During the Victorian era, throughout the 1800's, child labor was seen as a norm. The children that weren't given the opportunity to get an education were the top picks to work for little pay. Laws were passed over this time period to slightly improve conditions for the children, but it wasn't until way later that child labor was thought of as wrong. Steam was the number one source of energy during the Victorian era and coal mines were needed to provide heat for the steam. Using children was perfect for mining companies because children were smaller and could get into the tight spaces while receiving less pay. There were terrible working conditions which included crowded and unclean factories where there were no safety codes.
Child labor is directly related to Dickens' novel, Oliver Twist. We read how Oliver and many other children work for most of their day and come home to over crowded houses with not enough food. Oliver was born an orphan after his mother died during childbirth and the absence of his father. He had no chance to do anything other than become an ophan that was forced to work for a living.
Dickens', himself, knows child labor from his own experiences as well. When his father was imprisoned for debt, Charles was sent to work in the factory where he endured poor conditions for about three years.
Price, Praxton. "Victorian Child Labor and the Conditions They Worked In." Victorian Children, 2 March. 2013, victorianchildren.org/victorian-child-labor/.
Griffin, Emma. "Child Labour" The British Library, 7 May 2014, www.bl.uk/romantics-and-victorians/articles/child-labour#