Difference Between Indentured Labor and Slavery

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ASSIGNMENT A
Although the difference between indentured labor and slavery has been blurred over the years due to the changes that have occurred across different time points, there is a marked difference between the two roles. The primary difference between indentured servants and slaves is that the latter were not granted freedom even after many years of working for their masters. Slaves remained so for the rest of their lives and were literally the property of their masters and so had no rights. On the other hand, indentured servants were granted freedom after a particular period that was agreed upon. This system of bonded labor was instituted shortly after the abolition of slavery and was primarily applied in sugar, tea, and cotton plantations. In addition, the British relied on indentured labor for rail construction projects in their colonies, especially in Africa, West Indies, and South East Asia. The terms of the contract involved serving someone as payment for passage into foreign lands, mostly the UK and South America. Other comparable terms included the servant's service in exchange for housing, food, or other amenities during the individual's indentured years.
Most indentured servants were young (between 15 and 2o years old) and worked in farms where they performed various manual tasks. Women were usually asked to serve as domestic house helps in their master's homes. There was no payment of any form outside the terms of the contract. However, once the servant had fulfilled the required obligation, they were free to terminate the agreement and live a more liberal life in the master's country. In some countries, servants would be granted a monetary incentive called "freedom dues" upon completing their service. They were now considered free members of their society and had the right to own property, cast a vote, or seek gainful employment. In some instances, the indentured servant would violate specific rules and regulations stipulated in the labor contract and was forced to extend their service as punishment for the infraction. Masters had the right to extend their servant's length of service if the latter had flouted some grave statute of the contract, and it was not uncommon for the usual indentured years of between four and six years to be protracted by three years or even more.
The film mentions that the indentured labor system was the first wave of immigration in South Asia and mostly happened in the Caribbean and South America. Because of the labor shortage caused by slave emancipation, South Asians were transported to the Caribbean and South America to work on plantations. Most free men and women refused to labor for the low wages provided by plantation owners, thereby nece...