Essay Sample on Working Conditions During The Industrial Revolution

Jobs change. People change. The workplace changes. The Industrial revolution boosted changes in the skills needed for a job; skills that bridged the gap between old jobs and new jobs. There are many differences between why job skills were useful in the 1800s along with many similarities to those skills nowadays. Whether that was the ability to be flexible, handle technology, or work hard at a job.

People constantly need to show their flexibility in the workplace, it is just a matter of how. People had to be flexible in the Industrial Revolution because employers could fire them for any reason. If they were to be fired, they would need to be able to get a new job to support themselves. This happened because unemployment rates were high so employers could find someone else constantly. Even when a person was a business owner they needed to be their own importer, exporter, banker, retailer, and more. If they weren’t able to maintain flexibility then their business wouldn’t succeed. Flexibility is also needed nowadays for fallback. If someone needs to help a family member or the person gets sick; it makes sure there is an extra plan in place. However, this wouldn’t be accepted during the industrial revolution. Instead, the worker would be replaced. Flexibility is also needed because of all the things people don’t have control over. For example, if somebody's bus is late to work, then that shouldn’t hurt other employees. Or the employees should be able to be flexible and deal with it. No matter the time, flexibility is a necessary skill needed for the workplace; it’s more just how to be flexible. 

Workers need to understand technology and be able to work with it. By the 1800s more technology like railroads and steamboats were becoming a popular thing. So local businesses could begin to do business internationally. The business managers needed to understand the best way to use this technology to receive more business. In addition, there were many different employees all across the country working as ticket sellers, engineers, conductors, etc. all part of one company. There had to be a system of communication amongst those employees, so being able to use technology was an important part of the job. There is so much more technology now that workers have to use day-to-day for the job. Technology, like computers, helps the employees be more efficient than doing it by hand or on paper. Along with that, businesses are driven by technological advancements and changes in working styles. If someone cannot keep up with these fast-paced changes or advancements they are more likely to lose their job or get left behind. Technology is advancing more and more every day, it was like that in the industrial revolution as well. Yet people still need to be on top of new technology now more than ever in their place of work to stay with high business standards. 

Despite the time, working to your fullest potential is an important thing to do. This statement stays true in the 1800s and this day and age. For example, during the Industrial Revolution people would work 12-16 hours a day 6 days a week. These were horrible conditions but if they didn’t work that whole time they would be “abandoned” and then lose their job without compensation. Chit-chat during work also wasn't allowed. If someone wanted to keep their job they had to work the whole time with only up to a 1-hour break, usually lunch. Other than that people had to stay focused on the job at hand. Even though jobs aren’t like this any more people still need to work to their full potential. When a person goes to work they must work their hardest. Studies show that the hard-working people at a company drive its success. Whether it’s a job making new products or an office job; those who are working hard help the business succeed. People all have their own talents and abilities. So if they work hard maybe a new idea or solution could be discovered. But it can only be possible when they work to their full potential. Hard work makes the workplace improve and shows a worker's dedication to the job, no matter the time or place.

All in all, working conditions are much different than they were in the past, but the same skills are still necessary to do well at your job. Being able to be flexible, use technology, and push yourself at work all have been vital to the workplace since the Industrial Revolution. The jobs now might not have use for the skill the same as used in the 1800s, but it is still needed for one reason or another. Though necessary now, will these skills be needed in the future? Or will they be disregarded in the chaos of the ever-changing work industry?