Historically, factory jobs were low paying and grueling. In fact, manufacturing flourished times of economic despair.

As New England shifted from farming to industry in the 19th century, Americans’ sense ... mealtimes and rang to start and end work shifts. Factory workers might begin their days at 4:30 A.M ...

Massachusetts’s early-19th century factories kept workers ... numerous unemployed workers with nowhere to turn but the factory floor. Wealthy whalers quickly transformed themselves into textile ...