Charles Dickens worked in a blacking factory as a child, where he endured harsh and squalid conditions. He worked long hours in a dirty environment, which left a lasting impact on him and influenced much of his writing later in life, particularly in depicting the struggles of the poor and working class.

They would have been very poor. There was no health and safety, no care for emplees and certainly very little money for 12 hour shifts. Many children were employed in preference to their more costly adults