Question

What were three of the most important social reforms that followed the industrial revolution

Answer 1

• Urbanization - Life in cities became more important than life in the countryside and this had many consequences: in cities the inhabitants and workers lived in precarious conditions and lived daily with poor hygiene, not to mention the constant fear of unemployment and misery.
• Strengthening of two classes: industrial bourgeoisie and the proletariat - As the main source of wealth shifted from commerce to commodity production, there was a strengthening of the industrial bourgeoisie, more linked to production, with greater control of power and greater state participation. Both classes had as their common space the factories, as both participated in production, the bourgeoisie as manager and the working class as executor of production goals. But there was an abyss of social inequality and cultural difference between them. While the work of the workers was collective, the appropriation of the wealth produced was individual; most were in the hands of the capitalist businessman.
• Emergence of Trade Union (unions) - In addition to the low salary, workers were forced to deal with a strenuous workload. In the English industries of the Industrial Revolution period, the daily workday used to be up to 16 hours with only 30 minutes of lunch break. Workers who could not stand the day were summarily replaced by others. There was no kind of safety for the workers and constantly accidents happened. The most common accident was when workers had their fingers stuck in the machine and many lost them. Workers on sick leave could be fired and not paid their salary. Only employees who actually worked were paid. This degrading situation caused workers to gradually mobilize against their employers. This led to the creation of workers' organizations (better known as unions) and called trade union in England. Workers demanded salary improvements and reduced working hours.