How did factory work change the lives of skilled craftsmen?

The transition to the factory system during the Industrial Revolution fundamentally altered the lives of skilled craftsmen, marking a shift from independence to a structured, employer-led environment.

Previously, craftsmen were independent workers who owned their own tools, set their own hours, and controlled the quality and quantity of their output. The factory system replaced this autonomy with a model where employers owned the tools and raw materials, and dictated working conditions and schedules.12

Key changes included:

• Loss of Autonomy: Workers were no longer masters of their own time or methods. They were subjected to strict factory discipline, which required punctual, constant attendance and discouraged the independence typical of the old handicraft tradition.3
• Division of Labor: Production was broken down into specialized, repetitive tasks. While this increased productivity and could improve product quality, it limited the scope of a worker's skill to a single, narrow operation rather than the creation of a complete product.43
• Shift in Value: The new system prioritized manual dexterity and machine operation over the broad experience and craftsmanship previously cultivated through long apprenticeships. This often led to the replacement of skilled workers with less expensive, unskilled labor, including women and children.41