Key People- David Dale and Robert Owen- the New Lanark Mills (1780's- 1810's)

The New Lanark Mills were a set of revolutionary cotton mills which changed the lives of many workers in Scotland. Two men, David Dale and Robert Owen, sought to reform the way mills were run and managed, making them fairer and more humane. David Dale established the mills but handed over control to Robert Owen in 1800, who made efforts to improve them further.

David Dale

• Glaswegian and self made business man 
• Took control of New Lanark Mills in 1786
• By the 1790's there were four mills under his control
• His first priority as owner of the mills were the children-  800 children (out of 1'150 workers) 
• Many of the children were orphans from Edinburgh and Glasgow
• The work day began at 6am and ended at 7pm- a stark contrast from the other mills and factories of the day which gave the workers hours ranging from 14 to 16 hours a day
•  He gave free accommodation to all his workers
• Children were required to attend two hours of school following their hours at the mill
• Children fared much better at the New Lanark Mills- in 12  years just 14 out of the total 3'000 child workers died. In comparison, 140 out of 1'000 average British children of the time died within their first year of life, and 30% not making it past 15 years old.
• He later went on to employ Highlanders during the Highland Clearances so they did not have to migrate 

Robert Owen

• Took control of the Mills on the 1st of January 1800 (5 months after becoming Dale's Son-in-Law)
• At first his reforms to the mills were harsh and not well received- Working hours were increased by an hour (from 13 to 14 hours a day), discipline was increased
• Aimed to increase output and productivity to raise the profit, which he did
•  Workers opinions of him improved in 1806 when he continued to pay full wages during a trade dispute with USA which stopped the imports of cotton temporarily. Whilst it was no better than what Dale had done in the past (following a mill burning down), workers viewed as the start of something better
• In 1809 children were given a nursery to further the education already offered, an improvement from the dormitories they were placed in
• In 1813, a village shop was opened
• Inspired by the principles of share benefit and bulk purchasing which lowers the prices the workers paid but increases the quality of the items available to them 
• Made plans to improve the education further
• He ended up selling the mills to Quaker partners and migrating to America

It is generally accepted that what Owens and Dale did was revolutionary, and centuries ahead of their time. Their implementation of concepts in areas such as healthcare, education, and child care would transform the way companies were run in not just Britain, but arguably, the world.