In some periods, certain matchstick factories rely entirely on child labour. A factory in Kalmar puts out a call for 100 children and offers, among other things, free confirmation garments in order to attract minors as workforce.
Children working at these factories are as young as 10 years old. They are mostly used for bundling sticking substances and for packaging the finished matches.
Working hours in the matchstick factories are long. An 11-hour workday is not unusual. To avoid criticisms of keeping children from attending school, some factories establish their own schools where the children can be taught for a few hours each day.
Work in match manufacturing can be a serious health hazard. This is especially true of the factories where phosphorus matches are produced, since phosphorus fumes cause necrosis of the jaw.
Fire is also a great risk in matchstick factories. In 1875 a large fire breaks out at the Vulcan factory in Tidaholm, leaving 47 women workers dead.
For many years, the matchstick industry is a low-wage industry. The picture starts to change at the end of the 1800s. Industry is now mechanised, making the labour performed by children in particular redundant through rationalisation. During the latter part of the century, public opinion opposing child labour gains greater voice. 1881 sees new regulations requiring children to have finished school before being allowed as employees within the industry, as well as shortening the working hours for children between 12 to 14 to a maximum of six hours.