## The Social Question

    Factory workers worked up to 16 hours a day, six days a week. In the factories it was very noisy because of the machines. It was dark and accidents happened. In any case, it was unhealthy to work in a factory. But not only the working conditions were bad.
    Because so many farm workers worked in the cities, wages were low. And because so many people were looking for shelter, there weren't enough houses. Cities were unprepared for the arrival of so many workers and quickly built working-class neighborhoods. Several families had to live in one small and often bad house.

    Both in the country and in the city, the whole family worked together. This meant that parents and (almost) all children worked in factories. The children were sometimes only five years old when they started. This child labor was good for the factory owners. Little children's fingers could reach everything and were very cheap. Children often work as long as their parents and for even lower wages! They didn't go to school, because that was too expensive: that wouldn't contribute to the family income.

    Around 1860 there was organized resistance against the poor working and living conditions of the workers and child labour. Many workers wanted concrete improvement of their situation. That is why they united in labor unions. They negotiated with the factory bosses and they organized strikes when workers and employers disagreed. Later, people from the government and parliament also concerned themselves with the situation of the workers and their children. They collectively called all the problems the social queston. Books, poems and newspapers also paid attention to this.

    In 1874 the first social law was passed: the Van Houten Children's Act. This law meant that children were not allowed to work in a factory until they were twelve. The Compulsory Education Act of 1901 obliged children between the ages of six and twelve to attend school. Many factory owners agreed to the social laws. They also realized that sick, dissatisfied workers were more expensive than healthy, satisfied workers. Thus, the conditions for the workers and their families gradually improved. There were many more social laws. This provided for the following:

    - Shorter working days and higher wages followed.
    - Safety laws were in place in the factories.
    - Benefits were provided for people who became unemployed or incapacitated for work.
    - Housing laws were enacted, which meant that better workers' houses were built.
    - Underground sewers replaced the above-ground sewers.