Amelia wants Lyddie to go to church on the Sabbath. 

For Lyddie, being a factory girl involves a lot of change.  She is not completely under the thumb of her boss, as she was at the tavern, but she does not have complete freedom of operation either.  The factory has many strict rules and expectations for its girls.  The company wants to maintain a good reputation. 

Lyddie reads the rules and regulations for the boarding house and factory, but she learns there are other expectations.  She has to buy a new dress, for one thing, before she can go to the factory.  She also learns that the girls are expected to seem virtuous.  The factory expects them to attend church. 

Lyddie looked up in alarm. Living as far as they had from the village, the Worthens had never even bothered to pay pew rent in the village congregational church. "I-I hadn't thought to go." 

Amelia sighed, reminding Lyddie that she was proving a harder case than the older girl had bargained for. "Oh, but you must," she said. (Ch. 8) 

The girls tell Lyddie that she is expected to attend church, but she can go to any church she chooses.  The company doesn’t care where there go, just that they go.  One of the reasons Lyddie does not want to attend is because she would have to pay collections or pew rent.  Betsy gives Lyddie some advice on where she can go to church inexpensively. 

"They'll probably make you put in an appearance from time to time somewhere. The Methodists don't press girls for pew rent, so if you're short on money, best go there. You have to pay for it in longer sermons, but nonetheless I always recommend the Methodists to new girls with no particular desire to go anywhere." (Ch. 8) 

Lyddie is not used to going to church.  It has not been a part of her lifestyle while isolated on the farm.  She has also never been able to afford it.  The church requirement is just another example of how the factory meddles in the girls’ everyday lives.  It dictates almost every aspect of their existence.

Amelia wants Lyddie to attend church on Sundays. Amelia feels that everyone should go to church on Sunday, so she is not exactly picking on only Lyddie. Amelia's church pressure is also not the only church pressure. As part of working the factories, the girls are expected to appear virtuous. Their clothing and behavior are both aimed at selling this image, and regular church attendance is one of the factory's requirements of the girls.

The church expectation comes as a surprise to Lyddie, who isn't used to going to church, and Lyddie tries to explain that she wasn't planning on attending church. Amelia is somewhat taken aback by Lyddie's hesitance and further stresses that Lyddie must attend church:

Lyddie looked up in alarm. Living as far as they had from the village, the Worthens had never even bothered to pay pew rent in the village congregational church. "I-I hadn't thought to go."

Amelia sighed, reminding Lyddie that she was proving a harder case than the older girl had bargained for. "Oh, but you must," she said.

As the conversation continues, Lyddie learns that the factory doesn't care which church Lyddie attends. The factory only cares that she attends. Part of Lyddie's reticence is that churches generally required attenders to pay pew rent, and earning and keeping money is hugely important to Lyddie. Betsy recommends the Methodist church because Lyddie can attend those services for free:

"They'll probably make you put in an appearance from time to time somewhere. The Methodists don't press girls for pew rent, so if you're short on money, best go there. You have to pay for it in longer sermons, but nonetheless I always recommend the Methodists to new girls with no particular desire to go anywhere."