe
CHILD-LABOB LEGISLATION IN GEBMANY.
283
cialists in certain matters with which the ordinary police can not
be expected to be familiar, and to whom the latter may look for
advice and instruction. This function o f advisory expert is par
ticularly apparent in the case o f the so-called mining police ( Bergpolizei) —technically trained officials who constitute a specialized
branch o f the police force. The enforcement o f the laws concerning
labor in mines is, as in France and in most other European countries,
intrusted to these mining officials.
Like the ordinary police, the inspectors have the right to take
immediate steps to secure the punishment o f all persons found vio
lating the law. But they do not exercise this right without having
first tried persuasion and admonition. Should these means fail of
the desired effect, they adopt measures more closely resembling those
o f the ordinary police.
Actual prosecution for violations o f the law rests with the ordi
nary police authorities. Such violations as the inspectors may dis
cover are brought to the attention o f the police officials, upon whom
it devolves to take further steps in the matter.
In the actual work o f visiting the establishments subject to the
law, the inspectors may require the assistance o f the ordinary police.
They may, moreover, intrust the police with the independent inspec
tion o f certain plants, and particularly with making repeated visits
to establishments already inspected by the inspectors themselves.
I f in such cases certain changes or the abandonment o f certain illegal
practices have been ordered by the inspectors, the police authorities
are perfectly competent to follow up the matter by one or more
subsequent visits, and to ascertain whether the demands o f the in
spectors have been complied with. I f such has not been the case, the
police then take steps to have the offenders punished. This method
o f procedure has great advantages. It helps dispel the impression
that the inspectors are merely policemen or spies. It marks a divi
sion o f service such that the preventive, advisory, and conciliatory
functions devolve upon the inspectors, and the executive and punitive
functions .are assigned to the ordinary police, a division which con
tributes to preserve the dignity o f the inspector’s office.
There are, however, certain provisions o f the labor laws in the exe
cution o f which the police authorities play the more important part.
It is their province, for example, to enforce the Sunday laws and
ordinances. It is their province, also, to make such visits of inspec
tion as are necessary to secure the observation o f the regulations con
cerning the minimum period o f daily rest for employees and appren
tices in hotels, taverns, and restaurants. That this is no trifling mat
ter is indicated by the fact that in 1908 there were 47,173 establish
ments o f this sort subject to the law, and 41,488 o f them were in
spected, the total number o f visits o f inspection being 76,681.
284
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
In some respects quite as important as the cooperation o f the ordi
nary police is that of the school-teachers. The law o f 1903 is in a
sense their work, and they have to some extent made it also their
work to see that it is enforced. A t the time the law o f 1903 was under
discussion in Parliament it was generally conceded that without the
aid o f the school authorities the law could not be effectively enforced.
Hence the frequent reference, in the law, to the school authorities, and
the requirement that they be consulted whenever exceptions to the
law are granted. Unfortunately the term “ school authorities ” does
not always mean the teachers themselves, although they alone are
usually in a position to furnish the necessary information concerning
the status o f the children in their care. Consider, for example, the
important provision o f article 20 o f the law o f 1903, which makes it
possible for the competent police officials, “ upon the suggestion of, or
after consultation with, the officials having charge o f the supervision
o f schools, to restrict or prohibit the employment o f individual chil
dren.” W ho is able to judge o f the effects o f labor upon individual
children better than the teacher ? In many cases, he alone is able to
learn from the child or his companions when, where, how long, and in
what occupations a child works. No one is better able to give the
inspector the information, or, as the law puts it, the “ facts,” that
make it justifiable for the latter to visit a domestic workshop at
night. Nor is anyone more competent to decide whether this or that
child ought to be allowed to take part in theatrical performances.^)
It was certainly the intention o f the legislators who passed the law
o f 1903 that the school-teachers themselves should be given every
opportunity to cooperate with the inspectors in its application.
Count von Posadowsky, the minister o f the interior at the time the
law was passed, in the course o f a speech to the Imperial Diet,
declared:
W hy do we enact this measure? To prevent children from being
harmed in their physical development by excessive labor, and to pro
vide that they retain the mental and physical freshness and vigor
that is necessary in order to profit by the general compulsory educa
tion provided by the common schools. The best judgment upon this
subject is never that o f the industrial inspector, but that o f the
school-teacher himself.
Few o f the States, however, have expressly provided for the coop
eration o f the teachers, so that this cooperation is, as a rule, either
voluntary or only occasional. But in Hamburg, Hesse, and SachsenAltenburg the active aid of the teachers is specifically required by
laws and ordinances.
In Hamburg, for example, it is ordered that “ whenever a pupil is
found to be very tired, inattentive, or in arrears with his school tasks,
a See art. 6 o f the law of 1903.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
285
or i f there are other reasons for suspecting that the child is required
to work too long or too hard or at unsuitable times, the principal of
the school must be notified, and the child questioned by the principal
or the teacher (but not in the presence o f other pupils) concerning
his employment outside o f school.” The results of the inquiries
must be recorded upon a form provided for this purpose. I f the
principal is convinced that the child is overworked, it is his duty to
confer with the parents or guardian o f the child, to call their atten
tion to the provisions and penalties o f the law o f 1903, and to per
suade them to limit or modify the child’s labor. I f such a procedure
is unlikely to result successfully, and if the child is employed indus
trially—not in domestic service or agriculture—the form as filled out
by the principal or teacher is forwarded to the inspectors for such
action as it may prove necessary to take.
To the Grand Duchy o f Hesse belongs the credit for having first
recognized the need o f the teachers’ help. It is here provided “ that
the officials in charge o f the supervision o f schools, and the school
teachers, shall furnish the officials having charge o f the enforcement
o f the law with information upon all matters pertaining thereto, and
report such abuses as they may discover; that for each class at school
there must be a list o f the children that are employed industrially;
and that the school supervisors shall in all cases o f necessity make use
o f their right to suggest the prohibition or restriction o f work for
particular children.” The list o f children employed industrially
must contain the full name o f the child; the date o f his birth; the
name, occupation, and address o f the child’s legal representative; the
name and address o f the employer; the nature o f his business; and
details concerning the employment o f the child. These details must
include the kind o f work, the precise hours o f employment, and the
place o f employment. The lists are prepared upon the basis o f in
formation given by the children themselves when the whole class is
assembled, and if the teacher doubts the accuracy o f the information
thus obtained, he shall record his doubts upon the list in a column
provided for that purpose. On request, the lists must be submitted
to the inspectors for examination.
The preparation o f these lists in Hesse is no mere formality, for
the circuit school commissions are ordered to make sure by means of
visits o f inspection that the lists are carefully and correctly kept.
Failure to do this is a neglect o f professional duty. Moreover, no
work card is delivered to a child without first having notified the
local school director, who stands in such close relationship with the
school teachers that abundant opportunity is given the latter to pro
test whenever there is occasion for it.
The Hessian lists include both “ own children ” and “ other chil
dren,” and the inspectors report that especially with regard to the
56504°—No. 89—10---- 19
286
BULLETIN OF THE BUREAU OF LABOR.
former it would be very difficult to enforce the law were it not for
the help o f the teachers.
Many o f the Prussian inspectors likewise paid particular attention
during the past few years to the enforcement o f the law of 1903 and
to the development o f a system o f cooperation for this purpose with
the school authorities. In Charlottenburg, for example, the inspector
distributed among the school children who work before school a clear
and concise summary o f the provisions o f the law o f 1903. Several
Prussian inspectors report, however, that the increased knowledge o f
the provisions o f the law has not invariably been followed by better
observance, for in many cases it has simply helped to develop in
creased skill in circumventing the law.
Some o f the States have appointed representatives o f the laboring
classes to membership upon their inspectorial staff, but always in a
subordinate capacity. This is the case in Bavaria, Baden, Wurttemberg, and Hesse. In Bavaria there were several former laborers
among the 13 assistant inspectors in 1903, and in 1897 an ex-foreman
o f a mill was made first assistant inspector. In 1903, 3 former work
men were made adjunct inspectors ( Gehilfen) after taking a course
o f training under the direction of, inspectors. Their work consists
mainly in the inspection o f smaller workshops using power motors,
and other small establishments, particularly with regard to the en
forcement o f the law o f 1903. In Baden there are on the inspectorial
staff as assistants to the inspectors 3 machinists who have been grad
uated from a technical school.
The legislature o f the Kingdom o f Saxony has recently approved a
plan according to which in 1912 a number o f workmen are to be
added to the staff o f inspectors as assistants. This step was taken
after consultation with the authorities o f Bavaria, Wurttemberg,
Baden, and Hesse with regard to the results o f the plan of appointing
representatives o f the working classes to subordinate positions in the
inspectorial service. It may be added that in Prussia the practice
has for some years prevailed o f having a number o f laborers assist in
the inspection o f mines. A similar provision for appointing laborers
to aid in inspecting mines was adopted in the Kingdom o f Saxony in
1909. In Bavaria, laboring men have been appointed especially to
aid in the application o f the labor laws to the building trades.
As a general rule, it is assumed that the inspectors require such
a degree o f general culture, such knowledge o f the laws, and such an
amount o f technical training that satisfactory performance o f the
duties can not be intrusted to workmen. Hence the latter are charged
only with subordinate functions under the direction o f academically
trained superiors.
In 1906 there were 24 women in the inspectorial service o f the sev
eral States—5 in Saxony, 4 each in Bavaria and Prussia, 2 each in
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
287
Wurttemberg and Hesse. In 1908 the number o f women inspectors
was 27, and early in 1910 the budget committee o f the Prussian lower
house recommended a further increase in the staff o f inspectors, par
ticularly in the number o f women. (a) There were no general rules
with regard to the preparatory training required o f these women.
In Prussia they were required to have been graduated from a girls’
high school (hohere Toehterschule) and to have had some practical
experience. This practical experience consisted in one case o f several
years as an industrial employer; in another case, o f experience both
as an employer and employee; in the third case, o f work for a short
time in the textile industry for the express purpose o f acquiring a
practical knowledge thereof; and in the fourth case, o f experience as
a teacher o f manual arts. In Wurttemberg the requirements are said
to be “ a good general education, practical experience in life, intelli
gence, tact, and self-assurance.” In Baden, the first female assistant
inspector had received academic training in political economy, and
the second had been academically trained in chemistry, and possessed
practical experience as a laborer; both of them held doctor’s degrees.
The women officials in Hesse had only practical training.
The women officials nowhere have an independent sphere o f action,
although they are more independent in Baden than elsewhere. A s a
rule their particular work consists in inspecting the establishments in
which a large number o f female laborers are employed. But this
work is carried on in collaboration with male officials, and the decision
o f debatable matters rests with the male inspectors under whose direc
tion they serve. As a rule, too, the women officials are instructed to
give special attention to the enforcement of the law o f 1903.
The regular cooperation o f physicians is provided for in very few
cases. There are special medical inspectors in Baden, and the health
officers may be called on for consultation in Prussia. In certain
unhealthful occupations, to be sure, the ordinances concerning those
occupations provide that the employer must have all o f his laborers
examined at stated intervals by a physician acceptable to the adminis
trative authorities, and whose name is known to the inspectors. These
examinations take place in the establishment where the laborers work.
The physician may temporarily or permanently forbid the employment
o f certain laborers at specified sorts o f work. Moreover, no laborer
may be taken into the establishment unless a prior medical examina
tion has been made and he has been found not unfit to engage in the
work for which it is intended to employ him. The employer must
keep a list o f his laborers, upon which list are recorded the statements
o f the examining physician with regard to the laborers, and which is
at all times subject to the scrutiny of the physician and the inspectors.
Soziale Praxis, February 17, 1910.
288
BULLETIN OF THE BUREAU OF LABOR.
These regulations, however, apply only to certain trades that have
been recognized by ordinance as unhealthful, such as the manufacture
o f alkali-chromates, making electric accumulators, grinding Thomas
slag, zinc works, making lead colors, etc., trades in which women and
children either may not be employed at all or may be employed only
in those rooms and in those operations which are not dangerous or
unhealthful.
In spite o f the cooperation o f physicians, o f teachers, and o f the
ordinary police, the opinion has been expressed by competent judges
that the inspectors can not perform their duties thoroughly without
the help o f the laborers themselves and o f labor organizations. This
is emphatically the opinion o f Industrial Councilor Losser, whom we
have already had occasion to quote. In order to enable laborers to
confer with the inspectors, the latter have fixed hours for consultation
in their offices and advertise the fact in the newspapers. These office
hours, moreover, have been held on Sundays, in order that laborers
may have no difficulty in finding the necessary time. To familiarize
the working classes with the terms o f the law, courses of lectures
before labor organizations or at general public gatherings have been
given by the inspectors or their assistants. Notwithstanding all this,
the laborers have made comparatively little use o f the opportunities
offered them.
To overcome the distrust o f the working classes, an interesting
method has been used in Wurttemberg. A t the suggestion of the
laborers themselves, certain disinterested persons have been desig
nated as intermediaries between the laborers having complaints to
make or violations to report, and the inspectors. The intermediaries
receive these complaints or reports, and, i f they come from appar
ently trustworthy sources, forward them to the authorities for inves
tigation and action. The male intermediaries are elected by labor
associations and sometimes have regular conferences with the in
spectors. The women intermediaries are chosen by the inspectors
and are usually nuns or deaconesses. In 1901 there were 182 inter
mediaries o f the kind just described (114 men and 68 women) pos
sessing absolutely no official authority, nevertheless performing an
important function. The chief purpose o f the arrangement is, o f
course, to protect the laborers themselves from retaliatory measures
on the part o f the employers whom they denounce.
Despite the considerable growth o f labor organizations in Ger
many during the past few years and the appointment o f permanent
officials by trade unions, the original attitude of these organizations
and these officials has generally been one o f suspicion or o f hostility
toward the inspectors. Gradually, however, this attitude is giving
way to a willingness to cooperate, and not merely to forward com
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
289
plaints to the inspectors, but first to examine whether or not the com
plaints appear to be well founded. In some o f the States of the
Empire the inspectors and the trade union officers are on a footing of
mutual respect and friendship. In Bremen and in Saxony the latter
have acquired a reputation for caution and circumspection in for
warding complaints to the inspectors; whereas the complaints that
come from individual laborers are too often prompted by a desire for
revenge, and so frequently bear the marks o f exaggeration that they
deserve little attention. This is reported to be particularly the case
in Wurttemberg. Upon this point the reports o f the Saxon inspectors
contain interesting data regarding the district o f Chemnitz in 1904.
In a total o f 66 reports o f violations made to the inspectors by trade
unions, 37 were found to be justified and 26 not justified; in a total of
82 reported to the inspectors directly by individual laborers, 32 were
well founded and 45 not; in 24 reported anonymously, 11 were justi
fied ; and o f 109 violations o f the law referred to in labor meetings
or in the newspapers, 20 were found upon examination to be fully
justified and 72 without any foundation whatever. F or the whole
o f Saxony during the same year (1904) 61 per cent o f the violations
denounced by labor organizations were well founded, 45 per cent of
those reported by individuals, and 34 per cent of those mentioned in
newspapers.
It is no secret that the laboring classes generally manifest little
desire to cooperate systematically with the industrial inspectors in
securing the enforcement o f the labor laws. This lack o f interest on
their part, says Prof. W. Kahler,(a) is characteristic o f laborers o f
all sorts and o f all convictions, almost up to the present day. Only
recently have they begun to appreciate the significance o f labor in
spection. Thus, at the Congress o f Christian Trade Unions held at
Cologne in July, 1909, a prominent delegate called particular attention
to the neglect o f the unions in this respect and urged the importance
o f an active interest in labor legislation and its enforcement. Con
gresses o f trade unions have repeatedly, during the last few years,
advocated strengthening the inspection service through the addition
o f representatives o f the laboring classes, and particularly o f women
inspectors.
A like apathy is exhibited by employers’ organizations. In 1906
the Industrial League (Bund dev IndustHellen) o f Berlin issued
2,000 circular letters o f inquiry relating to protective labor laws, and
received 400 answers. In 36 per cent o f the answers no complaints
were made with regard to the activity o f the industrial inspectors,
although the questions in the circular letter were designed and
phrased to elicit complaints.
0 Soziale Praxis, Vol. X IX , Nos. 11, 12, and 13.
290
BULLETIN OF THE BUREAU OF LABOR.
The inspectors complain almost regularly from year to year that
in the application o f the law o f 1903 the laboring classes, particularly
the laborers engaged in home industries, show little appreciation o f
the law, and that parents are often guilty o f shameless exploitation
o f their own children, displaying remarkable ingenuity in circum
venting the child-labor law. It is therefore considered a most hope
ful sign that labor organizations in some o f the larger industrial
centers are now giving special attention to the enforcement o f meas
ures for the protection of child laborers.
In Saxony the Social-Democratic trade unions have taken steps
in this direction through the organization of committees for the
protection o f children (Kinderschutzkommissionen). Late in 1909
a similar movement was inaugurated in Berlin, where for some time
groups, o f women connected with the local trade unions made it their
business to hunt out violations o f the law o f 1903. As long, how
ever, as these women worked without the official support and sanction
o f the trade unions they accomplished comparatively little, despite
their unquestioned energy and self-sacrifice. But in 1909 the SocialDemocratic party and the Social-Democratic trade unions created
for Greater Berlin a “ Kinderschutzkommission ” having under its
direction a number o f female “ controllers ” ( Kontrolleurinnen) and
assistant controllers whose function it is to detect violations o f the
law, to use persuasive means to prevent the continuance o f illegal or
harmful practices, and, as a last resort in cases of necessity, to bring
them to the attention o f the inspectors or the police authorities. The
controllers and their assistants meet from time to time; their ad
dresses are advertised in the workingmen’s newspapers; and the
custom is developing o f reporting to them such infractions o f the law
as chance to come to the attention o f the laborers in the unions.
Stuttgart, in March, 1910, (a) followed the example o f Berlin and
also established a committee for the protection o f children, consisting
o f seven women representing a group o f trade unions and the local
Social-Democratic party.
Reference has already been made to the training o f the women
inspectors. A few words may be added concerning the training o f the
male inspectors and their subordinates.
The members o f the regular inspection staff are all appointed for
life. In Prussia the inspectors o f the highest rank, called “ govern
ment councilors,” or “ industrial councilors ” ( Regierungsrate or Gewerberate), are appointed by the King, whereas those o f inferior rank
are appointed by the minister o f commerce. In Saxony the 57 mem
bers of the regular inspectorial staff are assisted by 6 expert chemists.
a See Soziale Praxis for March 17,1910.
zation since 1909.
Hamburg has had a similar organi
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
291
In Wurttemberg a superior medical councilor is associated with the
17 inspectors. In Alsace-Lorraine the inspectors are aided by 11
municipal building inspectors, intrusted with the enforcement of
the labor laws in building enterprises. Apart from the officials who
do not have the enforcement o f the labor laws as their exclusive task,
the number o f inspectors for the whole Empire in 1908 was 466. I f
we add to these the inspectors of mines the total reaches 576.
In the first years of factory inspection in Germany there were no
specific provisions concerning the training inspectors were required to
possess; the best available candidates were taken, regardless o f exam
inations or preparatory training. Nowadays, however, it is the gen
eral practice to appoint to the higher positions only academically in
structed engineers and chemists who either have been specially trained
for this work or have served a sort o f apprenticeship in the actual
work o f inspection. Under the direction and supervision o f these
higher officials there are usually, especially in the South German
States, assistants o f various grades who have had no academic
training.
Prussia has a regular system o f training and promotion, introduced
by a regulation under date o f September 7, 1897, which is a close
imitation o f the system applied to judicial officials. According ’to
the needs o f the service, the minister o f commerce appoints so-called
“ Anwarter,” who must have had at least a course o f three years in a
technical school, who must furthermore have passed an examination
in machine construction, mining, metallurgy, or chemistry, and who
must have had some practical experience. Those who pass the
examination successfully are called “ Gewerbereferendare ” and are
then required to “ practice ” for a year and a half under the direction
o f an “ industrial councilor.” This probationary period is followed
by three semesters o f university study in law and political sciences,
and a written and oral examination at Berlin by an examining board
instituted for this special purpose. Candidates who successfully go
thus far are designated “ Gewerbeassessoren.” The subjects of which
the last examination consists are industrial hygiene, public law, eco
nomics, and the Inspectorial service.
In the other States, the number o f inspectors is too small to justify
so elaborate a set o f rules concerning the required training o f candi
dates. But as a rule it is considered that the chief inspectors should
be academically trained and should have had some practical experi
ence either in the service in a minor capacity or in industrial life.
The inner organization o f the inspectorial service varies somewhat
from State to State. In Prussia, with a staff o f over 270 officials, each
government councilor or industrial councilor (the highest in rank o f
292
BULLETIN OP THE BUREAU OF LABOR.
the inspectors) is at the head o f one or more administrative circuits,
each o f which is in turn divided into a number o f sections. Each of
these sections is in charge o f an inspector. The councilors and in
spectors may be assisted by the “ Gewerbeassessoren ” to whom refer
ence has already been made. Conferences o f the councilors are held
annually at the call of the ministry in order to secure uniformity in
the application o f the laws.
In Bavaria there is a central inspector at the head o f the whole
staff o f “ factory ” and “ industrial ” inspectors, and each inspector
has charge o f an administrative circuit {Regierungsbezirk) , except
that for Upper Bavaria there are two inspectors. Each inspector
has one or more assistants, the sphere o f whose activity, however, is
not limited to one circuit. Annual conferences o f the inspectors are
held.
In Saxony every circuit has a board o f administrative officials
which includes a government councilor for industrial affairs. Under
this official are the industrial inspectors, to whom are assigned one
or more assistants. Each inspector has his own district, but each o f
the “ chemical experts ” covers several inspectorial circuits.
In Wurttemberg there are four districts, each in charge o f an in
dustrial inspector at the head o f a staff o f assistants; some o f the
latter are academically trained (the so-called “ Gewerbeassessoren ” ),
while others are chosen from the laboring classes and are known as
“ Gewerbe-Inspectionsgehilfen,” or aids to the industrial inspectors.
The capital o f the Kingdom, Stuttgart, is the headquarters for all
four inspectorial districts. But the inspectors at the head o f each
district are entirely independent o f each other, although they hold
consultations from time to time in order to secure as uniform an
enforcement o f the laws as possible.
In Baden there is a chairman o f the inspection staff. Below him
in rank are 3 factory inspectors, 3 industrial assessors, and 3 technical
assistants, all o f whom have their headquarters at Karlsruhe. The
country is divided into three inspectorial areas, but at the same time
each o f the inspectors is placed in charge o f particular branches of
the work for the whole Duchy. The “ specialties v into which some
o f the work is thus divided are home industries, working schedules,
ventilation o f factories, etc. There is thus a technical as well as a
territorial division o f labor, the one overlapping the other. A woman
inspector has charge o f the tobacco industry and the clothing trades—
regardless o f territorial divisions— as well as o f the establishments
in which mainly women are employed. The assistants are usually
intrusted with inspecting the smaller establishments. The unity
o f the entire corps under one head and the consultations that are
held from time to time permit o f specialization and o f an effective
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
293
utilization by all the officials o f the expert knowledge and the expe
rience o f each.
It is manifest that with so varied an organization o f the inspection
service throughout the German Empire there are sure to be differ
ences in the enforcement of the law, not only from State to State, but
within each State o f the Empire. Indeed, there may be as many
different degrees and varieties o f enforcement as there are inspectors,
for the terms o f the law are such as to call for the frequent exercise
o f discretionary power. The Industrial Code, for example, provides
that the health and safety o f employees shall be protected “ as far as
the nature o f the industry or occupation permits; ” it speaks o f
“ sufficient ” light and “ ample ” space. These are elastic terms that
all inspectors will not interpret alike. Yet it is desirable that these
differences o f interpretation be not too great, else certain employers
will be placed at a disadvantage in competing with employers in the
same industry who happen to be located in a district that is in charge
o f a less rigorous inspector. In the smaller States a fair degree o f
uniformity may be attained by frequent consultation among the
inspectors, as is provided for in Bavaria, or by a division o f labor
according to phases of inspectorial activity, as is customary in Baden.
These methods, however, are impracticable in a larger country like
Prussia, where uniformity is sought by means o f a central bureau
cratic regulation and the establishment o f certain general rules by
the central authorities. The occasional conferences o f the officials
o f highest rank, and the power which these officials possess in their
respective territories, help considerably to prevent wide divergencies
in the enforcement o f the laws.
294
BULLETIN OF THE BUREAU OF LABOR.
A fair clew to the varying degrees of intensity with which the
work o f inspection is carried on may be gained from the following
table:
NUMBER OF INSPECTORS AND OF ESTABLISHMENTS SUBJECT TO INSPECTION,
NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES IN SUCH ESTABLISHMENTS, AND PER CENT OF
ESTABLISHMENTS VISITED IN 1908, BY STATES.
Establishments
subject to in
spection.
State.
Prussia...........................
East Prussia............
West Prussia..........
Brandenburg..........
Pom erania..............
P o se n ......................
Silesia......................
Saxony....................
Sleswick-Holstein..
H an over.................
Westphalia..............
Hesse-Nassau...........
R h in elan d..............
Sigm aringen...........
B a va ria ..........................
Saxony...........................
Wurttemberg.................
B aden ................. ...........
Hesse...............................
Mecklenbu rg-Schwerin
Saxe-Weimar.................
Mecklenburg-Strelitz («)
O ldenburg................... .
B runsw ick................... .
Saxe-Meiningen.......... .
Saxe-Altenburg............
Saxe-Coburg-Gotha__
A n h a lt...........................
S c h w a r z b u r g -S o n dershausen.................
Schwarzburg - R u d o 1s ta d t..........................
W a ld e ck (/> .................
Reuss-Greiz...................
Reuss-Schleiz................
Schaumburg-Lippe ( / ) .
L iP P e (/)...................
Lubeck......................
B rem en .....................
Hamburg...................
Alsace-Lorraine.......
Number of inspectors.
Gov
ern
ment
Persons
coun
Num
em
cilors
ber. ployed.
and
as
sist
ants.
146,369 ,019, 137
52,
4,036
4,352
64,
28,244 584,
76,
5,253
4,141
53,
15,062 390,
12,070 249,
91,
6,647
11,634 204,
15,537 343,
8,658 167,
30,578 736,
4,
157
28,046 468,
26,271 692,
10,934 214,
10,381 229,
96,
5,981
21,
2,052
29,
908
326
2,330
25,005
2,054
48,039
915
29,060
1,046
28,131
775
21,546
1,351
31,960
1,
Average es
tablishments
subject to in
spection for
each in
spector.
40
2
2
5
2
2
4
4
1
4
4
2
7
1
In
dus Male Fe
Per
trial as male
sons
as Other. Total. Num
in- sist sist
ber.
em
ants. ants.
ployed.
tors.
151
5
8
26
6
6
16
13
6
15
16
8
26
10
12
4
«6
61
1
*5
276
10.938.9
8 504.5 6.604.5
11 395.6 5.853.5
49 576.4 11.931.9
9 583.7 8.533.8
9 460.1 6,958.0
35 430.3 11,145.3
23 524.9 10.845.9
10 664.7 9.194.9
25 465.4 8,173.2
30 617.9 11. 443.1
15 577.2 11.155.7
51 599.6 14.438.5
1 159.0
401.0
30 934.9 15.629.7
57 460.9 12.156.1
17 643.2 12.625.0
12 866.1 19.103.6
15 398.7 6,444.5
12,052.0 21.243.0
2 454.014,712.0
776.7 8.335.0
684.7 16.013.0
915.0 29.060.0
348.7 9.377.0
387.5 10.773.0
450.3 10,653.3
257
7,956
257.0 7.956.0
222
214
238
757
172
461
8,
222.0 8.612.0
13,
22,
238.0 13,192.0
252.3 7,921.3
5,051
7,644
11
1
6
9
19
338.0 7.687.0
213.8 4.292.0
561.2 7,924.4
402.3 10,461.8
24
466
550.2 11,429.8
51.6
2,
6,
German Em pire.. 256,376 5,326,274
75
206
134
47.9
52.6
56.8
46.1
47.5
40.7
43.4
57.2
37.6
60.0
58.5
42.3
44.3
92.4
45.8
71.4
96.3
38.8
71.0
16.8
63.7
23.9
27.0
36.5
56.6
58.8
65.3
43.5
42.8
21.5
50.4
67.0
39.5
64.3
93.8
96.3
44.4
27.6
1,
7,
25,
71,
198,
Per
cent
of
estab
lish
ments
vis
ited
in
1908.
•Expert chemists.
• A physician.
e One is a physician.
d Adjunct inspectors taken from the working classes.
• For purposes of inspection Mecklenburg-Strelitz is combined with MecklenburgSchwerin.
1 1nspection in Waldeck, Lippe, and Schaumburg-Lippe is taken care of by Prussian
officials.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
295
METHODS AND W O R K OF TH E INSPECTORS.
According to section 14 o f the Industrial Code, all new industrial
establishments must be reported to the local authorities. No estab
lishment can be founded without the authorities learning of it. A
large proportion o f these establishments, moreover, must obtain a
permit from the police to carry on business. In this way the police
obtain a mass o f information which is o f great value to the inspectors.
Factories in which women and children are employed are required to
report in considerable detail. (See sec. 138 o f the Industrial Code,
pp. 247, 248.) These reports greatly facilitate the work of the in
spectors. Domestic workshops, however, not being subject, as a rule,
to the provisions o f the Industrial Code, are not required to give no
tice to the police either of their existence or of the nature of the work
carried on therein. For this reason the employment o f young per
sons and o f children in domestic workshops is more apt to escape the
attention o f the authorities than their employment in so-called fac
tories and similar establishments. Indeed, the activity o f the offi
cials in seeking to enforce the law o f 1903 is still regarded in many
quarters and by many parents as unwarranted and inquisitorial. In
his report for 1909, one o f the Hessian inspectors declares that “ bitter
complaints are made, and not infrequently we had occasion to be glad,
on visits o f inspection, to get out on the streets again with an un
damaged hide.”
The inspectors keep a list o f the industrial establishments in their
respective territories, dividing them into two groups, namely, “ fac
tories and similar establishments” and the “ other establishments,”
which are also subject to the labor laws. The information upon
which these lists are based is furnished by the official records, supple
mented by the observation o f the inspectors themselves.
The official instructions concerning the enforcement o f the Indus
trial Code, under date o f May 1, 1904, provide as follow s:
The supervision o f the enforcement o f the rules concerning Sunday
rest is intrusted to the local police authorities. In applying these
rules to industrial enterprises, except those o f a commercial character
( Handelsgewerbe), they are aided by the industrial inspectors and in
applying them to mines by the officials in charge o f the inspection of
mines.
The application o f the laws concerning work books and the employ
ment o f women and young persons rests with the local police in com
junction with the industrial inspectors, whose activity in this regard
is regulated by instructions under date o f March 23,1892.
In securing the observation o f the Sunday laws, the local police
and the mining officials are required to make visits to the establish
ments within their jurisdiction regularly and at such frequent inter
296
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
vals as may be necessary. Upon these visits they are enjoined to see
to it particularly that the required lists o f employees are kept; that,
i f exceptions to the general provisions o f the law are allowed, the
proper notices are conspicuously posted in the work places; and that
the conditions upon which these exceptions are permitted are strictly
observed. Should the local police consider that persons are being
employed contrary to the provisions o f the law, they shall consult the
industrial inspector before taking further steps to secure the punish
ment o f the parties concerned; whereupon the inspector may refer
the matter to the chief executive official o f the Province ( Regierungsprasident) for his decision.
In every establishment subject to sections 135 to 139b of the Indus
trial Code, and in which female laborers or laborers under 16 years o f
age are employed, at least one “ ordinary ” visit o f inspection must be
made every six months by the local police authorities ( Ortspolizeibehorde). Additional “ extraordinary ” visits should be made whenever
they appear desirable, particularly when it is suspected that women
or young persons are being employed contrary to the terms o f the
law. A t every “ ordinary ” visit the inspecting official shall obtain
the following information: How many laborers employed in the
establishment? How many o f them are males over 16 years o f age?
How many females between 16 and 21, and how many over 21 years
o f age? How many males between 14 and 16, females between 14
and 16, and how many males and females under 14 years o f age?
Which nonadult laborers are without the required work books, cor
rectly filled out ? Do the hours of work and the midday pauses for
female laborers over 16 years o f age agree with the legal require
ments and with the report on these points made by the employer to
the local police ? Are the female laborers over 16 years of age, who
have a household to take care of, granted one and one-half hours off
at midday upon their request? Are the provisions o f the law regard
ing the employment o f mothers recovering from confinement com
plied with? Are the proper notices posted up in the work places in
which women and young persons are employed ? Does the posted list
o f these persons tally with the list furnished the local police ? Does
the list o f young employees agree with the work books in the em
ployer’s keeping? D o the hours o f work and pauses coincide with
the requirements o f the law and with the entries in the lists o f em
ployees? The inspecting officials should also ascertain that in the
cases in which exceptions to the general provisions o f the law are
allowed, the employers comply with the conditions upon which these
exceptions are permitted. Plants which carry on work at night or
on Sundays should be visited from time to time at night or on Sun
days; and those employing female laborers over 16 years o f age
should also be visited on Saturdays and days preceding holidays after
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
297
5 p. m., and on other workdays after the time indicated as the end
o f the workday.
Numerous provisions are also made with regard to keeping a rec
ord o f the facts ascertained by the inspecting officials in the course of
their visits.
The frequency with which the inspectors visit each establishment
subject to the law necessarily varies according to the nature o f the
establishment and according to a number of other circumstances. In
Prussia the inspectors are instructed to pay particular attention to
three groups o f establishments, namely: (1) Those which the ordi
nary police authorities are unable to inspect properly because of
lack o f the requisite technical knowledge; (2) those in which there
is unusual danger to the life or health o f employees, or which are
apt to have disagreeable effects upon persons in the immediate neigh
borhood; and (3) those which are subject to a special regime o f some
sort; that is to say, those which are exempted from compliance with
certain requirements of the law, or which are subject to exceptionally
severe provisions, or which are forbidden to employ certain categories
o f laborers.
The Prussian ordinance concerning the enforcement o f the indus
trial code requires that every establishment, subject to the law, in
which women or children under 16 years o f age are employed, must
be visited once every six months, or oftener if there is reason to
suspect that the law is being violated.
A corresponding ordinance in Baden requires that establishments
belonging to this class be visited “ at short intervals,” and that other
establishments be visited “ from time to time.” The reports from
Wurttemberg speak o f the “ annual ” visits o f the inspector. (a)
The main source o f information concerning the actual work o f the
inspectors consists o f their annual reports, which must be presented
in whole or in the form of extracts to the Federal Council and the
Imperial Diet. They are collected by the Imperial Office o f the
Interior and published under the special direction o f the Imperial
Statistical Office in Berlin. ( *6) These annual reports for the Empire
include the reports o f the officials in charge o f the inspection of
a W. Kahler, Die Durchfiihrung der Arbeiterschutz-Gesetze und die Gewerbeinspektion in Deutschland. 1908. Berlin.
6 Until 1892 they were called Amtliche Mitteilungen aus den Jahresberichten
der mit der Beaufsichtigung der Fabriken betrauten Beamten; the title was
then changed to Amtliche Mitteilungen aus den Jahresberichten der Gewerbeaufsichtsbeamten. Since 1899, however, the reports o f the inspectors have been
published not in extracts but in their entirety under the title Jahresberichte der
Gewerbeaufsichtsbeamten und Bergbehorden. Amtliche Ausgabe. Bearbeitet im
Kaiserlichen Statistischen Amt. Berlin. The data in the present study are
taken from the issues for 1904 to 1908, inclusive, unless otherwise stated.
298
BU LLETIN OF T H E BUREAU OF LABOR.
mines. Comparatively little is done in the way o f summarizing the
results and experiences o f the inspectors throughout the Empire, save
for a few statistical summaries. There is practically no effort at
analysis, interpretation, or criticism o f results, like that given in the
French reports. There is, however, a remarkably detailed and useful
index. Moreover, a general plan has been adopted by the inspectors
for the arrangement of the matters taken up in their respective
reports. The Bavarian annual reports are exceptional in the respect
that they contain not only the reports o f the individual inspectors
for each circuit, but general discussions o f certain problems and o f
particular industries throughout the Kingdom. It has already been
stated that in Hesse separate annual reports are issued concerning the
enforcement o f the child-labor law o f 1903.
The table given at the close o f the preceding section shows that
for the Empire as a whole each member o f the inspectorial staff was
in 1908 responsible, so to speak, for an average o f 550 establishments
subject to the law, employing an average o f 11,430 laborers. The
averages were approximately the same during the preceding years,
the increases in the number o f inspectors having little more than
kept pace with the growth in the number o f establishments and o f
laborers subject to inspection. The proportion o f establishments
visited annually, and the number o f laborers in these establishments,
is the subject o f the following table:
N U M B E R O F “ F A C T O R IE S
AND
S I M I L A R E S T A B L I S H M E N T S ** S U B J E C T T O
IN S P E C T IO N A N D O F P E R S O N S E M P L O Y E D A N D N U M B E R A N D P E R C E N T
O F E S T A B L IS H M E N T S IN S P E C T E D A N D O F P E R S O N S E M P L O Y E D IN S U C H
E S T A B L IS H M E N T S , 1902 T O 1908.
E sta blish m en ts su b je ct
to in sp ection .
E sta blish m en ts in
spected.
Y ea r.
N u m b e r.
1902.....................................................
1903.....................................................
1904.....................................................
1905.....................................................
1906.....................................................
1907.....................................................
1908.....................................................
178,936
184,270
215,339
226,565
236,643
250,724
259,617
P ersons em
p lo y e d .
4,849,108
5,054,068
5,362,199
5,607,657
5,884,655
6,128,319
6,122,416
N u m b e r.
87,878
94,517
107,901
116,034
123,526
130,735
135,330
P e r ce n t
o f estab
lishm ents
Persons em in spected.
p lo y e d .
3,822,959
4,026,282
4,302,635
4,566,346
4,821,557
5,036,133
5,081,051
49.1
51.3
50.1
51.2
52.2
52.1
52.1
P e r ce n t
o f em
p lo ye e s in
in sp ected
establish
m e n ts o f
to ta l em
p loyees.
78.8
79.7
80.2
81.4
81.9
82.2
83.0
Thus it appears that the inspectors visit about one-half o f the
establishments annually, but as they tend to select the larger con
cerns, the inspected establishments contain four-fifths o f the laborers
whose employment is subject to legal regulation. In six o f the States
o f the Empire, however, only one-third o f the establishments subject
to the law are visited in the course o f a year, while in three States
less than one-fourth o f them are visited (Waldeck and the two
299
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
Mecklenburgs). In Prussia there were in 1908, 530 establishments
per inspector, and in Mecklenburg 2,052; whereas in Sigmaringen,
Lippe, and Liibeck, with a small area, each inspector has an average
o f from 159 to 338 plants under his jurisdiction, but only 90 to 95
per cent o f them are actually inspected in the course o f a year.
Among the larger States Wurttemberg is a noteworthy exception to
the general rule, probably because o f the geographical concentration
o f its industrial plants and the more effective cooperation o f the
trade unions. It would seem that 300 establishments per inspector
is a reasonable maximum compatible with efficient supervision, for
not only is a single visit per annum insufficient in many cases, but it
should be borne in mind that the inspectors are usually burdened
with miscellaneous clerical labors, with the work o f preparing reports,
and with the conduct o f special investigations assigned to them from
time to time.
Considerably more intensive than the work o f the “ industrial ”
inspectors is that o f the officials charged with the inspection o f mines,
and the application o f the labor laws to mines and similar establish
ments. This is indicated by the following table:
N U M B E R O F M IN E IN S P E C T O R S A N D O F M IN E S S U B J E C T T O IN S P E C T IO N ,
N U M B E R O F E M P L O Y E E S IN S U C H M IN E S , A N D P E R C E N T O F M IN E S IN
S P E C T E D A N D O F P E R S O N S E M P L O Y E D , IN 190 8 , B Y S T A T E S .
M ines s u b je ct t o
in sp ection .
States.
N u m b e r.
Persons
e m p lo y e d .
R eu s s (y o u n g e r lin e ).................................
A ls a ce-L orra in e............................................
2,215
360
196
7
44
53
19
32
108
19
13
9
7
159
706,818
12,239
33,143
765
692
2,339
1,932
3,965
3,426
2,631
707
939
153
26,393
G erm an E m p ir e ...............................
3,241
796,142
P ru ssia.............................................................
B a v a r ia ...........................................................
S a x o n y .............................................................
W u r tte m b e r g ................................................
B a d e n ...............................................................
H e s s e ...............................................................
S ach sen -W e im a r..........................................
B r u n s w ic k ......................................................
S achsen -M einingen.....................................
A n h a lt .............................................................
S ch w a rz b u rg-S on d ersh a u sen .................
Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt.....................
N um
ber of
inspec
tors.
A ve ra g e m in es
s u b je ct t o in sp e c
tio n fo r each
inspector.
N um
ber.
70
8
12
1
1
2
1
1
1
2
(a )
(6 )
l , l
10
110
P e r ce n t of—
M ines P ersons
Persons
em
em
in
p lo y e d . spected. p lo y e d .
31.6
80.0
16.3
7 .0
44.0
26.1
19.0
32.0
108.0
9.1
10,097.4
1.529.9
2.761.9
765.0
692.0
1.169.5
1.932.0
3.965.0
3.426.0
1.315.5
94.7
99.4
7 .0
15.9
153.0
2,639.3
71.4
90.6
29.5
7,237.7
95.5
100.0
71.4
61.4
79.2
63.2
100.0
95.4
100.0
92.3
100.0
100.0
99.9
100.0
93.7
80.3
98.5
96.7
100.0
99.7
100.0
97.3
100.0
100.0
98.9
99.8
® P r u s s ia h a s c h a r g e o f t h e i n s p e c t io n o f m in e s i n S c h w a r z b u r g - S o n d e r s h a u s e n .
* S c h w a r z b u r g - R u d o l s t a d t i s c o m b in e d w i t h S a c h s e n - M e in in g e n f o r t h i s p u r p o s e .
From this table it appears that despite considerable variation from
State to State within the Empire, over 95 per cent o f the mines were
inspected in 1908, and that these mines contained nearly all o f the
laborers employed in mining and allied pursuits (99.8 per cent).
What the statistics regard as an “ establishment,” however, often con
sists o f a series o f widely scattered enterprises, some o f which may
300
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR,
entirely escape attention. Moreover, a single visit per annum would
be lamentably insufficient in the case o f mines, as, indeed, it is in the
case o f many other establishments.
The necessity for repeated visits is, o f course, not entirely over
looked, and the number o f plants visited by the inspectors is con
siderably smaller than the total number o f visits, as the following
table indicates:
FREQUENCY OF VISITS OF INSPECTION, 1908.
Number of visits made.
Establishments.
Number visited.
Groups of industries.
On holi
and Number
At night. days
on Sun visited.
days.
Total.
Once.
Twice.
Three or
more
times.
Metallurgy, salt works, etc.........
Stone ana clay products............
Metal trades................................
Machinery, tools, etc..................
Chemicals....................................
Oils, grease, varnish, etc............
Textiles.......................................
Paper...........................................
Leather.......................................
Wood, etc....................................
Food products............................
Clothing trades...........................
Building trades...........................
Printing, etc................................
Others..........................................
47,922
23,693
14,295
15,290
3,806
3,671
13,991
4,424
2,564
21,266
54,932
20,035
5,605
6,501
2,277
722
176
168
211
31
54
330
114
23
110
298
524
16
192
4
1,087
530
358
458
100
123
307
178
67
400
1,163
363
80
194
9
3,791
18,203
10,894
11,072
2,080
2,575
10,694
2,968
1,899
17,851
46,748
16,320
5,099
5,102
2,130
1,051
14,797
8,804
8,773
1,337
1,921
8,536
2,094
1,504
15,389
41,000
13,811
4,685
4,154
2,042
701
2,385
1,423
1,491
363
425
1,529
554
274
1,872
4,353
1,852
334
677
67
2,039
1,021
667
808
380
229
629
320
121
590
1,395
657
80
271
21
Total..................................
‘240,272
2,973
5,417
157,426
129,898
18,300
9,228
For the purposes o f the present inquiry it is important to note the
extent o f child labor in the plants subject to the labor laws, and
particularly in the establishments that are visited by the inspectors.
Concerning the age and sex o f laborers employed in all factories and
similar establishments subject to the labor laws (whether or not they
have been visited by the inspectors), the following figures are given:
EMPLOYEES, CLASSIFIED ACCORDING TO AGE AND SEX, IN 44 FACTORIES AND
SIMILAR ESTABLISHMENTS ” SUBJECT TO THE PROVISIONS OF THE INDUS
TRIAL CODE, 1904 TO 1908.
14 to 16 years.
Year.
1904...............
1905...............
1906...............
1907...............
1908...............
Total em
ployees.
Males over Females
over 21.
16.
5,362,199
5,607,657
5,884,655
6,128,319
6,122,416
4,004,134
4,173,522
4,364,255
4,533,548
4,520,066
608,950
633,918
668,820
696,099
699,146
Under 14 years.
Boys.
Girls.
Boys.
Girls.
Total
under
16
years.
232,810
246,591
268,329
285,335
289,597
127,484
135,673
145,325
150,847
150,658
5,542
5,771
6,228
7,295
6,677
4,100
4,474
4,619
5,759
5,385
369,936
392,509
424,501
449,236
452,317
Females
16 to 21.
379,179
406,829
426,200
449,436
450,887
The comparatively steady increase in the number o f persons under
16 years o f age employed in establishments subject to the provisions
o f the Industrial Code is indicated for a longer period by the next
table:
301
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
EMPLOYEES UNDER 16 YEARS OP AGE IN “ FACTORIES AND SIMILAR ESTAB
LISHMENTS,” CLASSIFIED BY AGE GROUPS, 1882 TO 1908.
[From Conrad’s Handworterbuch der Staatswissenschaften, Yol. V, p. 731.]
Employees.
Year.
12 to 14
years of
age.
1882........................ „................................................................................
1886..........................................................................................................
1890..........................................................................................................
1895..........................................................................................................
1902..........................................................................................................
1905..........................................................................................................
1906..........................................................................................................
1907...........................................................................................................
1908...........................................................................................................
14,600
21,035
27,485
4,327
8,077
10,245
10,847
13,054
12,062
14 to 16
years of
age.
123,543
134,589
214,252
217,422
316,303
382,264
413,654
436,182
440,255
Total.
138,143
155,624
241,737
221,749
324,380'
392,509
424,501
449,236*
452,317
With regard to employees under 14 years o f age it is of course
apparent that the decline between 1890 and 1895 is due to the
44Gewerbe-Novelle ” o f 1891. In the number o f laborers between
14 and 16 years o f age, however, there has been an uninterrupted
increase. But it should be noted that Alsace-Lorraine was first in
cluded in the figures for 1890, and that the extension in 1904 o f cer
tain provisions o f the Industrial Code to workshops in which clothing
and linen wear are made is at least in part responsible for the increase
since that year.
The adult employees, i. e., those over 16 years o f age, numbered
4,524,728 in 1902 and 5,670,099 in 1908. Hence during these six
years the adult laborers have increased about 25 per cent, whereas the
nonadult employees have increased about 33 per cent in number.
The statistics given in the industrial census o f 1907, compared withthe figures for 1895, indicate that o f all persons engaged in gainful
occupations at each o f these dates, in 1895 those between 14 and 16<
years o f age were 0.58 per cent, and in 1907, 0.54 per cent.
The proportion o f employees under 16 years o f age to all the labor
ers subject to the provisions o f the code, and the absolute number o f
those in the two age groups 44under 14 ” and 4414 to 16 ” is given fo r
the years 1904 to 1908 in the following table:
TOTAL EMPLOYEES, NUMBER UNDER 16 YEARS OF AGE IN SPECIFIED AGE
GROUPS, AND PER CENT UNDER 16 OF TOTAL EMPLOYEES IN “ FACTOIilESANQ SIMILAR ESTABLISHM ENTS” SUBJECT TO INSPECTION, 1904 TO 1908.
Employees under 16 years of age.
Year.
1904...................................................
1905...................................................
1906...................................................
1907...................................................
1908...................................................
Total
employees.
5,362,199
5,607,657
5,884,655
6,128,319
6,122,416
56504°—No. 89—10-----20
14 to 16.
360,294
382,264
413,654
436,182
440,255
Under 14.
9,642
10,245
10,847
13,054
12,062
Total.
369,936
392,509
424,501
449,236
452,317
Per cent
under 16of total
persons
employed.
6.901
7.00
7.21
7.33
7.39>
302
BU LLETIN OF T H E BUREAU OF LABOR.
I f attention be limited to the “ factories and similar establish
ments ” actually inspected, this table should be modified as follows:
TOTAL EMPLOYEES, NUMBER UNDER 16 YEARS OF AGE IN SPECIFIED AGE
GROUPS, AND PER CENT UNDER 16 OF TOTAL EMPLOYEES IN “ FACTORIES
AND SIMILAR E STABLISH M ENTS” VISITED BY THE INSPECTORS, 1904 TO
1908.
Employees under 16 years of age.
Total em
ployees.
Year.
14 to 16.
1904...................................................
1905...................................................
1906...................................................
1907...................................................
1908...................................................
4,302,635
4,566,346
4,821,557
5,036,133
5,081,051
Under 14.
Total.
7,037
7,143
8,101
10,008
9,000
277,415
298,764
324,429
343,863
350,285
Per cent
under 16
of total
persons
employed.
284,452
305,907
332,530
353,871
359,285
6.61
6.70
6.90
7.03
7.07
Thus, during the past five years, the proportion of employees
under 16 years o f age in the plants visited by the inspectors has
increased from 6.61 to 7.07 per cent, the number of these laborers
having increased somewhat more rapidly than the total number of
employees.
The industrial groups in which the number o f employees under 16
years o f age is largest is indicated by the next table, based on the
returns for the years 1905,1906,1907, and 1908.
NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES UNDER 16 YEARS OF AGE IN “ FACTORIES AND
SIMILAR ESTABLISHM ENTS” SUBJECT TO INSPECTION, 1905 TO 1908, BY
INDUSTRIES.
Industry.
Mining, metallurgy, salt works, etc
Stone and clay products..................
Metal manufactures.........................
Machinery, tools, etc........................
Chemicals..........................................
Oils, grease, varnish, etc..................
Textiles.............................................
Paper................................................
Leather............................................
Wood products...*.......................... .
Food products..................................
Clothing trades.................................
Building trades............................... .
Printing, etc.....................................
Others..............................................
Total......................................
1905.
1906.
1907.
31,641
38,090
48,927
47,431
5,566
2,131
76,168
14,738
5,381
21,769
35,308
41,002
6,778
16,698
886
34,609
39,623
53,499
55,267
6,139
2,273
80,084
15,694
5,799
24,288
37,413
44,046
7,562
17,420
785
38,086
40,197
56,658
60,916
6,647
2,520
83,496
16,362
5,850
25,217
41,023
45,392
7,634
18,501
737
40,480
38,405
56,669
62,558
6,580
2,422
79,662
16,071
5,487
25,387
45,303
46,464
6,988
19,056
785
392,514
424,501
449,236
452,317
1908.
There has been a steady increase in the absolute number of laborers
under 16 years o f age in mining, metallurgy, etc.; in metal manufac
tures; in the manufacture o f machinery, tools, etc.; in the making
o f wood products; in the food-producing industries; in the clothing
trades; and in printing and allied occupations. The total number
o f these laborers has for the past five years been greatest in the textile
industries, followed, in the order named, by machinery and tools,
303
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
metal manufactures, the clothing trades, food products, mining and
metallurgy, stone and clay products, wood products, printing, paper,
the building trades, chemicals, leather, and the manufacture o f oils,
varnish, and allied products. If, instead o f the absolute number o f
laborers under 16 years o f age, we consider the relative number of
such laborers in the several groups o f industries into which the
industrial population o f the German Empire is divided, the order is
a somewhat different one, as the next table shows:
TOTAL EMPLOYEES AND NUMBER AND PER CENT OF CHILDREN AND YOUNG
PERSONS EMPLOYED IN “ FACTORIES AND SIMILAR ESTABLISHMENTS ”
SUBJECT TO INSPECTION IN 1908, BY GROUPS OF INDUSTRIES.
Group o! industries.
Total
employ
ees.
Children (under
14).
Number.
Per
cent.
Young persons
(14 to 16).
Number.
Per
cent.
Per cent of em
ployees under 16
who were—
Males.
Fe
males.
Mines, salt works, metallurgy................ 1,000,434
Stone and clay products.........................
529,535
Metal manufactures................................. 423,689
759,521
Machinery, tools, etc...............................
Chemicals.................................................
116,439
63,112
Oils, grease, varnish, etc.........................
Textiles..................................................... 371,487
Paper.................................... ................... 100,479
Leather.....................................................
73,411
Wood products......................................... 319,159
Food products.......................................... 411,578
Clothing trades.........................................
97,247
120,154
Building trades........................................
Printing, etc............................................. 117,004
Others.......................................................
10,817
103
1,481
1,334
983
120
114
3,560
457
94
699
1,270
1,300
56
476
15
0.01
.2
.2
.1
.1
.1
.4
.3
.1
.2
.2
.3
.04
.3
.1
40,377
36,924
55,335
61,575
6,460
2,308
76,102
15,614
5,393
24,688
44,033
45,164
6,932
18,580
770
3.8
5.8
10.2
7.1
4.5
3.2
8.9
9.1
5.7
6.6
7.1
12.1
5.4
10.6
5.3
96.7
79.3
83.2
94.1
60.9
51.8
38.1
44.3
66.6
85.9
51.0
16.7
99.6
73.9
73.0
3.3
20.7
16.8
5.9
39.1
48.2
61.9
55.7
33.4
14.1
49.0
83.3
.4
26.1
27.0
Total (1908).................................... 4,520,066
Total (1907).................................... 4,533,548
12,062
13,054
.2
.3
440,255
436,182
7.2
7.1
65.5
65.1
34.5
34.9
Thus in 1908 the proportion of laborers under 16 years of age was
as follow s: Clothing trades, 12.4 per cent; printing and allied trades,
10.9 per cent; metal manufactures, 10.4 per cent; paper, 9.4 per cent;
textiles, 9.3 per cent; food products, 7.3 per cent; machinery, tools,
etc., 7.2 per cent; wood manufactures, 6.8 per cent; stone and clay
products, 6.0 per cent; leather, 5.8 per cent; building trades, 5.44
per cent; chemicals, 4.6 per cent; mining, metallurgy, etc., 3.81 per
cent; oils, varnish, etc., 3.3 per cent. The fifteen groups into which
these laborers are divided, however, are based upon a necessarily more
or less arbitrary classification o f trades and occupations. It should
be noted that o f the 38,405 persons under 16 years of age employed
in the manufactures o f stone and clay products, 12,777 are employed
in the manufactures o f bricks, tiles, and earthenware, and 9,025 in
glass works; that o f the 79,662 persons under 16 engaged in the
textile industries, 20,467 are employed in spinning mills; that of the
45,303 persons under 16 employed in the manufacture o f food prod
ucts, 21,994 are engaged in making cigars, 1,967 in bakeries, and 1,125
in the canning and preserving industry; and that of the 19,156 per
304
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
sons under 16 years of age in the printing and allied trades, 14,478
worked in printing offices and in type foundries.
Regarding the sex o f these laborers under 16 years o f age, the table
on page 303 indicates that in 1908 the males predominated in all of
the fifteen groups o f industries excepting the textiles, paper, and the
clothing trades; whereas the sexes were about equally represented in
the manufacture of oils, varnish, etc., and in the manufacture of
food products.
It has already been stated that the inspection o f hotels and taverns,
and the application of the laws affecting conditions of labor in these
establishments, is intrusted to the local police authorities. Our gen
eral account o f the work done in inspecting establishments subject to
the labor laws needs therefore to be completed by some reference to
the extent and character of this work, concerning which the next
table is given.
INSPECTION OF HOTELS AND TAVERNS BY THE LOCAL POLICE AUTHORITIES
IN 1008.
NumberState.
Per cent
Subject
Visits inspected.
In
to in
of
in
spection. spected. spection.
Prussia...................................
Bavaria.................................
Saxony..................................
Wurttemberg........................
Baden....................................
Hesse....................................
Mecklenburg-Schwerin.........
Saxe-Weimar.........................
Mecklenburg-Strelitz..........
Oldenburg.............................
Brunswick.............................
Saxe-Meiningen.....................
Saxe-Altenburg.....................
Saxe-Coburg-Gotha..............
Anhalt...................................
Schwarzburg-Sondershausen
Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt___
Waldeck.................................
Reuss-Greiz...........................
Reuss-Schleiz........................
Schaumburg-Lippe...............
Lippe.....................................
Liibeck..................................
Bremen..................................
Hamburg___ , .......................
Alsace-Lorraine.....................
21,101
8,797
5,734
1,043
4,120
789
304
296
73
202
275
149
126
186
163
44
106
49
59
112
21
58
75
394
1,150
2,747
19,129
7,262
4,926
1,043
2,987
783
304
253
73
150
262
149
126
186
163
44
106
48
59
77
20
51
75
394
1,150
1,668
35,974
13,719
6,550
1,120
8,349
1,894
334
998
77
293
461
226
151
644
315
131
239
108
92
104
30
73
149
569
1,372
2,709
90.7
82.6
85.9
100.0
72.5
99.2
100.0
85.5
100.0
74.3
95.3
100.0
100.0
100.0
100.0
100.0
100.0
98.0
100.0
68.8
95.2
87.9
100.0
100.0
100.0
60.7
German Empire..........
47,173
41,488
76,681
87.9
Turning now to the subject o f detected violations of the childlabor provisions o f the Industrial Code, it should be noted, first o f all,
that the procedure adopted by the inspectors with regard to such vio
lations is substantially the same as with regard to any other offenses.
The inspectors are instructed first to try to persuade employers to
conform to the provisions o f the law, particularly when the violations
have to do with matters o f form, such as keeping lists o f employees,
seeing that each employee has his work book, etc. Offenses of this
character may be due to simple neglect or to ignorance o f the require-;
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
305
ments o f the law. Should persuasion fail to produce the desired
consequences, the inspectors usually call upon the police authorities to
follow up the matter, and in the event o f continued failure to comply
with the law the employer is brought to trial before the ordinary
tribunals. This step, however, is supposed to be taken only in cases
o f well-authenticated violations, because it is recognized in Germany,
as elsewhere, that the prestige of the inspectors would suffer if it
frequently happened that prosecutions instituted at their suggestion
resulted in the acquittal of the defendants. Here, moreover, as in
other countries comprised in the scope o f this investigation, it is not
uncommon for laborers, called as witnesses during a trial, to repudi
ate the statements they have previously made in private to the in
spectors.
In trials for violations o f the labor laws the same rules o f pro
cedure apply as in other trials; the inspectors, as a rule,%take no part
therein. This partial elimination of the inspectors is reported as
explaining why they are sometimes not promptly informed o f the
outcome o f the trials, and that often, therefore, they are unable to
secure an appeal within the allotted time in cases o f unwarranted
acquittal.
Reference has already been made to the subject o f responsibility for
infractions o f the labor provisions o f the Industrial Code. The em
ployer is o f course responsible at criminal law ; but it is sometimes a
matter o f difficulty to determine the responsible employer. In case
o f corporate enterprises, the president or official head is regarded as
liable. When the direction o f an enterprise or of part of an enter
prise is intrusted to an agent, the latter is held responsible, no matter
what his designation may be. But if offenses against the law are
committed by an agent with the knowledge o f his principal, or i f
the principal ordered his agent to do that which constitutes a viola
tion o f the law, the former is liable as well as the latter. The same
is true if the principal did not exercise reasonable care in the selec
tion o f his agent or did not exercise that degree o f supervision over
his agent’s conduct which he was in a position to exercise.
Laborers are not liable^it criminal law for violating the protective
provisions o f the Industrial Code, although, as a matter o f fact, viola
tions are often attributable to the carelessness and indifference o f the
laborers themselves, or, when piece wages are paid, to the fact that
these provisions are held by the laborers to interfere with the rapidity
o f their work. Thus the safety appliances required by law are some
times removed by the workmen, and frequently the factory or work
shop rules are ignored, although these rules are established largely
in the interest o f the laborers. In such cases the employer endeavors
to secure obedience by imposing fines for noncompliance with the
rules.
306
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
Should a laborer accuse his employer o f violating the law and it
be proved that the laborer knew his accusation to be false, he may
be punished, according to section 164 of the Criminal Code, by im
prisonment for a period of not less than one month.
Violations o f the provisions of the Industrial Code affecting chil
dren under 16 years of age may conveniently be divided into three
groups:
(1) Violations o f what may be called the formal provisions of the
code, such as those regarding work books, wage books, work schedules,
factory rules, and lists o f employees.
(2) Violations o f the more important and distinctly protective
features o f the law, such as the employment o f “ protected persons ”
in prohibited occupations (under the first clause o f section 135 o f the
Industrial Code), longer workdays than the law permits, neglect to
allow the legally required number or duration o f pauses, and illegal
work at night or on holidays.
(3) Violations of the administrative regulations enacted by the
Federal Council in the exercise of its discretionary power to supple
ment the statutory provisions o f the Industrial Code, such as those
concerning medical certificates, employments especially forbidden
under certain circumstances or to laborers of a certain age or sex,
alternation o f shifts o f laborers, rest periods between changes o f
shifts, etc.
The number o f these various offenses detected during the years
1904 to 1908, inclusive, is indicated in the following table:
NUMBER OF CASES OF VIOLATION OF THE PROVISIONS OF THE INDUSTRIAL
CODE AND NUMBER OF PERSONS AFFECTED, 1904 TO 1908, BY NATURE OF
OFFENSE.
1904.
Offense.
Cases.
Formal offenses regarding—
Work books........................
Wage books........................
Lists of employees, etc___
Graver offenses regarding-*- '
Prohibited child labor.......
Length of workday:
Children under 14
years.........................
Persons between 14
and 16 years..............
Pauses................................
Night work........................
Sunday and holiday work.
Offenses against special ordi
nances of the federal council
regarding—
Forbidden employments..
Medical certificates............
Rests between shifts and
changes of shifts.............
Other matters............ .
1905.
1907.
1908.
Per
Per
Per
Per
Per
sons Cases. sons Cases. sons Cases. sons Cases. sons
af
af
af
af
af
fected.
fected.
fected.
fected.
fected.
7,952
1,523
9,650
7,056
2,269
9,520
507
1906.
941
540
7,442
1,4**
9,248
948
470
7,132
1,106
9,418
833
605
6,988
728
8,732
987
648
1,183
599
946
566
870
548
923
599
909
551
824
1,596
1,015
147
199
3,974
4,534
312
332
1,523
1,159
174
247
3,699
4,497
383
475
1,393
1,204
181
241
3,330
5,069
355
485
1,238
1,300
196
213
2,914
5,785
394
310
1,149
1,114
246
249
2,889
4,984
500
429
162
44
314
158
164
31
289
160
176
35
306
193
115
20
194
72
101
25
185
106
106
338
138
77
148
107
71
234
108
67
91
75
86
200
109
Total................................ 23,558 11,649 23,754 11,428 22,739 11,602 22,100 11,640 20,817
11,209
307
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
ESTABLISHMENTS
IN W HICH
VIOLATIONS
Number of establishments............................................
Per cent of establishments inspected...........................
Number of persons punished........................................
WERE DETECTED, 1904 TO
1904.
1905.
1906.
1907.
15,066
12.7
1,847
15,813
12.5
1,717
15,948
11.7
1,024
15,755
10.6
1,837
1908.
Approximately half o f the offenses have been o f the sort here
designated as “ formal.” O f the graver offenses, the largest number
consisted o f having laborers work longer than the law allows; 1,149
cases o f this sort in 1908 concerned young persons between 14 and 16
years o f age, and 551 cases concerned children under 14 years o f age.
Next in number were the cases concerning pauses (1,114), those con
cerning prohibited labor (648), those concerning work on Sundays
and holidays (249), and those concerning night work (246).
The participation o f the several groups of industries in these
offenses is indicated by the following table, in which is given, besides
the number o f establishments that were found violating the law, the
per cent which this number bears to the total number of establish
ments visited by the inspectors in each group of industries.
ESTABLISHMENTS FOUND VIOLATING THE PROVISIONS OF THE LAW CON
CERNING EMPLOYEES UNDER 16 YEARS OF AGE, CLASSIFIED ACCORDING
TO GROUPS OF INDUSTRIES, 1905 TO 1908.
1905.
1906.
1907.
1908.
Group of industries.
Number. Per cent. Number. Per cent. Number. Per cent. Number. Per cent.
Mines^netallurgy,etc.
Stone and clay prod
ucts.........................
Metals.........................
Machinery, tools, etc.
Chemicals..................
Oils, varnish, etc.......
.Textiles......................
Paper..........................
Leather.......................
Wood.........................
Food products...........
Clothing trades..........
Building trades.........
Printing, etc..............
Others........................
94
2.6
113
2.9
92
2.4
87
2.3
2,417
1,102
1,153
89
70
1,394
318
165
1,438
2,512
3,946
285
760
61
14.3
11.8
12.7
4.9
3.0
15.9
12.6
9.7
10.0
7.6
26.3
1&8
16.1
5.4
2,593
1,231
1,211
88
81
1,453
371
168
1,458
2,467
3,395
414
815
90
14.0
13.0
12.5
4.6
3.3
15.3
13.6
9.5
9.1
6.9
22.7
9.8
16.7
8.1
2,212
1,183
1,166
82
74
1,437
397
164
1,447
2,722
3,497
399
799
84
12.4
11.5
11.3
4.1
3.1
14.7
13.7
8.8
8.6
6.6
20.6
8.4
15.4
4.9
2,018
1,009
1,144
74
49
1,269
293
138
1,288
2,992
3,467
441
735
95
11.1
9.3
10.3
3.6
1.9
11.9
9.9
7.3
7.2
6.4
21.2
8.6
14.4
4.5
Total................
15,813
12.5
15,948
11.7
15,755
10.6
15,099
9.6
It thus appears that during these years the clothing trades en
joyed the unenviable distinction o f standing at the head of the list
with regard to the proportion of inspected concerns found violating
the child-labor regulations, from one-fifth to over one-fourth of these
establishments -having been found guilty during the past four years
o f violating these regulations. Next in order come the printing
trades and the textile manufactures. More particularly, the chief
offenders are tailoring establishments, bakeries (included under the
308
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
44 food products” group o f industries), and brickyards (under the
group 44stone and clay products ” ). More than one-third o f the total
number o f infractions occur in these three occupations.
On the whole, however, there appears to be a slight improvement
from year to year in the proportion o f all inspected establishments
found guilty o f violating these provisions of the law, the per cent
being 12.5 in 1905,11.7 in 1906,10.6 in 1907, and 9.6 in 1908.
Thus far in the present chapter our attention has been mainly
devoted to the work of the inspectors in enforcing the child-labor
provisions o f the Industrial Code, the amendments to the code, and
the ordinances enacted under its terms. O f particular interest, how
ever, for the purposes o f the present study, is the enforcement o f the
child-labor law o f 1903, which particularly aimed to regulate child
labor in home industries.
In Prussia the employment o f young children in home industries
appears to have decreased slightly during recent years, partly be
cause o f the depressed condition o f a number o f industries in which
children were largely employed in their own homes, and partly
because o f the substitution o f factory work for domestic production.
Thus, for instance, the inspector at Aix-la-Chapelle reported, in 1908,
that a brass-ware factory in that town, which formerly provided home
work for a large number o f children, had devised machinery to take
the place o f the children. Similar reports were made by other
inspectors.
Violations o f the law, however, show no decline, and continue in 1
many cases to be o f the most flagrant character. Particularly bakers
are in the habit o f employing children illegally in the morning to
deliver bread. The Danzig inspector found 14 children employed;
illegally in a fish-smoking establishment, and in the larger cities^
many school children are employed delivering newspapers without]
having been registered with the police, and therefore without that'
supervision o f their work which the law provides. In fact, manyj
o f the inspectors testify very frankly that the difficulty of exercising
anything like a rigid supervision o f child labor in families with
large numbers o f children makes it almost impossible to judge the
extent to which the law o f 1903 is being violated. In the Cologne
circuit the most frequent offenses consist in the failure to provide
children with the required work cards and in the employment o f
children at times not permitted by law .(a)
It has already been pointed out that the inspectors are assisted in
the enforcement o f the law by the local police and by the school
teachers, the latter aiding in the work o f preparingr lists o f school
children employed in gainful occupations. In Diisseldorf, for exama See Reichsarbeitsblatt, 1909, Nos. 6, 7, 9, and 10.
CHILD-LABOB LEGISLATION IN GEBMANY.
309
pie, the school-teachers are reported not only as calling the attention
o f the police to violations o f the law, but also as causing the with
drawal o f work cards—in conformity with article 20 o f the law of
1903— from children whose school work is unsatisfactory. To pre
vent strained relations between the parents o f the children affected
and the teachers who furnish this information, it has been arranged
that the information shall be transmitted by the teachers to the
school inspector o f the circuit and by him turned over to the authori
ties without disclosing its source.
In certain parts o f Bavaria the law o f 1903 is reported as very
imperfectly observed. Thus in Oberpfalz 443 children were found
employed industrially, and o f this number 312 were employed ille
gally. O f 358 employed industrially in Unterfranken, 76 were work
ing illegally. A large proportion o f these cases consisted o f the em
ployment o f children under 12 years o f age, or the employment o f
school children after 8 p. m. In Oberbayern the activity o f the
police in regard to the work o f children in hotels and taverns, how
ever, led to a decrease in the number thus employed from 120 in 1907
to 66 in 1908. Throughout Bavaria the chief occupations o f the
school children engaged in employments subject to the law o f 1903
consist in delivering goods, setting up tenpins in bowling alleys, and
helping in domestic industries. In Mittelfranken 229 children under
14 were engaged in delivering goods, 208 in making toys and metal
ware, 60 in making mirrors, 185 in the manufacture of imitation
jewelry, 34 in the manufacture o f papier-mache and cardboard ware,
74 in making brushes, 50 in making candles, and 260 in other varieties
o f home industries. In Schwaben it is reported that large numbers
o f children under 13 are employed in the manufacture o f straw
hats. («)
It has already been pointed out that in Hesse a special report is
issued annually regarding the enforcement of the law of 1903. The
report for 1908 indicates that o f a total o f 198,849 school children,
3,909, or 1.96 per cent o f the whole number, were employed indus
trially. This represents a decline, for in the preceding years the
per cent was 3.05 in 1904,2.51 in 1905,2.12 in 1906, and 2.08 in 1907,( &)
O f the children employed industrially, 2,605 were “ own ” children
and 1,304 “ other” children. (See p. 271.) These children were
a Reichsarbeitsblatt, 1909, No. 6.
Shortly after the recent publication o f the reports o f the Bavarian inspectors
for 1909 a ministerial order was issued to the effect that “ Statistics concerning
the violations o f the regulations governing the employment o f women and chil
dren again indicate that most o f these violations occur in brickworks and in
shops for the manufacture of clothing and linen wear. * * * The severest
measures must be taken to secure the punishment o f the offending employers.”
See Soziale Praxis for July 7, 1910.
6 The report for 1909 indicates that in a total o f 203,636 school children, 1.83
per cent were employed industrially.
310
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
employed as follows: In forbidden occupations, 14; in workshops,
208; in mercantile establishments, 55; in transportation enterprises,
5; in theatrical and similar public performances, 85; in hotels and
taverns, 49; in delivering goods and in similar occupations, 3,493.
O f these 3,909 children subject to the law o f 1903, 1,274, or 32.6 per
cent, were employed illegally; that is to say, they were employed for
longer hours than the law allows or at other times than the law allows
or under conditions not sanctioned by the law.
In Wurttemberg the general impression o f the inspectors appears
to be that the law o f 1903 regarding home industries is very difficult
to enforce because of the necessarily concealed character of these
industries. (®) “ There are still districts with extensive home indus
tries in which the people are ignorant o f the fact that there is such a
thing as an imperial law, passed five years ago, regulating the em
ployment o f children in home industries.”
The Hamburg “ Kinderschutzkommission ” undertook in the fall o f
1909 to gather data with regard to the gainful employment o f school
children in that city, with the result that a large number were found
to be employed contrary to the terms o f the laiv o f 1903. On Sunday,
March 6, 1910, according to the reports o f this committee, it was
found that 1,921 children under 14 years o f age were employed gain
fully between the hours o f 6 and 9 o’clock in the morning—743 in
delivering bread, 714 in delivering milk, and 464 in similar occupa
tions. The ages o f these children varied all the way from 5 to nearly
14 years. ( *6)
To detect violations o f the labor laws is one thing; to punish the
offenders adequately is quite another. The former rests with the
inspectors and their collaborators; the latter rests with the ordinary
tribunals. These tribunals in Germany manifest the same degree o f
leniency toward offenders against the labor laws as that noted in the
other countries included within the scope o f the present investigation.
Upon this point the testimony of the German inspectors is unequivo
cal. Unfortunately their reports give little or no information con
cerning the amount o f the fines imposed by the courts for violations
o f the provisions concerning the employment o f persons under 16
years o f age. It is certain, however, that heavy fines are rarely im
posed and scarcely ever the penalty o f imprisonment. Although the
Industrial Code fixes a fairly high maximum for fines, it gives the
courts a wide latitude in determining the measure o f punishment,
with the result that the fines actually imposed in most cases are wholly
devoid o f any deterrent value. Thus, it has happened that employers
®Prof. Stephan Bauer’s clever epigram, “ Heimarbeit ist Geheimarbeit ”
contains a large degree of truth.
6 See Soziale Praxis for June 23, 1910, from which these data concerning
Hamburg are taken.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN GERMANY.
311
guilty o f offenses for which the Industrial Code allows a maximum
penalty o f 2,000 marks ($476) or imprisonment for six months are
fined only 50, 20, or even 10 marks ($11.90, $4.76 or $2.38). Rarely
does the fine exceed 100 marks ($23.80). The penalty o f imprison
ment appears to be imposed only in cases involving industrial acci
dents that have resulted in death or in serious injuries.
The Prussian inspectors constantly report that the courts exhibit
little disposition to cooperate with the inspectors and the police in
securing stricter enforcement. Even when violations are discovered
and the guilty parties brought to trial, the penalties are frequently
so small that they have no preventive influence, the profits o f illegal
but cheap child labor being so much greater than the fines usually
involved.
The figures given in the table on page 307 show how comparatively
small a proportion o f the employers reported by the inspectors as
violating the law receive punishment. Although in 1908, for in
stance, 15,099 establishments were found violating the provisions o f
the law concerning the employment o f persons under 16 years o f age,
and the total number o f offenses was 20,817, the total number o f per
sons punished was only 1,597; that is, 10.5 penalties for every hun
dred establishments breaking the law. Nearly 20,000 infractions re
mained unpunished. It should be noted, however, that not all of
the States o f the Empire are equally lenient. In Prussia 18.4 per cent,
in Baden 26.4 per cent, and in Lippe 27.5 per cent o f the offenders
against the child-labor provisions o f the law were subjected to pen
alties; but there were seven States o f the Empire in which not a
single penalty was imposed in 1908 for violating these provisions.
In the Kingdom o f Saxony 98.3 per cent, in Wurtemberg 98.9 per
cent, and in Hesse 95.5 per cent o f the offenders o f this class went
scot free.
Until a few years ago the criminal statistics of the German Empire
were tabulated without special reference to violations o f the labor
laws. These offenses were grouped with others in such a way as to
make it impossible to distinguish them. But in 1906 a more elaborate
classification was adopted, and for the years 1906 and 1907 it is
possible to obtain a more accurate notion o f the extent to which the
main provisions o f the labor laws have been violated. These viola
tions naturally group themselves into two main divisions—those
against the “ protective” provisions o f the Industrial Code and its
amendments and supplementary ordinances and those against the
other laws and ordinances which are intended to protect the laboring
classes. In the latest report issued, that for 1907,(a) the total number
o f punished violations o f the labor laws was 21,384, o f which 15,912
0 Band 193 der Statistik des Deutchen Reichs.
Berlin, 1909.
312
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
were violations o f the Industrial Code and 5,472 were violations of
the provisions o f other labor laws and ordinances. The total of 5,472
includes not only the offenses against the Child Labor Law o f 1903
(numbering 4,214), but also those against the workingmen’s insurance
laws (numbering 1,232), the law governing the manufacture o f phos
phorus matches (numbering 1), and the law concerning the protection
o f mariners (numbering 25).
The participation o f the principal States of the Empire in the total
number o f offenses punished in 1907 was as follow s: Prussia, 11,506;
Saxony, 2,431; Bavaria, 1,520; Hamburg, 1,283; Wurtemberg, 1,162;
Baden, 1,108.
The penalties imposed for violations o f the labor laws are divided
into four classes: Reprimands ( Verweise), fines, detention (Haft),
and imprisonment (Gefangnis). O f the penalties imposed in 1907,
99.5 per cent consisted o f fines—20,958 in a total o f 21,061. H alf o f
these fines, moreover (10,150), were between 3 and 10 marks (71.4
cents and $2.38); and 6,668 were fines o f exactly 3 marks (71.4 cents).
The penalty o f imprisonment was imposed in 45 cases and that of
detention in 13 cases. O f the 45 cases o f imprisonment, 40 concerned
the illegal use o f deductions made from wages; of the 13 cases o f
detention, 8 were due to violation o f the Sunday law.
The total o f 15,912 offenses against the labor provisions o f the
Industrial Code included 36 offenses regarding the working schedule,
33 concerning wage payments, 2,486 concerning rest periods and
closing time for mercantile establishments, 8,821 concerning Sunday
rest, 2,285 concerning the sanitary condition o f work places, the pre
scribed safety appliances, etc., 1,094 concerning the employment o f
women, 1,155 concerning the employment o f persons under 16 years
o f age, and 2 concerning the identity o f laborers.
I f consideration is given particularly to the provisions o f the law
o f 1903, the violations in the years 1904 to 1908(a) were as follows:
NUMBER
OF VIOLATIONS OF THE CHILD LABOR LAW OF 1903
EACH YEAR, 1904 TO 1908, BY NATURE OF OFFENSE.
Nature of offense.
Employment of “ other children” in forbidden occupations
(articles 4 and 23)........................................................................
Employment of “ other children” in workshops, commerce
and transportation, contrary to articles 5 and 23......................
Employment of “ other children” in theatrical performances,
etc., contrary to articles 6 and 23...............................................
Employment of “ other children” in taverns, restaurants, etc.,
contrary to articles 7 and 23.......................................................
Employment of **other children ” to deliver goods, run errands,
etc., contrary to articles-8 and 23...............................................
Employment of “ other children” on Sundays and holidays,
contrary to article 24, part 1......................................................
Total......................................................................................
1904.
1905.
1906.
PUNISHED
1907.
1908.
41
69
80
112
97
474
642
723
1,228
909
18
28
29
31
49
153
166
197
216
180
1,037
1,933
2,040
2,399
2,206
140
167
214
228
255
1,863
3,005
3,283
4,214
3,696
a From the Vierteljahrshefte znr Statistik des Deutschen Reichs, 1909, Heft
IV, page 184. The figures here given for 1908 are, however, “ preliminary.”
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN ITALY.
313
ITALY.
HISTORY OF CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION.
In the parliamentary debates preceding the enactment of the Italian
law o f June 19, 1902, del Balzo Carlo, a member of the Chamber
o f Deputies, called attention to the fact that a statute o f the Venetian
glass makers in 1284 forbade the employment o f children in certain
dangerous branches o f the glass-making trade. This is probably the
oldest European child-labor law. A century later, a Venetian ducal
edict o f 1396 prohibited the work in certain trades of children under
the age o f 13 years. From that time, however, down to the middle
o f the nineteenth century it is impossible to find any other measures
o f this sort.
In 1843, the Viceroy o f Lombardy and Venice issued an ordinance
prohibiting the employment o f children under 9 years o f age in indus
trial establishments employing more than 20 persons over 15 years of
age, and decreeing that children under 12 years o f age must not work
at night, i. e., between 9 p. m. and 5 a. m. It forbade corporal punish
ment for child employees; fixed the maximum workday at 10 hours
for children under 12, and at 12 hours for children between 12 and 14
years o f age; and required that they be given at least 8 hours per day
for sleep. The enforcement o f this law was intrusted to the officials
o f each commune, assisted by a physician and by the so-called district
commissions.
Sixteen years later, on November 20, 1859, a law was passed con
cerning the labor o f children in mines. This law, which first applied
only to Sardinia, was extended on December 23, 1865, to the whole
Italian peninsula. It forbade children under 10 years o f age to work
underground and prescribed a fine o f 5 to 50 lire (96.5 cents to
$9.65) for violations o f the law. But in the absence o f anything ap
proaching the inspection o f labor in mines, and in default o f heavier
penalties for infractions, the law remained practically a dead letter
and the exploitation o f child laborers continued unabated.
During the following few years a number o f projects were elab
orated with a view to regulating the industrial employment o f chil
dren, particularly in mines, in mills, and in dangerous occupations.
Few o f the plans, however, ever came up for discussion by the legis
lature. A public-health bill presented to the Senate in 1870, contain
ing provisions regarding the labor of children, was approved by that
body in 1873 after lengthy discussion, but it was not even debated by
the lower house. A similar project met the same fate in 1876. Under
date o f December 21,1873, however, a law was passed forbidding the
employment o f children in so-called “ wandering ” trades.
314
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
In 1879 the minister of agriculture, industry and commerce ordered
an investigation to be made throughout the Kingdom with regard to
the employment o f children, and requested the opinion of the local
authorities, o f mutual benefit societies, o f chambers o f commerce, and
o f the more important industrial organizations, as to the desirability
o f additional legislation upon this subject. A great majority of those
consulted pronounced themselves in favor o f a new law, and many con
tended that the new law should also deal with the subject o f female
labor. But not until February 11, 1886, did any of the numerous
projects discussed actually become a law.
The law o f 1886, which went into force at least nominally on August
18, 1886, was admittedly only a preliminary attempt to regulate the
gainful employment of children. From the hygienic, legal, and socio
logical points o f view it was clearly insufficient, and only a few of.
its provisions were retained in the subsequent law o f 1902. The
decrees concerning its enforcement ordered the minister o f agricul
ture, industry, and commerce to present a report to the Chamber o f
Deputies every three years concerning the application o f the law.
In 1889 the first o f these reports concerning the enforcement o f the
law was presented to the chamber. It contained but little informa
tion o f interest now. The second report, that o f 1892, showed that
the law was still very imperfectly applied. In establishments subject
to the regular inspection o f the royal corps o f mining officials, the laur
was fairly well complied with; but other establishments, visited only
at long intervals o f two or three and sometimes more years, paid little
attention to its provisions. The greatest tolerance, moreover, was
to the regular inspection of the royal corps of mining officials, the law
although the law itself was by no means radical or far-reaching, since
it fixed the age o f admission to industrial establishments, mines, and
quarries at 9 years, and at 10 years for underground work in mines.
The law furthermore limited the employment o f children under 12
years o f age to 8 hours a day. But the absence o f a special corps o f
officials having charge exclusively of the enforcement o f the labor
laws, and the lack of interest o f other officials in the often unenviable
work o f inspecting industrial establishments with a view to detecting
infringements o f these laws, were mainly responsible for the con
tinued meager results o f the law o f 1886. It was urged that the local
authorities supposed to carry out at least part o f the work of inspec
tion had so many other tasks to perform that they were unable to
devote to this additional work the necessary time and attention.
A ll establishments subject to the law were required to report
annually to the authorities. Immediately after the passage o f the
law approximately 4,000 establishments complied with this require
ment, but in 1892 the number had fallen to 197. In 41 Provinces
CHILD-I/ABOB LEGISLATION IN ITALY.
315
there were no reports at all in the latter year; in 7 o f them not a
single establishment had ever reported since the law went into effect.
Although a ministerial circular letter issued in October, 1892, led to
an increase in the number reporting, the number never again rose to
the original figure.
With regard to the work book which the law required every labor
ing child to keep, it was reported that the communal officials intrusted
with the delivery o f these booklets often knew little of the law;
and, it might have been added, many o f them cared less. Nor was
much attention paid to the provision that children under 15 years
o f age could not be employed unless they were provided with a
medical certificate stating their physical fitness to work. The physi
cians received no pay for this work from the Government, and the
certificates, as a matter o f fact, proved nothing at all, being given
as a mere matter o f form.
The movement for a new law and a better enforcement received
considerable impetus from the national congress o f physicians at
Palermo in 1892, which urged a much more careful regulation of
child labor in the sulphur mines, where conditions were extremely
deplorable.' A further impetus came from the international con
gress on labor accidents, held at Milan in 1894, at which the medical
and physiological consequences o f excessive labor, and o f labor under
unhealthful conditions, were set forth with appalling details by an
Italian delegate (Luigi Belloc), upon the basis o f elaborate personal
investigations and the testimony o f prominent Italian physicians.
Although the demand for new labor laws grew more insistent from
year to year, it was not until 1902 that the law o f 1886 gave way to a
new series o f provisions concerning the employment o f children. The
law o f June 19, 1902, regulated the employment of women as well
as children. The same year witnessed the creation o f a bureau of
labor (a) and o f a superior council o f labor, the former having for
its function the collection and publication o f information concerning
labor conditions and labor problems at home and abroad, the latter
being intrusted with the investigation o f relations between laborers
and employers and with advisory powers in connection with labor
legislation.
The law o f June 19, 1902, many parts o f which are still in force,
was modified by the law o f July 7, 1907, which did away with some
o f the exceptions and transitory provisions in the law o f 1902 and
modified it in important respects. Both laws were brought together
in a code or so-called “ unified text,” on November 10, 1907. This
text contains in compact and wTell-arranged form the present provi
sions of the law with regard to the labor o f women and children.
a Law o f June 29, 1902.
316
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
The last few years have witnessed a remarkable growth of interest
in the regulation o f labor conditions in Italy, partly due to a marked
increase in the membership and influence o f labor organizations.^)
The Italian system o f workmen’s insurance has been improved and
extended. A law concerning labor in rice fields, passed on June
16, 1907, aimed to improve the unhealthful conditions under which
persons employed in rice culture were too often required to work.
In the same year Italy ratified a treaty with France concerning in
dustrial accidents, by which French laborers in Italy and Italian
laborers in France were given all the benefits o f the insurance laws
o f the country in which they are employed. In 1904 a treaty had
been concluded by the same two nations with regard to the enforce
ment o f their respective labor laws. An important law providing
for a weekly day o f rest in industrial and commercial establishments
was passed on July 7, 1907, closely following the features o f the
French law o f July 13, 1906. On March 22, 1908, a law was passed
abolishing night work in bakeries. Not until very recently, however,
has it been possible to learn from official sources what the effects of
this series o f labor laws have been.
PRESENT REGULATION OF CHILD LABOR.
The law o f 1886 had fixed the age o f admission to industrial estab
lishments, mines, and quarries at 9 years, and permitted the employ
ment o f children between 9 and 12 years o f age for 8 hours a day.
The law o f 1902 raised the age limit to 12 years. But this provision
o f the law was not absolute, nor was it passed without bitter opposi
tion. Gavazzi, a member o f the Chamber o f Deputies, who acted as
spokesman for the silk-growing industry, declared that this industry
employed 53,000 children between 9 and 15 years o f age, and that
the work lasted 5, 6, 7, or 8 hours a day, the laborers being divided
into relays. O f 400 towns in Lombardy which had been asked for
their opinion concerning the 12-year age limit of admission, 75 per
cent replied that the adoption o f this age limit would mean the ruin
o f Italian silk culture. Hence a paragraph was added to the measure
providing that children between 10 and 12 years o f age at the time
the law went into effect might continue to be employed in the estab
lishments in which they were working at that time. But the law
o f July 7, 1907, did away with this paragraph and established 12
years as the minimum age o f admission to industrial establishments
generally.
For underground work in mines the minimum age is 13 years
i f steam, electricity, or similar motive power is used; otherwise it is
a In 1906 there were 2,732 trade unions, with 298,446 members, and in 1907,
2,974, with 392,889 members.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN ITALY.
317
14 years. Children under 15 years of age and women under 21 may
not be employed at work that is too fatiguing, dangerous, or unhealthful (even though such work be carried on in establishments not
subject to the law) except in cases especially provided for. In the
sulphur mines o f Sicily children 14 years o f age may be employed to
fill and empty ovens.
W ith regard to the precise scope o f the laws o f 1902 and 1907 the
laws themselves are brief. But a “ regulation ” under date o f Janu
ary 29, 1903, defines the terms o f the law as extending to all places
in which industrial labor is carried on by means o f mechanical mo
tors, no matter what the number of laborers may be. When, however,
there is no mechanical motor, all places in which more than 5 laborers
(regardless o f age or sex) are employed are to be considered as indus
trial establishments and hence subject to the law. Offices, shops,
and sales rooms are excluded, but not the building trades, i. e., “ the
erection or repair o f private or public edifices.”
No female person under 21 years and no child under 15 years o f
age may be employed in any establishment or occupation subject to
the law unless provided with a work book and a physician’s certifi
cate attesting that he or she is sound in body and fit to perform the
labor at which it is proposed to employ him or her.
The work books are furnished to the communes by the minister o f
agriculture, industry, and commerce, and delivered free o f charge to
the laborers by the mayor o f the commune in which they reside. The
work books must indicate the date o f birth o f the bearer, stating
whether he or she has been vaccinated and whether he or she has at
tended an elementary school, in conformity with the law of 1877, (a)
and passed the final examination (except in cases of intellectual
incapacity, certified by the school officials). The book must also
show that the bearer has attended the obligatory courses of the sec
ondary schools in conformity with the law o f July 8, 1904, whenever
such schools exist in the place where the child has resided. Em
ployers were given until July 1, 1910, to conform to the above rules
with regard to employing only children who have attended school as
provided for by law.
The medical examination is made by the health officer of the com
mune, without charge to the laborer, the expense being borne by the
communes. In case o f necessity, determined by administrative ordi
nance, the medical examination may be repeated. The physician’s
certificate must specify the kinds o f work which would be injurious
to the child’s development or health. This provision, if carried out,
°T h is law compels children 6 years of age to attend the elementary schools
until they are 9 years old, or, if they fail to pass the examination prescribed
after three years o f attendance, until they are 10 years old.
56504°—No. 89—10-----21
318
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
would facilitate the work of the inspectors and lighten the responsi
bility o f employers. But in practice, the utility o f this provision is
debatable, not only because it is apt to be unobserved in many cases
or to become a meaningless formality, but because the modifications
that are almost constantly taking place in the methods o f production
may render perfectly safe, by means o f new machinery or of new
processes, an operation or industry which has hitherto been danger
ous. A regulation o f January 29, 1903, permits the labor inspectors
and mining engineers, whenever they have doubts with regard to the
fitness o f a child for the work in which it is engaged, to subject it
to an additional examination by the communal physician, and if the
work is recognized as dangerous or if the child has a contagious
disease it may be compelled to leave the place o f employment.
Moreover, the medical examination may be repeated as often as the
inspector or health officer considers justified by the physical condition
o f the child.
Italy possesses a well-organized sanitary police, the members of
which are empowered to visit industrial establishments periodically
and to see to it that males under 15 and females under 21 j^ears o f
age are not employed at work that is too exacting. Unfortunately,
however, the sanitary police exhibit little interest in this part of
their work. They regard themselves as health officers in the cus
tomary and narrower sense o f the term; that is to say, as intrusted,
mainly with the prevention o f contagion and with the maintenance of
a reasonable degree o f cleanliness. Beyond this their visits are o f
purely formal significance in most cases, and so far as the provisions
for repeated medical inspection are carried out at all, they are car
ried out almost exclusively by the regular inspectors; and inasmuch
as these officials are mostly new to the work and have not had the
experience which their colleagues in most other European countries
enjoy, these provisions have not yet been actually put to the test o f
frequent application.
Upon receiving a request for a work book the mayor or his repre
sentative must notify the health officer, giving the exact date o f birth
o f the petitioner. The latter is provided with a blank work book
and takes it to the health officer appointed to make the physical ex
amination. I f the examination is favorable, the work book is re
turned to the communal authorities and the latter fill it out and
transmit it to the petitioner. The minister o f agriculture, industry,
and commerce has warned the local authorities against the delivery
o f incomplete work books, particularly those not indicating that the
medical inspection has been made. He has, moreover, called the at
tention o f employers to the necessity for examining work books with
the greatest care, and enjoined them never to employ persons whose
work books are not in perfect conformity with the requirements o f
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN ITALY.
319
the law. The work books o f laborers who have left the region of
their employment should be given by the employers to the communal
officials in order to prevent difficulties and abuses. The minister has
also expressed the hope “ that the physicians will be diligent and
conscientious in the performance o f their duty in order to prevent a
recurrence o f the complaints that they are exceedingly careless in
their examinations and in delivering medical certificates.”
Employers are required not only to examine the work books of the
children and female persons under 21 years o f age in their employ,
but to take charge o f them during the time that the owners are in
their service, and to record therein the date of beginning and ending
the term o f employment. The work book must also indicate what
changes take place in the nature o f the employment o f the owner.
When an employee is dismissed or leaves the place o f employment,
his work book must be returned to him at his request.
Whoever employs women (no matter of what age) or children
under 15 years o f age at certain kinds o f work specially designated
b y law or by ordinance, must make an annual declaration to this
effect. He must, moreover, in the course o f the year, report all
changes that have taken place in the character o f his establishment,
either through changes in the name o f the firm, or the introduction
o f meehanical motors, or in any o f the respects enumerated fey ordi
nance. Two copies o f such reports or “ declarations ” must be sent to
the prefect o f the province in which the establishment is located.
The prefect shall keep a record o f the contents thereof, and imme
diately forward the reports or “ declarations ” to the minister of
agriculture, industry, and commerce. A royal decree shall, after con
sultation with the superior board o f health, the council o f industry
and commerce, and the superior council o f labor, determine what
kinds o f work are to be regarded as dangerous, too fatiguing, or
unhealthful, and in which therefore women under 21 years o f age and
children under 15 must not be employed at all. In the same manner,
a royal decree shall enumerate, by way of exception, the unhealthful
kinds o f work in which women under 21 years of age and children
under 15 may be employed under such conditions and with such pre
cautions as may be judged necessary.
NIGHT WORK.
Night work is prohibited for male persons under 15 years o f age
and for all female persons. But female persons over 15 years o f
age who were employed in industrial establishments, quarries, or
mines at the time the law o f 1902 went into effect may eontinue to be
employed therein as before.
320
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
The prohibition of night work for female persons may be sus
pended at certain seasons o f the year and in cases in which they are
employed either in the manipulation of raw materials or in the
transformation o f goods susceptible of rapid deterioration, provided
that night work is necessary to prevent an inevitable loss o f value.
The occupations and processes to which this suspension o f the law
applies shall be determined by administrative regulation. Night
work is interpreted to mean, during the months o f October to March,
inclusive, that which takes place between 8 p. m. and 6 a. m., and,
during the remainder of the year, between 9 p. m. and 5 a. m. These
limits, however, may be altered by the minister o f agriculture, indus
try, and commerce in those regions in which special climatic or
economic conditions require it, upon the favorable recommendation
o f the board o f health o f the province concerned. The minister was
furthermore empowered to permit night work for wTomen under cer
tain conditions until January 1, 1908. Where female laborers are
divided into two shifts, it is provided that after January 1, 1911, all
work must be carried on between the hours o f 5 a. m. and 10 p. m., in
accordance with the convention of Berne under date o f September
29, 1906.
The above provisions concerning night work are a remarkable
advance beyond the law o f 1886, which made no reference whatever to
this subject.
DURATION OF THE ^WORKDAY.
Concerning the duration o f the workday, the laws o f 1902 and 1907
likewise constitute a step beyond the law o f 1886. The latter limited
the workday to 8 hours for children under 12 years o f age. The
new laws not only exclude persons under 12 from the establishments
and occupations subject to the law, but provide that children between
12 and 15 years o f age must not be employed more than 11 hours
per day, and that female persons (o f no matter what age) must not
be employed for more than 12 hours. These provisions, to be sure,
fall short o f the standards set up with regard to the working period
for women and children in several other industrial nations o f Europe.
But the demands o f certain industries, such as silk culture, the pros
perity o f which appeared to be peculiarly precarious, were considered
sufficient to justify the rejection o f more radical measures.
Whenever work is carried on by two shifts of laborers, neither
shall work longer than 8^ hours. The working period is counted
from the time the laborers enter the factory, workshop, work yard,
quarry, or mine, until the time of their departure, deducting the
periods o f rest.
Children under 15 years of age and all female laborers must be
given one or more intervals of rest amounting to at least 1 hour when
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN ITALY.
321
the workday lasts between 6 and 8 hours; amounting to 1J hours
when the workday lasts between 8 and 11 hours; and amounting to
2 hours when the workday lasts longer than 11 hours. I f the laborers
consent, the 1J hours of rest may be reduced to 1 hour when the work
day does not exceed 11 hours, and to half an hour if there are two
shifts o f laborers. But in no case may the labor of children, or of
female persons under 21, last longer than 6 hours without interruption.
A ll female persons, as well as children under 15 years o f age, are
entitled to one full day of rest of 24 hours every week.
Unless otherwise provided for by law or by administrative ordi
nance, the owners, managers, lessees, and superintendents who employ
children or female persons must see to it that all measures are
adopted to provide for the health, safety, and morality o f their em
ployees, not only in the work places and the places connected there
with, but also in the dormitories, in the rooms provided for female
employees, and in the refectories. (°)
Industrial establishments subject to the law must have a set o f fac
tory or workshop rules, certified by the mayor o f the locality in
which the establishment is situated, and conspicuously posted where
they may be seen by the laborers and by the public officials intrusted
with the enforcement o f the law. The enforcement o f the law is
intrusted, under the direction o f the minister o f agriculture, industry,
and commerce, to labor inspectors, mining engineers, assistant min
ing engineers, and police agents. These officials have the right of
free access to the establishments comprised within the scope of the
law, and are charged with the detection o f violations o f the law
or o f the administrative ordinances supplementing them. A detailed
report o f all such violations must be sent promptly to the competent
judiciary authorities and a copy thereof transmitted to the local
prefect.
Any industrial secrets that may be discovered by public officials in
the performance of their duties must, under penalty of the law, be
kept strictly inviolate.
The provision for a distinct corps o f inspectors marks what is
perhaps the most important achievement o f the laws o f 1902 and
1907. ( *6) It is true that there had previously been three so-called in
dustrial inspectors. But the principal duty o f these officials consisted
in the inspection o f technical and industrial schools. It is not far
from the truth to declare that until very recently there was no pro
a In establishments employing women the latter must be permitted to nurse
their infants, either in a room provided for this purpose or outside o f the
establishment, and the time shall not be included in the periods o f rest otherwise
provided for. There must be a special room for this purpose in all establish
ments employing 50 women or more.
6 The new service o f inspection began in November, 1906.
322
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOB.
vision for the efficient inspection o f industrial establishments, nor was
sufficient provision made for reporting the actual operation of the
law. Indeed, factory and workshop inspection in Italy is still in
its swaddling clothes. This is not surprising when it is remembered
that France and England required a quarter o f a century to establish
this institution upon a satisfactory basis.
O f no mean importance in securing the enforcement o f the labor
laws is the activity o f the “ carabinieri,” types o f half soldier and
half policeman, whose sudden appearance leads in many regions to
the detection o f infractions o f the law which would otherwise cer
tainly pass unnoticed in the absence o f an experienced and wellorganized inspectorial force.
The general nonobservance o f the labor laws led, in 1903, to a special
investigation into the subject o f labor inspection, the results o f which
were published in 1901 and brought about the adoption of a plan for
the thorough reorganization o f the staff o f inspectors. Meanwhile
the Government o f Italy, in signing the Franco-Italian labor treaty
o f April 15, 1905, formally pledged itself “ to complete the organiza
tion throughout the Kingdom, and particularly in the regions in
which industrial labor is developed, o f a service o f inspection working
under the authority o f the State and guaranteeing the application o f
the laws in a manner analogous to that assured by the labor inspectors
in France.”
On December 11, 1905, the minister o f agriculture, industry, and
commerce, in conjunction with the minister o f finance, proposed a law
creating a staff o f inspectors consisting o f two classes of officials, the
first consisting o f twelve regional inspectors, with two general inspec
tors and one ehief inspector, and the second o f 15 adjunct inspectors.
Both groups were to be chosen on the basis o f competitive examina
tions, but only workmen or former workmen could take part in the
competitive tests for the selection o f adjunct inspectors. The propo
sition also outlined the duties o f the inspectors and appropriated
100,000 lire ($19,300) for salaries and expenses. 37ot until July 19,
1906, however, and after some modification, was the law passed and
promulgated. It authorized an expenditure o f 70,000 lire ($13,510)
to carry out the terms o f the treaty with France, but was clearly only
a transitory solution o f the general problem o f labor inspection.
For the fiscal year 1907-8, 80,000 lire ($15,440) were appropriated
for the employment o f inspectors. Inasmuch as this amount was
insufficient to permit the appointment o f enough regular inspectors
to carry out the law in all parts o f the Kingdom, the Government
decided to begin with the most important industrial sections, and to
appoint three inspectors, located at Turin, Milan, and Brescia. Each
o f these was a “ divisional ” inspector. Under the one at Turin there
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN ITALY.
323
were three regional inspectors, at Milan there were four regional in
spectors, and at Brescia two. This made a total of twelve inspectors,
all o f them in the northern part o f the Kingdom, which is, of course,
more industrial in character than the remainder, if we take the reports
o f industrial accidents as a criterion. The employers of women and
children are required to report the industrial accidents which take
place among their employees, and three-fifths o f these reports came
from Lombardy, Piedmont, Liguria, and certain parts o f Venetia.
The new service o f inspection is under the direction o f the Labor
Office. The inspectors are instructed to secure the enforcement of
the law concerning the employment o f women and children and of
the law concerning industrial accidents; all the establishments sub
ject to these laws are placed under their supervision, except those
conducted by or belonging to the Government. The inspection o f
mines continues in charge o f official mining engineers. (a) Subsequent
increases in the appropriations have permitted an increase in the force
o f the inspectors and in the area subject to regular periodical inspec
tion. Two laborers have been appointed assistant inspectors.
The regional inspectors arrange their visits according to the instruc
tions o f the divisional inspectors, making use in this connection o f the
reports that have been made to the authorities by the heads of estab
lishments employing women or children. They are particularly in
structed to ascertain which establishments of this sort have failed to
make the required report; these establishments, the official instruc
tions declare, “ there is every reason to believe are numerous.” I f
violations o f the labor laws are discovered they are to be reported, but
in view o f the practical difficulties that still beset -a continuous and
efficient supervision o f the establishments subject to the law the in
spectors are urged at the outset to be tolerant and, as a rule, simply
to warn offending employers against a continuance o f forbidden
practices. The circular o f instructions further advises the inspectors
to welcome the advice, suggestions, and criticism o f employers and
laborers, especially those made by trade unions. But until the in
spectors have gained the confidence of the parties concerned, it is
specifically stated that “ the inspectors should not enter into too close
relations with organizations o f employers or employees, so that there
may be no justification for any suspicions o f partiality.”
Violations o f the provisions o f the law concerning the measures
that must be adopted to protect the health, safety, and morality o f
women and children employees, concerning the rooms that must be
provided for women to nurse their infants, and concerning the fac« In 1905 there were 63,996 persons employed in the mines o f Italy! including
5,548 children under 15 years o f age; there were 59,342 persons employed in
quarries, including 3,985 children under 15.
324
BU LLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
tory or workshop rules, are punishable by a fine o f 50 to 500 lire
($9.05 to $90.50). A ll other violations are subject to a fine of not
more than 50 lire ($9.05), imposed as many times as there are persons
employed under conditions contrary to the law ; but the total fine may
not exceed 5,000 lire ($905). In case of repeated offenses the penalties
may be increased by one-sixth to one-third. The receipts from fines
are paid into a national fund for the payment o f pensions to super
annuated and incapacitated laborers.
So much for the provisions o f the laws o f 1902 and 1907. These
laws left numerous gaps to be filled by way o f administrative ordi
nances. Thus, with regard to the measures which employers are
required to adopt in order to safeguard the health, safety, and
morals o f their child and female employees, the law set up no specific
standards determining what these measures should be. This was left
to be determined in accordance with the character o f each industry.
A long scries o f rules has been established with regard to the pre
vention o f accidents in dangerous occupations. In 1899 such rules
were promulgated for mines and quarries and for the manipulation o f
explosive materials. In 1900 rules for the building trades were
issued and in 1901 for railroads. These rules are numerous and
detailed. Only their main features need be given here.
In mines and quarries persons not employed therein are forbidden
to enter. The shafts must be surrounded at the top by barriers to pre
vent accidents. It is forbidden to get on wagons while in motion or
to travel upon them when they are not provided with brakes.
Wherever dynamos or other motors are employed they must be
installed in separate rooms or surrounded by protective barriers.
Apparatus for the transmission o f power (belts, cogwheels, etc.) must
be so covered and guarded as to prevent accident.
Industries in which explosive substances are employed must pro
vide their employees with special clothing to be worn while at work,
and the employees are forbidden to wear shoes containing nails.
UNHEALTHFUL OCCUPATIONS.
With regard to unhealthful trades in which children and women
may either not be employed at all or only under specified conditions
and precautions, a series of ordinances has been passed reaching back
to 1886. Some o f the ordinances prohibit altogether the employment
o f women and children in certain occupations; others permit women
and children to be employed under certain prescribed conditions.
Decrees o f 1886 and 1888 enumerate 22 occupations in which it is
forbidden to employ children under 15 years o f age. Among these
occupations are: Grinding and refining sulphur, the manipulation o f
animal residues in the production of nitrous substances, and the
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN ITALY.
325
manipulation o f sulphuric or nitric acid, o f phosphorus chloride, and
chloride or hypochloride of lime.
There are 22 industries in which the conditional employment o f
women and children is permitted. Thus, for instance* women and
children may work in printing establishments, provided they are not
employed to clean type. Again, women and children may not be
employed to clean machinery that is in motion.
Two important occupations that play an important part in Italy,
and in which considerable numbers o f children are employed, are rice
culture and sulphur mining. Both o f these occupations are extremely
unhealthful and have repeatedly engrossed the attention o f the
Italian legislator on that account.
In. the Sicilian sulphur mines conditions are extremely primitive;
Nearly all the work is done by hand. The “ adult ” laborers, a large
number o f whom are between 15 and 17 years o f age, carry loads o f
70 to 120 pounds. Younger children carry 50 to 70 pounds. The
conditions and the nature o f this work are such that 55 per cent o f
the males o f military age who have been thus employed are unfit for
military service. (a) The law o f 1907, therefore, in fixing the age of
admission to employment at 14 years for underground work in mines
not employing mechanical motive power, and forbidding the employ
ment o f children under 15 in especially dangerous occupations, marks
a distinct advance beyond previous legislation upon this subject.
The law o f June 16, 1907, concerning labor in rice fields, contains
numerous sanitary provisions designed to prevent, or at least to
restrict, the ravages o f malaria among the laborers employed in these
fields. It provides that children under 14 years o f age must not
be employed in cleaning and polishing rice, nor may this work be
carried on before sunrise. This work, moreover, must not last longer
than ten hours per day for laborers who live near by, or nine hours
per day for others; and once this amount o f daily work is accom
plished, the laborers engaged therein can not be otherwise employed.
Not until July, 1909, did the minister of agriculture, industry, and
commerce present to the Chamber o f Deputies the reports o f the in
spectors covering the period between July 1,1903, and July 25, 1907.
These reports concern the application o f the law o f 1902 on the em
ployment o f women and children, and not the modifications made
by the law o f July 7, 1907. The main topics treated in these reports
are as follow s: The exceptions that have been allowed; the abolition
o f girl labor in sorting bones and rags; the temporary permission o f
the labor o f school children; exceptions to the law granted in cases
o f seasonal industries; the extension o f the law to apply to female
aIn the province o f Caltanisetta for example, out o f 3,709 candidate!* for the
army in 1900, 2,055 had to be refused.
326
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
employees in the telephone and telegraph service; the arrangements
that have been made for the payment o f the fines imposed for viola
tions o f the law to the fund out o f which national old age and
invalidity pensions are paid to the working classes.
The inspectors report considerable difficulty in enforcing the pro
visions that require the employers o f women and children to report to
the authorities. This was especially the case in seasonal trades and
in establishments employing only members o f the family, o f the
employer and whose character is not clearly industrial (such as
certain auxiliary occupations connected with agriculture, commerce,
and educational institutions).
In 1907 there weye 12,503 establishments, subject to the law, having
children or women in their employ. Although the enforcement o f
the law is intrusted jointly (according to the law o f 1902) to the
industrial inspectors, the mining engineers, and the police officials,
comparatively little was done by the inspectors, and the bulk o f the
work devolved upon the local police authorities. Not until 1907 did
the inspectors undertake any important part o f the work. In that
year the mining engineers made 793 visits, the inspectors 8,680, and
the local police agents 12,957. Some establishments were o f course
visited more than once.
Concerning the violations o f the law detected by the officials, the
relatively most numerous were those concerning the employment o f
children under the legal age o f admission, the employment o f women
and children having no work books, the failure to report the em
ployment o f women and children, and neglect to post up the working
schedule o f the factory or workshop and the provisions of the law
regarding women and children.
The penalties imposed by the courts for these offenses varied
greatly during the period under investigation. It will be some years
before it will be justifiable to draw conclusions with regard to the
efficiency o f factory inspection in Italy; the inspectors themselves
remark upon the insufficient number o f inspectors and upon the
narrowly limited scope o f the labor laws.
SWITZERLAND.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION PRIOR TO 1S77.
Switzerland has never been a country o f large factories, and to-day
the tendency toward centralized industrialism is not so pronounced
there as in many other nations of western Europe. Various types
o f domestic industry have continued to prevail in spite o f the forces
that make for centralized production on a large scale. Some o f the
commodities which play an important part in Swiss exportation, such
as embroidery, watches, and silk goods, are still very largely produced
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN SWITZERLAND.
327
in the homes o f the workers ; ( a) and it may even be noted that in the
production o f certain kinds o f embroidery there is a backward move
ment from factory production to domestic production.(**6)
The history o f Swiss legislation in behalf o f industrial employees
reaches back to a period when factories in the modern sense of the
term were unknown. The earlier Swiss experiments in this direction,
however, were confined mainly to those phases and those varieties o f
economic activity which nowadays the labor laws o f most nations
either do not affect at all, or with which a few o f them, after consid
erable hesitation, have but recently ventured to interfere—namely,
the regulation o f home work and the determination o f a maxi
mum workday and a minimum wage for adults. Much o f this
early legislation, to be sure, grew out o f the guild system and the
mercantilistic doctrines which influenced to a considerable degree the
patriarchal, aristocratic governments o f three centuries ago. The in
terest o f the authorities centered in the maintenance and develop
ment o f national industries and the price and quality o f their prod
ucts rather than in the welfare of the laborers themselves; and so far
as the latter received any attention at all, it seems to have been turned
almost exclusively to adult laborers. Not until the end of the eight
eenth century and the beginning o f the nineteenth does it appear
that measures were adopted in behalf o f child laborers. In Switzer
land, as elseivhere, the introduction of the cotton industry marks the
beginning, not o f child labor altogether, nor even o f child labor upon
an extensive scale, but of the conspicuous evils of child labor.
Aristocratic paternalism in the industrial Cantons gave way, in the
latter part o f the eighteenth and the early part o f the nineteenth
century, to laissez faire and economic individualism. The Napoleonic
era with its continuous wars and blockades injured the Swiss export
trade; but at the same time it placed obstacles in the way o f English
importation and thus fostered the transition in Switzerland from
spinning by hand to spinning by machine, a change which spelled dis
aster for many workers. In the cotton industry o f Zurich alone the
number o f spinners was reduced from 34,000 in 1787 to scarcely onethird that number twenty years later.
As in England, the new machine workers were mainly young women
and children. Work went on uninterruptedly by day and night, the
laborers being divided into two shifts, one working from midnight
to noon, the other from noon to midnight. Even children o f 8 years
were engaged for these long periods, though the homes o f many o f
them were miles awTay from the factories and many o f them had to
°A . Pfleghart: Bericht fiber die schweizerischen Hausindustrien, etc., Bern,
1907.
6 Swaine: Die Arbeits- und Wirtschaftsverhaltnisse der Einzelsticker in der
Nordostscliweiz und Vorarlberg, pp. 22 ff. and 52, Strassburg, 1895.
328
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
go back and forth daily. Under such circumstances the school laws
o f the industrial Cantons were manifestly farcical, and a clear con
flict o f interests arose between the school and the factory, a conflict
which soon gave rise to legislative intervention in the Cantons that
were disposed to take their school laws seriously.
Zurich, the home o f Pestalozzi, where compulsory primary educa
tion was introduced in 1778, seems to have been the first to take alarm,
for at the very outset o f the new industrial era—in 1779—the author
ities o f this Canton enacted a “ mandate” concerning what was known
in the local dialect as “ Rast-geben,” a custom whereby children were
hired to do a certain prescribed amount o f work per week or per day
in exchange for their board or their board and lodging; when this
prescribed amount o f work was finished they might continue to work
for wages if they chose. The mandate o f 1779, which was probably
directed quite as much against the employment o f children in home
manufactures as in factories, forbade “ Rast-geben ” for all children
who had not yet complied with the requirements o f the school law
passed in 1778. It declared that “ no child should be allowed to leave
school upon any pretext whatsoever until it is at least able to read
easily and understanding^; nor until it has learned to repeat intel
ligently, and from memory, the catechism, a few psalms, and a few
beautiful prayers and sacred hymns.” As long as this minimum of
secular and religious instruction was provided for, the cantonal gov
ernment felt no anxiety, although conditions were sufficiently unsatis
factory to suggest to the educational council of Zurich in 1813, (a) that
cotton spinning did not contribute to the development o f a child’s
body and soul, and that “ when children o f 9 years can make 1 or 2
‘ schneller ’ a day, reckless parents are tempted to withdraw their
children from school as soon as possible. * * * Children 8, 9,
and 10 years old are thus torn away from home life. * * *
Parents have come to believe that when children go to the factory the
school has no further claim upon them, and that teachers should be
satisfied to take the hours when children are too worn-out and too
sleepy to attend to the machines. In the sixty and odd large and
small spinning factories o f this Canton no less than 1,124 children
are now working.” Among this total number were several under 6
years o f age; 48 were between 7 and 9, and 248 between 10 and 12.
This rather definite statement led the government of Zurich to
pass an ordinance in 1815 “ concerning children in factories generally
and in spinning mills in particular.” ( *6) Typical o f many others
«In a message to the Government, quoted by C. A. Schmidt: W ie schtitzte
fruher der Kanton Zurich seine Fabrikkinder. Zurich, 1899.
6 Neue offizielle Sammlung der Gesetze und Verordnungen des Standes Zurich,
1821. Band I.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN SWITZERLAND.
329
passed a little later in several Swiss Cantons, this ordinance declares it
to be the proper sphere o f government “ to see to it that the ignorance,
carelessness, and selfishness o f parents does not jeopardize the phys
ical health and strength and morality of their children, nor deprive
them o f that training o f mind and heart which should be required o f
every member o f civil society and o f the Christian Church, nor
detract seriously from their capacity to earn a necessary livelihood
as adults by honest means, and to perform their domestic and civic
duties; and that inasmuch as the free and unrestricted employment
o f young childreh in factories and in the newly built spinning mills
is now spreading more and more rapidly, the lower council recog
nizes and decrees,” among other things, “ that no child which has
not yet begun its tenth year shall be employed in a factory or spin
ning m ill; that every child thus employed shall attend the *6repetition
school ’ ( Repetierschule) as assiduously and regularly as other chil
dren; that it shall likewise take the ordinary courses o f instruction
given by the pastor of the locality; that these children shall not work
more than twelve to fourteen hours daily, nor begin work in the
summer before 5 o’clock nor in winter before 6 o’clock in the morn
ing; that these children shall not work at night; that parents should
be enjoined, so far as possible, to save the earnings o f children for
their subsequent benefit ; that factory children should be supervised
by the pastors and local officials; and that reports should be made
upon the operation o f the law by the local school teachers.”
The Canton o f Thurgau passed a similar law (a) the same year,
after the school authorities there had complained o f poor attendance
and numerous absentees, and the pastor o f Gelshofen had fulminated
against the factories at Constance, whither hordes of children went
from his parish to work and were thus prevented throughout the
whole year from attending school. “ It is impossible, ” he declared,
“ to maintain a Sunday school, for wages are paid on Sunday after
noon and then the children run off again to the city.” ( &)
Zurich, in many respects the pioneer Canton in matters o f childlabor regulation, took a further step forward in 1832, raising the
minimum age o f admission to spinning mills to 12 years; and in
1834 it forbade the labor o f children on Sundays and holidays. An
investigation made in the same year revealed that children o f school
age lost on an average one-fourth of the entire school period on ac
count o f employment in factories. Hence in 1837 a new ordinance
was passed prescribing that boys and girls under 16 years o f age must
not work more than 14 hours per day, interrupted by at least 1 hour’s
0 Hoffmann: Geschichte der Fabrikgesetzgebung im Kanton Thurgau. Frauenfeld, 1892.
6 Quoted by Dr. Julius Landmann. Die Arbeiterschutzgesetzgebung der
Schweiz, p. xix. Basel, 1904.
330
BULLETIN OF TH E BUKEAU OF LABOR.
rest at m idday; and that children under 16 shall not work at night
(but exceptions to this rule were permitted).
In the Canton o f Berne a compromise was effected in 1835 between
the demands o f the factory and those o f the school. “ Factory
schools” were permitted in order that the children o f school age
might more easily be employed a large part o f the time as factory
workers. The testimony o f contemporary writers is to the effect that
from a pedagogical and hygienic point o f view these “ factory
schools” were far from being model institutions, although the law
provided that employers must furnish the children in these schools
with instruction equivalent to that provided by the primary school.
That the law must have been an absolutely dead letter is manifest,
according to Prof. Stephen Bauer, ( a) when we learn that even as late
as 1866 factory children o f school age were required to work from 11|
to 14 hours a day, and some o f them worked through the entire night.
In nearly all o f the industrially important Cantons the opposition
o f factory owners and o f the uncompromising advocates o f “ indus
trial liberty ” was powerful enough to prevent, or at least to delay,
the enactment o f genuinely restrictive measures against child labor
until the middle o f the century. A t that time, partly under the
influence o f newer, more radical social theories emanating mainly
from France, and partly in imitation o f the British labor laws o f
1833, a new movement for labor legislation was inaugurated.
In 1848 the Canton o f Glarus decreed (not for all factories, but for
spinning mills only) that children under 12 years o f age must not.
be employed; that between the ages o f 12 and 14 years they must not
regularly work longer than 14 hours daily, including an hour’s pause
at noon; and that if employed at night they must not work on the
nights preceding the days set aside for repetition school and for reli
gious instruction. Children over 14 years o f age were not allowed to
work regularly more than 15 hours per day, including an hour’s mid
day pause. Those working sometimes by day and sometimes by night
must not work more than 13 hours during the daytime nor 11 hours at
night. Night work was thus expressly permitted for children who
had completed the required period o f attendance at an “ all-day
school,” i. e., those who were 12 years old.
It was further ordered that when there are two shifts o f laborers,
shifts may change, as a rule, only at 6 a. m. and 7 p. m. On Satur
days and days preceding legal holidays machines must be stopped at
7 p. m. and not be started before 5 a. m. on the following Monday or
the day following the holiday.
« Article on “ Arbeiterschutzgesetzgebung in der Schweiz,” in Conrad’s Handworterbuch der Staatswissenschaften, Yol. I, third edition. Jena, 190S.
CHILD-LABOR LEGISLATION IN SWITZERLAND.
331
St. Gall in 1853 provided that children under 13 years o f age should
not be employed at all in factories, and that those between the ages
o f 13 and 15 should not work more than 12 hours daily.
In the period between 1848 and 1877 many o f the Swiss Cantons
passed labor laws, most of which concerned the labor o f children in
factories. But the rather bewildering array o f cantonal enactments
does not appear to have been accompanied by a corresponding im
provement in the condition o f working children. Many o f them were
dead-letter laws.
An important law, not only for the Canton which passed it, Zurich,
but for the other Cantons as well, was that o f 1859, (a) which grew
out o f an elaborate investigation made by a commission especially
appointed for this purpose. It provided as follow s:
(1) Children could not work in factories until they had finished
“ all-day school.” By way of exception, however, all day pupils over
10 years old might take the places o f “ supplementary school ” pupils
in the factory on the days when' the latter were in attendance at the
“ supplementary school,” unless this practice proved to be harmful
to their physical and mental development.
(2) Every factory owner was obliged to allow the children o f
school age employed in his factory to take part regularly in all re
ligious exercises and school sessions.
(3) The workday for children not yet “ confirmed ” as church
members, or who were not yet 16 years old, must not exceed 13 hours
(on Saturday 12 hours); and for “ all-day pupils ” it must not ex
ceed 5 hours daily. There must be a pause o f 1 hour at noon, and
night work was prohibited.
Compared with previous laws this was in some respects a step
backward, particularly in allowing exceptions to the general rule
that children 10 years old must not be employed in factories. In
matters o f labor legislation it has been noted that the exceptions
often outweigh the rule in importance. A most valuable feature of the
new law, however, consisted in the provision that “ all factories shall
be subjected to periodical official inspection; ” for the one great lesson
taught by the history o f factory laws everywhere is that without an
efficient system o f factory inspection these laws are o f very prob
lematical value. The Zurich ordinance of December 31, 1859, created
a factory commission consisting o f five members charged with the
enforcement o f the law.
Other Cantons again followed the example o f Zurich. Aargau
in 1862(b) forbade the labor o f children in factories before they were
aLandmann: Die Arbeiterschutzgesetzgebung der Schweiz, p. xx.
6 Kaufmann, article on “ Fabrikgesetzgebimg,” in Furrer’s Volkswirtscliafts
lexikon der Schweiz, Band I, p. 595.
332
BULLETIN OF TH E BUREAU OF LABOR.
fully 13 years o f age; children under 16 were not allowed to work
more than twelve hours a day. Night work and Sunday work was
forbidden them, and the government council was given authority to
pass ordinances to prevent the excessive use o f child labor elsewhere
than in factories. Three factory inspectors were appointed to secure
the observance o f the law.
In Glarus factory inspection was.intrusted to experts specially
appointed from time to time; in Zurich, Basel Town, and Aargau, to
so-called “ factory commissions; ” in Schaffhausen, to the cantonal
and local police; and in St. Gall, to the police, the clergy, and the
school officials. The appointment o f permanent inspectors soon led
to a better knowledge o f the conditions under which children were
employed in the factories o f these Cantons.
The most interesting disclosures were those from St. Gall in 1865.
It was here discovered that 15,927 men, 16,492 women, and 5,458
children were employed in 1,586 factories; 16.8 per cent o f the fac
tory population consisted o f children.
Equally characteristic are the results of an investigation made in
Basel Land in 1866, the reports o f which state that between 280 and
300 “ repetition school ” pupils were found at work in the factories
o f the Canton, and that—
The daily work o f these children in summer and in winter averages
from 11J to 14 hours. * * * In two factories school children are
regularly employed in alternate weeks, in one o f the factories for a
period o f 10 hours and in the other throughout the entire night,
precisely the same as adult laborers. Every day in the winter
children are regularly employed for a few hours at night. In one
o f the factories this night wTork lasts 3 to 4 hours, in another 4£
hours, in a third until 9 o’clock at night, and in a fourth until
between 9 and 10 o’clock. * * * In general it can not be denied
that the children who work in factories are noticeable for their pale
and worn appearance; they offer a striking contrast to the fresh and
vigorous-looking children employed in the country. The heavy, foul
air of the factory, the inhalation o f dust and gases, the hasty passing
from hot rooms into the cold, damp night air, must have a damaging
effect upon the lungs o f these young laborers. Hence hectic diseases
are common among them. They complain much o f headaches, lack
o f appetite,
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