<P> Child labour played an important role in the Industrial Revolution from its outset, often brought about by economic hardship . The children of the poor were expected to contribute to their family income . In 19th - century Great Britain, one - third of poor families were without a breadwinner, as a result of death or abandonment, obliging many children to work from a young age . In England and Scotland in 1788, two - thirds of the workers in 143 water - powered cotton mills were described as children . A high number of children also worked as prostitutes . The author Charles Dickens worked at the age of 12 in a blacking factory, with his family in debtor's prison . </P> <P> Child wages were often low; as little as 10--20% of an adult male's wage . Karl Marx was an outspoken opponent of child labour, saying British industries, "could but live by sucking blood, and children's blood too," and that U.S. capital was financed by the "capitalized blood of children". </P> <P> Throughout the second half of the 19th century, child labour began to decline in industrialised societies due to regulation and economic factors because of the Growth of Trade Unions . The regulation of child labour began from the earliest days of the Industrial revolution . The first act to regulate child labour in Britain was passed in 1803 . As early as 1802 and 1819 Factory Acts were passed to regulate the working hours of workhouse children in factories and cotton mills to 12 hours per day . These acts were largely ineffective and after radical agitation, by for example the "Short Time Committees" in 1831, a Royal Commission recommended in 1833 that children aged 11--18 should work a maximum of 12 hours per day, children aged 9--11 a maximum of eight hours, and children under the age of nine were no longer permitted to work . This act however only applied to the textile industry, and further agitation led to another act in 1847 limiting both adults and children to 10 - hour working days . Lord Shaftesbury was an outspoken advocate of regulating child labour . </P> <P> As technology improved and proliferated, there was a greater need for educated employees . This saw an increase in schooling, with the eventual introduction of compulsory schooling . Improved technology and automation also made child labour redundant . </P>

When was child labour stopped in the industrial revolution