Dan and Bex are learning all about Victorian Britain via a book they found!
They’re exploring all the grim and nasty jobs that children just like you had to do in the past, from picking up poop to popping up chimneys.
But sadly, for lots of people, this is still the case…
Children are forced to do many unskilled, repetitive jobs such as making boxes, polishing shoes, cleaning or helping in a family business to earn their keep and help to feed their family.
Many are found selling things on the streets.
Others are hidden away in houses as servants. Almost 70% of all child workers work on the land, fishing or farming, some of them in terrible conditions.
It may now be illegal for children in the UK to work but in some parts of the world, children as young as 5 go out to work every day.
Working for little or no money on the land, in factories, mines, quarries and, well, even worse places than that…
In Kazakhstan, children pick tobacco. In India, they sew the clothes you’re wearing right now.
In Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Tajikistan, it has been reported that rural schools are closed during the cotton harvest between April and November so children can work on the land.
Governments around the world, as well as organisations such as Fairtrade, Unicef, Amnesty International and Save the Children, work hard to get those countries to make changes to protect the children.
YOU can help too by making sure that we buy things from organisations and places that ensure that the farmers and workers are paid a fair price.
If adults were paid a fair salary, then children wouldn’t need to work to top up the pot.
If you believe that something is unfair or unjust then take action. Tell others, write to your MP or to the companies or shops responsible.
Start a petition, you could even vlog about it! Just like Lord Shaftesbury and other reformers did here in the UK, you can make a difference too!
MOBILE: History for Kids
Discover what life for children was like throughout the ages
Dan and Bex have found a book that transports them back to Victorian Britain!
They’re exploring all the grim and nasty jobs that children just like you had to do in the past, from picking up poop to popping up chimneys.
Really? Kids Did That! is supported by The National Lottery through the Heritage Lottery Fund.
Add a commentReally? Kids did that: Jobs from the past
Dan and Bex find a book that transports them back to Victorian Britain to explore why children worked!
More From Really? Kids did that: Jobs from the past