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diff --git a/42275.txt b/42275.txt deleted file mode 100644 index b7d6b21..0000000 --- a/42275.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,11448 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Women in the Printing Trades., by Various - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - -Title: Women in the Printing Trades. - A Sociological Study. - -Author: Various - -Editor: James Ramsay MacDonald - -Release Date: March 8, 2013 [EBook #42275] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ASCII - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WOMEN IN THE PRINTING TRADES. *** - - - - -Produced by Odessa Paige Turner and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This book was -produced from scanned images of public domain material -from the Google Print project.) - - - - - -[Transcriber's note: Underscores have been used to indicate _italic_ -fonts. Original spelling variants have not been standardized. In the -tables, _s._ or s. was used for Shillings; and _d._ or d. for Pence. "It -should also be noted that slight errors of a few farthings in the -additions have crept into the totals of some of the columns, but as they -do not affect the accuracy of the wage figures the Appendix has been -copied exactly as it was published." (Appendix VI.)] - - -WOMEN IN THE PRINTING TRADES: - -A SOCIOLOGICAL STUDY. - -EDITED BY - -J. RAMSAY MACDONALD, - -WITH A PREFACE BY PROFESSOR F. Y. EDGEWORTH. - -INVESTIGATORS: - -MRS. J. L. HAMMOND, MRS. H. OAKESHOTT, MISS A. BLACK, MISS A. HARRISON, -MISS IRWIN, and Others. - -LONDON: P. S. KING & SON, - -ORCHARD HOUSE, WESTMINSTER. - -1904. - - - - -PREFACE. - - -My only qualification for writing this preface is the circumstance that, -as a representative of the Royal Economic Society, I attended the -meetings of the Committee appointed to direct and conduct the -investigations of which the results are summarised in the following -pages. From what I saw and heard at those meetings I received the -impression that the evidence here recorded was collected with great -diligence and sifted with great care. It seems to constitute a solid -contribution to a department of political economy which has perhaps not -received as much attention as it deserves. - -Among the aspects of women's work on which some new light has been -thrown, is the question why women in return for the same or a not very -different amount of work should often receive very much less wages. It -is a question which not only in its bearing on social life is of the -highest practical importance, but also from a more abstract point of -view is of considerable theoretical interest, so far as it seems to -present the paradox of _entrepreneurs_ paying at very different rates -for factors of production which are not so different in efficiency. - -The question as stated has some resemblance to the well-known demand for -an explanation which Charles II. preferred to the Royal Society: there -occurs the preliminary question whether the circumstance to be explained -exists. The alleged disproportion between the remuneration of men and -women is indeed sometimes only apparent, or at least appears to be -greater than it is really. Often, however, it is real and great where it -is not apparent. - -On the one hand, in many cases in which at first sight women seem to be -doing the same work as men for less pay, it is found on careful inquiry, -that they are not doing the same work. "The same work nominally is not -always the same work actually," as the Editor reminds us (Chapter IV. -par. 1). "Men feeders, for instance, carry formes and do little things -about the machine which women do not do." In this and other ways men -afford to the employer a greater "net advantageousness," as Mr. Sidney -Webb puts it in his valuable study on the "Alleged Differences in the -Wages paid to Men and to Women for similar Work" (_Economic Journal_, -Vol. I. pp. 635 _et seq._). The examples of this phenomenon adduced by -Mr. Webb, and in the evidence before the Royal Commission on Labour, are -supplemented by these records. To instance one of the less obvious ways -in which a difference in net advantageousness makes itself felt, -employers say: "It does not pay to train women: they would leave us -before we got the same return for our trouble as we get from men." At -the same time it is to be noticed in many of these cases that though the -work of women is less efficient, it is not so inferior as their pay. For -instance, a Manchester employer "estimated that a woman was two-thirds -as valuable in a printer's and stationer's warehouse as a man, and she -was paid 15_s._ or 20_s._ to his 33_s._," (p. 47, note). - -In other cases the difference between the remuneration of men and women -for similar work is not obvious because they work in different branches -of industry. For example, only five instances of women being employed as -lithographic artists are on record (Chapter IV. par. 1). Other branches -of the printing trade are as exclusively women's work. Such data afford -no direct and exact comparison between the remuneration of the two -classes in relation to the work done by them respectively. As Mr. Webb -concludes, the inferiority of women's wages cannot be gathered "from a -comparison of the rates for identical work, for few such cases exist, -but rather from a comparison of the standards of remuneration in men's -and women's occupations respectively." "Looked at in this light," he -continues, "it seems probable that women's work is usually less highly -paid than work of equivalent difficulty and productivity done by men." -As Mrs. Fawcett points out in an important supplement to Mr. Webb's -article (_Economic Journal_, Vol. II. p. 174), women are crowded into -classes of industry which are less remunerative than those open to men. - -Recognising the fact of different remuneration for the same amount of -work, we have next to consider the causes. It is evident that the sort -of explanation offered by Adam Smith for difference of wages in -different employments will not avail much in the case with which we are -dealing. The lower remuneration of women is not brought about by way of -compensation for the greater "agreeableness" or other pleasurable -incident or perquisite of their tasks. Possibly we might refer to this -head, as well as to others, the circumstance that women having in -prospect the hopes of domestic life are likely to take less interest in -their trade than men do who cast in their lot for life, if this -difference in future prospects is attended with a difference in the -effort of attention given to work in the present. But doubtless the -explanation is to be found chiefly not in compensation produced by the -levelling action of competition, but in the absence of competition -between men and women--in the existence of monopoly whether natural or -artificial, to use Mill's distinction (_Political Economy_, Vol. II. -Chapter XIV.), together with custom and what Mill calls "the unintended -effect of general social regulations." - -A natural monopoly is constituted by the superior strength of man, the -occasional exercise of which, as just noticed, entitles him to some -superiority of pay for work which at first sight may appear almost -identical with that of women. The experience recorded in the following -pages does not afford any expectation that this kind of superiority -tends to vanish. "There is an almost unanimous chorus of opinion that -women's work as compositors is so inferior to men's that it does not -pay in the long run" (Chapter IV.). Speaking of the physiological -differences between men and women in relation to their work, the Editor -concludes that "when all false emphasis and exaggeration have been -removed a considerable residuum of difference must remain." - -Custom and the somewhat capricious sense of decorum counts for more than -might have been expected in restricting women to certain industries, and -accordingly, on the principle emphasised by Mrs. Fawcett, depressing -their wages. "I know my place, and I'm not going to take men's work from -them," said a female operative to an employer who wanted her to varnish -books (Chapter IV.). "Why, that is men's work, and we shouldn't think of -doing it," was the answer given by forewomen and others to the question -why they did not turn their hands to simple and easy processes which -were being done by men (Chapter V.). - -Among artificial monopolies must be placed that which is constituted by -legislation. The Factory Laws, of which a lucid summary is given -(Chapter VI. Sec. 1), impose certain conditions on the work of women which, -it may be supposed and has been asserted, place them at a sensible -disadvantage in their competition with men, who are free from those -restrictions. But the evidence now collected goes to prove that the -disadvantage occasioned to women in their competition with men by the -Factory Acts is not appreciable; thus confirming the conclusions -obtained by the Committee which the British Association appointed to -consider this very question (Report, 1903). The evidence of the large -majority of employers in the printing trade is in favour of the Acts; -the evidence of employees is almost unanimous. Of a hundred and three -employers "not half-a-dozen remembered dismissing women in consequence -of the new enactment" (Chapter VI. Sec. 2). Of a hundred and three -employers, who expressed an opinion, twenty-six stated that in their -opinion legislation had not affected women's labour at all, sixty -considered it to have been beneficial, and seventeen looked on all -legislation as grandmotherly and ridiculous (p. 82). The opinion of the -employers is much influenced by the experience that "after overtime the -next day's work suffers." The still stronger feeling of the workers in -favour of the Factory Acts is partly based on the same fact: "Long -hours," said one, "don't do any good, for they mean that you work less -next day: if you work all night, then you are so tired that you have to -take a day off; you have gained nothing" (p. 86). Upon the whole the -moderate conclusion appears to be that "except in a few small houses the -employment of women as compositors has not been affected by the Factory -Acts" (p. 75). What little evidence there is to the contrary is -exhibited by the Editor with creditable candour (p. 80). It is admitted -that a "slight residuum of night work" may have been transferred to male -hands. - -Trades unionism forms another species of "artificial monopoly," the -organisation of men in the printing trades being much stronger than that -of women. The difference is partly accounted for by the fact, already -noticed in other connections, that woman having an eye to marriage is -not equally wedded to her trade. Some frankly admit that "marriage is -sure to come along, and then they will work in factories and workshops -no longer" (p. 42). Whatever the cause, it appears from the Editor's -historical retrospect that women's unions have not flourished in the -trades under consideration. All attempts to organise women in the -printing trade proper, as distinguished from the bookbinding industry, -have failed. Even the Society of Women Employed in Bookbinding, though -organised by Mrs. Emma Paterson, seems to have had only a moderate -success. Thus the men unionists have had their way in arranging that -their standard wage should not be lowered by the influx of cheap labour -offered by women. - -Some unions indeed admit women on equal terms with men, with less -advantage to the former than might have been expected. A regulation of -this sort adopted by the London Society of Compositors is followed by -the result that "it is practically impossible for any woman to join the -society" (p. 28). At Perth a few years ago, when women began to be -employed on general bookwork and setting up newspaper copy, the men's -union decided that the women must either be paid the same rates as the -men or be got rid of altogether (p. 46). One general result of such -_prima facie_ equalitarian regulations is probably to promote that -crowding of women into less remunerative occupations which was above -noticed as a cardinal fact of the situation. It is for this reason -apparently that Mrs. Fawcett does not welcome the principle that -"women's wages should be the same as men's for the same work." "To -encourage women under all circumstances to claim the same wages as men -for the same work would be to exclude from work altogether all those -women who were industrially less efficient than men" (see the article by -Mrs. Fawcett referred to in the _Economic Journal_, Vol. III. p. 366, -and compare her article in that Journal, Vol. II. p. 174, already -cited). - -Of course it may be argued that, in view of the circumstance that women -workers are often subsidised by men and of other incidents of family -life, to permit the unrestricted competition of men with women would -tend to lower the remuneration and degrade the character of labour as a -whole. Without expressing an opinion on this matter, seeking to explain -rather than to justify the cardinal fact that the industrial competition -between men and women is very imperfect, one may suggest that it is -favoured by another element of monopoly. The employer in a large -business has some of the powers proper to monopoly. As Professor -Marshall says (in a somewhat different connection) "a man who employs a -thousand others is in himself an absolutely rigid combination to the -extent of one thousand units in the labour market." This consideration -may render it easier to understand how it is possible for certain -employers to give effect to the dispositions which are attributed to -them in the following passages: "Conservative notions about women's -sphere, and chivalrous prejudices about protecting them, influence -certain employers in determining what work they _ought_ to do" (p. 52). -"A rigid sense of propriety based on a certain amount of good reason, -seems to determine many employers to separate male from female -departments" (p. 53). - -A notice of this subject would be inadequate without reference to the -relation between the use of machinery and the competition of women -against men. In some cases the cheapness of women's work averts the -introduction of machinery. "One investigator whilst being taken over -certain large printing works was shown women folding one of the -illustrated weekly papers. Folding machines were standing idle in the -department, and she was told that these were used by the men when -folding had to be done at times when the Factory Law prohibited women's -labour" (p. 98). A well-known bookbinder said: "If women would take a -fair price for work done it would not be necessary to employ machinery." -In the Warrington newspaper offices the cheapness of women's labour -makes it unnecessary to introduce linotypes (pp. 46 and 98). On the -other hand, in the case of bookbinding, the employment of machinery -makes it possible for the less skilled and lower-paid women to do work -formerly done by men (p. 48). But the relations are not in general so -simple. Rather, as the Editor remarks, "what really happens is an -all-round shifting of the distribution of labour-power and skill, and a -rearrangement of the subdivision of labour" (p. 48). The cheerful -assumption proper to abstract economics, that labour displaced by the -introduction of machinery can turn to some other employment, is seldom, -it is to be feared, so perfectly realised as in the case of the -bookbinders below mentioned (p. 48, note): "There was much gloom among -the men when the rounding and backing machine came in, but though -profitable work was taken away from the 'rounders' and 'backers' they -had more 'lining up' and other work to do in consequence, so nobody was -turned off." - -So far I have adverted to only one of the problems which are elucidated -by this investigation. A sense of proportion might require that I should -dwell on other topics of great interest such as home work and the work -of married women, the technique of the industries connected with -printing which the Editor has described minutely, and the statistics -relating to women's wages, in the treatment of which a master hand, that -of Mr. A. L. Bowley, may be recognised. But I must not go on like the -chairman who with a lengthy opening address detains an audience eager to -hear the principal speaker. I will only in conclusion express the hope -that the Committee which has obtained such useful results may be enabled -to prosecute further investigations with like diligence. - -F. Y. EDGEWORTH. - - - - -CONTENTS. - - - INTRODUCTION xv - - I. - - I. THE TRADES DESCRIBED 1 - II. WOMEN IN THE TRADES 17 - III. WOMEN'S WORK AND ORGANISATION 24 - IV. MEN AND WOMEN AS WORKERS 44 - V. INDUSTRIAL TRAINING 55 - VI. LEGISLATION 69 - VII. WOMEN AND MACHINERY 94 - VIII. HOME WORK 99 - IX. MARRIED AND UNMARRIED 102 - X. WAGES 113 - - II.--APPENDICES. - - I. POINTS UPON WHICH ENQUIRIES WERE MADE 139 - II. DESCRIPTIONS OF CERTAIN TYPICAL FIRMS 141 - III. GENERAL GLASGOW REPORT 170 - IV. WOMEN IN THE PRINTING TRADES IN BIRMINGHAM 179 - V. TABLES OF INDIVIDUAL EARNINGS FOR CONSECUTIVE WEEKS - THROUGH LENGTHENED PERIODS 184 - VI. MR. DUNNING'S STATEMENT OF WAGES, 1849 199 - VII. TABLE SHOWING NUMBER OF MALES AND FEMALES ENGAGED - IN THESE TRADES AT VARIOUS AGES IN 1901 203 - - INDEX 205 - - - - -INTRODUCTION. - - -The investigation upon which this book is based was undertaken by the -Women's Industrial Council; the Royal Statistical Society, the Royal -Economic Society, and the Hutchinson Trustees consenting to be -represented on the Committee responsible for the work. Upon this -Committee, the Women's Industrial Council was represented by Miss A. -Black, Miss C. Black, Mrs. Hammond, Mr. Stephen N. Fox, and Mr. J. -Ramsay Macdonald; the Royal Statistical Society by Mr. J. A. Baines; the -Royal Economic Society by Professor F. Y. Edgeworth, and the Hutchinson -Trustees by Mr. A. L. Bowley. Mrs. Hogg also represented the Women's -Industrial Council up to her death in 1900. - -The Committee takes this opportunity of thanking the Hutchinson Trustees -for their liberal financial assistance, and of expressing its -appreciation of the services so carefully and enthusiastically performed -by the investigators, especially those of Mrs. Hammond, who is mainly -responsible for the work done in London; of Mrs. Oakeshott, who assisted -Mrs. Hammond; of Mrs. Muirhead, who supplied information about -Birmingham; of Miss Harrison, who investigated Bristol and the -South-West, and Leeds and district; and of Miss Irwin and Mr. Jones, who -were in charge of the Scottish enquiries. To the many employers, Trade -Union secretaries, and others who were so willing to give assistance to -the investigators, the Committee also desires to express its gratitude. - -Whoever has had experience in collecting and sifting such evidence as is -dealt with in this investigation knows how difficult it is to arrive at -proper values and just conclusions. And women's trades seem to offer -special difficulties of this kind. There are no Trade Union conditions, -no general trade rules, no uniformity in apprenticeships, so far as the -woman worker is concerned, and the variations in conditions are most -striking, even between neighbouring employers drawing their supply of -labour from practically the same district, though perhaps not from the -same social strata. That difference in strata is in some cases a -predominating factor in women's employment, and it everywhere confuses -economic and industrial considerations. When to this irregularity of -conditions is added a reticence as to "one's personal affairs," due -partly to women's lack of the sense that their position is of public -interest, and also partly to an unwillingness shown by many employers to -disclose the facts of cheap labour, it can readily be seen that the -Committee had to exercise the greatest care in its work. - -When the investigation was begun there was an idea that it should be the -commencement of an enquiry into women's labour in every trade of any -importance, but whether that will be carried on or not will now depend -on the reception of this volume and on what further financial assistance -is forthcoming. The group of trades selected for first treatment shows -neither an overwhelming preponderance of women nor a very marked -increase in the employment of women. But it illustrates in a specially -normal way the main problems of women's labour under ordinary modern -conditions. Upon one important point this group does not throw much -light. The employment of Women in the Printing Trades does not show to -any satisfactory extent the family influence of married and unmarried -women wage earners. What information the Committee was able to gather is -dealt with in its proper place, but careful enquiries will have to be -made in the highly-organised factory industries before that wealth of -fact can be obtained from which conclusions can be drawn, with details -properly filled in, regarding the influence of women's earnings upon -family incomes. - -In other respects these trades have yielded most interesting -information. They illustrate the industrial mind and capacity of women -in the different aspects of training, rates of pay, competition with -men, influence of machinery, effect of legislation, and so on. These -subjects are dealt with under separate chapters, and though it has been -the chief aim of the Committee to present well-sifted and reliable -facts, it has stated some conclusions which are most obvious, and which -appear to be necessary, if bare figures and dry industrial data are to -carry any sociological enlightenment. The volume is therefore offered -not as a mere description of industrial organisation, but as a study in -sociology which indicates a path ahead as well as points out where we -stand at the moment. - -Miss Clementina Black is responsible for the description of the Trades, -Mr. A. L. Bowley for the Chapter on Wages, and Mr. Stephen Fox for the -legal and historical part of that on Legislation. For the rest, the -Editor is responsible. - - - - -CHAPTER I. - -_THE TRADES DESCRIBED._ - - -The trades covered by this enquiry include a great number of processes, -some brief account of which is necessary if the succeeding chapters are -to be comprehensible. It will, perhaps, be the easiest way to follow the -stages by which paper is converted into books and to return afterwards -to such accessory matters as envelope making, relief stamping, -lithography, etc. - -_Paper-making._--Paper-making is carried on mainly in the counties of -Kent, Lancashire, Buckingham, Yorkshire, Fife, Lanark, Aberdeen and -Midlothian, but mills are found scattered over the country where water -is favourable to the manufacture.[1] In London, there is one mill only, -and not more than thirteen women are employed in it. Of these the -majority are occupied in sorting esparto grass, and throwing it by means -of pitchforks into machines where the abundant dust is shaken out, and -from which the grass is carried on moving bands to the vats where it is -boiled into pulp. A few older married women are engaged in cutting rags, -removing buttons, etc.; but at the present day paper is but rarely made -from rags, and the rags so used are generally sorted and cut by -machinery. This is an instance in which machinery has undoubtedly -superseded the work of women; but, perhaps, few persons will regret -that an occupation so uninviting as the cutting up of old rags should be -undertaken rather by a machine than by a human being. With the later -processes in the manufacture of paper--the boiling, mixing, bleaching, -and refining--women have nothing to do; but a few women are employed in -"counting" the sheets of paper before they leave the mill. - -[Footnote 1: _The Directory of Paper-makers_ for 1903 gives the -following number of paper mills as being situated in the following -counties:--Bucks, 16; Devon, 10; Durham, 9; Kent, 30; Lancashire, 44; -Yorkshire, 27; Edinburgh, 17; Lanark, 9; Stirling, 8; Fife, 7; Aberdeen, -5; Dublin, 6.] - -The work of the women, who are time-workers at from 8_s._ to 10_s._ a -week, requires no training. The working day begins at 6 a.m., an earlier -hour than that of any other factory or shop dealt with in this enquiry. -The machinery is kept in constant action, double shifts of men being -employed, and when it becomes necessary to feed the machines with grass -at night men do the work performed in the day by women. - -_Letter-press Printing._--The primary business of the "compositor" is to -"set-up type," _i.e._, to arrange the separate movable types in required -order for printing successive lines of words. These lines are then -arranged in frames called _chases_, each of which containing the types -is known as a _forme_; the _formes_ are "locked up," that is, made firm -by wooden or metal wedges called _quoins_, and are then carried to the -press for a proof impression. The printed page passes on in the shape of -proof to the "corrector," and from him to the author, and is then -returned in order that corresponding alterations may be made in the -placing of the type. Finally, when the whole corrected impression has -been printed off, comes the "distributing"--the removal of the types -from their places and re-sorting into the proper divisions in the -"case." Were books the only form of printed matter, this description -would cover the whole business of the compositor, but there are also -handbills and newspapers--to say nothing of lithographic printing, which -will be dealt with farther on. The printing of handbills, etc., and the -printing of newspapers, require, each in its own way, a high degree of -skill and experience, to which women, the vast majority of whom leave -the trade comparatively young, seldom attain. - -In the provinces, however, a few women are engaged upon the printing of -weekly or bi-weekly newspapers; and in London, one establishment has -been visited in which women regularly do "jobbing" or "display -work"--terms which cover the printing of advertisements, posters, -handbills, etc.--while at least two other firms employ each one girl -upon such work. "None of the other workers," it is reported, "seem to -care to learn." - -The difference between skilful and unskilful work in this department is -far greater than an uninitiated person might suppose; and the -attractiveness of a poster, advertisement or invitation card depends -very largely upon the way in which the type is spaced. - -In all printing houses employing women compositors, setting up, -correcting, and distributing are done by women; in the Women's Printing -Society women regularly "impose," that is, divide up the long galleys of -type into pages and place the pages so that they may follow in proper -order when the sheet is folded, and in another firm a woman was found -who could impose; but as a general rule the "imposing" is the work of -the man or men employed to lock-up and carry about the heavy formes. No -instance has been found in which this latter work, which in some cases -is extremely heavy, is done by women. - -_Bookbinding._--This trade covers at least two main divisions, and one -of these is minutely subdivided into a great variety of processes. The -first process is, in all cases, that of folding. All printed matter -occupying more than a single page has to be so folded as to bring the -pages into consecutive order, and this process is essentially the same -whether the printed sheet be that of a book, a pamphlet, a magazine, or -a newspaper. From the trade point of view, however, there is a -distinction between the folding of matter intended to be bound up in a -real book cover (book-folding) and matter which is not to be bound -(printers' folding). As a general rule--liable, however, to many -exceptions--book-folding is performed in a binder's shop and printers' -folding in a printing house, whence the names. But many printers now -have a regular binding department, and periodical or pamphlet work is on -the other hand often folded in the workshop of the publisher's binder. -The line of demarcation is therefore no very distinct one. Prospectus -work is _par excellence_ printers' folding, and so are such weekly -papers as are still folded by hand. - -Book-folding is done by women, of whom in theory nearly all, and in -practice many, are regularly employed. The process is practically -identical in both cases. Printers' folding is carried on in large firms -chiefly by a regular staff; but in times of pressure "job hands" or -"grass hands" are called in; and in smaller workplaces job hands do the -whole of the work. Great sheets of matter, fresh from the press, are -distributed in thousands to the workers to be folded either by hand or -by machine. In the latter case, the woman merely feeds the machine, -taking care to lay the sheet in exactly the right place. In the former, -she becomes practically a machine herself, so monotonous is the -occupation. The sheet is folded once, twice, three, or even four times, -as the case may be, on a fixed plan, and sometimes has to be cut with a -long knife as well as folded. The various sheets of a book having been -folded, the process of _gathering_ follows. Each folder has received a -fixed number (probably a thousand) copies of the same sheet, and when -she has finished folding the gatherer places the sheets in piles of each -"signature," _e.g._ the index letter which one observes on the first -page of each sheet in a book, in regular order on a long table. She then -walks up and down the side of this table collecting one copy of each -sheet and so forming a complete book. The collection thus made passes -from the gatherer to the _collator_, who runs over it, noting by means -of the printer's "signature" that all the sheets are in order, and -placing her mark on the book, thereby becoming responsible for its -accuracy. In the case of illustrated books the process of _placing_ -comes at this stage. The plates to be inserted are "fanned out"--_i.e._, -laid out in fan shape--each receives a narrow strip of paste at the back -and is placed next, and stuck to, its proper page. This placing is -sometimes done by the collator, sometimes by a separate hand. The whole -process of collating is often omitted in the case of pamphlets and small -work, and the sheets then pass straight from the folder to the stitcher -or sewer. Of _sewing_ or _stitching_ there are many varieties. The -threads of hand-sewn books generally pass through three bands of tape -kept taut by being attached at one end to the table at which the worker -sits and at the other to a horizontal bar above. Sometimes the book will -have been prepared by the sawing of grooves in the back to receive the -sewing. This sawing is done by men. Stitching machines vary greatly. The -simplest kind merely inserts the unpleasant "staple-binder" of wire that -is so large a factor in the rapid decomposition of cheap books. In these -machines, one variety of which uses thread and knots it, the pamphlet or -other work in hand is placed at a particular place in a kind of trough; -the operator presses a treadle and the wire is mechanically passed -through and pressed flat. Other machines of a more complicated sort will -sew with thread upon tapes. In this case one girl is required to -superintend and a younger assistant to cut apart the books which are -delivered by the machine fixed at intervals upon a long continuous tape. -Such machines are worked by power and set going by the pressure of a -treadle. Pamphlets or newspapers having neither "cover" nor "wrapper" -are now finished--unless, indeed, _inserts_ or _insets_ are to be placed -between the pages. These are those unattached advertisements which fall -out upon the reader's knee on a first opening, and thereby certainly -succeed in catching his attention, though not perhaps his approval. -Magazines or paper-covered books are sometimes "wrappered" by women, a -simple process consisting of glueing the back of each book and clapping -on the cover. Bound books have end-papers added to them by women, who -also paste down the projecting tapes to the fly-pages. At this stage the -book passes into the hands of men to be touched no more by women, except -perhaps in a few subsidiary processes. But since much debate has taken -place over the allotment to men and women of other parts of the work, it -becomes necessary to give a cursory glance at the further stages of a -book's progress. - -On leaving the women's hands the book--now no longer a collection of -loose sheets but an entity--is placed in a machine to be "nipped," that -is, to have the back pressed; then the edges are cut smooth in a -"guillotine"; the back is glued upon muslin and rounded, and a groove is -made, by hand or machine, at each side of the back, so that the cover -may lie flat; this is called "backing," the covering boards and cloth -are cut out and pasted together; the design and lettering are stamped -upon them in the "blocking-room"; the books are "pasted down," that is, -are fixed into their covers by means of pasting down the end leaves, and -are "built up" in a large press. If the designs and lettering of the -cover are to be gilded, the gold-leaf is laid on by hand according to -the stamped-out pattern, which is then restamped, and any gold-leaf not -firmly adhering is rubbed off with an old stocking. The stocking is -burned in a crucible, and the precious remainder of the gold collected -again. "Gold laying-on" is done by women; and the workers engaged in -this task do nothing else. Much dexterity is needed, the gold-leaf -being apt to break or blow away at the slightest breath. One -investigator describes as "seeming almost marvellous" the skill with -which this difficult material is laid in exactly the right place by -means of a knife. Women also "open-up," _i.e._, look through the books -ready to be sent out to see that there are no flaws. Such is the -life-history of the ordinary book as it comes from the publisher, but -"publishers' binding" is not the only section of the binding trade, and -is indeed regarded by the workers as "decidedly inferior" to -"leather-work," which is emphatically distinguished as "bookbinding." -Leather-binding is employed mainly for rebinding. It forms, as may be -supposed, a comparatively small part of the whole trade, and is -practically confined to three large firms in the West End, a few small -places, and separate rooms in some general binding establishments. The -chief difference of method lies in the better fixing together of back -and cover, the "bound" book being laced into the cover, and in the -presence of a "head-band," at top and bottom of the back. Books to be -re-bound are picked to pieces by women and cleaned from glue, etc., -re-folded, if necessary, collated, and after being rolled flat (by a -man) are sewn at a hand press. Repairs to torn pages or plates and the -removal of stains are also done by women. This last process demands -great care and skill, "foxed" pages requiring to be dipped into a -preparation of acid which destroys not only the objectionable stain but -also the body of the paper, so that the leaf has to be newly sized and -strengthened, and naturally needs very tender handling throughout this -whole course of treatment. The best head-bands, too, are made by women -by hand, but the head-bands of cheaper books--when they exist at -all--are machine-made. Head-band makers form a special and extremely -small class of workers. - -A third branch of the trade is "vellum-binding," a name which covers the -binding of all ledgers, account books, and bank books, whether bound in -vellum or no. The workers engaged in this branch form a separate group, -are rarely found on the premises of regular bookbinders, and work -chiefly in a separate department in printing houses. The employments of -women in vellum-binding are much the same as in publishers' binding; -they fold and sew much in the usual manner, the only marked difference -arising in the case of large day-books, etc., which are elaborately -hand-sewn in frames, each section of the book having a separate guard of -linen. - -It is difficult to draw lines of demarcation between the various workers -whose occupations have now been described. In large workplaces a worker -will probably be kept at one minute process; the folder will do nothing -but fold, the sewer will only sew, the collator only collate, and the -inserter only insert. Some forewomen, however, think it better to give -the women a change of employment. Gold layers-on and openers-up are -always entirely apart from folders and sewers, but collators begin with -folding and sewing, and in small houses sometimes combine one or both -these processes with collating. - -The divisions of work between men and women are not made upon any -discernible principle of fitness, and except in the case of folding and -sewing, which have belonged to women from time immemorial, the various -processes began in the hands of men and have been gradually taken up by -women. This gradual encroachment has been generally resented and often -resisted by the men, and in May, 1893, an elaborate agreement was drawn -up by the Bookbinding Trade Section of the London Chamber of Commerce -representing the masters, and the secretaries of the men's unions -representing the men working in the trade. The women workers were not -represented or consulted. The agreement is as follows:-- - - LONDON SOCIETIES OF JOURNEYMEN BOOKBINDERS. - - _London Consolidated Society; Bookbinders' and Machine Rulers' - Consolidated Union, London Branch; Society of Day-working - Bookbinders._ - - That this meeting of representatives of the Bookbinding Section of - the London Chamber of Commerce, with representatives of the - Journeymen Bookbinders' Trade Societies, deeming it desirable that - a definition of bookbinding should be agreed upon for the - delimitation of work to be paid for at recognised rates, hereby - agrees that the following divisions or sub-divisions of labour be - for the future recognised as the work of bookbinders or - apprentices, taking the book from the time of leaving the women - after sewing, except wrappering, which is unaffected by this - agreement:-- - - Forwarding, and the following sub-divisions of bookbinding: - - Nipping, knocking down, or pressing. - Cutting books or magazines. - Colouring edges of books (where done indoors). - Cutting leather, except corners, and backs for flush work from - sheep and roan. - Cutting cloth. - Cutting hollows and linings. - Cutting boards. - Bevelling boards. - Case making. - Pasting down and building up. - Flush work throughout. - Finishing throughout. - Assistant finishing throughout. - Blocking throughout. - Circuit and box work. (Bible trade.) - - PROVIDED:--That the representatives of the journeymen agree that - they will not make it a grievance if female or unskilled labour is - placed upon:-- - - The rolling, pressing before sewing, sawing up, or papering of - outboard work. - - The laying on, washing up, or cleaning off of cloth work. - - The varnishing of cloth or Bible work. - - The paper mounts and pictures on cloth cases. - - Taking work out of the press after pasting down, and opening up. - - The carrying of loads of work about the workshop. - - Further, that the representatives of the journeymen will not - object to the introduction of unskilled labour upon cloth cutting, - if the recognised rate of wages of 32_s._ per 48 hours be paid - after a probationary period of twelve months, in which the novice - may learn the work. - - Owing to the difficulties of drafting a clause affecting the - laying on in such a manner as to lay down a line of demarcation - between cloth and leather work, it is hereby agreed to leave the - subject of laying on _in statu quo_, upon the understanding that - it shall not be the policy of the Trade Societies to interfere, - except in the case of innovations upon existing custom.[2] - - This agreement not to be construed to the prejudice of the - existing holders of situations. - - Adopted by the Bookbinding Trade Section of the London Chamber of - Commerce at its annual meeting on 7th May, 1893. - - JOHN DIPROSE, _Chairman_. - - Ratified by the executives of the hereunder-mentioned Societies on - May 30th, 1893, and signed on their behalf. - - HENRY R. KING, _Secretary, London Consolidated Society_. - WILLIAM BOCKETT, _Secretary, Day Working Bookbinders' Society_. - THOMAS E. POWELL, _Secretary, Bookbinders and Machine Rulers' - Consolidated Union_ (_London Branch_). - -[Footnote 2: This clause has been interpreted by the award given in -March, 1903, by Mr. C. J. Stewart, the arbitrator appointed by the Board -of Trade to settle a dispute in the trade regarding wages, hours, -apprentices and piece work. The 6th clause in that award is as -follows:--"That the right or practice existing with regard to female -labour employed on wrappering and for laying on gold in case work, cloth -or leather, or other material, in certain workshops in the trade, shall -be made to apply to all workshops in the trade, it being agreed by the -employers that no man exclusively employed in gold laying-on shall lose -his employment by reason of the employment of women on such work."] - -Closely connected with vellum-binding are the processes of -machine-ruling, numbering, paging and perforating. - -_Machine-ruling_ is the process by which lines are ruled for ledgers, -invoices, etc. The machine employed resembles a hand-loom in appearance, -and is in effect a framework in which pens are fixed at the required -distances. Ink is conveyed into these from a pad of thick flannel above, -and the page to be ruled lies on a broad band below. The re-inking of -the flannel is in some cases effected by means of a reservoir and tap -supplying a regulated flow, in others the ink is laid on from bowls of -red or blue colour by means of a brush. Machines worked by a handle -still survive in a few places, but as a general rule the machine is -driven by power and the operator merely superintends, correcting the -machine if it goes wrong, setting the pens and regulating the supply of -ink. The newest machines require the services of neither "feeders" nor -"wetters," and the simple old picturesque accessories, the cords, the -wooden frame, the bowls of colour, are disappearing. Women are employed -in some houses to feed the machines, which is purely mechanical work; -our investigators found four establishments in London in which women can -rise to the higher position of "minder," and one other in which they are -allowed to damp the flannel and partially "mind." - -_Numbering_ is the process by which consecutive figures are stamped upon -cheques, bills, receipts, tickets, or other loose sheets. A machine -worked by hand is employed, the number types changing automatically. The -attention of the worker is required on three points only: the paper must -be placed so as to bring the number into the right position; the machine -must not be allowed to skip numbers at a jump--as it is inclined to do; -and whenever an additional figure becomes necessary, a certain change -must be made. The handle of the machine works up and down, and the -process is different from that of stamping, to be described later. There -are no power machines for numbering. - -Numbering is said to try the eyes, and the working of a machine handle -is considered bad for girls who have any weakness of the chest. - -_Paging_ is the process by which numbers are printed upon the pages of a -bound volume. As in numbering, a change has to be made at each "100"; -and there is need of further care to avoid missing pages. Where these -are thin or interleaved with tissue paper omissions are very easily -made. - -_Perforating_ is done by machines generally worked by power, but -sometimes by treadle, with one foot; and this treadle work was described -by a woman constantly employed at it as excessively hard work. - -_Lithography._--The work of women and girls in lithography seems to be -confined to the feeding of machines. In London the introduction of -female labour is comparatively recent, dating from about six or seven -years ago, but in the provinces women have been employed for more than -thirty years. Employers are, for some reason or another, not very ready -to give information about this branch of work; but some of the -investigators engaged in this enquiry have succeeded in seeing the -process. A girl stands on a high platform putting sheets into the proper -place in the machine until she has completed the job. A long interval -may follow in which she may sew, knit or read. The noise of the machine -is incessant, and the work hard, monotonous and mechanical, but if done -under proper conditions not necessarily unhealthy. Many working-places -in London, however, where space is so valuable, are partly underground, -dark and ill-ventilated, and in these the ceaseless whirring noise and -the smell of the ink grow unendurably trying. Workers in such places are -rough and of low social standing. Most men working in the general -stationery trades, and some employers who do not employ women, condemn -the doing of this work by women, and since the women have superseded not -men but boys, the views of the workmen are not those of trade rivals. -Girls are said to be in various ways better workers than -boys--cleaner-handed, more careful and accurate, less disposed to meddle -with the machinery, and therefore less liable to accidents; above all, -quieter, more docile, and less apt to strike. The men employed in -lithography look favourably on the employment of girls, because no girl -attempts to rise into the higher grades and "pick up" the trade without -apprenticeship. Girls do not, and boys as feeders do, "constitute a -danger to the Society." Moreover, a trade that offers only so uncertain -a chance of rising is generally disapproved for a boy. - -The objection to the employment for girls is that they work among -men--an objection which may be a very grave one indeed, or a -comparatively slight one, according to the character of the foreman and -the management of the workshop. It may be noted that respectable -working-class parents almost always consider this objection serious. - -A few women are reported to be employed as lithographic artists, but no -one has been seen in the course of this enquiry. - -Minor stationery trades are envelope-making, black bordering, plain and -relief stamping. - -_Envelope-making_ has several subdivisions. The paper is first cut to -shape in machines worked by men, then passed to women to be "cemented," -_i.e._, to be gummed upon the flaps, folded or "creased," and stuck -together. Finally the envelopes are packed by women. - -Cementing and folding are reckoned distinct trades. One cementer -explained to an investigator, however, that she described herself as a -folder, "for people are so ignorant that if you say you are a cementer -they think you have something to do with the pavement." Cementing may be -done by hand or by machine, and the workers are not interchangeable. The -hand-worker spreads out the envelopes in the shape of a fan, and passes -her brush over all the flaps at once. The machine-cementer puts 500 or -1,000 envelopes into a small machine, which grips them and drips gum -upon their flaps. The worker extricates the envelopes one by one, and -spreads them out to dry. A more complex machine is being introduced -which performs the various processes for itself, requiring one girl to -feed and one to take-off. - -The flaps being dry, the envelopes are taken in bundles to the -_folders_, who first "crease" them--that is, fold in the sides--then -"gum" them with a brush at the required points, and fasten them. This -process can also be performed by a machine, and the operator in that -case merely feeds the machine with the cemented paper, and the envelope -is delivered made. - -The envelopes are then handed on to the "packers," who count them and -make them up into packets, and the packets into parcels. - -Except the original cutting, still done by men, all these processes have -always been executed by women. - -The trade of _black bordering_ is carried on by women who seldom or -never perform any other process. Black bordering is usually done by -hand. The worker spreads out a number of sheets, cards or envelopes, in -such a manner as to expose only a certain width of border, and over this -exposed portion she passes a brush. Of course, only two edges of each -sheet, etc., can be laid ready at one time, and each object has to be -"laid out" a second time after drying. "It is marvellous to see the -speed and dexterity with which the women do the 'laying-out.' They -gather up a large number of sheets, lay them on the board and fan them -out with a piece of wood used for the purpose, showing the most -astounding accuracy of eye in leaving just the right width exposed. -Sometimes the 'laying out' is done by a machine, and only the blacking -by hand." This trade--a steady one on the whole--has, unlike nearly all -the other stationery trades, been more prosperous owing to the South -African war--a grim little example of the way in which large public -events eddy away into undreamed of backwaters! Men now never do black -bordering, but are reported to have done so once. Machinery is now being -more widely introduced. - -_Plain, Relief and Cameo Stamping._--Under these heads are included all -the various processes by which crests, monograms, addresses, etc., are -embossed upon notepaper, cards, programmes, or private Christmas cards. -The trade has increased enormously of late years, and a new process has -been introduced which renders it possible to employ the printing press. -This, however, is only worth while when the order to be executed is a -very large one; and most stamping is done by hand machines, a die being -fixed into the machine and impressed by tightly screwing down. The -machine is worked (like an ordinary copying press) by a horizontal bar, -having a ball at each end, and swung from right to left. The lighter -machines can be worked by one hand; the heavier require two, and are -found fatiguing. Some are so heavy that they can only be worked by men. -Practice is necessary in order to get the stamp in exactly the right -place, and, in relief or cameo work, in order to mix the colours, which -are rubbed on the die, to precisely the right thickness. - -Plain stamping--the easiest process--is that in which letters, a coat of -arms, or a trade mark, are raised but not coloured; in relief stamping -the raised surface is coloured; and in cameo stamping (of which the -registered letter envelope is an example) a white device stands out from -a coloured background. - -When two or more colours are employed considerable care, skill, and -patience are needed. This work, in two or more colours, is called -_illuminating_; in one branch of it--the highest--gold and silver are -employed on a coloured surface, and here women are not employed. - -_Show-card Mounting._--Card mounting is a distinct trade, and is almost -entirely in female hands. Almanacs, advertisements, and texts for -hanging up, all belong to the province of the card mounter, whose main -business is to unite the picture and cardboard that arrive separately in -her workshop. The board is first cut either by a man at a cutting -machine--or "guillotine"--or occasionally by a girl at a rotary machine -adjustable to different gauges; then "lined," by having paper pasted -over the back and edges. Inferior work is not lined. Finally, the -picture or print is pasted on the card, the backs of three or four -pictures being pasted at once, and each in succession being applied to -its own card. Some means of hanging up is still needed, and various -methods are in use. Sometimes eyelets are inserted into a punched hole -by means of a small machine which a girl works by hand. Sometimes the -edge is bound with a strip of tin, having loops attached to it; in this -case the tin strips are cut by men, and applied by hand machines, again -worked by girls. Sometimes, as in the case of maps, charts, and large -diagrams, a wooden rod is fixed at the top, this fixing being done by -girls. - -The trade is not, it will readily be perceived, one that demands great -skill, practice or intelligence, and the majority of the workers are -very young. Still, a certain degree of experience is necessary, since -the application of either too much or too little paste results in a -"blister," and blistered work is spoiled. One investigator was shown a -lot of 500 cards, the estimated value of which was 6_d._ each, no less -than 385 of which had thus been spoiled and rendered quite useless. The -workers stand at their work and report that it exhausts them. It used, -till about twenty-eight years ago, to be done by men; but the trade was -at that time a much smaller one. Night work, when considered necessary, -is still done by men. - -A little laying-on of gold is done in connection with card mounting. The -process has been described already under bookbinding. - -The Christmas card industry (which may be considered as a variety of -show-card mounting) serves to exemplify one of the anomalies of the -Factory Act. These cards may be sorted, packed, etc., to any hours of -the night, because mere packing is not regarded as manufacture; but if a -"bow of ribbon" is to be affixed to each card, the process becomes -"preparation for sale," and the regulations of the Act apply.[3] - -[Footnote 3: Cf. pp. 76,77.] - -_Typefounding._--Typefounding is a small, ancient and conservative trade -into which women have only crept during the last few years. In London -there are only about eight typefoundries proper, and in these labour is -elaborately subdivided, every workman performing but one process. -Recently, however, some large printing houses have begun to cast their -own type, and in these the few men employed perform all the processes, -or, to use their own term, "do the work through," thus, curiously -enough, reverting to an earlier stage in the development of the trade. - -Women are employed in the large foundries, where they perform certain -subsidiary parts of the work. Each type when it comes from the machine -wherein it has been cast has a little superfluous bit of thin metal, -known as a "break" on its end or "foot." These bits are broken off by -girls, the "foot" of the type being pressed against a table and the -"break" snapped off. No great skill is required, but quickness only -comes with practice. The type is also "set-up"--_i.e._, put in rows in a -long stick or "galley"--by girls; here, again, nothing is needed beyond -a certain manual dexterity. Sometimes another stage, "rubbing," -intervenes between the "breaking" and the "setting-up." Rubbing is -merely the smoothing off on a flat grindstone of any roughness that may -be left by the machine round the "face" end of the type. In one case, in -London, one or two women were once employed in rubbing, but none appear -to be so engaged at present, and the newer appliances have made rubbing -unnecessary. "Dressing," the final process through which the type -passes, is said to be in some places performed by women; but no such -instances have been found in London in the course of this investigation. -The dresser receives the lines or sticks of type, polishes the sides, -measures their length and breadth with a delicate spanner, "nicks" the -foot of each type, and finally "picks over" the type--that is, scans the -row of "faces" through a magnifying glass, and rejects any on which the -letters are not absolutely truly placed. - -One large London firm, employing many girls, has a different process. -The types are cast in long lines and have to be divided, no breaking or -setting-up being required. As one of the workers said, "This is not a -trade; just any one can do it!" - -Girls began to do "breaking" and "setting-up" in London about thirteen -years ago. There were then but thirteen so employed. During the last few -years their numbers have increased, and it is estimated that those now -employed number from 100 to 150. One firm is known to employ fifty and -another forty. They have superseded boys, and were mainly introduced -because boys were difficult to get. The chances of rising being small -for boys, they were disinclined to enter the trade. The chances for -girls are _nil_, but this consideration does not weigh much with girls -belonging to the class that supplies workers to typefounding. The female -workers are all young, and at present no married women seem to be -employed, a fact which may perhaps be due to the comparatively recent -entrance of women into the trade. - -The occupation has a special feature of unhealthiness--the danger of -lead-poisoning; and the Factory Act, recognising this, prohibits women, -young persons or children, from taking a meal upon the premises where -typefounding is carried on. As in other lead industries, much depends on -the care and cleanliness of the worker. To eat with hands lead-blackened -by some hours of "breaking-off" is to run considerable risk of -lead-poisoning. It is suggested that girls, being more fastidious than -boys upon such points, may possibly suffer less frequently from the -dangers involved in the industry of typefounding. - - - - -CHAPTER II. - -_WOMEN IN THE TRADES._ - - -[Sidenote: Census figures.] - -Before 1841 the census occupation tables do not state the numbers -employed in the detailed trades, and even in that year we find either -that no separate return was made for some of the industries with which -this volume deals, or that no women were employed at all. Presumably, -therefore, previous statistics would not have shown that women were -employed in these industries to any appreciable extent. - -The following tables show the employment of women in England and Wales -and Scotland in the Printing and Kindred Trades according to the census -returns from 1841 to 1901. The figures must be used with caution, as -they include employers as well as employed (an error, however, which is -immaterial in the case of women workers). Subsidiary helpers are also -classified with those actually entitled to be regarded as members of the -trade, and the tables do not discriminate sufficiently between the -various subdivisions of occupations. These last two errors considerably -affect the figures relating to women. In the bookbinding section, for -instance,[4] the figures are altogether misleading, since by far the -greater number of women included as bookbinders are really paper and -book-folders, and are no more entitled to the name bookbinder than a -bricklayer's labourer is to that of bricklayer. - -[Footnote 4: Since 1881 in the Scottish returns.] - - ENGLAND AND WALES. - Males. Females. - - _Census 1841. (Employers and Employed included.)_ - Booksellers, bookbinders, etc. 8,873 2,035 - Printers 15,582 161 - Lithographers, etc. 667 12 - Paper manufacture 4,375 1,287 - Paper rulers 113 16 - Paper stainers 1,243 92 - Type founders 629 6 - Vellum binders 131 3 - - _Census 1851._ (_Employers and Employed included._) - Bookbinders 5,501 } 3,926 - Printers, etc 23,568 } - Lithographers (Great Britain) 1,984 6 - Paper manufacture 6,123 4,686 - Paper stainers 2,001 Not enumerated. - - _Census 1861._ (_Employers and Employed included._) - Bookbinders 6,556 5,364 - Printers 30,171 419 - Lithographers, etc. 3,588 -- - Paper manufacture 7,746 5,611 - Machine rulers 564 54 - Envelope makers 179 860 - Paper stainers 1,556 399 - Type founders 863 11 - - _Census 1871._ (_Employers and Employed included._) - Bookbinders 7,917 7,557 - Printers 44,073 741 - Lithographers, etc 3,785 Not enumerated. - Paper manufacture 10,142 6,630 - Envelope makers Not enumerated. 1,477 - Paper stainers 1,311 448 - - _Census 1881._ (_Employers and Employed included._) - Bookbinders 9,505 10,592 - Printers 59,088 2,202 - Lithographers, etc 6,009 147 - Paper manufacture 10,352 8,277 - Envelope makers 175 1,933 - Paper stainers 1,822 445 - Type cutters and founders 1,137 32 - - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | _Census | Employ- | Employ- | Working | Others | TOTAL. | - | 1891._ | ers. | ed. | on | not | | - | | | | Own | Speci- | | - | | | | Account. | fied. | | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | Book- | M. 615 | 10,038 | 355 | 479 | 11,487 | - | binders | F. 72 | 13,401 | 74 | 702 | 14,249 | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | Printers | M. 3,979 | 73,288 | 1,052 | 3,640 | 81,959 | - | | F. 158 | 4,133 | 32 | 204 | 4,527 | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | Litho- | M. 499 | 7,486 | 359 | 292 | 8,636 | - | graphers, | F. 9 | 309 | 7 | 24 | 349 | - | etc. | | | | | | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | Paper | M. 396 | 11,081 | 97 | 440 | 12,014 | - | manu- | F. 12 | 7,598 | 29 | 390 | 8,029 | - | facture | | | | | | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | Envelope | M. 9 | 260 | 6 | 14 | 289 | - | makers | F. 2 | 2,339 | 13 | 104 | 2,458 | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | Paper | M. 135 | 1,861 | 60 | 78 | 2,134 | - | stainers | F. 10 | 370 | 7 | 16 | 403 | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | Type | M. 35 | 1,204 | 23 | 52 | 1,314 | - | cutters | F. 1 | 49 | 0 | 5 | 55 | - | and | | | | | | - | founders | | | | | | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | _Census | Employ- | Employ- | Working | Others | TOTAL. | - | 1901._ | ers. | ed. | on | not | | - | | | | Own | Speci- | | - | | | | Account. | fied. | | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | Book- | M. 554 | 11,609 | 388 | 113 | 12,664 | - | binders | F. 46 | 18,933 | 82 | 162 | 19,223 | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | Printers | M. 4,805 | 89,306 | 1,603 | 774 | 96,488 | - | | F. 117 | 9,463 | 48 | 65 | 9,693 | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | Litho- | M. 496 | 9,648 | 445 | 93 | 10,682 | - | graphers, | F. 7 | 1,015 | 14 | 7 | 1,043 | - | etc. | | | | | | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | Paper | M. 337 | 14,920 | 47 | 55 | 15,359 | - | manu- | F. 11 | 8,815 | 7 | 18 | 8,851 | - | facture | | | | | | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | Envelope | M. 14 | 352 | 1 | 3 | 370 | - | makers | F. 6 | 3,113 | 1 | 23 | 3,143 | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | Paper | M. 45 | 1,928 | 34 | 25 | 2,032 | - | stainers | F. 2 | 280 | 1 | 4 | 287 | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | Type | M. 35 | 1,223 | 15 | 14 | 1,287 | - | cutters | F. 0 | 181 | 0 | 2 | 183 | - | and | | | | | | - | founders | | | | | | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | Sta- | M. 352 | 3,910 | 91 | 28 | 4,381 | - | tionary | F. 24 | 4,615 | 12 | 47 | 4,698 | - | manu- | | | | | | - | facture | | | | | | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - - SCOTLAND. - Males. Females. - - _Census 1841. (Employers and Employed included.)_ - Booksellers, etc. 2,164 283 - Printers 2,446 21 - Lithographers, etc. 234 1 - Paper manufacture 732 738 - Paper rulers 61 8 - Paper stainers 31 1 - Type founders 292 -- - - _Census 1851._ (_Employers and Employed included._) - Bookbinders 1,09 } 710 - Printers, etc. 3,526 } - Paper manufacture 1,265 2,159 - Paper stainers 49 Not enumerated. - - _Census 1861._ (_Employers and Employed included._) - Bookbinders 1,174 100 - Printers 4,400 70 - Lithographers, etc. 1,101 2 - Engravers 651 6 - Bookfolders 2 1,094 - Machine rulers 171 18 - Paper manufacture 1,648 2,773 - Envelope makers 5 309 - Paper stainers 77 -- - Type founders 434 -- - - _Census 1871._ (_Employers and Employed included._) - Bookbinders 1,293 174 - Printers 5,476 113 - Lithographers, etc. 1,125 36 - Print and map colourers 192 57 - Bookfolders -- 1,646 - Paper manufacture 2,770 3,504 - Envelope makers 7 412 - Paper rulers 214 100 - Paper stainers 110 50 - Type founders 496 -- - - _Census 1881._ (_Employers and Employed included._) - Bookbinders 1,433 2,587(a) - Printers 6,936 839 - Lithographers, etc. 1,269 153 - Map and print colourers and sellers 50 41 - Paper rulers 188 115 - Paper manufacture 3,363 4,612 - Envelope makers 32 580 - Paper stainers 34 97 - Type cutters and founders 471 71 - - (a) Bookfolders are included here. - - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | _Census | Employ- | Employ- | Working | Not | TOTAL. | - | 1891._ | ers. | ed. | on | Speci- | | - | | | | Own | fied. | | - | | | | Account. | | | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | Book- |M. 68 | 1,413 | 13 | 22 | 1,516 | - | binders |F. 3 | 2,865 | 3 | 18 | 2,889 | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | Printers |M. 322 | 8,367 | 69 | 84 | 8,842 | - | |F. 5 | 1,417 | 1 | 7 | 1,430 | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | Litho |M. 109 | 1,516 | 22 | 10 | 1,657 | - | graphers, |F. -- | 397 | 1 | 2 | 400 | - | etc. | | | | | | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | Paper |M. 10 | 315 | 1 | 13 | 339 | - | rulers |F. 1 | 192 | -- | 4 | 197 | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | Paper |M. 107 | 4,332 | 21 | 51 | 4,511 | - | manu- |F. 3 | 4,546 | 4 | 66 | 4,619 | - | facture | | | | | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | Envelope |M. 3 | 33 | 2 | -- | 38 | - | makers |F. -- | 698 | 1 | -- | 699 | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | Paper |M. 6 | 113 | 1 | -- | 120 | - | stainers |F. -- | 28 | -- | -- | 28 | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | Type |M. 9 | 496 | 3 | 4 | 512 | - | cutters |F. -- | 75 | -- | -- | 75 | - | and | | | | | | - | founders | | | | | | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | _Census | Employ- | Employ- | Working | Not | TOTAL. | - | 1901._ | ers. | ed. | on | Speci- | | - | | | | Own | fied. | | - | | | | Account. | | | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | Book | M. 67 | 1,422 | 16 | -- | 1,505 | - | binders | F. 4 | 3,522 | 4 | -- | 3,530 | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | Printers | M. 378 | 9,643 | 54 | 2 | 10,077 | - | | F. 7 | 2,852 | 1 | -- | 2,860 | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | Litho | M. 87 | 1,640 | 25 | -- | 1,752 | - | graphers, | F. 2 | 728 | 1 | -- | 731 | - | etc. | | | | | | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | Paper | M. 103 | 4,860 | 6 | 1 | 5,000 | - | manu- | F. 2 | 4,653 | -- | -- | 4,655 | - | facture | | | | | | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | Envelope | M. 4 | 53 | -- | -- | 57 | - | makers | F. 1 | 895 | -- | -- | 896 | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | Paper | M. 1 | 120 | 1 | -- | 122 | - | stainers | F. -- | 52 | 1 | -- | 53 | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | Type | M. 6 | 419 | 5 | -- | 430 | - | cutters | F. -- | 53 | -- | -- | 53 | - | and | | | | | | - | founders | | | | | | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - | Sta- | M. 22 | 95 | 1 | -- | 118 | - | tionery | F. 1 | 492 | 3 | -- | 496 | - | manu- | | | | | | - | facture | | | | | | - +-----------+----------+---------+----------+--------+--------+ - - -[Sidenote: Chief Factory Inspector's figures.] - -In 1896 the Home Office began to publish as an appendix to the Chief -Factory Inspector's Report a series of figures of occupation which were -exceedingly valuable for purposes of comparison, and in time would have -been the best existing statistical index of industrial movements. -Unfortunately these figures have not been published since 1899; but for -the years that they were issued, those relating to the printing trades -were as follows:-- - - FACTORY INSPECTOR'S REPORTS. - - _Paper, Printing, Stationery, Etc. (Includes all the industries - under this section.)_ - - Total Total Male Female - Male. Female. over 18. over 18. - - 1895 Factories 159,987 63,626 123,895 42,904 - Workshops 3,355 4,692 2,224 3,073 - ------- ------ ------- ------ - Total 163,342 68,318 126,119 45,977 - - 1896 Factories 169,500 68,769 131,166 45,632 - Workshops 4,508 5,919 3,152 3,898 - ------- ------ ------- ------ - Total 174,008 74,688 134,318 49,530 - - 1897 Factories 171,151 69,898 134,221 45,479 - Workshops 4,458 6,305 3,192 4,192 - ------- ------ ------- ------ - Total 175,609 76,203 137,413 49,671 - - 1898-99(a) 173,964 72,833 137,504 46,681 - - - SOME DETAILS OF ABOVE. - Total Total Male Female - Male. Female. over 18. over 18. - _Paper-making._ - 1895 Factories 21,263 11,008 18,271 8,935 - 1896 " 22,091 11,744 18,777 9,403 - 1897 " 22,174 11,309 19,086 9,138 - 1898-99(a) " 22,340 11,506 19,158 9,197 - - _Bookbinding._ - 1895 Factories 11,791 16,098 9,304 10,802 - 1896 " 13,300 17,159 10,580 11,498 - 1897 " 14,661 20,877 11,705 13,985 - 1898-99(a) " 14,893 22,555 12,046 14,653 - - _Letter-press Printing._ - 1895 Factories 104,162 19,974 80,232 12,699 - 1896 " 104,860 20,634 80,719 12,732 - 1897 " 100,629 14,473 79,124 8,725 - 1898-99(a) " 102,800 13,348 81,598 8,283 - - _Lithography, Engraving and Photography._ - 1895 Factories 12,789 4,516 9,024 2,735 - Workshops 2,226 1,425 1,494 943 - 1896 Factories 14,854 5,252 10,572 3,076 - Workshops 3,116 2,146 2,224 1,437 - 1897 Factories 17,960 6,278 12,867 3,451 - Workshops 2,794 2,115 2,076 1,477 - 1898-99(a) Factories 17,737 6,457 12,727 3,522 - - _Machine Ruling._ - 1895 Factories 664 482 408 170 - Workshops 233 134 97 45 - 1896 Factories 981 599 594 197 - Workshops 269 168 135 59 - 1897 Factories 1,764 1,414 1,115 538 - Workshops 322 166 163 57 - 1898-99(a) Factories 2,062 1,571 1,328 534 - - _Paper Staining, Colouring and Enamelling._ - 1895 Factories 4,254 983 2,916 540 - Workshops 102 28 74 16 - 1896 Factories 4,468 1,065 3,114 577 - Workshops 138 70 111 42 - 1897 Factories 4,795 1,368 3,395 784 - Workshops 40 66 33 38 - 1898-99(a) Factories 4,874 1,320 3,529 746 - - _Envelope Making._ - 1897 Factories 1,203 4,156 8 96 2,865 - Workshops 37 292 25 191 - 1898-99(a) Factories 1,405 4,996 1,030 3,313 - - (a) Factories only. - -These figures must not be compared with the census returns as they -relate only to those establishments making reports to the Factory -Inspectors under the Factory and Workshop Law. - - - - -CHAPTER III. - -_WOMEN'S WORK AND ORGANISATION._ - - -[Sidenote: Women as Compositors. Historical.] - -The subdivision of labour which has broken up the original printing -"profession" into a score or so of different trades, each minutely -subdivided in turn, has been the chief cause of the employment of women -in this industry in modern times, although it appears that nuns were -engaged as compositors at the Ripoli Monastery Press in Florence towards -the end of the fifteenth century,[5] within half a century of the -introduction of printing. Only very exceptional women could obtain a -footing in a profession which embraced typefounding, ink-making, -press-carpentry, composing, folding, and bookbinding. The United States, -where, in so many respects, women have stepped in advance of European -conditions, boasts of Jenny Hirsch, who carried on a printer's business -in Boston about 1690, and during the next two centuries women printers -were common in the thirteen States. It was a woman, Mary Catherine -Goddard, who printed the first issue of the "Declaration of -Independence." The years of the French Revolution also seem to be marked -by the number of women engaged in the printing trade, whether owing to -the general emancipating impulses of the time or to the increased demand -for compositors, is not quite clear. The amiable and eccentric Thomas -Beddoes, moved by the interest he took in social affairs, and inspired -by the emancipatory movement of his time, had been struck with the -opening which the printing trades seemed to offer to women, and gave his -"Alexander's Expedition"[6] to a woman of his village, Madely, to set -up. "I know not," he wrote in the Advertisement to the book, "if women -be commonly engaged in printing, but their nimble and delicate fingers -seem extremely well adapted to the office of compositor, and it will be -readily granted that employment for females is amongst the greatest -_desiderata_ of society." In England, however, the labour of women -outside their homes continued to be extremely limited, and the printing -trades were confined to men. During the eighteenth century women seem to -have been employed in folding and sewing book and news sheets, but they -did not come into the trade in any considerable numbers until the -nineteenth century was half spent. This was very largely owing to the -heavy nature of the work and the long apprenticeship necessary to master -the varied details of the craft. The Provincial Typographical Society's -first constitution, issued in 1849, shows that at so recent a date the -typographical apprentice had to learn "printing and bookbinding" or -"printing and stationery."[7] The printing press used in 1800 was -practically the same as that used by Gutenberg in 1450. - -[Footnote 5: _Printers' Register_, August 6th, 1878, quoting _Journal -fuer Buchdruckerkunst_.] - -[Footnote 6: Published in 1792.] - -[Footnote 7: Typographical Association: "Fifty Years' Record," p. 4.] - -The enormous advance in the printing trades owing to the abolition of -the stamp duties and the paper tax, together with the spread of -education and improvement in the facilities for publishing, with their -resulting large demand for printed matter, speedily revolutionised these -trades and led to the introduction of the great machines. Pressmen -became differentiated from compositors, "minders" from layers-on or -takers-off, jobbers from book-hands, folders from makers-up; whilst -bookbinding finally became a separate trade altogether. Some of these -separate processes, needing but little skill and requiring no -apprenticeship, involving no heavy labour and no responsibility, offered -openings for women. - - -[Sidenote: Conflict between men and women.] - -One of the earliest references to women made by the Typographical -Association occurs in 1860, when the Executive of the Union mentioned -them in its half-yearly report. Printing houses were then closed to -Union members on account of the employment of women. The Typographical -Society's _Monthly Circular_ for August, 1865, for instance, states that -a Bacup newspaper office was closed to members of the Typographical -Union, owing to the employment of female labour. The exact form of -employment is not given. Again, in the report for June, 1866, the -Executive of the Union refers to having trouble with an employer who -tried to employ female labour, but who had failed "to get suitable -applicants of the gentle sex." In 1886 it was agreed that women should -be admitted to both the Typographical Association and the London Society -of Compositors on the same terms as men, but only one woman has availed -herself of this resolution.[8] - -[Footnote 8: She joined the London Society of Compositors on August -30th, 1892, but she has now ceased to be a member.] - -[Sidenote: Printing Trades and the Women's Movement.] - -At this point, the movement for the emancipation of women contributes an -interesting chapter to the history of these trades. - -The printing trades were regarded by a few of the leading spirits in the -agitation for "Women's Rights" as being well adapted to women's skill -and _physique_, and in 1860 Miss Emily Faithfull not only started the -Victoria Press, in which women alone were to be employed, but directed -the attention of women generally to the openings afforded them by this -group of trades. "The compositor trades," the _Englishwoman's Journal_ -(June, 1860) said, "should be in the hands of women only." Miss -Faithfull's experiments produced some considerable flutter amongst men. -At first, the men looked down upon them with the contempt of traditional -superiority; women compositors were "to die off like birds in winter" -(_cf._ _Printers' Journal_, August 5th, 1867, where a correspondent -stated that "the day is far distant when such labour can hope to -supersede our own"); but some trepidation was speedily caused when it -was found that women's shops were undercutting men's, and an alarmist -article in the _Printers' Register_ of February 6th, 1869, states that -"the exertions of the advocates of female labour in the printing -business have resulted in the establishment of a printing office where -printing can be done on lower terms than those usually charged." That -year Miss Faithfull was engaged in her libel action against Mr. Grant -for calling her an atheist, and the _Publishers' Circular_ furiously -attacked her work. By-and-by, however, the controversy died down. Miss -Faithfull's several attempts[9] to establish permanently a printing -establishment bore fruit in the still existing Women's Printing Society, -started in 1874. - -[Footnote 9: 1860, 1869, 1873; in 1869 another Women's Printing Office -was started as a means of finding employment for educated ladies: -_Printers' Register_, January 6th, 1869.] - -As an industrial factor, however, the "Women's Movement" has been -altogether secondary, and women have been induced to enter the trades -under review mainly because the subdivision of labour and the -application of mechanical power had created simple processes; because -they were willing to accept low wages; and because, unlike the men, who -were members of Unions, they made no efforts to interfere in the -management of the works. - - -[Sidenote: The London experience.] - -Partly owing to the nature of the work done and partly to the power of -the London Society of Compositors, no systematic attempt seems to have -been made generally to introduce women compositors into London houses -since 1878, and it is of some significance to note that most of the -London firms which employed women compositors between 1873 and 1878--the -period when the attempt was most actively made--have since disappeared, -owing to bad equipment and the inferior character of their trade. - -But the opposition to women lingered on after the attempts to introduce -them more generally had ceased. In 1879 the London Society of -Compositors decided that none of their members should finish work set up -by women, and the firm of Messrs. Smyth and Yerworth was struck by the -men's Union.[10] - -[Footnote 10: It is interesting to note that in these days also the -women only set up the type and the men "made it up."] - -Commenting on this trouble, the _Standard_, in a leading article -(October 8th, 1879) cynically remarked: "What women ask is not to be -allowed to compete with men, which the more sensible among them know to -be impossible, but to be allowed the chance of a small livelihood by -doing the work of men a little cheaper than men care to do it. This is -underselling of course, but it is difficult to see why, when all is said -and done, men should object to be undersold by their own wives and -daughters." - -"_Capital and Labour_," as quoted by the _Victoria Magazine_,[11] put -the case for the women thus: "This work is much more remunerative, and -far less toilsome and irritating than the occupation of the average -nursery governess, and we anticipate that, with proper arrangements, -there will be a large addition to the number of women compositors. The -reasons assigned against their employment in this capacity seem to be -the outcome of pedantry, prejudice, and jealousy; and no trade rules can -be permitted to interpose obstacles to the attainment of such a -desirable object as furnishing occupation to a number of females who are -qualified by deftness of hand and mental capacity to earn in it an -honourable livelihood. What would one of the men, who chose to leave -Messrs. Smyth and Yerworth at the behest of the Union, say, if having a -daughter of his own to assist him in his occupations, she were to be -compelled to sit idle while he was made to employ a male assistant at -high wages? Yet these men, though intelligent, capable, and industrious, -deliberately throw themselves out of work, and become for the time -paupers of their Union, because it will not permit them to assist in -perfecting any processes which have been begun by women. This is the way -in which men run their heads against a brick wall." - -[Footnote 11: November, 1879.] - -In December, 1882, the _Printers' Register_ published the following -notice: "In a West End office, objection having been made to the -introduction of female labour, and an undue number of turnovers, a -strike appeared imminent, but the Committee of the Society succeeded in -settling the dispute to the satisfaction of both sides." - -The question does not appear to have troubled the London Society again, -but in 1886, a Conference of the Typographical Societies of the United -Kingdom and Continent, held in London (October 21st-23rd), resolved: - -"That while strongly of opinion that women are not physically capable of -performing the duties of a compositor, this Conference recommends their -admission to membership of the various Typographical Unions, upon the -same conditions as journeymen, provided always the females are paid -strictly in accordance with scale." - -This resolution was subsequently adopted by the London Society of -Compositors as noted above, and is at present in force, with the result -that it is practically impossible for any woman to join the Society.[12] - -[Footnote 12: A curious point in connection with the work being sent out -of London is that except in the case of Edinburgh the greater cheapness -of the work outside London is not due so much to cheaper labour as to -lower rent, etc. Several firms out in the country in England where there -is no question of a Union preventing them, have tried to introduce -women, but with very little success. This is put down as lack of -intelligence in the women. No doubt a girl who has had only a village -elementary education is not the best material out of which to make a -good compositor, and the wages offered are not high enough to tempt town -bred girls to undergo the tedium of country life.] - - -[Sidenote: Provincial experience.] - -The Scottish compositors are organised in the Scottish Typographical -Association, which has no women members. Women, particularly in -Edinburgh and Perth, and to a smaller extent in Aberdeen, have been -employed to defeat the ends of the Society.[13] - -[Footnote 13: See p. 45.] - -The few attempts made to organise women in the printing trades have -failed. Women have been introduced into these trades at times of trouble -with the men's Unions, and are consequently not likely to form -organisations of their own. Their work has been so precarious and so -largely confined to the mechanical and lower grades of labour,[14] that -they have had no incentive to aspire to high standards of wages or other -industrial conditions. The women employed in the actual printing -processes do not seem to have regarded their work as their permanent -means of livelihood to the same extent as folders, for instance, have -done, and have been less interested, consequently, in improving their -trade conditions; and, finally, the men's Societies, for various -reasons, some well-founded and some groundless, have regarded women -printers as a form of cheap labour--"undercutters"--and have looked upon -them as dangerous intruders. - -[Footnote 14: _Cf._ pp. 64-68.] - -When, however, we turn to the organisation of women in the trades -dealing with printed matter, especially folding and bookbinding, we find -much greater collective activity and closer co-operation both amongst -themselves and with the men. Their Trade Union record is still but -scanty, nevertheless, the frequent and persistent efforts of women to -act jointly, without establishing a permanent organisation, form one of -the characteristic features of the trade. This apparently is almost -entirely due to the fact that women's labour in bookbinding, _e.g._, in -folding, was accepted by the men, and that in all workshop matters women -were the fellow-workers and not the rivals of the men. This distinction -between printing and bookbinding is most marked and requires to be -emphasised. - - -[Sidenote: Organisation amongst bookbinders.] - -The bookbinders' organisation sprang up in 1779-80, as most -organisations then did, from friendly meetings in certain houses of -call. It was at first known as "The Friends." In 1786, the working day -was from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m., with certain breaks for meals, giving, -perhaps, an actual working time of twelve and a half hours per day. But -in March of that year, a Conference of the sections decided to ask for a -reduction of an hour per day, and their petition was followed by the -discharge of workmen.[15] The employers then went further, and in May, -1786, indicted twenty-four of the ringleaders for conspiracy. In a -manifesto to the public, the men complained that their wages were only -from 15_s._ to 18_s._ per week, rising in a few cases to a guinea, and -proceeded to charge the employers with having "with vindictive rage -forced into the sweet retreats of domestic felicity" wives who were -employed in the trade. This action on the part of the employers was not -prompted, however, by an objection to women, for, according to the -testimony of Mr. W. M. Hall,[16] one of the men indicted, an attempt was -made to supply the book market as a temporary makeshift during the -dispute with the imperfect work of women. He says, "I cannot remember -the exact time of striking the women. This I remember, it was on account -of them and the apprentices doing books in boards, by the booksellers -consenting to take them so for a time, I was appointed to strike Black -Jock's[17] women. I went at one o'clock to see Maria, his forewoman, who -used to dine in the shop, she being single. I told her she must inform -the other women of the injury they were doing us by continuing at work. -If they were willing to serve our interest and leave their work, they -should receive their wages for doing nothing. If we gained our cause, -they should be sure of employ, and the advantage of the hour also. -Coming downstairs, I met Mr. McKinley. - -"'Well, Mr. Hall, are you coming to work again directly?' - -"'Sir, if you will grant the hour----' - -"'Come in here,' he says, going into his dining-room, and setting down a -large square bottle of Hollands to give me a glass, taking one himself -and pouring out another. Pat, pat, pat! came our ladies downstairs. -'What is all this about?' I was glad to make my escape. The six or seven -women were all subpoenaed against me on the trial." - -[Footnote 15: In the Report of the Committee on Trades' Societies -published in 1860 by the National Association for the Promotion of -Social Science, Mr. Dunning tells the history of the London Consolidated -Society of Bookbinders. pp. 93-104.] - -[Footnote 16: _The Finishers' Friendly Circular_, May, 1846, No. 4.] - -[Footnote 17: An employer named John McKinley.] - -The narrative of this famous struggle--one of the most important in the -history of Trade Unionism, involving persecution, imprisonment, and -death--contains no further records of the part played by women in it, -but Mr. Hall's reminiscence indicates how they behaved. The men were -successful, and in 1794, the working day was again reduced, so that it -lasted from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Presumably the women shared in these -advantages, and also in that of an afternoon tea half-hour, which was -theirs exclusively until 1806, when the men, during a period of active -trade and overtime, demanded the same privilege. James Watson, in his -"Recollections,"[18] hints that the kind indulgence of the women to the -men, permitted in some shops, made the afternoon tea half-hour a general -demand. "Their kind friends, the ladies, while preparing for their own -comfort, neglected not those of their less fortunate companions, but -contrived by making their tea to accommodate them as much as possible, -and the men, if not immediately under the eye of their employer, would -seat themselves on the end of their presses for ten minutes or so and -thus partake of it." A strike to secure the half-hour was unsuccessful, -but the men gradually won their point. Mr. Watson tells how, after the -strike, it happened that he was being engaged by one of the opposing -masters. The master, "being pressed upon the point, damned the -half-hour, but said I might come in and do as I liked. I accordingly -accepted the situation, and at tea-time, when I prepared to sit down, I -expected to be supported by the men of the shop who were well aware of -my intention, but not one of them would move. I was thus placed in an -awkward position, and could only turn to my good friends, the ladies, to -countenance my proceedings, who kindly invited me to their tea table." -In about a month, Mr. Watson informs us, every man in the place was -following his example.[19] - -[Footnote 18: _British Bookmaker_, June, 1892.] - -[Footnote 19: The friendly conduct of "the ladies" was long remembered -in the trade, and was celebrated as late as 1847 in a song:-- - - "What we enjoy we dearly bought, - And nobly they the battle fought, - Who--though the ladies' aid they sought, - Would--right or wrong--have tea. - _Chorus_ - "Then let us all our voices raise, - And loudly chant to-night in praise - Of those who gained in byegone days, - The time we have for tea."] - - -[Sidenote: The Bible Society controversy.] - -The struggle which the bookbinders fought with most pertinacity -was, however, that which they waged against the Religious -Societies--particularly the British and Foreign Bible Society--when -attempting to cheapen the production of religious literature by means -which, the bookbinders contended, involved unreasonably low rates of -pay. In this struggle women played a prominent part. - -It broke out as early as 1825 when the Society for Promoting Christian -Knowledge reduced its prices and the master bookbinders working for it -reduced wages. The strike which followed collapsed for want of funds. In -1833 the contest was resumed with the British and Foreign Bible Society. -That year the five houses then employed by the Society reduced wages, -and it appears that when the dispute was about to be settled by both -sides accepting a compromise, a representative of the Bible Society -instructed the masters to hold out. The men appealed to the Society, but -were told that it could not intervene. No definite settlement was ever -arrived at. - -The first petition which the men addressed to the Society in 1833 made -special reference to the condition of the women workers. "Your -memorialists beg leave to state," they wrote, "that there are a number -of females (about 200) employed in binding the books of your Society, -the whole of whose wages have been reduced in consequence of the late -alteration in the prices of these books. Their wages were before very -low. Your memorialists respectfully submit that the making it more -difficult, and in some cases impossible, for females to earn an honest -subsistence, by their labour, is in the same proportion to give potency -to the seducers of female virtue." Reply and counter-reply were made, -and the Society was heartily attacked by the Union with texts from -Scripture and reflections on applied Christianity. In the defence which -the Society issued in 1834, it is stated that its binders informed it -that "competent and industrious men in our employ earn on an average -6_d._ an hour or 30_s._ weekly when in constant work; and women in the -same description from 8_s._ to 10_s._ and upwards." - -Mr. Dunning, the Union Secretary, replied that he could prove that the -scale given was an "entire falsehood," and published a second "Address -to the Religious Public," in which the wages paid by the principal firm -were given, the average for thirteen men working out at a small fraction -over a guinea per week, and of twenty-four women at 5_s._ 11_d._ per -week. In 1843 the dispute was allowed to end, when the five firms -promised to pay the women on timework at rates between 7_s._ 6_d._ and -15_s._ per week, and to work them only ten hours per day. - -In 1845 the Society decided to give all its binding to one firm, the -proprietress of which was Miss Watkins, and four years later the most -famous dispute of the series broke out. The "controversy," as it is -called in the bookbinders' records, opened by an appeal addressed to the -Society on August 17th, 1849, by the journeymen bookbinders of London -and Westminster, in which it was alleged that Miss Watkins had returned -to piecework, and that the wages she was paying to women averaged only -5_s._ 6_d._ to 6_s._ per week for a longer day than ten hours. Learners -were taken on and were discharged so soon as they were entitled to -increases in wages, and a rule was said to be in operation by which, so -soon as a woman worker was qualified to be paid more than 7_s._ a week, -she was discharged. "Exorbitant" fines were also imposed. "Females," -remarks the appeal, "often have not the power to plead their own cause -in such matters, and being helpless in many respects where their wages -are concerned, they are trodden down until a state of things such as -described in the 'Song of the Shirt' appals the mind with the enormity -of their injuries, their suffering, and their moral condition." The -appeal contained the following table, showing the difference in wages -paid to women working for the Bible Society and those working for the -Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge. - - Bible Society for Promoting - Society. Christian Knowledge. - - _s._ _d._ _s._ _d._ - 5 0 Pearl Bibles, per 100 vols. 7 6 - 5 11/2 Ruby " " 7 0 - 6 101/2 Large Pica Bibles, " 8 4 - 6 8 Small " " " 8 4 - -One of the grievances specially mentioned in this appeal was that women -were not allowed hot water, except between 4 and 4.30 p.m., and were -then charged 1_d._ per week for it. - -Immediately (August 22nd, 1849) after the issue of the "Appeal" the -women employed by Miss Watkins were asked to sign a statement that they -were perfectly satisfied with their pay and conditions. Several signed, -not knowing the purport of the paper; others refused. On the advice of -the men's Union a counter-statement was drawn up and signed, and sent in -to the Bible Society, and on finding that the forewoman who had taken -their part, together with the active promoters of the counter-petition, -were to be discharged, the women left work, and demanded:-- - -1. That prices should be raised to the standard paid by the Society for -Promoting Christian Knowledge. - -2. That fines should be abolished. - -3. That they should have access to cold water as well as hot for tea. - -4. That after the learners then employed had completed their -apprenticeship, not more than twenty learners should be employed at one -time. - -About a hundred women had come out, and the men's Union organised a -relief fund.[20] - -[Footnote 20: It may not be amiss to copy a few sentences from Mr. -Dunning's obituary notice in the _Bookbinder's Trade Circular_, January -21st, 1862, of the women's leader, Mary E. Zugg, an early and humble -worker in women's organisations. "Nothing could exceed the temper, -moderation and firmness she displayed. Possessing great energy, strong -sense and great acuteness of perception, detecting at a glance pretence -from reality, she was not what was termed a strong-minded woman, -commanding great respect and but little affection, for her goodness of -heart and great regard for the feelings and welfare of others endeared -her to all." She died at the age of thirty-three of consumption on -November 13th, 1861, and is buried in Bow Cemetery.] - -Miss Watkins replied, denying every charge made by Mr. Dunning, and -giving 10_s._ as the earnings for a week of sixty hours. The Union -replied by asking that a deputation should be allowed to inspect the -wages books of the firm. It claimed to be in possession of the rates of -wages paid to ninety-seven folders and sewers for three weeks in August, -and gave the average as 6_s._ 21/2_d._ for a sixty-hours' week, and in -other respects it supported its original charges. - -The _Times_ of January 25th, 1850, contains in its advertisement columns -the report of a Committee of the Southwark Auxiliary of the Bible -Society, which examined Miss Watkins' books, and it supported her -statements. The women earned from 9_s._ to 14_s._ per week. But Mr. -Dunning was not silenced, and on March 25th he issued a long pamphlet, -the last of the "controversy" for the time. In it, it is stated that the -committee of investigation had been deceived so as to mistake wages paid -for ten days as though they were paid for a week, and a table of wages -for three weeks in September and October, for the week ending July 28th, -1849, and for the four weeks preceding the strike, was printed.[21] The -wage average of the periods was from 5_s._ 91/2_d._ to 6_s._ 41/2_d._ per -week of sixty hours. - -[Footnote 21: See p. 184.] - -The agitation failed. The women either found work elsewhere, or went -back under the conditions against which they had struck. Mr. Dunning -could only say that the dispute had arrested a downward tendency in -prices and wages. - -The dispute cost the men's Union L146. This was spent mostly in printing -and postage, but it included grants amounting to L22 given to the -separate Women's Committee, which had collected an additional fund of -L650 to aid the strikers. - -The finishers had strongly opposed the support which the Union had given -to the women, and their section, to the number of 150, was finally -expelled from the Union. - -But whilst this unusual harmony existed between the men's Union and the -women workers, no serious attempt had been made to organise the women -permanently, either as members of the men's Society, or in one of their -own. In 1833, in an address to the London journeymen bookbinders, a Mr. -Benjamin Teasdale, of Manchester, advised the formation of a women's -Society, but nothing appears to have been done. In 1855 they were -allowed to borrow books from the men's library on the payment of 6_d._ a -quarter. It is impossible to ascertain how far the agreement between -men and masters for a nine hours' day in 1872 really affected women, as -a considerable proportion of them had been working only for nine hours -before the agreement was made. - - -[Sidenote: The Society of Women employed in Bookbinding.] - -Not till 1874 was there a determined and successful attempt made to -organise women bookbinders into a Union. On September 12th of that year -"the first Society formed for women," the Society of Women employed in -Bookbinding, was formed by Mrs. Emma Paterson, the pioneer of women's -Trade Unions in England,[22] and in the following year Mrs. Paterson was -sent as its delegate to the Trade Union Congress meeting in Glasgow. -This was the first time that a woman had appeared at these parliaments -of Trade Unionism, which had been held annually since 1868. From the -commencement the relations between the men's and the women's Societies -were most cordial, and at the first annual meeting of the latter Mrs. -Paterson read a letter she had received "some years ago" from Mr. -Dunning, in which he advised "the formation of Trades' Societies for -women." The cordial greetings extended to the new Society by its brother -organisation did not meet it everywhere. A congratulatory resolution was -moved at the London Trades' Council, and though it received the support -of the veteran George Odger, it was met with considerable opposition. -Women's labour was cheap labour, and many of the delegates to the -Trades' Council could not get beyond that fact. - -[Footnote 22: Mrs. Paterson was born in London on April 5th, 1848, and -was the daughter of H. Smith, headmaster of St. George's, Hanover -Square, parish school. In 1867 she became assistant secretary to the -Club and Institute Union, and in 1872 secretary to the Women's Suffrage -Association. Next year she married Thomas Paterson, a cabinet-maker and -wood carver. With him she visited America where she saw the Female -Umbrella Makers' Union at work. On her return to London in 1874 she -formed the Women's Protective and Provident League, the membership of -which was mainly middle class, though its object was to promote Trade -Unionism amongst women. She died December 1st, 1886, and was buried in -the Paddington Cemetery. See art. _Dictionary of National Biography_.] - -It is unnecessary to detail the somewhat uneventful career of the Union. -Mrs. Paterson, at the end of eighteen months, was succeeded by Miss -Eleanor Whyte, who still occupies the position of secretary.[23] The -membership began at 66 and reached 275--of whom only 200 were financial -members--at the end of the first year. From that time till now the -membership has been exceedingly variable, and no full and reliable -records seem to exist. But from the disconnected information which is at -our disposal, it would appear that the two most successful years of the -Society were 1876 (when 63 new members were enrolled), and 1890 (when 67 -were enrolled). In 1870 the membership was given at 210; in 1884 at 200; -in 1891 at 240; in 1901 at 270; the period of depression from 1883 to -1889 seems to have tried the Society very severely. - -[Footnote 23: December, 1903.] - -The objects of this Society are stated to be: "To maintain and protect -the rights and privileges of the trade and to grant relief to such -members as may be out of work, or afflicted with illness." The -subscription is 2_d._ per week, and an entrance fee of 1_s._ is imposed. - -It can hardly be expected that a Society whose membership has probably -never exceeded 270, could have much fighting force. But agitation has -never been the policy of the Society. It has refused to join with the -men in making demands upon the employers; its representatives at Trade -Union Congresses and elsewhere have steadily resisted legal restrictions -upon labour; it has not shown itself anxious to seize what the men -regarded as opportunities to make itself felt.[24] - -[Footnote 24: In 1891 the women's Society refused to support the men's -in agitating for an eight-hours' day. In 1875 Mrs. Paterson said at the -Trade Union Congress that "the more they pressed for additional -legislation the greater obstacles they threw in the way of working -women. She should rather say let them suffer a little longer the evils -of overwork and long hours." The Union's representatives, however, have -always pressed for women factory inspectors, and on this matter Mrs. -Paterson was for a good many years a voice crying in the wilderness.] - -Perhaps the Union has been too willing to make requests to good -employers for better conditions, and too timorous in helping to level up -the general conditions of the trade. Employers have not been hostile. -Mr. B. Collins, the publisher, for instance, presided over the annual -meeting for 1891, and Mr. Longmans and other publishers have done the -same in other years. "I know an employer," says a writer in the _British -Bookmaker_ of September, 1891, "who will give L100 to see a good women's -Union established. Why? Because if it could be done, its effect upon -other employers would remove the gross inequalities of prices that at -present exist to his detriment." But this Union has never reached that -point of strength when it could bring pressure to bear on the trade for -the mutual advantage of the good employer and the woman worker. - -As a consequence, the good relations between the men and the women in -the trade have not always been maintained, and there was considerable -ill-feeling between the two sections during the eight hours' agitation -from 1891 to 1894.[25] - -[Footnote 25: It should be noted, however, that the sentiment amongst -the women as a whole was friendly during the eight hours' agitation, -although the Society was taking no part in it officially. A writer in -the _British Bookmaker_ for December, 1891, tells how all the women in -the lacing department of Messrs. Waterlow's (Hill Street) struck on a -certain job, and how "at another place as I stood with the pickets -outside, about five o'clock one cold afternoon, I saw something -descending from an upper storey and found it was a quart of hot tea for -the benumbed men on duty below, lowered out by a string from the women's -shop."] - -At the present moment this Society is regarded by both men and women -mainly as a benefit club. In this respect it has been most successful -and has paid with excellent regularity. - - -[Sidenote: The Book-folders' Union.] - -An attempt was made in 1892 to start another Union for women engaged in -folding in printing houses. The sponsor of the new Society was the -Printers' and Stationers' Warehousemen's and Cutters' Union. It is a -significant fact, and one which throws a great deal of light upon the -very little which one section of workers knows even of those working at -their elbow, that the organisers of the new Union were quite unaware of -the existence of the Women Bookbinders' Society. The new Society, which -called itself the Book-folders' Union, was started during the flood of -Trade Union sentiment which followed the London Dock Strike in 1889, and -its membership grew rapidly. Within five months of its formation it is -said to have numbered 500,[26] and later on the figure of 700 was -quoted. A popular employer, Mrs. Bond, had been elected secretary, and -an assistant was appointed at a wage of 18_s._ per week. This new Union -was determined to be as active as the older one had been inactive. It -demanded a minimum wage of 15_s._, time-and-a-quarter pay for overtime, -and "no apprentices." It also demanded exemption from the nightwork -prohibition clauses of the Factory and Workshop Acts. But the Union was -doomed to an early and ignominious end. During the absence of the -secretary the finances became hopelessly involved, and a deficit in cash -decided the members to close the whole matter.[27] - -[Footnote 26: _Women's Trade Union Journal_, January 15th, 1893.] - -[Footnote 27: The fact that all definite recollection of this Union is -passing away, and that for the above information we have had to rely -upon the memory of two ladies who were indirectly interested in it, -throws some light upon the carelessness in industrial matters of the -woman worker. No minutes nor other documents can be found. "The person -who had them, married," and that was taken to have settled the matter.] - -The Society would not even formally amalgamate with the older Society, -partly owing to differences in method, and partly to its disgust with -its failure and disgrace. - - -[Sidenote: National Book-folders and Kindred Trades Union.] - -One more attempt to found a fighting women's Union was made in 1894 by -the Printing and Kindred Trades Federation. All women employed in the -Printing and Kindred Trades were to be eligible for membership. The -attempt arose out of two disputes. In one, the women employed by a -certain firm had successfully struck for an increase of wages and -against certain conditions of labour; in the second, women had come out -to show their sympathy with some locked-out men.[28] In recognition of -the women's "courage and loyalty" the men promoted the Union. In a month -or two its membership stood at 100, and by March 1896, 350 members had -joined. The membership at the end of 1902 was 150, mostly book-folders, -and the following points are prominent in the Union's demands:-- - - 1. To obtain and maintain the recognised minimum scale of pay for - every member; - - 2. To reduce hours of labour; - - 3. To regulate the relations between employers and employed. - -[Footnote 28: It is interesting to note that whilst the cheapness of -women's work as compositors in Edinburgh seems to have attracted a -certain class of work from London, the men's success in keeping up wages -in the London bookbinding trade does not seem to have driven bookbinding -into the provinces. There are one or two bookbinding firms in the -provinces and in Scotland which employ girls, but mainly upon diary and -account book work, the book trade being practically untouched. _Cf._ -f.n., 28-29.] - -It had no sick benefits, but paid L5 at death, and offered strike pay on -condition that the strike was sanctioned by the committee. The reserve -fund in 1902 was under L100. - -In 1903 the Society approached the Printers' and Stationers' -Warehousemen praying to be recognised as a branch of that Union. A -ballot of the men was taken, when 700 voted that the request be granted -and 334 that it be not. The Women's Society has therefore ceased to -exist as a separate organisation. - - -[Sidenote: The Manchester Society.] - -A Manchester Society,[29] "The Manchester and Salford Society of Women -Employed in the Bookbinding and Printing Trades" has gained some -definite success in increasing wages during its six years of existence. -In its third Annual Report, 1899, it is stated that in May, 1898, the -Society began an attempt to increase wages to a 10_s._ minimum after a -three or four years' apprenticeship, that as a consequence the wages of -forty girls were raised in September from 9_s._ to 10_s._, and that -subsequently thirty others received the shilling advance. In its next -Report, 1899-1900, it states, without giving the number of girls -affected, that "they now all receive 11_s._ and 12_s._ per week, where, -prior to joining the Union, they earned 9_s._ and 10_s._ per week." Next -year the membership was 165, and the last issued Report, 1902, whilst -stating that "a slight increase of membership" had taken place during -the year, gives no figures. "Losses through marriage and other -circumstances," the 1901 Report says, "have been great," and the Society -is kept going mainly by the devotion of one or two persons.[30] - -[Footnote 29: The existing Society is the second attempt to organise the -women in these trades in Manchester.] - -[Footnote 30: The last balance sheet gives at a glance the position of -this Society, and indicates its activities:-- - - BALANCE SHEET FOR THE YEAR ENDING APRIL 30th, 1902.-- - - _Income._ L _s._ _d._ - To balance from April - 30th, 1901 114 0 41/2 - " contributions 72 3 3 - " Bank interest 2 9 11 - ---------------- - L188 13 61/2 - ================ - - _Expenditure._ L _s._ _d._ - By sick pay 29 10 0 - " out-of-work pay 17 1 8 - " printing 2 15 9 - " postages 0 8 6 - " secretary's salary 5 12 6 - " collector's commission 1 9 9 - " grant to Women's - Trades Council 2 0 0 - " grant to treasurer 0 5 0 - " auditing accounts 0 4 0 - " deputation expenses 0 2 0 - ---- -- ---- - 59 9 2 - " cash in Bank on - April 30th, 1902 125 2 5 - " cash in hands of - secretary 4 1 111/2 - ---------------- - L188 13 61/2] - ================ - -Attempts have been made to organise women elsewhere as, for instance, in -Edinburgh, where a Union of women compositors existed for a year; also -in Birmingham, where ten years ago a Union was formed specially to -include the machine-rulers who had been introduced about ten years -previously. But the movements have failed. - -Such is the record of the organisation of women in the trades with which -we are dealing. It is almost exclusively confined to London and -Manchester, and in London, out of 19,000 women connected with -bookbinding, most of whom are book and paper-folders, certainly not more -than 500 are organised. In 1901, in the seven Men's Unions covering -these trades there were 41,907 members, whilst the total membership of -the Women's Unions was well under 1,000. - - -[Sidenote: Maintaining standards without organisation.] - -Our enquiries have discovered, however, the existence of a kind of loose -organisation of majority-rule and custom in some firms. Standards of -prices and conditions are thus kept up. It must not be forgotten that -where men and women work together all concessions won by the men's -Unions are shared by women, as for instance, when the Typographical -Association of Scotland secured a fifty hours' week for Aberdeen -compositors. This is an interesting feature of feminine methods. In one -house we came across two collating-rooms, one of which was staffed by -older hands, who stood upon their dignity and would not accept inferior -work or tolerate reductions in wages. The other room was conducted after -the methods of the ordinary employer of cheap women's labour; the -workpeople were careless and casual and the room had no traditions and -no industrial "public opinion." This force of opinion, which assumes -almost the nature of caste, is most strongly developed amongst job -hands. These women manage to keep up a comparatively high standard of -pay, and we have discovered the most unusual circumstance that in one or -two instances the wages of job women have been cut down to the Union -rates. We have been told on most trustworthy authority that the -unwritten laws of these job hands are sometimes enforced upon -recalcitrant work-women by "a hiding." - - -[Sidenote: Organisation in the miscellaneous trades.] - -As regards organisation in the more miscellaneous trades included in our -investigation, little has to be said. A few card mounters once joined -the Women's Printing and Kindred Trades Union after a strike, but soon -fell away, and a Union started in 1890, of which little information can -now be obtained, included some envelope makers: but by 1893 it, too, -seems to have died. - -No attempt has been made to organise women engaged in the preparation of -materials for printing either in London or the provinces. - - -[Sidenote: The attitude of employers.] - -The attitude of employers and employed to Trade Unions at the present -moment is most varied. Naturally, a good many employers are in no mood -to encourage Unions, because they do not know what might happen if the -women's organisations became as strong as the men's. But, on the other -hand, a considerable number of employers working under fair conditions -and doing a trade of good quality, would welcome combination. It would -help them against their cutting competitors, and they do not object to -meet the reasonable demands of their women. In thirty-four cases -employers were not aware of the existence of a Union at all. Fourteen -forewomen knew about a Union, eleven denied its existence.[31] In no -instance in London was a non-Union woman bookbinder discovered who knew -of the existence of both the Unions, though the majority of the women -knew of the existence of one or the other. - -[Footnote 31: It is important to note in connection with this point that -the power of a forewoman over women is generally more unquestioned than -that of a foreman over men.] - - -[Sidenote: The women's attitude.] - -We were anxious to find out why they did not join. Some spoke with scorn -of the older Union because it was only a benefit Society; others said, -"No use in joining; you get nothing out of it;" others thought it -dangerous; others suspected all Unions; others frankly admitted that -marriage was sure to come along, and then they would work in factories -and workshops no longer. An eloquent commentary upon this sentiment is -to be found in the figures extracted from the Factory Inspector's Annual -Reports and printed in Chapter II. When one works out from these tables -the proportion between the males of over 18 years of age and the total -number of males employed in the various trades and compares it with -that of the females, it will be found that a comparatively excessive -percentage of the latter are under 18 years of age. The same point is -brought out with more emphasis and detail in Appendix VII. The women do -not, in fact, feel it necessary to organise themselves, and a manager of -a Co-operative Printing Works, where membership of a Union is compulsory -upon women, informed us that they grumble when they are made to join and -surrender their membership as soon as they can. The notes of some of the -conversations reported are valuable indications of the mind of the woman -wage-earner in this respect. - -We can only say in conclusion that, in the first place, women do not -take that strenuous interest in their labour conditions which is -essential to successful organisation. In the second place, it appears -that, except at occasional times of dispute, their work is so well -marked off from that of men, that the men's Unions in these trades are -coming more and more to the conclusion that it does not pay them to -organise the women. In the third place, we have been surprised to find -that the great majority of employers and of their women employees assume -that wages are fixed and that any effort to alter them by organisation -will be doomed to failure.[32] Our investigators have been given -instance after instance of both increase and reduction in wages, but the -general tenor of conversation is a pessimist and listless view that -whatever _is_, is fixed. - -[Footnote 32: _Cf._ p. 90.] - - - - -CHAPTER IV. - -_MEN AND WOMEN AS WORKERS._ - - -[Sidenote: Do women displace men?] - -One of the most important questions relating to women as workers is the -exact relationship between their work and that of men, _i.e._, how far -they are rivals in competition and how far they are helpers in -co-operation. In some of these trades, such as that of the lithographic -artists, this question has never arisen, because women have rarely -entered the trade. Only five instances of women working as lithographic -artists are known to the head of St. Bride's Institute. But that men and -women have been rivals from time to time is placed beyond doubt, -although it must always be remembered that the same work nominally is -not always the same work actually.[33] - -[Footnote 33: Men feeders, for instance, carry formes and do little -things about the machine which women do not do. In one instance it was -reported that a firm with a London and a country house, employed women -in the latter to do binding done by men in the former. On enquiry it was -found that the heavy work was done in London and the light work in the -country. An interesting case in point is reported by a Scottish -investigator. "Stated that in another workshop a man had been displaced -at a paper-ruling machine and two girls taken on instead. I took special -note of this case when visiting the workshop in question later. There -were two girls employed at the machine, but they appeared to be working -along with the manager of that department, who was supervising it." But -there is work, such as the minding of platen machines which men do in -London but which women do in Edinburgh and Aberdeen.] - -Gold laying for cloth binding has, within the last quarter of a century, -become the work of women who have taken the place of old "finishers" in -some bookbinding firms,[34] and at Dunstable women are reported as -doing binding throughout. Women are employed as compositors much more -frequently in the provinces than in London. In Edinburgh and Aberdeen, -for instance, women are reported as being engaged in every process, -except making-up and the heavy work of carrying type, in which men alone -are employed. Type-setting and distribution of type are often done by -women in Scotland. In some of the Edinburgh printing establishments -women do practically the same work as men. The extensive employment of -women during the compositors' strike in Edinburgh in 1872 to secure a -fifty-one hours' working week[35] was the result of the determination of -the employers to defeat the Typographical Association, and at least one -firm in London tried the same policy during the bookbinders' strike for -an eight-hours' day in 1902 though apparently with no success. The -enthusiasts for the introduction of women into the printing trades had -for some time been trying to get a hold upon Edinburgh printing offices, -but had failed until the strike of 1872. An enterprising employer then -trained some girls from the Merchant Company's Schools--a better class -of girls whom we find described sometimes as "stickit teachers"--to -compose. The results were satisfactory, and the example was speedily -followed. The strike failed and the displacement of men continued. - -[Footnote 34: Reporting to their members in May, 1903, the Wages -Committee of the London Society of Journeymen Bookbinders (Third Report) -state regarding the award just given on certain points of dispute -between the Unions and the Employers: "The right of employment of women -in laying-on of gold has also been awarded against us, notwithstanding -that no part of the proceedings evoked more strenuous opposition from -your representatives. The hands of your delegates were weakened by the -fact that the practice already existed: in some cases had crept in, and -in others been extended unawares; yet they strove to preserve the right -of the workman, whilst willing and anxious that the supercession of the -workwoman, where she had been introduced, should be gradual and -considerate.--The argument for the employers is that the employment of -women on the class of gold laying-on indicated, will enable them fairly -to compete in other fields, and will tend to increase men's work instead -of to reduce it. This view, the arbitrator adopted."] - -[Footnote 35: So also in Aberdeen. "About a dozen years ago during a -dispute about apprentices, seventeen men and three or five boys went -out, and girls were then taken on."] - - -[Sidenote: The Perth dispute.] - -Something similar happened in Perth, where twenty-five years ago four -girls were taken into the newspaper department of the offices of the -_Perthshire Advertiser_. About seven years ago they were introduced into -a commercial printing office, and a year later the _Perthshire -Constitutional_ began to employ them on general bookwork and setting-up -newspaper copy, the proprietor claiming that he had the same right as -the other offices to have cheap female labour. Thus the practice -threatened to spread throughout the other commercial printing offices, -and the men's Union thought it was time to bestir itself. It decided -that the women must either be paid the same rates as the men or be got -rid of altogether. This ultimatum was sent to the employers. The -_Constitutional_ complied with the demands of the Union and dismissed -its women workers. The _Advertiser_ at first proposed gradually to -replace the girls by men in the commercial department, but to continue -to run the newspaper department by female labour. The proprietor -contended that this would not give him an unfair advantage over the -other firms, as they employed linotype machines. The Union then decided -to strike, and took thirty men out of the _Advertiser_ office. Four -remained in, and some other non-Union men were also engaged. The office -continues to work under this system. - - -[Sidenote: Value of women's work.] - -There has also been trouble in Grimsby (1899), owing to the employment -of women on a bi-weekly newspaper, at Redhill (1898-1900), and at -Reading (1902). Other places where the Typographical Association report -women to be employed are, Louth (Lincolnshire), Aylesbury, Beccles, -Fakenham, Warrington,[36] etc.; whilst in Birmingham the experiment was -tried about 1890, but has been abandoned. They are also employed at -Bungay, but in decreasing numbers, because their proofs require so much -more correcting than the men's that the valuable time thus lost is not -compensated for by the cheapness of their labour. The same is true of -Edinburgh, where their wages have fallen from a rate of 1_s._ 6_d._ to -1_s._ per average page. In Leicester a firm tried to employ women in -distributing type at low rates of pay, but a protest from the local -executive of the Typographical Association led immediately to the -experiment being discontinued. There is an almost unanimous chorus of -opinion that women's work as compositors is so inferior to men's that -it does not pay in the long run. From the days of Miss Faithfull's -experiments, the men have been able to boast that women could not touch -them at the case. In Aberdeen the unwillingness of boys to submit to a -long apprenticeship and the fear of parents that the linotype has -spoiled the typographical trade, are said to be the main reasons -necessitating the employment of women compositors. - -[Footnote 36: Women were introduced into Warrington newspaper offices -early in the decade beginning with 1880. They have been found to be -quicker than men in plain setting-up and simple straightforward work. -They do not stay very long--the eldest girl compositor employed, when -our investigator called, being only twenty-five. They are not employed -in locking the formes; nor curiously enough are they employed in the -machine-room to feed the printing presses, though they are so engaged in -Manchester. The women compositors are paid one-third of the men's rate. -Here it was definitely stated that the cheapness of women's labour made -it unnecessary to introduce linotypes.] - - -[Sidenote: The men's view.] - -Men in these trades have never looked upon women competitors with a -friendly eye, the reason being that so many branches are just on the -margin line of those occupations which are so light and easily picked up -that women can supplant men in them altogether.[37] The Typographical -Association for over a quarter of a century has had to carry on a -constant struggle with the employers in order to protect the journeymen -printers against three forms of cheap labour--apprentices, unskilled men -and women.[38] Employers in a small way of business, maintaining -establishments on little capital, where efficiency is not high, employ -women on work done in larger and better equipped establishments -exclusively by men. Here there is rivalry and competition, and women are -preferred mainly because they accept lower wages, and because they are -not members of Unions;[39] and their lack of technical skill is not -found to be a sufficient counterpoise to these advantages. But in these -places an inferior kind of work is done, and if men were employed they -would either have to accept wages below the generally enforced scale, or -the whole character of the work and organisation of the business would -have to be changed. - -[Footnote 37: It is interesting to note that an official of the -Lithographic Printers' Society, entitled to explain the attitude of the -Union, stated, "The Lithographic Society distinctly encourages girls; -when boys feed the machines they are apt to pick up too much and want to -become litho-printers before going through the apprenticeship. The -women, not desiring to become litho-printers, are better from the -Society's point of view."] - -[Footnote 38: This is the real opposition which the men offer to women. -In Perth and Bungay, for instance, the women put in a bill at the end of -each week, worked out on the men's scale of rates. The cashier then -divides the total by two and pays the women accordingly. In Edinburgh -women's piece rates for composing average about two-thirds those of men. -At Warrington, women do machine-ruling for prices ranging from 15_s._ to -20_s._, whilst men are paid 32_s._ for the same work. A more definite -statement is made by a Manchester employer. He estimated that a woman -was two-thirds as valuable in a printer's and stationer's warehouse as a -man, and she was paid 15_s._ or 20_s._ to his 33_s._ A further example -of this is given in connection with a Scottish firm executing Government -work. "As the Government insists upon the men's Union price being paid, -the work is being done by men, although in the ordinary way it would -have been done by women." "But they would never allow the women," said -our informant of her employers, "to make such big money as that."] - -[Footnote 39: This is why the Typographical Association offers a steady -resistance to the employment of women. It does not object to them as -women, but as forms of cheap and unskilled labour.] - - -[Sidenote: Apparent rivalry.] - -In the better equipped houses, where women are employed on work -generally done by men, as in composing, only parts of a compositor's -duty are performed by women, and the heavier or the more technical -duties, such as carrying about the formes or imposing, are done as a -rule by boys or men.[40] So that here the rivalry is but partial, and, -moreover, the employment of women does not always pay. It appears that -in some cases, particularly in bookbinding, the application of -machinery[41] makes it possible for the less skilled and lower paid -women to do work formerly done by men, so that men regard women _plus_ -the machine as their competitor. On the other hand machines have -displaced women and have made new openings for men, as in the case of -one of the most recently introduced folding machines which feeds itself. -But the re-organisation of the workshop which follows the introduction -of the machine cannot be regarded merely as a substitution of men's -labour by women's or the opposite, for what really happens is an -all-round shifting of the distribution of labour-power and skill, and a -re-arrangement of the subdivision of labour.[42] Men are transferred -from one kind of work to another, owing mainly to a change in the -volume of production; women are introduced not so much to take men's -places as to fill places created by the re-organisation of work; youths -also find a footing more often at the expense of women than of men. At -certain points the machine simplifies processes and abolishes the need -of paying for skill in the worker; at others it makes skill (sometimes, -perhaps, a new kind of skill) more necessary; at one point it abolishes -the need of paying for strength, at another it makes a new opening for -strength. Thus the displacement which occurs, and the competition set up -are often more apparent than real. - -[Footnote 40: As a type of the reports from firms employing women -compositors, the following from Edinburgh firms may be summarised: Seven -girls are employed on each machine (monotype), five on the keyboards and -two correcting proofs. A man is kept for every ten or twelve girls, his -work being to "make up" the girls' work. Another firm employs a man to -attend to every three monotype machines used, for the purpose of keeping -things going. Another says it employs two men compositors and one -labourer for thirty-eight girls.] - -[Footnote 41: Machinery has also tended to increase the employment of -women in stamping and embossing.] - -[Footnote 42: An official of a Bookbinders' Union states: "In A works -there was much gloom among the men when the rounding and backing machine -came in; profitable work was taken away from the 'rounders' and -'backers,' but they had more 'lining-up' and other work to do in -consequence, so nobody was turned off."] - - -[Sidenote: A miscellaneous survey.] - -In the more miscellaneous trades over which this enquiry ranged a -considerable mass of evidence points to the displacement of men by -women. General statements to this effect are common in the evidence of -both employers and employed. In firm A. it is alleged that women do the -same work in card mounting as used to be done by men, and are paid 2_s._ -for work which used to be paid for at 10_s._ Paging and numbering used -to be men's work, but is now almost exclusively done by women. Plain -relief stamping and black bordering have also drifted into the hands of -women, whilst in various directions, such as the making and binding of -cases, wrappering, or feeding printing and particularly lithographic -machines, women are beginning to encroach upon men. These displacements -are very often only local. Manchester has one experience; Edinburgh -another. Leeds was agitated because women were displacing men on a -French ruling machine, whilst elsewhere no similar move was taking -place. But it must be emphasised again that in many of these instances -careful enquiry shows that when men were employed they did something -that the women do not now do,[43] and that the employment of women was -owing to an increased volume of trade, when new machinery or some other -change had made a greater subdivision of labour possible and profitable. -In some cases girls displace boys for no other reason than that boys -cannot be found to do the work; this was the case in Manchester some ten -years ago, when girls took the place of boys in letterpress work. - -[Footnote 43: An Edinburgh employer put that in this way: "If women were -paid the same rates as men they would have to pay for their overseers -and assistants."] - - -[Sidenote: Conclusions.] - -Generally, the results of our investigations show the following summary -of the advantages and disadvantages of women's labour to the employer, -and their employment in preference to men depends upon how far in any -given case or under any given circumstances the balance of these -advantages and disadvantages is on the side of the women--or, it must -also be said, how far the employer is bound by conservative use and wont -so as to be protected against any impulse to employ the best -organisation for the efficient conduct of his business. - -The advantages of the woman worker are:-- - -1. That she will accept low wages; she usually works for about half the -men's wages. - -2. That she is not a member of a Union, and is, therefore, more amenable -to the will of the employer as the absolute rule of the workshop. - -3. That she is a steady[44] worker (much emphasis must not be placed -upon this, as the contrary is also alleged), and nimble at mechanical -processes, such as folding and collecting sheets. - -[Footnote 44: "In Mr. W----'s youth, men used to do all the card -mounting. Women were introduced for it about twenty-nine years ago. They -were brought in because the men drank so and kept away." But later on -the same informant said that he had to introduce a varnishing machine -because women "kept away so."] - -4. That she will do odd jobs which lead to nothing.[45] - -[Footnote 45: Birmingham boys, for instance, would not feed printing -machines, because it "leads to nothing," so girls were employed. _Cf._ -Aberdeen, p. 47, etc.] - -Her disadvantages are:-- - -1. That she has less technical skill than a man, and is not so useful -all round. - -2. That she has less strength at work and has more broken time owing to -bad health and, especially should she be married, domestic duties, and -that her output is not so great as that of a man.[46] - -[Footnote 46: An employer with considerable experience both of men and -women in the printing trade in Scotland, says, "given a certain area of -floor space for men and women, on the former would probably be produced -half more than on the latter."] - -3. That she is more liable to leave work just when she is getting most -useful; or, expressing this in a general way, that there are more -changes in a crowd of women workers than in a crowd of men workers. - -4. That employers object to mixed departments.[47] - -[Footnote 47: 1, 2, and 4, together lead London employers to conclude -that an extension of women's employment is impossible, because it would -mean larger workshops in proportion to the numbers employed, and -consequently ruinous rents.] - -One interesting point must be noted in connection with these -conclusions. In London, where women mainly work on the more unskilled -and irregular processes, it is often difficult to see what industrial -influence they are exerting. In Edinburgh or Aberdeen that is not so -much the case. And one thing which is observable in these places is that -the employment of women of itself leads to those minute subdivisions of -labour characteristic of machine industry. "There are more subdivisions -of labour amongst women than amongst men in the printing trade. For -example, one girl will set-up the type, another will "brass-out" (put in -heads and finish it), or two may sometimes be employed in finishing -it."[48] - -[Footnote 48: So in bookbinding. A Dundee manager of a general binding -establishment, says: "The subdivision of labour system has certainly -favoured the increased employment of women in the trade."] - -Cheap, mechanical and light work consequently tends to be done by women, -whilst the men enjoy almost undisputed possession of the rest. The woman -worker, for instance, competes with the man in binding the cheap light -note-book, whilst she rarely interferes with him in binding heavy -ledgers.[49] On the other hand, in some of the more mechanical -departments, such as examining sheets of paper by touch, she attains a -wonderful dexterity. - -[Footnote 49: The following report from Aberdeen gives an interesting -account of the subdivision of labour in a firm which has introduced -women for cloth-case making: - -"The department where girls are beginning to encroach on men is in -cloth-case work, that is, making the cases and putting them on. In the -higher reaches of the trade the women do not show themselves to be so -skilful. As yet the men's Unions have not shown much active opposition -to women's work in this branch, provided always that one man is set to -work with every five girls employed on it. The making of a 'case' is -divided into five sections and illustrates the modern development of the -division of labour system. - - 1st girl glues. - 2nd girl lays on boards. - Man cuts corners. - 3rd girl turns in ends. - 4th girl turns in fore-edge. - 5th girl (young) puts it through rolling machine."] - -We have also to note how very effectively conservative notions about -women's sphere and chivalrous prejudices about protecting them, -influence certain employers in determining what work they _ought_ to do. - - -[Sidenote: Technical training.] - -We have endeavoured to ascertain how far technical training would -increase the pressure of competition between men and women, but in the -present rudimentary state of such training there are few data to guide -us to any very positive conclusion. - -It is difficult, however, to see how in these trades the technical -training of women would threaten men, except perhaps in the artistic -branches. The use of the various mechanical type-setting machines has -already led to some displacement of labour, and though the _technique_ -of setting and spacing might be taught to women in trade classes, the -greater regularity of the male worker, and his remaining longer at the -trade must always, in so skilled an industry as this, give him -advantages over his female competitor. Nor would classes for women in -bookbinding injure men bookbinders. For in this as in other trades women -are not handicapped only by a want of skill, and if they attended -classes, presumably they would be taught chiefly the arts and crafts -side of bookbinding, and thus be led into branches of the trade at -present undeveloped. - - -[Sidenote: "Use and wont."] - -Moreover, a curious fact has to be kept in mind. Women workers are so -lethargic that they are largely governed by use and wont. No remark is -more frequent in the investigators' reports, than one to this effect, -"That is men's work. Why? We do not know, but it _is_ men's work, and we -do not think about it." In some instances this use and wont is based on -experience; in others, as in the backwardness of London employers in -putting women to feed lithographic machines, its rational explanation -is not obvious.[50] In this respect the women themselves are very -"loyal." "Once the employer wanted her," writes an investigator, "to -varnish books, and offered her 5_s._ a book: she has a steady hand and -could have done it quite well. It meant following a delicate zig-zag -pattern with a paint brush. She refused indignantly, and said, 'I know -my place and I'm not going to take men's work from them.'" And, again, a -rigid sense of propriety, based on a certain amount of good reason, -seems to determine many employers to separate male from female -departments without further question.[51] - -[Footnote 50: Except perhaps, as has been suggested, that the premises -where lithographic work is done are generally so unsuitable for the -employment of women.] - -[Footnote 51: A similar division exists in women's work; certain kinds -are done by women of an inferior social grade, _e.g._, machine-feeding, -and these are strictly kept at arm's length by women working in -different departments in the same factory.] - - -[Sidenote: Girls _v._ Women.] - -So much is heard of women as rivals of men that we forget that women -themselves are often preyed upon by still cheaper rivals, and the real -value of technical training for women seems to lie in the fact that such -training might protect them against these. Owing to the unskilled nature -of their work, however, even technical education can afford to them only -an unsatisfactory security against younger and cheaper persons. One of -the investigators, for instance, reports:-- - -"It is the regular custom in A.'s now to have little girls at 3_s._ and -4_s._ a week doing work which women at 11_s._ and 12_s._ ought to do. -They put a little girl beside a regular hand, and as soon as the little -one masters the work [show-card mounting is being reported upon], they -discharge the big one. When the little one asks for a rise, they give -her 6_d._ or 1_s._ more, and when she wants still more, she goes." -Figures follow showing that just under one-ninth of the women employed -in this department at A.'s are "old hands." Then the report proceeds: -"A. discharged about forty hands on the plea of slackness a little while -ago, and then put up bills for learners." The investigators found that -amongst the employees there was a very widespread opinion that "the -learners always get all the best work," and that one of the regular -features of the trade is, that it employs a large fluctuating number of -learners, whilst a smaller number of skilled hands are kept in tolerably -regular work.[52] - -[Footnote 52: This, however, is not a problem special to women's work, -but is one of general industrial conditions, although it is marked with -special distinctness in the case of women.] - -The old hands occasionally object to teach the young ones, but nothing -comes of their opposition to a system by which they are compelled to -train their own executioners. - - - - -CHAPTER V. - -_INDUSTRIAL TRAINING._ - - -1. THE TRAINING. - -[Sidenote: How girls are taught.] - -At the present moment such training as is given generally begins in the -workshops so soon as the girl has left school.[53] Girls are, in the -best houses, employed on the recommendation of workers already there. -Much of the work, such as folding, is merely a matter of mechanical -quickness and accuracy, and after a few weeks' practice the girl is as -useful as she is ever likely to have an opportunity to be. A great deal -of the work women do in stationery factories (such as stamping, black -bordering, numbering pages) is of a routine nature, and this work is -generally paid by the piece. For such departments, no premium is asked -as a rule.[54] Sometimes the beginner is paid a small wage--2_s._ 6_d._ -or thereabouts--to encourage her at first. Sometimes she works a few -weeks for nothing.[55] Sometimes she has to pay a tuition fee to the -woman under whose charge she is put. Sometimes this woman gives her a -small sum as a gift in respect of the help she renders. Some firms make -the training period fairly long, in order that it may be impossible for -the lower class of girls to accept the conditions of employment. -By-and-by the learner is paid half of what she earns, and finally she is -put on regular piecework, her advancement depending on her nimbleness. -If she is in a large house she is only taught one process, but if quick, -and employed in a smaller house, she may be taught several. In almost -every instance she is put upon piecework as soon as possible after she -begins. In an overwhelming number of cases the beginners are simply -placed beside a regular hand, and pick up their skill by watching the -old hand and then turning and doing it themselves. The girl who "picked -up vellum-sewing and wire-stitching" whilst engaged as a folder, and -she who was transferred from tie-making to stitching and folding, are -types. The phrase "serving her time" survives, but the apprenticeship -which is indicated hardly now exists. - -[Footnote 53: "A boy learns nothing after fifteen, a girl after -fourteen," is the way one employer puts it.] - -[Footnote 54: Very few premiums are reported upon. In one case it was -said that L10 were asked as a premium in relief stamping, but the -informant admitted that the sum varied; in another well-known stationery -firm a premium of L2 is asked for, but is returned with 5 per cent. -interest at the end of three years. The premiums of L50 or L100 charged -by certain bookbinding teachers are of course quite special.] - -[Footnote 55: LEADING LONDON HIGH-CLASS STATIONERY FIRM:--_Paging -Department._--Girls come for a few months for nothing, _i.e._ six -months, no premium. They go on getting quicker. - -_Lithographic Department._ - -Girls come in and pick it up: show one another how to do it. - -_Vellum-binding Department._ - -Girls come for three years and are paid 5_s._ per week. - -LEADING EDUCATIONAL SUPPLY FIRM: - -_Copybook and similar Work._ - -"Has several little girls running about on errands for a few shillings a -week, and if any of them seem promising they are helped on. Training -nothing like what it used to be; girls learn only one branch." - -LARGE LONDON PRINTING FIRM:--_Vellum-sewing Department._ - -"Regular apprenticeship still the system here." Three years given as the -period for training and during this time no wages are paid. Girls come -straight from school. - -_Folding, etc., Department._ - -"No regular apprenticeship. Girls come in and pick it up; if quick they -are taught other branches, like numbering, relief stamping, etc." - -LONDON STATIONERY FIRM: - -_Envelope Folding and Hand-cementing Department._ - -"Girls are put under an experienced party to whom they pay 10_s._ For -six weeks, they receive nothing. For next six weeks they receive half -earnings, then they are put on piecework." - -_Black Bordering._ - -"A regular hand teaches and gets any benefit of the work during six -months in return for the time she wastes in teaching." This practice is -also adopted in some firms in envelope folding by hand. - -LONDON PUBLISHING FIRM: - -_Bookbinding Department._ - -"System of indenture has just been revived because it was found that -otherwise the firm had no hold over the girls, so that the quick ones as -soon as they had learnt went off elsewhere as full earners." Indenture -for two years. - -An ex-forewoman in bookbinding, who knew the London trade well, stated -that much less trouble is taken with learners now than formerly. In her -own case she was apprenticed without indentures for two years, and -learned "all the branches right through," old work included. - -Another forewoman in work stated she was in training for four years: two -years at bookbinding, one year at vellum work, and one year at -stationery.] - -Of the firms about which we have information for bookwork and printers' -folding, seven require a three years' training; twenty, two years; -thirty-three, one and a half years; nineteen, one year; two, fifteen -months; and seven, periods under a year. Eleven firms have no settled -apprenticeship time, advancement depending entirely on the quickness of -the learner. In places where gold laying-on is done the same time is -usually served as for the other branches, _i.e._, from a few weeks to -three years. In the case of vellum work, seven firms require three -years; eight, two years; three, one and a half years; one, one and a -half to two years; two, six months; and eight, no settled time. - -In some of these firms, however, a genuine attempt to teach apprentices -is made;[56] and in at least one large and well-known London house the -system of indenture has been revived, owing to the difficulty which was -experienced in retaining girls after they became competent. On the other -hand, several well-known firms have ceased to employ learners because -they are too troublesome, and depend upon women trained elsewhere. But -we have found that in only a very few cases is the beginner, whether an -apprentice or not, thoroughly taught every process of her trade. She is -generally put to one process and kept at it, so that the mechanical -dexterity she may acquire is in no sense genuine trade skill.[57] This -distinction between trade skill and mechanical dexterity in one process -must be kept in mind as a fundamental consideration in every problem -concerning the woman wage-earner. - -[Footnote 56: Apprenticeship is still common in vellum-sewing where -skill and intelligence are required, and in places where women are doing -more than supplementary work, _e.g._ Edinburgh, a regular period of -training varying from two to four years is agreed upon. Apprenticeship -seems to be most common in Scotland. In London our investigation into -vellum work, printers' folding, and bookwork only discovered seven -indentured women apprentices, two of these being engaged in vellum work. -Curiously enough in paper-staining firms, although the processes are -practically unskilled, indentures are signed for two years; the girl -receives 4_s._ a week for the first year and a portion of her piece -earnings for the second year. At the end of two years she is a full -wage-earner and is paid by piece rates. What her earnings are it is -difficult to discover; 12_s._ 6_d._ was given as an average, but this is -probably too high. It is reported that she may make 6_d._ in less than -an hour when the colours are mixed and she is finishing a job, whereas -next day she will spend the whole morning before she earns her 6_d._] - -[Footnote 57: _E.g._, one of the large stationery firms in London -reports regarding machine ruling: "Girls come in and feed the machinery, -and afterwards rise to wet the flannel. They never mind the machines, -_e.g._, arrange pens and so on." Another interesting note is, "Men -nearly always do illuminating, _e.g._, stamping crests, etc., in more -than one colour, on notepaper, as the process requires more skill than -women possess. If the women did it, the ladies would not like their -notepaper." An employer defended the employment of women on the grounds -of his own experience of one woman who "had been working at a secret -process for years, and there is no fear of the secret being betrayed as -she is without understanding or interest for the machine."] - -The question of how much a girl learns during her time is a vital one. -Much depends on the forewoman. As one of the workers put it, "How much -you learn depends on the forelady, and whether she takes a fancy to you; -some girls will have a turn at everything, others only learn sewing or -folding. Dress makes a great difference; the poorer you are, the less -chance you have of getting on." - -The obverse of this from the forewoman's point of view is that "girls if -quick are taught all branches, but with some girls it is all you can do -to teach them one." It seems the general opinion amongst all the older -hands that the "training is not what it used to be;" and, certainly, the -few instances we have come across of women who can do bookwork, vellum -work, and also stationery work, are amongst the older hands. The -complaint, however, that the trade was not properly taught, occurs in -the evidence given to the Commission of 1843, when it seemed to be one -of the principal grievances complained of. Masters, it was said by one -worker, often took girls, pretended to teach them, and discharged them -at the end of their time, when they had to go elsewhere to learn. Three -girls gave evidence that they were tricked into serving from three to -eight months for nothing, and came away no wiser. At another shop the -employer expatiated on the thoroughness of the training offered by him; -but seven of his journeywomen, aged nineteen, eighteen, seventeen, and -sixteen, declared indignantly that they had not learnt their business -thoroughly, and would never have gone to him if they had known his -methods. The truth apparently is that in 1843, as to-day, some firms -are better for apprentices than others, and that a generation ago a good -firm doing general work offered better opportunities for training than -good firms conducted under up-to-date conditions can now give. - -The following table shows the changes that have been made in the -conditions of apprenticeship by certain leading London firms. - - +----------------------------------------------------------------+ - | TABLE SHOWING CHANGES IN PERIOD, ETC., OF TRAINING | - | IN PARTICULAR FIRMS IN LONDON.[58] | - +-------------------+---------+-------------+--------------------+ - | | Period | Premium | Wages (per week) | - | | | and | during | - | | | Indentures. | Apprenticeship. | - +-------------------+---------+-------------+--------------------+ - | 1. STATIONER'S. | - +-------------------+---------+-------------+--------------------+ - | 1867 Commission | 2 years | -- | -- | - +-------------------+---------+-------------+--------------------+ - | 25 years ago | 2 years | No premium | 12 months no pay. | - +-------------------+---------+-------------+--------------------+ - | 15 years ago | 11/2 | No premium, | 6 months no pay, | - | | years | no | 12 months half | - | | | indentures | pay. | - +-------------------+---------+ +--------------------+ - | At present | 11/2 | | 6 months 2_s._, 12 | - | time[58] | years | | months half pay. | - +-------------------+---------+-------------+--------------------+ - | 2. STATIONER'S. | - +-------------------+---------+-------------+--------------------+ - | 20 years ago | 2 years | No premium, | 1 year no pay, 1 | - | | | no | year half pay. | - +-------------------+---------+ indentures +--------------------+ - | Till recently | 1 year | | 6 months no pay, | - | | | | 6 months half pay. | - +-------------------+---------+ +--------------------+ - | At present time | 15 | | 6 months 2_s._, 9 | - | | months | | months half pay. | - +-------------------+---------+-------------+--------------------+ - | 3. PUBLISHER'S. | - +-------------------+---------+-------------+--------------------+ - | Till recently | 2 years | No premium, | 6 months 1_s._, | - | | | no | 6 months 2_s._ | - | | | indentures | 6_d._, | - | | | | 6 months 4_s._, | - | | | | 6 months half pay. | - +-------------------+---------+ +--------------------+ - | At present time | 11/2 | | 6 months 2_s._ | - | | years | | 6_d._, | - | | | | 6 months 4_s._, 6 | - | | | | months half pay. | - +-------------------+---------+-------------+--------------------+ - | 4. BOOKBINDER'S. | - +-------------------+---------+-------------+--------------------+ - | 21 years ago | 3 years | No premium, | 6 months 1_s._, 12 | - | | | no | months 3_s._, 18 | - | | | indentures | months 6_s._ | - +-------------------+---------+ +--------------------+ - | At present time | 11/2 | | 6 months 1_s._, 12 | - | | years | | months 3_s._ | - +-------------------+---------+-------------+--------------------+ - | 5. PRINTER'S. | - +-------------------+---------+-------------+--------------------+ - | 25 years ago | 3 years | No premium, | 18 months 2_s._, | - | | | no | 18 months half | - | | | indentures | pay. | - +-------------------+---------+ +--------------------+ - | At present time | 11/2 | | 1 month no pay, | - | | years | | 5 month 2_s._, | - | | | | 12 months half | - | | | | pay. | - +-------------------+---------+-------------+--------------------+ - | 6. STATIONER'S. | - +-------------------+---------+-------------+--------------------+ - | 40 years ago | 2 years | No premium, | 12 months half | - | | | no | pay, 12 months | - | | | indentures | three-quarter | - | | | | pay. | - +-------------------+---------+ +--------------------+ - | At present time | 11/2 | | 12 months half | - | | years | | pay, 6 months | - | | | | three-quarter | - | | | | pay. | - +-------------------+---------+-------------+--------------------+ - | 7. PUBLISHER'S. | - +-------------------+---------+-------------+--------------------+ - | 30 years ago | 2 years | No premium, | No pay part, | - | | | no | 2_s._ 6_d._ | - | | | indentures | remainder. | - +-------------------+---------+ +--------------------+ - | At present time | 2 years | | Half pay. | - +-------------------+---------+-------------+--------------------+ - | 8. BOOKBINDER'S. | - +-------------------+---------+-------------+--------------------+ - | 20 years ago | 11/2 | No | 1 year 1_s._, | - | | years | information | 6 months half pay. | - +-------------------+---------+-------------+--------------------+ - | At present time | 2 years | No premium; | 12 months 3_s._, | - | | | no | 12 months 4_s._ | - | | | indentures | | - +-------------------+---------+-------------+--------------------+ - | 9. PUBLISHER'S. | - +-------------------+---------+-------------+--------------------+ - | 22 years ago | 1 year | No premium; | 3 months no pay, | - | | | no | 9 months 1_s._ | - +-------------------+---------+ indentures +--------------------+ - | At present time | 2 years | | 6 months 2_s._, | - | | | | 18 months half | - | | | | pay. | - +-------------------+---------+-------------+--------------------+ - | 10. PRINTER'S. | - +-------------------+---------+-------------+--------------------+ - | 25 years ago | 1 year | No premium; | 1 year | - | | | no | no pay. | - +-------------------+---------+ indentures +--------------------+ - | At present time | 1 year | | 6 months 1_s._, | - | | | | 6 months 2_s._ | - | | | | or 3_s._ | - +-------------------+---------+-------------+--------------------+ - | 11. BOOKBINDER'S. | - +-------------------+---------+-------------+--------------------+ - | 10 years ago | 11/2 | No premium; | 6 months | - | | years | no | no pay, | - | | | indentures | 1 year half pay. | - +-------------------+---------+ +--------------------+ - | At present time | 11/2 | | 9 months 2_s._ | - | | years | | 6_d._, | - | | | | 9 months 5_s._ | - +-------------------+---------+-------------+--------------------+ - -[Footnote 58: This information was procured in 1901.] - -The important point, however, is not so much the nominal length of -apprenticeship, but the fact that the work which an "apprentice" now -does is less educative than it was, and that wage-earning considerations -now enter at an earlier stage into the apprentice's thoughts. - -[Sidenote: The learner as workwoman.] - -The low wages paid to learners offer great temptations to employers to -set these extra cheap workgirls upon certain "fat" kinds of work. Some -kinds of work, _e.g._, gathering, have thus come to be regarded as -learners' perquisites, and in one extreme instance a worker made as much -money when a learner on half pay as she did subsequently on whole -pay.[59] - -[Footnote 59: These figures from typical houses showing proportions of -learners and journeywomen are interesting:-- - - Workers. Learners. - A. 75 14 - B. 87 19 - C. 7 3 - D. 8 3 - E. 12 11 - F. 26 20 - -These houses are engaged in various kinds of bookbinding and printing.] - -In several cases we have been able to trace the exact amount gained by -the employer:-- - -1. A. in the last sixteen weeks of her half-pay period made L3 18_s._ -6_d._, an average of 4_s._ 103/4 _d._ per week. For the next sixteen -weeks, when a full hand, her average was 9_s._ 8_d._ - -2. B. in twenty-three weeks before she became a full hand made L4 9_s._ -10_d._, or an average of 3_s._ 103/4 _d._ per week. During the next -twenty-three weeks her average was 7_s._ 01/2_d._, a few pence less than -double. - -3. C. in fifty-one weeks made L15 5_s._ 41/2_d._, practically 6_s._ per -week; if on full wage, her average would have been 11_s._ 111/2_d._ - -4. D. in thirty-seven weeks made L10 19_s._ 51/2_d._, practically 6_s._ -per week; if on full wage her average would have been 11_s._ 101/2_d._ - -5. E. in forty-seven weeks made L14 9_s._ 41/2_d._, or 6_s._ 2_d._ per -week; if on full pay her average would have been 12_s._ 33/4 _d._ - -6. F. in forty-three weeks made L12 12_s._ 3_d._, 5_s._ 11/2_d._ per week; -if on full pay her earnings would have been 11_s._ 83/4 _d._ - -It is obvious that when a worker is sufficiently expert to make an -average of 11_s._ or 12_s._ on full pay, it is a great temptation to -save on the bills by giving her as much work as possible at half-price. -The employer looks upon this profit as the return made to him for -teaching the girl, or, to speak more correctly, for allowing her to -pick up the trade in his shop. It really means that a heavy premium is -being paid in instalments. Possibly, when small fixed wages are paid, -the employer's profits are even higher, but in that case the learner has -not that temptation to sacrifice quality to quantity, and to be content -with "slapdash" work which is the inevitable consequence of a piecework -system worked under such conditions, and which is specially injurious to -the young hands. - -[Sidenote: Compositors.] - -The training given to women compositors varies very much. As is well -known, boys are apprenticed to this trade for seven years at wages which -usually begin at 8_s._ a week, and rise 2_s._ a year. In some cases, -however, a proportion of their piece-rate earning is given in addition. - -When Miss Faithfull started the Victoria Press, girls were indentured -for four years, and paid a premium of ten guineas. During the first six -months they received nothing; for the remaining three and a half years -they were given two-third piece rates. By 1869, when Mr. Head was -running the business, this system had been changed. In an article in the -_Printers' Register_ for October 6th, 1869, we read that at the Victoria -Press, apprenticeship, "a relic of the ignorance and shortsightedness of -our forefathers, which is maintained in our own day chiefly by the -prejudices of Trades Unions, is entirely abolished. Girls begin to earn -at once," with the consequence that the work is much better. The Women's -Printing Society started with an apprenticeship of three or four years, -the wages rising from 2_s._ 6_d._ to 10_s._ - -At the present time the training varies in different houses, from one -where the girls are regularly indentured for four years, pay a premium -of L5, and receive 4_s._ for the first year and 5_s._, 6_s._, 7_s._ a -week in the ensuing years, to one where, with a premium of three -guineas, the training lasts for three months only, and the worker is put -on piecework after that period. - -Two women compositors who had served for four years gave it as their -opinion that two years were sufficient to learn; during the remaining -years "you are expected to do as much as a full hand and get only half -wages." - -It is obvious, however, that much depends on the amount of work taught, -and the complaint is reiterated over and over again that girls will only -learn the easy, plain work: "they want to make money at once." - -[Sidenote: Women and technical classes.] - -Enquiries were addressed to the Secretaries of Technical Education -Committees in every town in the kingdom where the printing and kindred -trades are of any importance, asking-- - - "1. Whether, in connection with your technical and other schools, - any provision is made for the training of women in the bookbinding - or in any of the printing or stationery trades; - - "2. Whether the classes have been attended by any numbers of - women; and - - "3. Whether you have received at any time from employers - statements showing the effect of such classes upon these trades?" - -Seventeen replied that no provisions were made, six that the matter was -under consideration, but only in one case was it stated that classes had -been opened, and then the women had not taken advantage of them. The -London County Council Technical Education Board has had only one -application (to which it could not accede [60]) from a woman who desired -to attend bookbinding classes. - -[Footnote 60: The woman was an amateur who had no connection with the -trade, and the Board refused admission on that ground. See this Board's -Special Report on Technical Instruction of Women.] - -This shows that in these trades the school, so far as women are -concerned, has not yet been brought into contact with the workshop. -Nominally the classes are open to women actually engaged in the trade, -but women do not attend. This seems to be partly owing to the attitude -of the men, and partly owing to the lack of interest on the part of the -woman worker in the few facilities afforded to her by Technical -Education Committees. - -The Home Arts and Crafts Association and kindred movements have taught -women amateurs bookbinding and leather work in a good many centres, but -this training has had no general industrial effect. The Association for -the Employment of Women has offered facilities for the training of women -in working the linotype, but it has met with but scanty response. "It is -work which needed more skill," said one employer, "than women -possessed."[61] - -[Footnote 61: We have heard since this was written that women are -employed on linotype machines in a prosperous provincial newspaper and -general printing office.] - -Here again we have had evidence of the most conclusive nature to show -that the work of women is special in its simplicity, and that the -craftswoman is hardly to be found anywhere. And they seem to have -accepted the position, and make no attempt to move out of it.[62] - -[Footnote 62: This note is typical of a good many which occur in the -reports of the investigators. "There are two girls now on the -black-bordering machine whom the forewoman has offered to teach to place -out by hand, but they won't learn it; it is too much trouble."] - - -2. WHY WOMEN DO NOT TRAIN. - -Some explanation is required for the fact that women have so little -ambition to become skilled, especially seeing that their lack of -technical knowledge and their willingness to remain at work which is -merely mechanical, _i.e._, folding, etc., explain their low wages, -casual employment, and careless organisation. - -[Sidenote: Marriage as an industrial influence.] - -The physiological differences between men and women have sociological -results. These differences have no doubt been exaggerated and emphasised -by traditions of propriety, and the change of opinion indicated -generally by the expression, "the woman movement," has done a great deal -to bring down those differences to their natural proportions and -relations. If certain claims of equality, such as women's suffrage, were -generally accepted, men and women might tend to occupy a much more equal -industrial status. But when all false emphasis and exaggeration have -been removed, a considerable residuum of difference must remain. - -The special status of the married woman will no doubt survive all -readjustment of traditional modes of thought, and will tend to withdraw -her mind from the steady pursuit of industrial efficiency, because she -will never consider wage earning to be her special task in the world. -That has tempted her hitherto to steer off from the currents in the -mid-stream of industrial life, and float upon those that flow more -sluggishly by the margin. Hence she has entered industry, not with -expectations of long employment, but with hopes of a speedy release, and -she has therefore been in haste to earn money at once, and unwilling to -sink capital (either in time or money) in making herself efficient. She -is found in the more mechanical and more easily acquired branches of -work, and also in those which provide no future for men,[63] and her -willingness to take low wages has been her great protection against -competing machinery. She has preferred to remain incompetent. "Out of -twenty-six girls," is the report from the manager of a well-known firm -for high-class artistic bookbinding, "not one could he trust as a -forewoman." - -[Footnote 63: An interesting illustration of this is afforded by the -recent employment of women in typefounding in London. London has not -been a place where women were much employed in this industry. For twenty -or thirty years girls have been employed in Edinburgh typefoundries, at -certain processes through which the type, when cast, has to go, but they -have been introduced only within the last year or two in London, to take -the place of boys who could not be got because the work offers no very -satisfactory prospects for them, and because the introduction of the -linotype and mono-type threatens the future of the typefounding -industry. _Cf._ Aberdeen, p. 47, Manchester and Birmingham, p. 50.] - -[Sidenote: The lack of openings and ambition.] - -Moreover, this enquiry has shown that there is but little chance for -women in these trades to improve themselves. Openings for responsible -employment are few, and the ambition of the woman is not stirred by the -possibility of material improvement as the reward of skill and industry. -When responsible places become vacant, it is sometimes difficult to get -women to consent to fill them. They seem to have little of that divine -discontent which is the mainspring of progress. "They never ask for a -rise as a man would, ... though after a time when they are useful, the -firm would be quite willing to give one." "He finds that girls want to -earn a certain wage. As a rule they will not take less, and they don't -trouble to earn more." A Manchester correspondent reports: "There is -very little chance of rising, and no particular desire for it, on the -part of the ordinary girl, whose main aspirations are otherwise -directed." - -Reporting generally on her enquiries, an investigator writes: "The -progressive young woman, eager to show that she is man's equal and can -do man's work, seems to be a product of the middle classes. I never met -girls with ambitions of that sort among the employees I talked with. On -the other hand, I have met with cutting reproofs from forewomen and -others in the bookbinding houses when I tried, in my innocence, to find -out why they did not turn their hands to simple and easy processes which -were being done by men. 'Why, that is man's work, and we shouldn't think -of doing it!' is the usual answer given with a toss of the head and a -tone insinuating that there is a certain indelicacy in the question." -Another investigator reports: "In a paper-staining department an attempt -was once made to have a forewoman instead of a foreman over the girls, -but she was not successful in watching the colours and had to be -replaced by a man. The employer in consequence came to the conclusion -that such a feat was beyond a woman's power, and the workers themselves -are of the same opinion and scorn the idea of a forewoman." - -[Sidenote: Sex reputation.] - -Women in slowly increasing numbers seem to be settling down to a -thorough industrial training, but except when they start businesses of -their own, the general reputation of woman as workers, especially their -liability to marry and leave, must permanently handicap the most -efficient in search of employment. - -Even the woman who has paid a premium of L50 or L100 for thorough -instruction in the art of bookbinding is warned that "a worker cannot be -taken on anywhere, but has to set up on her own account," and even then -she often does not enter the regular open competitive market, but -attaches certain customers to herself, owing to her special work. - -The exceptional woman will always have to bear the burden of the average -woman. - -The questions put to employers upon this point received very emphatic -replies: "It does not pay us to train women," they said in some form or -another; "We only want them for simple processes such as folding, and if -we tried to make them skilled in more complicated work they would leave -us before we got the same return for our trouble as we get from men." - -[Sidenote: Physique, hours, etc.] - -The low standard of women's living also diminishes their stamina and -strength, and though in the course of this enquiry we have not -discovered any very serious complaint that women were irregular at their -work owing to ill-health (a common complaint against women in offices), -yet the drawback has been mentioned. - -Moreover, it must be noted that when a girl's work in the workshop is -finished she has often to go home to commence a new round of domestic -tasks from which a boy is exempted. This aggravates the seriousness of -her long hours of mechanical work as a wage-earner, and increases the -difficulties placed in her way should she desire to attend evening -technical classes. The directors of several educational institutions -and the teachers of technical classes for women have strongly urged this -point upon us. - -We have to face the fact that, for various reasons, in modern industrial -society there is of necessity a tendency to specialise the work of men -and women and centre the one in the workshop and the other in the home, -and to incline women to take a place in industry second to their male -relations. Hence, in the workshop women have hitherto been adjuncts to -machines; they have taken up simple mechanical processes, and have shown -little interest in complete series of industrial operations. They have -picked up the arts, but have shunned the sciences. The factory and the -workshop have been to them the scenes of "meanwhile" employment. - -[Sidenote: Gentility in trade.] - -In such circumstances one is not surprised to find such considerations -as conventional gentility determining the branches of trade taken up by -the women. The printing trades generally do not attract the most genteel -girls, but there are grades within them. One informant says, "In -Manchester, up to 1870, to be a folder was looked upon as being next -door to being on the streets;" but now folders look down upon feeders. -"Folding and sewing girls look down on the machine girls tremendously, -and would not sit at the same table with them for anything." Perhaps the -manager who said in a shocked tone of voice that "The women never care -to talk of the Sunday's sermon" was hypercritical, but undoubtedly -certain sections of these trades are staffed by rather rough specimens -of women. - -Then again, a folder, despised herself by those above her, is reported -to "look down upon the litho and bronzing girls. They are of the very -lowest class (she says), with hardly a shoe on their feet. They are on -quite a different floor and have nothing to do with the folders." Or -again, for reasons of gentility, girls prefer to become book-folders, -where the hours are longer and the pay lower, rather than to become -paper-bag makers. The distinction between these various sections is not -similar to that between skilled and unskilled labour. The simple -explanation is that amongst women engaged in industry convention is -particularly potent in determining what trades are desirable and proper -and what are not, so that when certain employments acquire a reputation -for gentility, the others will be filled by a goodly proportion of -unassorted girls, and will ultimately acquire characteristics which -appear to justify the feminine prejudices against them. It has been -suggested that these notions of gentility have, as a matter of fact, a -deeper significance, and that the favoured trades are the lighter ones. -To some extent this is true. The heavier employments are staffed by a -rougher class of women. But, as in the case of the Manchester folders -cited above, fashions change, and we must recognise that reputation for -gentility is a very important factor in determining the distribution of -character amongst the trades. This appears to be the main reason why -high wages do not always attract the better class of girls to certain -kinds of employment, and also why there is a reluctance on the part of -many self-respecting girls to enter a course of industrial training. - - - - -CHAPTER VI. - -_LEGISLATION._ - - -1. THE LAW. - -The printing and allied trades were not brought within the scope of -legislation until Mr. Walpole's Factory Acts' Extension Act of 1867. - -[Sidenote: Conditions of employment, 1866.] - -The Commission on Children's Employment in 1866[64] first disclosed the -fact that substantial abuses prevailed throughout the printing and -kindred trades. Long hours, frequent nightwork, Sunday labour, -irregularities regarding meal times, and insanitary conditions--such, -roughly speaking, were the hardships which made it desirable to bring -them under State supervision. Mr. Lord, who took an active part on these -Commissions, said that the general state of printing houses in London -was very bad; not only were the composing rooms generally overcrowded -and ill-ventilated, but even machine rooms were often extremely dirty, -close and unhealthy. He cites the case of a machine room, where the roof -was so low that a hole was cut in the ceiling for the head of the boy -who was "laying-on" to go through. "The heat of steam printing," says -he, "is very deleterious in close cellars, such as many places in this -town are." - -[Footnote 64: Children's Employment Commission, 1862-1866 (Report V.).] - -Speaking of the factories of wholesale stationers, the same witness -says, "Many of the workrooms are ill-ventilated and overcrowded. The -cubical contents of one large room measured by me were 136 ft. per head; -those of another only 87 ft. per head." - -With regard to hours, the Commissioners report: "These ordinary hours -(viz., 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. for females, 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. for men and boys) -are from time to time exceeded to the extent of one or two hours, and -sometimes more. In the case of those who bind for publishing houses the -four or five winter months are the busy season, and the six weeks -immediately preceding Christmas those of the greatest pressure; at one -such place work often continued from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. in those six -weeks. The 'push' of 'magazine day' also affects this trade as it does -the printer, keeping the workpeople for several days at the end of each -month until 10 or 11 p.m., and on rare occasions till 1 or 2 a.m. The -case of railway guides is even worse than that of magazines, for females -sometimes have to work the whole night through till 6 a.m., returning to -work at 10 on the same morning, and when the first of a month is on a -Monday, work the whole of the preceding Sunday. On Sunday, April 30th -this year, at one place twenty females worked from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., -and after a rest of two hours went on again through the night. Even -girls of thirteen had worked in the same week once from 4 a.m. to 10 -p.m., and twice from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. Another rather older (fourteen -and a half) worked on one day from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. and on the -preceding day from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. A boy aged fourteen had worked two -or three times in a week from 7 a.m. to 10 or 11 p.m. and three Sundays -through." - -"With paper-box makers," the Commissioners say, "it is not uncommon to -make two or even three hours overtime (this after a day of from 9 a.m. -to 8 or 9 p.m.). For two months in spring and six weeks in autumn -fourteen hours is the usual length of a female's working day. At one -place females over fifteen are said to work constantly in the busy time -from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m., and in some places till 1 or 2 a.m., especially -with 'little men' working at home with their family and two or three -girls to help. These are instances of London work, but in Manchester the -hours are even longer. One girl worked, at sixteen years old, night -after night in succession, from 6 a.m. to 12 p.m.; the younger ones -there worked from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.; at another place the same witness -had frequently worked from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Another, at nine years old, -worked from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. generally; she said that the older ones -worked a good deal later than that. Some young women had worked on three -or four occasions all the night through." - -"Boys of fourteen and fifteen employed at making cardboard, have in some -cases worked from 8 a.m. till 10 or 11 p.m. twice a week for four or -five weeks running, but that is not general in the trade. Girls of that -age have worked at making paper bags nearly every night for a similar -period, till 10 or 11 p.m. from 8 a.m., and were very much tired by it. -As paper-box making is all handwork and paid for by the piece, it is not -uncommon for work to go on in the meal hours--'they please themselves.'" - -The following was the experience of one girl which she gave before the -Commissioners. "I am thirteen; I have been here twelve months. Some of -the girls worked all night last month for two nights together. I call -'till 4 in the morning' all night. We generally work one night till 4 -a.m., and three or four nights till 12. My mother thought all night hurt -me and so would not let me go on, but I work till 12. Last month I -worked five times in the night till 12. It is only in that week; we get -very tired towards the end of it." - -With regard to the moral conditions of the workers the Commissioners -reported: "The indiscriminate mixing of the sexes which still prevails -in many workrooms is generally condemned. The evil of such a practice is -especially conspicuous where they are late and irregular in their hours. -The bad language and conduct of the boys is made the subject of very -strong comment by two witnesses, who go so far as to say that there is a -marked deterioration in this respect during the last ten years." - -Again, "The younger children were in many cases unable to read. The evil -of late and irregular work in letting women loose on the streets at all -hours of the night is justly censured by an employer as necessarily -leading to great immorality." - -[Sidenote: Legislation, 1867.] - -In consequence of the Report of the Commissioners, the Factory Act -Extension Act, 1867, was passed. It applied specifically to any premises -where paper manufacture, letter-press printing and bookbinding were -carried on; and generally to any premises where fifty or more people -were employed in any manufacturing process. The hours allowed for women -and young persons were from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m., or from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., -with intervals amounting to one and a half hours for meals; on Saturday, -work had to cease at 2 p.m. By way of exception, women employed in -bookbinding could work fourteen hours a day, provided that their total -hours did not exceed sixty per week. - -To those trades, such as litho-printing, that did not come under the -above Act, was applied the Workshops Regulation Act of the same year, -the provisions of which resembled, though they did not coincide with -those of the foregoing enactment. The same aggregate number of hours -per day and week was established, but more elasticity was permitted in -workshops, women and young persons being allowed to work in them for the -hours specified at any time between 5 a.m. and 9 p.m., and until 4 p.m. -on Saturdays. - -[Sidenote: Factory and Workshop Act, 1878.] - -The discrepancies in the regulations applying to different classes of -work were productive of a good deal of inconvenience, and after the -Commission of 1876 came the Factory and Workshop Act, 1878, having as -its object the consolidation and amendment of the existing statutes with -a view to rendering their administration more even and secure. The main -provisions of the law as it now affects the printing and kindred trades -were laid down, although since that date there have been various -additions and amendments. By this Act a distinction was drawn between -factories and workshops, the chief difference being that, in the former, -machinery propelled by steam, water, or other mechanical power must be -in use; while in the latter, no such agency must be employed. Certain -classes of works, however, apart from all question of mechanical power, -were defined as factories and not workshops. Under these came -paper-staining works, foundries (including typefoundries), except -premises in which such process was carried on by not more than five -persons, and as subsidiary to the repair or completion of some other -work--paper mills, letter-press printing works, and bookbinding -establishments. - -[Sidenote: Factory and Workshop Act, 1901.] - -As regards hours of work and overtime, slight modifications have been -effected by legislation subsequent to the year 1878, and the present -state of the law as laid down in the Factory and Workshop Act, 1901, is -as follows:--The regular hours for women and young persons except -Saturday, are 6 a.m. to 6 p.m., 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., or 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., -with an allowance of one and a half hours for meals, one hour of such -meal-time being before 3 p.m. On Saturday the period of employment may -be 6 a.m. to 2 p.m., 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., or 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., with not -less than half-an-hour for meals. But where a woman or young person has -not been actually employed for more than eight hours on any day in a -week, and notice of this has been affixed in the factory or workshop and -served on the inspector, she may be at work on Saturday from 6 a.m. to 4 -p.m., with an interval of not less than two hours for meals. - -There are various special restrictions and exceptions applying to -different classes of work. No protected person may take a meal or remain -during meal-time in any part of a factory or workshop where typefounding -is carried on, or where dry powder or dust is used in litho-printing, -playing-card making, paper-staining, almanac-making, paper-colouring and -enamelling. In certain industries, including printing, bookbinding, -machine ruling and envelope making, women may work three days a week, -and for thirty days during the year, two hours overtime, provided that -such employment ceases at 10 p.m., and that they have two hours for -meals. But this limit of overtime applies to the factory or workshop as -a whole, and not to the overtime of individual workers. - - -2. ECONOMIC AND INDUSTRIAL EFFECTS OF LEGISLATION. - -The foregoing brief summary of the law has naturally preceded the -question as to how far legislation has affected women in these -particular trades. When restrictions are imposed upon the labour of any -class of wage-earners, their economic position must be altered for good -or evil, unless the trade can so adjust itself as to meet exactly the -requirements of these restrictions. If the worker is of great -importance, an effort will be made to adapt the trade to the novel -conditions; if another class of workers or machinery, free from all -restrictions, can be as easily used, it is probable that the labour -affected will be ousted. - -[Sidenote: Has legislation displaced women?] - -Is there, then, evidence to show that any material displacement of women -or girls in these trades followed the enforcement of factory -legislation? Instances of dismissal must obviously be sought for soon -after the Act of 1867, as the employer then knew on what terms he -engaged his staff, and, except in a few cases where deliberate evasions -of the law might be attempted, the effect of legislation would be to -deter him from employing women, rather than lead him to dismiss them. -Owing to the lapse of time, it is difficult to find out from those in -the trade the immediate consequences of this Act, nor does the -Commission of 1876 give much assistance. Of 103 employers questioned by -us, not half a dozen remembered dismissing women in consequence of the -new enactment. - -One employer turned off ten or twelve women "folders" and introduced -machinery, alleging as his reason the want of elasticity in the Factory -Act. His ordinary hours were from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., but on certain days -in the week it was necessary to begin work at 6 a.m. He made -arrangements that the total number of hours should not exceed those -sanctioned by the Act, but the variation was not allowed. If his women -began work at 6 a.m. on any day, his hours had to be regularly 6 a.m. to -6 p.m., except in the case of thirty nights in the year when overtime -was permitted. As this did not suit his business, he dismissed the women -and had recourse to folding machines. Personally he gained, as the -machinery proved an economy, but it told hardly on the women, whom -otherwise he would have kept on as they were old hands. - -Another employer told a similar tale regarding the introduction of -folding machinery, but stated that he had been obliged to dispense with -female operatives by reason of the strict enforcement of the regulations -regarding overtime only. - -In both these cases it is clear that the state of the trade was such -that it required only a very slight disability on the part of the worker -to make it worth while for the employer to use machinery. - -Quite apart from any effect of legislation the machine was destined to -supplant manual labour; its advent was merely accelerated by the Act. -Its first introduction caused isolated cases of hardship, but its -ultimate results were beneficial. Thus at the present day women and -girls are largely employed upon the very machines which once seemed to -threaten their industrial existence. - -[Sidenote: The case of women compositors.] - -In the _Economic Journal_ of 1899 an interesting paper by Miss Bradby -and Miss A. Black discusses the position of women compositors in -Edinburgh, and deals with the subject of legislation. After an -exhaustive investigation, no single instance was discovered of the -displacement of a woman by a man owing to the Factory Acts. - -The chief contention of those who oppose special factory legislation on -the ground that it limits the usefulness of women compositors is, that -women are not employed on newspaper work, and they give the legal -prohibition of nightwork for women as the reason. Careful enquiry has -shown that reason to be purely imaginary. Women are not employed on -evening papers, though the factory law does not stand in their way. In -the provinces women set-up one or two weekly or bi-weekly journals, the -firms employing them preferring them solely on the ground of cheapness. -Experience shows that women are not suited for newspaper work, unless -the paper does not appear more frequently than, say, twice a week, and -if the factory code disappeared to-morrow, morning daily newspapers -would afford to women compositors no fresh openings. - -[Sidenote: Have their opportunities been limited?] - -As regards the further point whether more women would be employed if -they were unprotected by law, the views of representative employers and -managers of labour are here set forth. - -Out of thirty-five,[65] twenty-eight were emphatic in their assurance -that the Factory Acts did not affect the question. Seven, on the other -hand, were inclined to think otherwise. Of these, five were unable to -say that they really would employ more women if freed from restrictions, -but two of them thought that "there might be something in it," though -the point had "never occurred to them before." Only three of them were -of the opinion emphatically that legislation was certainly one amongst -the obstacles to the employment of women. - -[Footnote 65: These are the firms interviewed by Miss Bradby and Miss A. -Black as above.] - -When, on the other hand, we turn to the opinions of those acquainted -with the conditions of the trade, either as workers (chiefly women) or -Trade Union officials, we find practical unanimity. The eighteen -persons[66] of this description questioned were strong in their -declarations that the employment of women was not affected by the -Factory Acts. To most of them, indeed, the idea of any harmful -connection between the two was novel and ridiculous. This of course -proves nothing; but if legislation had, to any considerable extent, -hampered the work of women, the women themselves would doubtless have -become aware of it. - -[Footnote 66: Compositors only.] - -The evidence available leads to the conclusion that, except in a few -small houses, the employment of women as compositors has not been -affected by the Factory Acts. - -[Sidenote: Legislation and home work.] - -The earlier stages during which the protection conferred by the -Legislature was enforced, were marked by attempts on the part of certain -employers to evade the spirit of the law by means of home work.[67] - -[Footnote 67: See pp. 99-101.] - -One example of this practice was given by the Rev. H. W. Blunt in his -evidence before the Commission of 1876. He says that much work was sent -to be completed after factory hours. For instance, in one book-folding -firm which had occasional rushes of work, a girl was employed till 11 -p.m. on the Monday before Christmas. She was then told with the other -girls that they must take home 1,000 quarto sheets to fold by the -morning. Several did so, but she refused, because her mother was on the -point of death, and the doctor said there must not be a light in the -room. She was consequently dismissed at once. Mr. Blunt says further -that religious "weeklies," the sheets of which came off the press at 12 -o'clock at night, were sent out to be folded by 8 a.m. They were taken -away in perambulators, children being employed to do this every week. - -[Sidenote: Work sent to "folding houses."] - -Another immediate result of legislation was the expedient of sending out -work to "folding houses" which did not come within the definition of a -factory or workshop. Such places may be premises belonging to a factory -and yet separate from it. Mr. Henderson, of the Factory Department, in -giving evidence before the Commission of 1876, says: "Some years ago I -came across Messrs. X., where newspapers were folded wholesale by steam -machinery, and I thought it was a factory. Messrs. X. resisted the idea. -Boys were employed at irregular hours, but the Crown officers decided -that it was not a factory." Christmas card packing and sorting are in -the same position. Miss Deane, a lady factory inspector, who made a -special investigation into the conditions of the Christmas card industry -as recently as 1899, points out that many of the workplaces are outside -the operation of the Act. - -In the Report on Factories and Workshops for 1899, she says: "A large -number of Christmas cards, almanacs, etc., are made in Germany and are -sent to England, where girls are employed in sorting and repacking and -arranging them, for the purpose of being sold wholesale. Such places, -unless attached to some factory or workshop, being unregulated by the -Act, the girls are without the protection afforded by the law regarding -length of hours, meal-times, etc. It was impossible not to be struck by -the difference between the conditions found in one such place and those -found in the large airy sorting rooms of a publishing factory close -by--yet the girls in the stuffy workroom of the former were without the -protection given by the law in the latter workplace. A curious instance -arose in connection with one such place where about forty girls had been -employed in packing and sorting for illegal hours. The occupier took to -employing some of them in affixing a minute bow of ribbon to the cards, -and during this temporary employment all the girls could claim and were -accorded the protection of the Factory Acts. Excessive hours in hitherto -unsuspected workrooms were also found to be worked in the processes of -adapting and preparing bonbons for sale. In some cases, baskets, boxes -and bags, were trimmed for the reception of these articles, in others -they were merely selected and arranged in patterns in fancy boxes -subsequently tied up with ribbon. In the first case clearly, and in the -last also probably, the definition of workshop under the Act applies. -Instructions were given and better conditions have gained the day." -Speaking of these unregulated workplaces, in the same report, Miss Deane -remarks: "In the course of some inspections after midnight last winter -near the City, I came across several of these workplaces where women, -girls and children, were then at work under deplorable conditions--dirty -rooms, foul, gassy air, and overcrowding. In one of them I was met by -the observation that 'I might come in if I liked, but I could do nothing -there.'" - -The experience of two of our investigators corroborates the above -statement. One of them says: "At about 2.45 a.m. we went to see -newspapers folded by women in the City. It was done in an old -tumble-down room opposite a printing shop. We peeped in through a chink -in the shutters--it was a boiling night, and the shutters were -closed--and we could see a man carrying in a load of paper from time to -time. When we entered we found four women streaming with perspiration in -the foul hot atmosphere, folding away at the ... _News_. They were quite -friendly and communicative, and told us they came every Thursday night -about 11 p.m. and stayed till they had done. They were paid three times -as much as day-workers and did no regular work in the daytime. Before -beginning work they had a cup of tea. They said they liked the work and -were glad that the Factory Act could not stop them; the police had been -round to them and also two young ladies, but nothing had happened; and -they considered that they were quite old enough to do nightwork if they -liked." - -Folding houses are growing fewer in number owing, no doubt, to the fact -that rent is so high in the City and space so valuable, that it is not -worth while to erect them separate from a factory. Viewed also with -dislike by factory inspectors as a means of evading the law, their -tenure of life is not likely to be long. - -[Sidenote: Nightwork.] - -Employers admit that the effect of the Factory Acts has been to make -them reduce nightwork. In criticising the Act before the Commission of -1876, Mr. Bell, of the firm of Darton, Bell and Thomas, bookbinders, -says: "The Factory Act of 1867 has been a boon to employers and -employed, because it has enabled us to put pressure on customers. Now we -can say to the public 'We can't go beyond certain hours,' and, -therefore, work not new has to be sent in earlier." - -Mr. Darton, of the same firm, adds: "We have persuaded booksellers to -give out stock work in June and July instead of September or October, -and so begin the work earlier and avoid nightwork." This stimulus is -undoubtedly good, and these views are echoed by other employers. - -The whole question of how far the practical prohibition of overtime for -women has limited the volume of work available for them, and thus -diminished their aggregate wages, needs very careful consideration, as -mistaken conclusions may easily be formed. The matter was carefully -considered by a Committee of the Economic Section of the British -Association, appointed in 1901, to enquire into the effect of special -legislation on women, and the following extracts from its final -report[68] are of some interest:-- - -"A very important, perhaps from the economic point of view the most -important, effect of legislation has been to spread the period of work -more uniformly through the week, month, and year than had been the case -before regulation" (p. 5). - -"The tendency to put off giving orders to the last moment is easily -checked when the customer can be met with a universal legal prohibition" -(p. 7). - -"Restriction is met by adaptation of manufacture or rearrangement of -numbers employed and time at which work is done, women being still -employed at the work" (p. 13). - -"Except for a few complaints as to the abolition of the possibility of -payment for overtime, which, as has been pointed out, by no means prove -any loss of earnings ... the Committee have no record ... of any loss of -wages or earnings traceable to the [Factory] Acts" (p. 25). - -[Footnote 68: Presented at Southport in 1903.] - -Thus, it will be seen that the loss of overtime is not necessarily a -loss of work, but a re-distribution (and an economical one, too) of the -times at which work is done, and does not therefore mean a loss in -income, but a steadying and regulation of income. - -Nevertheless, before the re-organisation which has been consequent on -Factory legislation, overtime and nightwork were necessary in order to -turn out a certain volume of trade by a certain number of workpeople, -and the influence of restrictive legislation has been shown in the -following directions:-- - -1st. An increase in the class of workers called "job hands"; - -2nd. An enlargement of the permanent staff; - -3rd. A rearrangement of the employment of male and female labour. - -The third of these changes we have found to be practically -imperceptible, whilst the second has affected women most beneficially. - -[Sidenote: The job hand.] - -On the margin of casual and regular labour the job hand stands--the -reserve battalion of this section of the labour army. She is generally a -married woman, and commonly the wife of a faulty husband. She does not -want regular work, and only desires to earn a certain limited wage. When -she goes to a factory in search of work, she has to wait idle for hour -upon hour, but she generally stays at home until summoned by her -forewoman. Certain kinds of cheap seasonal work as, for instance, penny -almanacs, are almost exclusively done by her,[69] and she is commonly -employed either periodically, _e.g._, for weekly papers and monthly -magazines, or casually, _e.g._, prospectus work, for rushes. A notice in -certain public-houses, or information supplied to certain known agents, -brings her to the place where she is wanted. - -[Footnote 69: "The majority of the almanac makers are married women who -stay at home from February to July": Leeds.] - -Job hands existed before 1867, but at that time they did not hold quite -the same position in the trade as they do now. They were the _hands_ who -went to different firms for two or three nights a month to help in a -recognised rush of work which occurred regularly. In the Commissioners' -Report for 1876, mention is made several times of job hands who were -employed quite regularly for definite pieces of work at definite times -during the month. Firms publishing certain weekly papers were in the -habit of employing women in folding during the early hours of the -morning before distributing the papers to the newsagents. Firms which -printed monthly magazines needed women to fold all night for two or -three nights or more at the end of each month. Such employment naturally -came to an end as soon as the Act of 1867 came into operation; but the -job hand only changed her hours. It became necessary during rushes of -work to call in extra hands, in order to comply with the clauses of the -Act, and many firms solved the difficulty by employing job hands during -the day instead of at night, for a few days to meet the emergency.[70] -This work was generally taken up by married women who had served in the -trade before marriage, and who were glad to get a few days' employment -from time to time. - -[Footnote 70: But this is not the invariable rule. A manager of a firm -dealing largely in magazines and periodical issues says: "The effect of -legal restrictions on our business is to make women work hard for two -weeks and slacken off for two weeks. There is no thought of giving the -work to men, or of sending it home, or of employing job hands."] - -[Sidenote: Increase of permanent staff.] - -The second method of solving the difficulty--by employing a larger -permanent staff--involves the erection of more extensive premises, and -can only be adopted by firms whose financial position enables them to -meet a considerable outlay. It is probably the best means for ensuring -that work shall be done efficiently for the employer, and conducted -under the most favourable conditions for the employed. - -[Sidenote: Nightwork and overtime.] - -But there still remains a slight residuum of nightwork which has to be -done by men. To this extent, and to this extent only, can restriction be -said to have hindered the employment of women. - -We have tried to ascertain how much this really means to the women -workers. Thirty-three firms stated that work of the same character as -that performed by women in the daytime was sometimes given out to men -at night. We cannot, however, assume that the work is always given to -men on account of legal restrictions, and it does not follow that the -abolition of such restrictions would induce all masters to introduce -women for nightwork. Several of them, indeed, emphatically deny that -they would adopt this practice; and in some instances we have been told -that it was not observed in the best firms before the law prohibited it, -_e.g._, "Mr. A. remembers the time before the Act of 1867 (he has been -in the trade since 1851). He could have worked women at night, but never -would because of questions of morality." - -These statements are, however, only part of the case, because nightwork -is generally overtime, and we must consider how far employers care to -practise it. - -There seems to be an almost unanimous opinion against overtime, and any -mention of factory legislation appears to suggest overtime at once to -both employers and employed. Experience has driven it home to them that -overtime is a most uneconomical method of work;[71] and as there does -not appear to be any demand for women's labour at night except -occasionally as overtime, the factory law in this respect is only a -protection to the employee engaged by the employer who is still -experimenting with this unproductive use of labour. - -[Footnote 71: "When the factory (now a large provincial lithographer's, -almanac maker's, etc.), was a small one, and it employed only a few -hands, they used to work a great deal of overtime. They used all the -time they were allowed by the Factory Acts and sometimes tried to get in -more. But now they do not find it pays to work overtime."--It is of some -importance to note that a responsible spokesman for the men engaged in -London houses informed one of our investigators that when men are put on -at night to fold "they take it easy, and six men do in two hours what -two women do in two hours. They don't bother to walk up and down -gathering, but sit at it in a row, and hand sheets on from one to the -other."] - -[Sidenote: Testimony of employers.] - -Some employers, like Mr. Bell,[72] admit candidly enough that -legislation enables them to be more humane (and humanity in this respect -pays) than they could otherwise afford to be. The Act is "a great -relief," such an employer has said. "Legislation is an excellent thing; -existing hours are quite long enough. If a person has not done her work -by the time they are up, she never will do it." "The Factory Acts are a -very good thing," another has said. "Long hours diminish the output"; or -again: "Factory legislation is a capital thing; I only wish it could be -extended to men." "Women are not so strong as men, and therefore the law -rightly steps in." "I think it would be very inadvisable to employ women -at night. I think legislation a very good thing. Overtime is not really -worth it." "Legislation is a very good thing. I don't believe in long -hours. Employers are often shortsighted and think that workers are like -machines--the longer you work them the more they do, but this is not -really the case; if they work from 9 to 7 they have done as much as they -are good for." "The good done by the Factory Acts has quite outweighed -any evils or hardships." Another employer remarked: "I shouldn't like my -own daughter to do it, and I don't see why other women should do so. I -should think it a very bad thing for women to go home in the early hours -of the morning." On hearing that restrictions were objected to on the -score that they hindered the employment of women, he replied scathingly -that it was rubbish, but that "ladies must have something to talk -about." - -[Footnote 72: _Cf._ p. 78.] - -From this it is evident that protection is viewed favourably by many -employers, on the specific ground that it prevents systematic overtime. -On the whole, they are of the opinion that nightwork is harmful to -women, and that after overtime the next day's work suffers. Some are -doubtful whether they would employ women at night even if the law -permitted it. Nightwork, they assert, is unfit for women, not merely on -account of the harm to health, but because of the insult and temptation -to which they are exposed in going home. Whether these views would have -been held so generally before the passing of the Factory Acts it is not -possible to say; probably the results have justified the Act, and -experience has provided moral reasons for legal limitations. - - * * * * * - -Such in the main is the attitude of employers towards legislation. Of -103 who expressed an opinion, twenty-six stated that legislation had not -affected women's labour at all, sixty considered it to have been -beneficial, and seventeen looked on all legislation as grandmotherly and -ridiculous--one among these thinking that legislation was all very well, -and much needed in the City, but that Southwark should be free from -interference. The attitude of those employers who objected to -interference was expressed generally in some such way as that it was -"unnecessary" for their trade at least, even if desirable for others. -Pressed to explain what "unnecessary" meant, they said that women could -take care of themselves; that protection was all very well for young -girls, but when women arrived at the age of forty or fifty they could do -what they liked; that it was hard on women that they should not be -allowed to work day and night as well; that women could stand overtime -just as well as men; and, finally, that legislation pressed very -severely on the employer, who had to use the more expensive medium for -doing nightwork, viz., men. - -Such is the attitude of these employers, and it is fairly well expressed -in the following quotation from _The Stationery Trades' Journal_, -September, 1880:-- - -"We report in another column a case in which Messrs. Pardon & Co. were -summoned for an offence under the Factory Acts. Four women were employed -during the night to fold a periodical which is printed by Messrs. P. The -youngest of the four women was a married woman of thirty-five, whose -husband is unable to work, and she, like the rest, prized the job -because it afforded the means of earning a little extra money for the -support of her family. Under the pretence of protecting these women, the -law steps in and says: 'Your families may starve or go to the workhouse, -but you shall not work overtime or go beyond the limits prescribed by -the Act. You cannot be trusted with the care of your own health. You may -fast as much as you like; it will do you good and help your children to -grow up stalwart men and women--but you shall not endanger your health -by working too many hours at a time.' This in substance is what the law -does for women. As regards the employment of children and young persons, -the Act is no doubt beneficial, but surely women of thirty-five and -forty do not need the same legislative protection as children. A great -deal of sentimental nonsense is written and spoken by benevolent -busybodies without practical knowledge of the subjects with which they -meddle; and one of the results is the application of the Factory Acts to -women who are old enough to judge for themselves. In the case alluded to -there was more real benevolence in providing work for women than in -limiting their hours of employment." As a contrast to these opinions, -the views on overtime expressed in the Factory Inspector's Report for -1899 are worth noting:-- - -"The prohibition of overtime for young persons imposed by Section 14 of -the Factory Act of 1895 has, in my opinion, proved to be the most -beneficial clause of that Act. It has, moreover, been carried out -without any serious interference with trade and without causing much -difficulty to the inspectors. - -"The further restriction in the same clause of the overtime employment -of women by reducing the number of times on which it may be worked in -any twelve months from forty-eight to thirty was also a step in the -right direction. If overtime were abolished altogether except for -preserving perishable articles, the season trades would soon accommodate -themselves to doing without overtime in the same way that the cotton, -woollen, linen and silk manufacturing trades have done, for they also -are season trades." - -[Sidenote: Opinion of employees.] - -Among the older workers in the trade are men and women who remember -conditions before the passing of the 1867 Act, and the experience of -some of them and the comparison they make between work done before and -after the Act is worthy of note. - -A. used to work till 10 every night when she first entered the trade. -She was glad when the Act was passed to get home early, and never liked -working late. - -B. used to work from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. regularly, including Saturdays. -Frequently she had to work till 10 or 12 and sometimes to begin at 5 -a.m. The "young governor" used to take her and some of the other girls -home at night as they were afraid to go alone. She disliked overtime, -was tired out at the end of a day's work, and thought the other women -were too, and she had often noticed how badly the work was done after -eight or nine hours at it. Later on, as a forewoman, she noticed that -the girls after overtime always loafed about the next day and did not -work well. Some women liked overtime, but she noticed it was always -those who spent the extra money earned on drink. She did not think that -work had gone from the women in consequence of factory legislation, but -thought that married women were employed for a little while during a -rush of work where before the regular hands were kept working late. She -remembered how tiresome it was for the married women to get home in -time to fetch their babies from the _creches_ when the hours were from 8 -to 8. - -C. has often heard her mother-in-law say that as a girl she constantly -worked all night and then had to work just the same the next day. She -used to consider that to get home at 7 on Saturday was early, and now -every young lady looks forward to her Saturday afternoon. Workpeople -have a much better time than they used to. There were no proper meal -hours. She used to get "just a snack between her work." - -D. remembers that when they were busy they had to work all night and all -the day before and the next day too. They used to work on Sundays and -were given a glass of gin. She never knew anyone who wanted to do -nightwork, and thinks eight and a half hours quite long enough for -anyone to work, especially when there is housework, too, when one gets -home. - -E. remembers the time when he was a boy and women were kept at work all -night; he remembers shops where they worked regularly all night after -working all day, for two or three times a week. - -F. a bookbinder, remembers women who worked all night frequently. They -were very poor, very rough, and of very low moral standing. "Some of the -women who worked could hardly be said to belong to their sex." -Respectable girls would not come for such low wages, and also because -they had to go home alone through the streets. After the Factory Acts -the moral tone and respectability increased greatly; wages were no lower -and there were fewer hours of work.[73] - -[Footnote 73: This is an interesting comment on the relation between low -wages and long hours on the one hand and character on the other.] - -G. says, "We used to have to come in at 6 in the morning and work till -10 or 11 at night, and then be told to come back again at 6 next day. I -often used to faint; it took all my strength away." She considers the -Factory Act an unmixed blessing. - -H., before the Factory Act, has worked from 9 to 7, 8, 9, or 10. Often -as a learner she stayed till 11 or 12, and once till 12 several nights -running. Once she remembers being turned out in a thunderstorm at -midnight, and how frightened she was. Occasionally she worked all night; -they used to be given coffee at 2 a.m. Once or twice she worked from 9 -a.m. one day to 2 p.m. next day; "Excitement keeps you up." They were -allowed to sing at their work and be as merry as they could; "We didn't -count it much of a hardship." Some women after leaving the factory would -go and work all night in printing houses; one woman would leave at -tea-time and go to spend the night at the "Athenaeum" until 7 a.m. After -the Factory Act no one might stay beyond 10 without special permission. -Once she did work all night; they put out the lights in the front and -worked at the back. The only result of the Factory Acts that she could -see was that employers had to have larger premises and employ more -hands, instead of working a small staff hard. - -J. says "I entered the trade in 1863 when I was thirteen. Boys and -porters came at 6 a.m.; journeymen at 8 a.m. (sixty hours a week); women -at 8 or 9 a.m. All had to stay as long as they were wanted, _i.e._, till -10 or 11. Boys were frequently kept till 11 p.m. I was never kept all -night. Conditions have improved for both sexes, men's owing to Trade -Unionism, women's to factory laws." - -[Sidenote: The opinions of forewomen.] - -The testimony of the forewomen is to the same effect. A. a forewoman, -used to work often till 10, 11, or 12 at night, sometimes all night. -Sometimes she was obliged to keep her girls all night when there was -work that had to be finished, but usually she gave them a rest the next -day. She thinks it a very good thing that they should not be allowed to -work all night; the work is piecework and long hours don't do any good, -for they mean that you work less next day: if you work all night, then -you are so tired that you have to take a day off; you have gained -nothing. She used to find that so herself. - -B. a forewoman, thought the Factory Acts a very good thing. Girls -grumbled if they had to stop till 8, and she never heard of any of them -wanting to stay longer. "If you work till 8 for many weeks you get used -up; there is no change in your life, and as soon as you get home you -have to go to bed, you are so tired." - -C. is a forewoman. As a girl she used to work from 8.30 a.m. to 9 or 10 -at night every day from September to Christmas. She had to stay till 2 -a.m. one night and come again just the same next day; she had to work -from 3 a.m. one Good Friday morning and sometimes had to come to work at -1 on Sunday mornings. This nightwork was only occasional, but she -thinks it a very good thing that it has been stopped; she never found it -pay; the girls were so tired the next day. - -Another forewoman gave it as her deliberate opinion that when overtime -is worked the piece workers do not make more as a rule, for they get so -tired that if they stay late one night, they work less the next day. - -This is the unanimous view held by the forewomen, and it comes with -considerable force from them, as it is they who have to arrange to get -work done somehow within a certain time. They are the people who have to -put on the pressure, and are in such a position as to see how any -particular system of getting work done answers. - -[Sidenote: Exceptions.] - -Among the younger women--the girls who have had no experience of -conditions before 1867, the opinion about overtime is not so unanimous. -Some few like what little overtime is allowed to them and say they would -not mind more. One such worker was met, just arrived home from her -factory late one Saturday afternoon. She had been working overtime as a -consequence of the Queen's death--the envelope makers and black -borderers were all working late just then. It was a bleak and wet -afternoon, and she came in in high spirits, evidently regarding all life -as a joke, and frankly confessing that factory life especially was a -joke, particularly when they had overtime. "It is 'larks' working late, -and the governor he up and spoke to us so nice. He says, 'Girls, you -won't mind doing a bit of overtime for the sake of our dear Queen?' and -we says 'No.' _I_ shouldn't mind doing overtime every day of the week. I -like the factory and should hate to be out of it." A few such girls -there are who are in excellent health, like the work and don't find it -monotonous, and, above all, enjoy the larger life that they meet in a -factory just as girls in another social scale enjoy public school or -college life. It is these who revel in their day's work and are not -tired at the end of it, but how in actual fact they would like longer -hours or systematic overtime it is impossible to say. It is probably the -rarity of it, the stimulus and excitement of working against time for -once in a way, the being put on their mettle by the "governor" himself, -that make the enjoyment. We must also remember that the younger hands -are those who take the most anti-social views of work and care least -about industrial conditions. But even by these few, when the idea of -all night work is suggested, it is scouted with horror. On the whole, -the view adopted is that when you have done your day's work, you have -done enough. A worker in the stationers' trade assured us that overtime -means a doctor's bill, so you don't really make anything by it. The -experience of two women who had tried nightwork illegally was also -instructive. - -[Sidenote: Overtime experience.] - -A. an apparently strong woman was once offered a night job when she was -hard up, and thought that it would be a "lark" to take it. She went in -about 8 a.m. on Friday and worked on with intervals for meals till 3 -p.m. on Saturday, being paid piece rates for the day hours and 6_s._ for -the work between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. She was utterly done up in -consequence of this work and lost more money next week than she made by -the whole job. - -B. once worked all night in a City shop for 5_s._ and got no good out of -it, for she was so done up that she could not work at all next day, and -very little the day after. - -Three girls working at the same factory, and speaking of conditions -there, said that when they were busy after 9.30 p.m. men were put on to -do the card mounting. These girls ridiculed the idea that they disliked -this or wanted to stay. "You feel quite done for by 9 o'clock. Girls -sometimes cry, they get so tired in the evening." None of the three had -ever heard of any girls who objected to the Factory Acts. "The little -ones do not mind overtime so much because they get 3_d._ an hour the -same as the full hands, but the full hands do mind. Overtime, _i.e._, -till 4 p.m., on Saturdays is not so bad because you ain't so worn out." - -C. thinks it a very good thing that women may not work at night--"hours -are quite long enough as it is--you feel quite done up after working -from 8 a.m. to 9.30 p.m." - -D. is very much opposed to the idea of women working at night; she hears -that in some places they work till 9 p.m. and thinks that dreadful. She -has never heard anyone grumble that they cannot work longer, and scoffed -at the idea. She herself hates overtime. - -E.'s views are that if you've had work from 9 to 7 that is quite as much -as you can do properly. She never likes her daughters to work overtime, -because it only tires them out. It is sometimes rather provoking when a -job comes in late after you've been sitting idle and you have to leave -it, but thinks that it is better on the whole. Some women wouldn't mind -working "all the hours that God gives," but it is very selfish of them. -Most can't stand it. If she had to be at the factory by 8 a.m. instead -of 9 a.m., she never did any more work, because she was so tired. - -So the instances could be multiplied. There is no mistaking the note of -relief that runs through the experiences of the workers who have worked -both before and after 1867. Forewomen, employers and factory inspectors, -who are in the position of the "lookers-on at the game," from different -standpoints are nearly unanimous in agreeing that protective legislation -is beneficial. - -The thirty-three firms, the authorities of which are returned as having -stated that they give men at night work done by women during the day, -consist for the most part of printing houses, and the work done by women -was folding. The result produced by legislation is that men do the -folding at night and on Saturday afternoons, when there is a press of -business, but in one or two cases, a regular staff of night workers is -employed. As the men are slower workers than the women, and charge a far -higher price for their labour, it is to the employer's interest to -reduce nightwork to a minimum. Prospectuses, however, and weekly -newspapers have to be folded during the night, and this must fall to the -men's lot. In two firms, men occasionally do relief stamping for -Christmas cards when there is a great press of work, and in one firm -they do card mounting. In none of the above firms is there any question -of employing men instead of women in the daytime. In one of the -remaining two--a printing house--the manager said that perhaps he might -have more women for folding; and in another the employer distinctly said -that he would employ women for feeding his printing machines were it not -for the limitations on their hours, which renders it impossible to keep -them when a press of work comes in. These few cases can scarcely claim -to constitute a serious hindrance to women's employment; nor, in view of -the chorus of gratitude for factory legislation, can they be regarded as -a serious indictment against that legislation. - - * * * * * - -[Sidenote: Has legislation affected wages?] - -On the question as to whether the restrictions of the Factory Acts have -affected wages, it is almost impossible to obtain any trustworthy -information. In briefly touching on it, we must be careful to -distinguish between the rate of wages and the sum total earned. There -seems an entire lack of evidence that the _rate_ of wages has been -affected, although the sum total of women's earnings collectively and -individually is obviously lowered, when some of their work is given to -men. But even then the mere deprivation of the chance of working -unlimited overtime is an altogether exaggerated measure of the loss in -wages. A human being differs from a machine, for, even when the work -done is mechanical, an interval of leisure and rest is essential, after -a certain point, before the output can be continued. Experience has -abundantly proved that for the regular worker overtime does not pay, and -is also a wasteful expedient from the point of view of the employer. - -The Factory Commission of 1866 published evidence that may be accepted -as reliable regarding the wages paid in the trade before legislation -intervened. Mention is made in the Report of one firm of printers who -employed four girls for folding and stitching, three of whom, under -thirteen years of age, earned from 2_s._ to 3_s._ 6_d._; the fourth, a -sort of overlooker, earned 12_s._ Another firm of printers paid the -younger girls 4_s._ to 5_s._ a week; the older ones 8_s._ and 10_s._ The -women employed by a third firm earned at least 14_s._ a week and 3_d._ -an hour overtime. In a fourth a young girl earned 9_s._ 101/2_d._ for -fifty-three hours, another 12_s._ 103/4 _d._ for forty-eight hours, -another 13_s._ for fifty-seven hours, and the journeywoman 17_s._ 6_d._ -for sixty hours. - -In a firm where women made envelopes, one girl working from 9 a.m. to 8 -p.m. every day, and till 3 p.m. on Saturdays, said she could earn 10_s._ -6_d._, and a journeywoman earned from 10_s._ to 12_s._ Women making -envelopes for another firm earned 9_s._ or 10_s._ a week. - -Paper-box makers earned, on an average, 9_s._ or 10_s._, some made -15_s._ or more. In another firm they earned 7_s._ or 8_s._ up to 25_s._ -on piecework. Timeworkers earned 12_s._ or 14_s._; young girls earned -2_s._ 6_d._ - -These wages are very much the same as those paid to-day, and the hours -then were undoubtedly longer.[74] Nor must it be assumed that wages -would have risen more satisfactorily had there been no Factory Acts. Had -there been any tendency for wages to rise which the Factory Law was -retarding, that tendency would have shown itself in a marked way during -the intervals between each Act, but no such thing is observable, as Mr. -Wood's figures in the footnote indicate. Moreover, taken all together, -the evidence gathered by this investigation proves that neither the -demand for improvement nor the organisation to make that demand -effective exists in the case of the woman worker. On the other hand, -there is no evidence to show that legislation has improved wages, except -in so far as it has reduced hours without apparently having lowered -rates. - -[Footnote 74: _Cf._ "The Course of Women's Wages during the Nineteenth -Century," by Mr. G. H. Wood, printed as an Appendix to "A History of -Factory Legislation," by B. L. Hutchins and A. Harrison, where the -following figures are given as the estimated average weekly earnings of -women and girls in the printing trade: 1840, 6_s._ 3_d._; 1850, 6_s._ -6_d._; 1860, 7_s._ 5_d._; 1866, 7_s._ 10_d._; 1870, 8_s._ 6_d._; 1883, -8_s._ 9_d._; 1886, 8_s._ 9_d._; 1891, 9_s._ 10_d._; 1895, 9_s._ 10_d._; -1900, 10_s._ 1_d._] - -On the whole there seems to be no ground for considering that special -legislation for women in this trade has materially injured the value of -their labour. There is nothing to show that their wages have decreased, -that legislation has acted as a drag upon their income, or that they -have lost employment to any appreciable extent. - - * * * * * - -[Sidenote: Want of elasticity in the law.] - -A lack of elasticity in the law seems to be the greatest complaint of -the employers. On the face of it, it looks like a piece of senseless -red-tape that, because it is usually preferable to an employer to open -his factory between the hours of 8 to 8, he may not when it is more -convenient to him, open it between 6 and 6 or 7.30 and 7.30. It seems -absurd that it was an illegal act of an employer to allow two young -women to begin work at 6 a.m. and work till 8 p.m., whereas it would -have been quite legal if they had begun work at 8 a.m. and worked till -10 p.m., due notice having been given to the Home Office.[75] - -[Footnote 75: _Stationery Trades' Journal_, 1898.] - -Mr. Henderson, as above quoted, gives it as his opinion that "a wide -limit of law is necessary for printing offices where women may not work -after 8 p.m. or before 6 a.m. Hours for adult women other than at -present should be allowed by the Secretary of State, as for instance the -folders of weeklies." - -Again, it is felt that a greater freedom is needed with regard to -overtime. Mr. Vaughan, the Factory Inspector for North London, in the -Factories and Workshops Report for 1899 says: "I find in some trades, -_e.g._, Christmas cards, great dissatisfaction at the curtailment of -overtime from five to three nights a week, when the busy season lasts -only for a month or so; the allowance of thirty nights a year is not -required, but an allowance of more nights during these few weeks would -be an enormous assistance. The temptation in such cases to work more -nights a week than are allowed is universally great." - -It appears to be a great hardship that women who have not been working -by day may not upon occasions work by night, and both employers and -employees are unanimous in demanding that the law should recognise this -distinction. There is a great difference between retaining an ordinary -worker through the night, or for more than a certain number of hours per -week, and drafting in a fresh set of workers to do work by night at -stated periods in the month or at times of emergency. - -Whether or not the law can be made sufficiently elastic to allow of -greater freedom with regard to period of employment, overtime, and -nightwork, raises difficult questions. No doubt it would be an advantage -both to employees and employers, if the law could be made so elastic, -but the difficulty of effective inspection would be so great as to -outweigh any possible advantage. The early history of factory -legislation and its working shows clearly that the intention of the Act -was defeated because employers could so easily evade its clauses. At -present it is known to a factory inspector that a factory that opens at -6 always opens at 6 and closes at 6, unless notice has been given that -overtime is being worked; if, however, an employer were free to open his -factory at 6 or 7 or 8, as occasion demanded, and close accordingly, the -difficulty of administration would obviously be greatly increased. - -The same point arises with regard to nightworkers. It is quite -impossible to know among a staff of nightworkers, who has been working -all day and who are _bona fide_ job hands. Such cases as the following, -which was the cause of a prosecution, would occur far more frequently. - -"Twenty-four girls who were employed at a neighbouring printing and -bookbinding firm, worked for twelve hours at that firm on Friday, -November 20th. They then went straight to the Carlyle Press, and worked -all night, going back to their regular work at the other firm at 8 the -next morning. The forewoman employed by the latter firm said that she -did not know these girls had been working all day, or she would not have -admitted them."[76] - -[Footnote 76: _Printers' Register_, January 12th, 1892.] - -It must be remembered that so far as the class of job hands is -concerned, they owe their present position in a large measure to factory -legislation. By utilising them, the employer has been able to meet a -sudden press of work, and yet to comply with the provisions of the law, -so that, without the legislation of which they now complain, many of -them would not have found employment. Moreover, job hands are not -numerous when compared with regular workers, and the provisions in the -Factory Acts which seem to bear hardly on casual labour have rightly -been passed in the interest of the permanent staff. To accede to the -demand for greater elasticity is to suppose a higher code of morals on -the part both of employers and of employed than experience justifies, -and it would also render necessary a far more elaborate and irritating -system of inspection than at present exists. The efficiency of modern -factory industry depends very greatly upon automatic working--upon its -standardisation of conditions, and the existing factory law with its -inelastic provisions is, in reality, a great aid in maintaining those -conditions of efficiency. Now and again an employer complains of some -hard experience, and forgets that a departure from rigid rule would -destroy the certainty which he feels that the law is treating him -exactly as it is his competitors. Such a feeling of security is -essential to business enterprise. - - - - -CHAPTER VII. - -_WOMEN AND MACHINERY._ - - -There is a general opinion amongst the women workers themselves that the -introduction of machinery has ruined these trades for them. But we have -found that certain opinions prevail, not because they have stood the -test of investigation, but because they are passed round, and have never -been subjected to enquiry. We have already referred to the question in a -general way.[77] - -[Footnote 77: P. 48.] - -[Sidenote: Effect of machinery.] - -The impression of workers that machinery is displacing them, must be -received with a great deal of reserve as they rarely take long or broad -views. - -Mechanical aid is very imperfect in most of these trades, and in book -folding, envelope making, black bordering, etc., its use has hitherto -been greatly restricted owing to the nature of the work. - -The census figures, moreover, seem to be pretty conclusive that, taking -the trade as a whole, machinery cannot have had such a very destructive -influence upon women's employment.[78] - -[Footnote 78: An old-established publisher commits himself to the -statement that machinery has increased women's work by 20 per cent. The -manager of a leading Scottish paper and stationery firm stated, with -reference to envelope making: "The use of machinery is always extending; -but only in the direction of increasing the output; there has been no -displacing of workers; the result has been rather to increase their -employment."] - -The following statement by a Trade Union official is at once the most -emphatic and most detailed of a considerable mass of information on this -subject:-- - - "Folding and stitching machines have largely superseded female - labour and men's labour too. _E.g._, A. (a certain weekly paper), - if folded, etc., by hand, would employ thirty hands--now it is all - done by machinery. B. (another similar paper) by hand would employ - 100 girls and, say, twenty or thirty men--now no girl touches it - except just to insert 'things,' _e.g._, advertisements, and men - merely pack it; machinery does the rest. Even wrapping is done by - machinery--one machine with one man does the work of eight men. - At X. (a well-known London firm) ten folding machines do the work - of 100 girls." - -As a matter of fact the papers referred to have been created by the -cheap work of machines, and no labour has been displaced by their -employment. They have rather increased the demand for labour. But the -statement shows the efficiency of machinery worked under the best -conditions. - -Another statement by a woman worker, typical of many others, is as -follows: - - "Machinery is ruining the trade, and workers are being turned off; - thirty were turned off a few months ago, and twenty more will have - to go soon." - -This applies to a certain well-known London firm of bookbinders, and it -is curiously corroborated by other investigators who found in other -firms traces of the women discharged from this one. The firm's own -statement, however, was that they had to turn away "ten hands (young -ones), the other day, because of the introduction of folding machines"; -but this information was received five months before the woman employed -quoted above was seen.[79] - -[Footnote 79: An Edinburgh firm states that one folding machine can be -managed by two girls and it does the work of eight women hand-folders. -The firm does not state if it turned away hands, but it considered that -there is too great a strain placed upon girls in watching this machine -constantly, so their work is varied.] - -[Sidenote: Displacement.] - -That there is some displacement, either directly or by the substitution -of younger workpeople, cannot be gainsaid with reference to particular -processes. - -The class most affected is the sewers. The evidence in support of their -displacement places it beyond dispute, and though the increased facility -for sewing has created an extra demand for folding, and some sewers have -turned to folding in consequence, this class as a whole has suffered by -machinery. Folders have been less affected. - -The way in which the displacement is brought about is of some interest. -We have, to begin with, the general apparent inability of women to -manage machines, and we find that the folding machine has tended to -reintroduce men to aid in work which for many years has been exclusively -women's.[80] Here we have a case of men and machinery doing women's -work. On the other hand, the sewing machine does not appear to have had -that tendency, the only explanation apparently being that convention -determines that in these trades sewing machines and women go together. -Sewing machines are domestic implements in men's eyes. It is very -curious that it should be so, but we are driven to that as the only -possible explanation of well-observed facts. In this instance machines -alone displace women. - -[Footnote 80: The manager of a firm with an extensive business in -popular periodical literature says: "Folding, which was all hand work -and women's work, is now largely done by machines managed by men. -Wrapping, of which the same was true, is also largely done by machines -which are managed by men.... If the machine is large and complicated, -men will replace women, if it is small and simple, women will replace -men."] - -No process--excepting the few rare instances in the typographical -trade--seems to have been opened up to women in consequence of the -introduction of machinery; and, on the other hand, the instances where -young persons, either boys or girls, have been put to women's work owing -to the introduction of machinery are very rare. So all that has happened -has been that machines have somewhat changed the character of women's -work, and their chief effect, beyond the displacement of sewers, has -been to prevent the taking on of some learners who otherwise might have -been employed in certain branches of these trades. - -Conclusions can be arrived at with more accuracy in respect of the -paper-colouring and enamelling processes. - -Paper colouring and enamelling hardly exists as a separate trade now. -Paper is coloured or enamelled, as a rule, in the mill where it is made, -and the processes are carried out by machinery. - -This trade, then, affords a definite instance of the replacement of -women's work by machinery, handwork being now a rare survival. In one -firm where forty-five women were formerly employed twelve now work. The -process of colouring by hand is very simple. The sheet of paper to be -coloured is placed in front of the woman who wets it over with the -required colour by means of a long thin brush like a whitewash brush, -which she dips into a bowl. She then takes another round brush, about 10 -ins. in diameter, and brushes over the whole surface, so that the colour -shall lie quite evenly. The process is now complete, and the sheet of -paper is taken up and hung on a line to dry. Enamelling is done in -precisely the same way, enamel, instead of colour, being applied. - -These hand processes apparently survive in the case of small quantities -of paper which it is not worth while to colour or enamel by machine. -Those who have seen the process cannot regret the abolition of hand -labour. The work is rough and dirty; the workers and the walls are all -splashed over with the colour, the result being picturesque, but not -healthy. When dry powder or dust is used in the process, meals may not -be taken on the premises. The work does not attract a high grade of -workers; they are of the job-hand type, friendly, rough and ready, and -by no means tidy or "genteel." - -Paper colouring and enamelling was once a man's trade but women replaced -men for the same reason that machinery has now replaced women, _i.e._, -cheapness. - -Machine ruling has also been slightly affected. One of the investigators -reports of an Edinburgh factory: "In this factory I was shown a ruling -machine which was provided with an automatic feeder, in the form of two -indiarubber wheels, which drew each sheet of paper into the machine with -great exactness. The machine, after ruling one side, turned the paper -and ruled the other without any adjustment by hand being necessary. -After being set, this machine required only the occasional supervision -of one man operative. It was estimated that its output equalled that of -twelve persons on the old machines, whilst on some work of a simple kind -which was merely to be run through, it might replace the work of -thirty." - -[Sidenote: Cheap labour and mechanical appliances.] - -In these circumstances it is hardly to be expected that much evidence -could have been collected leading to very definite conclusions regarding -how far the cheapness of women's labour retarded the introduction of -machinery, and the efficient organisation of these industries. - -With the large up-to-date employers, the fact that women's labour is -cheap counts for little in face of the fact that machinery is rapid, and -enables them on a small area and with a productive capital charge, to -turn out large volumes of produce. "When we see a good machine," said -one of these employers, "we try it, and we do not think of the cheapness -or dearness of the labour it may displace." But with small employers, -and with those producing for a lower class or special market, -considerations of wages do enter greatly into calculations of the -utility of a new machine, and to some slight extent the cheapness of -women's labour has retarded the application of machinery in -these trades. One investigator states of a large West End -stationer:--"Undoubtedly he would put up steam folding and stamping -machines if women's labour were not so cheap." A printer who prints some -of the best-known weekly papers and reviews is reported to have -said:--"Taking it broadly, the cheapness of men's or women's work -undoubtedly tends to retard the introduction of machinery." - -But the most striking proof of the connection between cheap labour and -handwork is given by one investigator who, whilst being taken over -certain large printing works was shown women folding one of the -illustrated weekly papers. Folding machines were standing idle in the -department, and she was told that these were used by the men when -folding had to be done at times when the Factory Law prohibited women's -labour.[81] Another employer stated that he had introduced folding -machines as a consequence of the legal restrictions placed upon women's -labour, whilst another well-known bookbinder said:--"If women would take -a fair price for work done it would not be necessary to employ -machinery." - -[Footnote 81: _Cf._ pp 80, 81, etc.] - -A large printer of magazines reports: "The saving in cost, and therefore -the inducement to put in machinery, is much less if higher wages are -paid for men doing the work." The scarcity of women's labour, we are -told, induced a Manchester printing firm to adopt folding machines; -whilst, on the other hand, the cheapness of women's labour has kept -linotypes out of Warrington composing rooms. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII. - -_HOME WORK._ - - -[Sidenote: Census figures.] - -The table of occupations compiled from the census of 1901 for the first -time indicates the number of home workers. For these trades the figures -for women are as follows: - - +----------------+----------------------------------+-----------+ - | _Census | ENGLAND AND WALES. | | - | 1901._ +------------+------------+--------+-----------+ - | | Unmarried. | Married or | Total. | Total for | - | | | Widowed. | | Scotland. | - +----------------+------------+------------+--------+-----------+ - | Paper | 9 | 10 | 19 | 0 | - | manufacture | | | | | - +----------------+------------+------------+--------+-----------+ - | Paper | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | - | stainers | | | | | - +----------------+------------+------------+--------+-----------+ - | Stationery | 37 | 25 | 62 | 0 | - | manufacture | | | | | - +----------------+------------+------------+--------+-----------+ - | Envelope | 27 | 42 | 69 | 4 | - | makers | | | | | - +----------------+------------+------------+--------+-----------+ - | Paper box (a) | 524 | 1,153 | 1,677 | 36 | - | and paper bag | | | | | - | makers | | | | | - +----------------+------------+------------+--------+-----------+ - | Other workers | 54 | 52 | 106 | 2 | - | in paper, | | | | | - | etc. | | | | | - +----------------+------------+------------+--------+-----------+ - | Printers | 73 | 46 | 119 | 2 | - | [? folders] | | | | | - +----------------+------------+------------+--------+-----------+ - | Lithographers, | 18 | 12 | 30 | 0 | - | copper | | | | | - | and steel | | | | | - | plate | | | | | - | printers | | | | | - +----------------+------------+------------+--------+-----------+ - | Bookbinders | 129 | 145 | 274 | 9 | - +----------------+------------+------------+--------+-----------+ - | Typecutter | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | - +----------------+------------+------------+--------+-----------+ - (a) Paper box making was not investigated. - -It is always difficult to trace out the home worker, and the information -we obtained was collected through communication with School Board -officers, Charity Organisation Society secretaries, district nurses, -sanitary inspectors, and workpeople. The groups of trades investigated -are mainly factory and workshop trades, and are becoming more so. Home -work is not so prevalent in them as it used to be, and it is now -somewhat difficult to trace its effects in its present decayed -importance. - -[Sidenote: Home work drawbacks.] - -There used to be a good deal of home work in these trades, but the -growth of large firms and the introduction of machinery[82] have -discouraged it.[83] The material is very heavy and sometimes costly, and -has to be carefully handled. It is therefore difficult to move from -workshop to dwelling-place; and when handled in kitchens or other living -rooms it runs a great risk of being stained and spoiled. The home -workers find some of their own material, _e.g._, paste and brushes for -bag making, and they save light and rent for employers; but, on the -other hand, they are apt "to send back their work with the mark of -teacups upon it," or spoiled in some other way, and it is difficult to -get them to return it punctually. So in these trades, home work really -does not pay. - -[Footnote 82: This seems to be specially the case in the provinces.] - -[Footnote 83: One of the home workers (also workshop worker) visited -said, "Home work is given less and less and is difficult to get now. -Only three work at it--old hands--and they are going to stop it -altogether, perhaps." Another investigator reports of machine-ruling in -Scotland: "Two elderly women who worked a paper-ruling machine in their -kitchen. They had been at the work for thirty years, having been taught -by their father, and have carried on the business since his death. The -father had a good business, and they can make their living by it, but -say the work has sadly fallen off. They get enough orders to keep them -going, and when very busy employ a girl occasionally to help them. 'It -is useless to try to compete with the new machines they have nowadays. -What used to be given to us at 2_s._ 6_d._, can now be turned out by the -machines for 1_s._ 6_d._ We couldn't afford to do it at those rates.'" -_Cf._ Appendix V.] - -The Trade Unions prohibit home work when they are able to detect it. -There is, generally, a healthy feeling opposed to this method of -employment, and firms deny practising it. - -[Sidenote: Home work processes.] - -Home work is now mainly confined to book and paper folding, sewing -printed matter, black bordering and folding envelopes, making paper -bags, and designing and painting Christmas cards which is done at home -not so much because employers encourage it, but because it is undertaken -by a class of women indisposed to enter a workshop. The folding is -mostly of cheap printed matter like popular almanacs and other street -literature. Also, a good deal of folding thin paper Bibles and prayer -books is done at home. - -Some paper staining is also done in living rooms by workpeople, but the -practice is less common than it was. "One paper colourer, a married -woman, whom we saw, told us that her mother worked at the trade before -her at home, and when she herself was a baby her cradle was rocked on -the colouring board. 'Many was the night' that she sat up as a child -helping her mother to do the work. She certainly throve on it and seemed -immensely proud of her industrial career." - -[Sidenote: The home worker.] - -What home work is still done is given mainly to women employed in the -workshop during the day, and is therefore illegal.[84] In addition, -women who have married whilst working in certain firms, or widows of men -who have been workmen in these trades, keep up old connections by -occasional--if not systematic--home work. But as it hardly pays the -employer to avail himself regularly of domestic workers, the work now -done at home is chiefly given out to meet a temporary pressure of -demand, and would practically disappear if these exceptional pressures -did not take place. - -[Footnote 84: The wording of the section (31 (2)) of the Act, however, -makes it difficult to enforce.] - -[Sidenote: Paper-bag making.] - -The making of paper bags is, of this group of trades, most extensively -and systematically practised as a home industry. This is particularly -the case in the neighbourhood of busy street markets, such as are found -in South London. The work is mostly done by married women of a rough -class, as a supplement to their husbands' wages.[85] Reporting upon one -such worker an investigator says: "Mrs. ---- is one of nine daughters, -and seven are paper-bag makers. All her cousins, aunts and -relations-in-law have taken it up.... A niece of hers was consumptive -and could not earn her living, but she was fond of dress. Mrs. ---- -taught her paper-bag making and she soon earned 8_s._ or 9_s._ a week." -The profit which yielded this income is stated to be 6_d._ or 7_d._ per -thousand bags. Many women who occasionally work at paper-bag making only -do so to earn a particular sum of money of which they are in need--say -10_s._ When that is earned they cease work. Such is the casual nature of -the employment and the disorganised state of the labour employed in it. - -[Footnote 85: "In nearly all the cases that Mrs. ---- (an employing bag -maker in the Borough) knows there are bad husbands. Mrs. ---- is in the -trade herself to supplement her husband's earnings because she has nine -children and he cannot earn enough to keep them in comfort."] - -[Sidenote: The homes.] - -The practically unanimous report of the investigators is that these home -workers' home conditions are of the very worst. "A very squalid and -evil-smelling slum:" "Very poor and miserable house shared by others," -are typical descriptions of the dwellings to which the home work -investigations led us. - - - - -CHAPTER IX. - -_THE MARRIED AND THE UNMARRIED._ - - -The investigators tried to obtain information bearing upon the -interesting and important question of the influence of the married and -the unmarried woman worker on industry, on the home, and on the family -income. But the difficulty of following up statements and testing their -accuracy has been so great and some of the factors in the problem so -elusive under the conditions of the trades investigated, that -conclusions are stated with considerable reserve. - -The custom in the trades under review undoubtedly is that married women -should not work in them; and, as a rule, only widowhood, or a bad or -sickly husband, or a slack time, brings a woman back to them after -marriage.[86] Sometimes, however, she comes back, because it is too dull -at home.[87] This is more generally the case in the provinces than in -London, where certain job departments, especially certain kinds of -folding, are filled by rather a rough class of women, amongst whom the -proportion of married is exceptionally high. Throughout the reports sent -in, it is most interesting to note how strongly the sense of feminine -respectability opposes their fellow workwomen working after marriage, -"unless they have been unfortunate in their husbands."[88] - -[Footnote 86: For statistics see Appendix VII.] - -[Footnote 87: A woman worker says, "They come back after they have -married, because a girl who has been accustomed to make 18_s._ for -herself is not comfortable when she marries a man on L2 a week who is -accustomed to have that for himself, so she comes back to make extra -money."] - -[Footnote 88: So also it is interesting to note the lingering shadow of -chivalry in this connection. "Mr. ----," said one of the girls, "never -will take married women, but then he is always _such_ a gentleman."] - -The average age of the women regularly employed is low,[89] because as a -rule girls leave at marriage. The investigators generally report that -the age in workrooms appears to be mainly between eighteen and -twenty-three. The report that "Four girls here out of thirty or forty -are over eighteen" (Leeds bookbinder's), is typical of many others. This -fact alone has an enormous influence on women's wages and makes it -necessary to be very careful in drawing conclusions under the headings -dealt with in this chapter. - -[Footnote 89: A manager of a provincial printing establishment estimated -that twelve years was the maximum workshop life of average girls.] - -[Sidenote: Wages and expenditure.] - -An attempt has been made to discover how far the earnings of women -workers in these trades are only supplementary to family income, and how -far the family worker is entirely dependent upon them for her -livelihood. On the whole (but with important exceptions) they appear to -be supplementary. In cases, certain fixed weekly payments are made for -board and lodging to the relatives who are heads of the households, but -these payments are not enforced in times of unemployment and are reduced -when work is slack. Even when being made in full they do not always -represent the actual cost of accommodation and living. It is becoming -less and less common, it seems, for the wives of idle and improvident -husbands to eke out their household income by casual or seasonal work, -but the practice is still followed and in London prevails to a -relatively considerable extent. In such cases the women do not work for -mere pocket-money, nor again, do their wages cover the full cost of -their living. - -"Miss ---- lives at home and her parents are evidently in comfortable -circumstances," runs one report of a book-folder. "I went into the best -parlour, where there was a piano--also a high hat in the corner!" - -The following gives a somewhat fuller picture of these workers:--"Mrs. ----- is a widow and has no children. She looks about sixty and is -probably about fifty. She lives on the top floor in model dwellings -(three rooms, for which she pays 5_s._ 9_d._) Her husband died in 1891 -of consumption, and she does not know what she would have done had she -not been made forewoman (in a book-folding room). She does not see how a -pieceworker can support herself. She must live at home. Most of the -girls working under her live at home and give their mothers 7_s._ a -week, keeping the rest for themselves. She was doing some washing and -mangling when I called. A little girl comes to help clean, but otherwise -she does everything for herself." - -A fairly large employer in London stated that his "girls are living with -their parents and work for pocket-money." Another "would think that -about half lived at home." One woman stated, "A bit of extra money comes -in handy. It is nice for a woman to put a little by--you cannot expect -her to save out of her husband's money"; another said: "A woman ought -never to let her husband know what she earns--if she is foolish enough -to do that, he at once becomes lazy and extravagant. A woman should only -work after marriage either to save a little money, or to help a sick or -delicate husband." A well-known London general stationery dealer -reports: "Some of the women employed are the wives of the porters and -packers, but in the majority of cases the husbands are worthless, and -the earnings of the women are the chief support of the household." In -one case reported upon, a girl, working in a Bible and prayer-book -house, having to support herself, could not do it, and began pilfering -prayer-books to make both ends meet. She was turned away as a thief. - -For the purpose of throwing light upon the problems with which this -chapter deals, particulars have been obtained from one firm in London -where eighty-six women are employed. The married women are described as -follows:-- - -1. A widow. - -2. Has a husband, a bookbinder in good work, but they are extravagant. - -3. Has a husband in work. - -4. A widow. - -5. A widow with a daughter to support. - -6. A widow. - -7. Has a husband in work. Has been summoned for boys not attending -school. - -8. Has a husband who drinks. Looks after her children and goes home at -dinner time. - -9. A widow with recalcitrant boy. - -10. Has a husband in work. - -11. Has a husband irregularly employed. Very poor and slatternly. - -12. Has a husband who drinks. - -Of the unmarried workers, one learned the trade when on in years -because, owing to a misfortune, she had to bring up her brothers and -sisters. She was very slow and her earnings only averaged about 7_s._ -per week. Two support themselves. The others live at home and pay 6_s._ -or 7_s._ per week, or hand over everything they make, and receive back -small sums for pocket-money. - -A report from another well-known firm of bookbinders in London states -that in a room of ten women, five support themselves. In some instances -it is noted that married women have to receive charitable aid in looking -after their children when they themselves go to work. Of a large -printing firm it is said, "Most of the girls at ... don't seem to mind -if they make money or not. They couldn't possibly keep themselves on -what they earned." This was the statement of a girl working with the -firm and erred in being too absolute; but an examination of the wage -returns showed that, somewhat modified and limited, it was true. A -manager of a co-operative bookbinding establishment estimated that, from -his experience, not more than 25 per cent. of the girls working in that -trade, regarded their wages as the only means by which they supported -themselves. The forewoman of a large stationery department stated that -only three out of twenty girls under her had to depend on their own -wages. The conclusion of a report submitted by an official of the -Typographical Association in Coventry may be taken as being true of the -provinces generally. "The females for the most part are young girls, -with a sprinkling of experienced and older hands who leave when about -entering married life." - -Evidently it is a very common thing for such workers to pay so much into -a common purse from which general family expenses are drawn, and into -which the individual contributions vary with the state of trade. - -The industrial effect of these conditions is obvious. The women keep no -vigilant eye upon wages which are fixed rather by use and wont than by -competitive pressure. Employers have rarely[90] to offer high pay as an -inducement to women to enter these trades, and, consequently, there is -always a downward drag upon wages, and although the women spasmodically -interest themselves in their conditions, they feel so little dependence -on wages that they can never be taught to make that steady upward -pressure which would improve the organisation of these trades and yield -more return for labour. Hence, the low rate of wages obtainable by -those who have to maintain themselves is kept down almost solely by the -circumstance that such a large proportion of the women employed remain -part of families and share in general family income. It should be noted -that it is often the policy of employers to be "careful only to take -respectable young girls who live with their parents." The economic -influence of this "respectable" standard is obvious. - -[Footnote 90: The establishment of a laundry in the vicinity of a -well-known provincial firm of printers resulted in an increase of wages -in the shape of a guarantee that no wages should be paid under 6_s._ per -week.] - -[Sidenote: Influence on family income.] - -On the question whether an extensive prevalence of "supplementary -earnings" tends to reduce the wages paid to other members of the family, -our investigations in these trades threw no light. Only in one case, -where a husband and wife were questioned, was the opinion stated that, -"Now that women go into trades so much, a man and a woman together only -make as much as a man used to." The question is one which can be -answered only by investigation in other trades, the circumstances of -which are more favourable for its elucidation. - -[Sidenote: Wages rates and married women.] - -What little influence the married woman has upon wages seems to be to -raise and not to lower them. That is the unanimous opinion of the -forewomen in London, and they know best.[91] - -[Footnote 91: The following are extracts from the opinions of forewomen -on this point:-- - -"They don't lower rates; they want more." - -"They don't lower rates of pay; it is rather the reverse, for they are -most troublesome about the price; _e.g._, the other day a married woman, -a new hand, made four or five girls refuse to do some sewing at the -price quoted, so they and she sat idle and wasted their time till the -forewoman saw what she could do for them. She (the forewoman) pointed -out to the girls how foolish it was to waste their time like that, and -they said that they wouldn't have done it by themselves." - -"So far from working for less if they don't get enough, they say--'Thank -you' and walk off." - -"They are the first to grumble; they don't think it worth coming unless -they can make something good." - -"Married women are more trouble than the unmarried; they are at the -bottom of any agitation, and won't come if you are slack, for they -wouldn't get enough to pay for washing." - -"They are more independent than single workers, and teach the others to -stand out." - -"They think it a favour to do your work." - -"They won't work for less, for they generally have more than themselves -to keep." - -A forewoman of a book-folding department in a large firm said that -though not employing married women on her regular staff, she had had -some experience of them as job hands, and found that they would not do -ordinary work at ordinary rates, it not being worth their while. "They -have not got to earn money, as they have husbands to fall back upon." - -To this should be added the testimony of one thoughtful observer, who -has considered the question during a long experience in the trade. He -has never come across a case where married women have lowered the rate -of pay; on the other hand, the elder women often complain that the young -girls who are living at home don't mind having 1/4_d._ or 1/2_d._ cut -off. - -See also the Report on Home Work, published by the Women's Industrial -Council, 19, Buckingham Street, Strand, 6_d._, for further details -confirming this view.] - -In a good many instances, the married women complained that the -unmarried ones accepted reductions, and at a Conference held at -Manchester in connection with this investigation, the opinion was -unanimously expressed that married women do not lower wages, but, "on -the contrary, the casuals grumble most and get most."[92] "I know of a -case," writes a Plymouth correspondent, "where a married woman would not -work for less than 15_s._, which she obtained and retained for a year or -two." Out of a batch of ninety employers who had definite opinions upon -the influence of married women upon the standard of wages, seventy-seven -said they did not lower it, and thirteen that they did. The married -woman is more able than the unmarried girl to appreciate the relation -between wages and living expenses, and when she returns to the workshop, -it is as a worker who accepts the life of the wage earner as a final -fact and not as a mere interval between school and marriage. - -[Footnote 92: The casually employed sometimes give trouble owing to -unpunctuality, and several employers have complained against married -women on this ground. But the investigation as a whole does not show the -complaint to be at all general.] - -The married woman is more independent and disinclined to accept low -rates when offered, and she is generally chosen to go on deputations -making complaints to employers. A Trade Union official said that -theoretically the married woman ought to reduce wages, but that he was -bound to say that his experience in the trade taught him that she did -not. She has acquired the right to grumble, and she is put down in a -considerable proportion of the reports as the centre from which general -discontent in the workrooms emanates. Many employers object to her in -consequence. - -She seems to regard herself as a permanent worker when she is a widow, -and generally remains for a considerable time--twenty or thirty -years--with her employers without thinking of changing. She is not so -"particular" as her unmarried co-worker, and does not give herself so -many "airs." She cleans litho-rollers without "turning up her nose." She -is, in short, part and parcel of the fellowship of wage earners; her -unmarried sister is not. - -She is more rarely found in the provinces than in London in these -trades. Leeds and Bradford, and Bristol and the surrounding district may -be taken as typical, and the reports of the investigators who visited -these towns are quoted in full below on this point. - -[Sidenote: The employment of married women. (a) London.] - -In London, several firms refuse to employ married women as regular -hands. In some cases this is a policy of the forewoman only, and not a -rule of the firm. In others the head of the firm is responsible for the -order. The motives vary. Some refuse on principle, holding that husbands -should support their wives; _e.g._, "She won't countenance husbands -living on their wives' earnings and idling themselves"; or, again, that -it is "hard on single girls," or undesirable to have married women -working amongst unmarried girls, because, "They spoil a shop by talking -about all sorts of things." Other employers refuse to have them because -they are too irregular--"You can't get them in in time"; others because -"one has no hold over them," or because "they are tiresome, being so -cocky." "Out of seventy-five girls," runs one of our reports, "he had -none married till recently, when he failed to get enough unmarried. -Dislikes having them because influence bad."[93] - -[Footnote 93: Reasons given for not employing married women, taken from -a batch of London reports:-- - - (1) Irregular. (2) Principle. (3) Principle. (4) Principle. (5) No - hold. (6) Chance. (7) Principle. (8) Chance. (9) Irregular. (10) - Irregular. (11) Principle. (12) Moral principle. (13) Moral - principle. (14) Principle (?). (15) Principle (?). (16) - Expediency. (17) Principle. (18) Principle. (19) Principle. (20) - Principle. (21) Principle. (22) Rule. (23) Rule. (24) Rule. (25) - Expediency. (26) Principle. (27) Principle. (28) Principle. (29) - Principle. (30) Principle. (31) Irregular.] - -As a rule, however, there is a certain number of married women on the -staff, and all houses who have recourse to job hands in busy seasons -must, on occasions, have married women on their premises, though they -may object to employ them as regular workers. - -The exact proportion of married to unmarried women in these trades is -impossible to judge. Accuracy could only be obtained by taking a census -of each shop. Estimates vary. A forewoman of experience calculated that -more than half were married. A Trade Union secretary and an experienced -worker estimated that about half were married, whilst of the job hands -taken separately, more than three-fourths were married women. Another -Union official, however, reckoned that, taking the trades as a whole, -there were four unmarried to one married; taking job hands separately, -two were married to one unmarried. Most of those conversant with the -trade are careful to give no figures, "a large proportion" are married, -or a "good few," and so on, are the common expressions. All, however, -agree that the largest proportion of married to unmarried is found -amongst the job hands; that, in fact, the majority of that class of -workers have husbands. A few instances of the proportion amongst the -regular staff in houses taken at random are given below. In most cases, -it was impossible to obtain any figures, but the following may be taken -to be types:-- - - A. _Printing._--12 married out of 86. - - B. _Printing and Magazine Binding._--Half the staff. - - C. _Printing._--2 regular hands unmarried, 1 married taken on when - busy. - - D. _Envelopes, etc._--5 girls, 2 married. - - E. _Binding._--3 married out of 20. - - F. _Card Mounting, etc._--2 married out of 30. - - G. _Binding._--3 married in machine room out of 60; 1 in - perforating department. - - H. _Stationery._--9 married out of 20. - - J. _Printing._--1 married out of 10. - - K. _Binding._--2 married out of 30. - - L. _Printing and Magazine Work._--5 married out of 100. - - M. _Printing._--1 or 2 out of 56. - - N. _Printing._--2 out of 128. (In most departments won't take - them.) - -These houses show a much lower percentage of married workers than anyone -hazarded at a guess. - -[Sidenote: (b) Bristol and district.] - -"Seventeen houses in Bristol, employing about 1,170 women, have no -married hands. In three of these, it is the rule that girls must leave -on marriage, because the employer or the forewoman dislikes having -married women, either 'because they are not such good workers after they -have got the breakfast for their husbands and children, and seen to the -house, and are not then much good for work in a factory,' or else -because of a feeling that it is wrong to take married women from home -duties. - -"In eight houses, employing about 1,200 women, there is no rule against -employing married women, and a few are employed. The exact proportions -were impossible to ascertain, but mostly box-makers. - - Employed. Married. - A. 100 Most leave when married, but a few - good workers kept on. - B. 6 Two. - C. 5 One or two. - D. 30 A very few kept on. - E. 2 Both married. - F. 18 One married. - G. 40 Generally leave; a few kept on. - H. 1,000 A good many married. - -"So few married women are employed in these trades in Bristol that it is -impossible to find any evidence of their influence on rates of pay, and -the generalisations as to the quality of married women's work are made -on very little information. One employer (B.) declared that married -women are better workers because they do not go out unless they have -good-for-nothing husbands and _have_ to be the breadwinners, a remark -corroborated by G., who assigned the same reason for their superiority, -adding that married women make 2_s._ or 3_s._ a week more at piecework -than the unmarried, and seem more anxious to get on. C. regards them as -steadier than girls: "They take life more seriously." - -"In two houses in Gloucester with twenty-two and fifty-five girls, there -are no married women. 'They don't want to stay.' - -"In Frome, a leading printing establishment employs 130 girls, but none -are married. There is a rule against employing married women. It is -regarded as immoral to do so--'It means that the husband spends the -extra money in beer.' - -"In Stroud, amongst thirty girls, none were married. - -"In Bath, in a firm employing forty girls, a few were married, but none -whose husbands were in work. 'That would be considered _infra dig_.' - -[Sidenote: (c) Leeds and Bradford.] - -"Married women are rarely employed in these trades in Leeds. Out of -seventeen houses visited, only three had married women as regular -workers. One of these is an account-book maker's, where a few out of the -thirty hands are married; another is a wallpaper manufacturer's, where -no difference is made when girls marry, and the third is a paper-bag -house, where a few out of the thirty women employed are married. In the -remaining fourteen houses, comprising about 930 girls, no married women -work. It is a custom recognised by masters and workers alike that women -leave on marriage, so that the industrial career of these workers stops -usually at twenty-two or twenty-three. In two houses old hands who have -married are taken on for occasional rushes of work. - -"This dearth of married women in these trades seems strange in a town -where married women's work is such a common feature in the mills, but is -accounted for by the fact that the girls employed in the printing trades -belong to a comparatively comfortable class, marry in their own class, -and are not expected to be breadwinners. One employer suggests that the -work requires more regularity than can be expected from a married woman, -but this does not seem to be a serious difficulty in London. - -"Bradford conditions are practically the same. Seven firms have no -married women, one has one married out of 100 workers, and this is an -exception, married women not being employed as a rule. As in Leeds, the -hands who have married come in to help when there is a rush of work. One -manager remarked that, if the girls think they are not going to marry -they leave for the mills, where pay is higher." - - * * * * * - -[Sidenote: The moral influence of the married worker.] - -There seems to be a pretty widespread objection to the moral influence -of married women in the workshop. "Mr. ---- objects to the employment of -married women. He dislikes the way they talk to the unmarried girls.... -Lately he has been obliged to employ them as he could not get enough -unmarried women." - -[Sidenote: Family health.] - -As regards the effect of work in these trades on family life, again the -evidence is sparse, but so far as it is clear it tends to show that the -employment of women makes little difference to the ordinary state of -things. The work is not unhealthy, and the woman worker does not do much -of the heavy tasks, such as lifting formes, using presses, and so on. -The instances where she does this are rare, and the men have always, in -this respect, turned their chivalrous instincts to industrial purpose -and to protect their own interests. One investigator reports that a girl -suffers from weak knees on account of long spells of standing at a -machine for making envelopes, and that a vellum-folder complains of -having to lift heavy weights. Another reports against "powdering" in -book-binding; and employment in typefoundries, where girls handle type, -is dangerous, since it may lead to lead-poisoning. Another says that -bronzing, even when the bronzing machine is used and the precautions -specified by the Factory Act are taken, is unhealthy. A case is given of -a woman permanently injured by the excessive strain of working a -guillotine cutting machine. - -The bookbinders have always been ready to point out that certain parts -of their work are too heavy for women, and the compositors have done the -same. The latter also show that consumption is a trade disease amongst -them, and recently have defended their attempts to exclude women from -working the linotype on the ground that the fumes and gases which are -generated by its typefounding arrangement are injurious to health. They -also maintain that standing for long periods at a stretch is injurious -to women, but in at least one large printing firm in the provinces women -were seen by our investigators setting type whilst sitting on stools in -front of the case. The conditions of some wallpaper factories seem to be -unhealthy, partly owing to the hot air, the smell, and some of the -material used, especially the arsenic. Some reports state that the -constant "standing about" necessary in these trades gives headaches and -produces anaemia. What valid objection there is against married women -leaving their homes and children for long periods at a time during the -day, must of course be added to this, in common with all other kinds of -continuous work in which married women engage, but there is no special -danger to life or health in these industries from which the coming -generation may suffer. - - - - -CHAPTER X. - -_WAGES._ - - -We have succeeded in getting the authentic records of wages from about -eighteen firms in London, representing every branch of work in -connection with printing, binding, and despatch, and employing together -1,000 hands--more in busy, less in slack weeks. We have also less -detailed information about some half-dozen other firms. - -These studied together and apart will no doubt give a correct general -impression of the amount and variability of wages paid, but -circumstances have made it very difficult to group them so as to give a -simple bird's-eye view of the whole. - -These circumstances are partly due to the very great differences between -the class of work done by the various firms, and the difficulty of -tabulating the workers under a few definite heads; partly to the -difficulty of collecting records. Our investigators were recommended:-- - -i. To get complete wage sheets for as many weeks as their time and the -courtesy of the manager allowed, making the record as complete as -possible for 1899, and extending their researches back as far as the -books existed, choosing the wage sheets of one week in every month. - -ii. To trace individual workers through as long a period as possible, -choosing workers who would best illustrate all the various conditions of -employment. - -iii. To note any other information. - -As regards i., we have the wage sheets for some 470 separate weeks, in -addition to the complete lists of two very small firms for one and four -years respectively; ii., the complete earnings of about 130 hands for -periods varying from one to fourteen years. - -Owing to the fact that it was impossible to get the complete lists -through 1899 for many firms, and that the periods of slackness and full -work were not the same in different places, it proved very difficult to -handle the wage lists. At last the plan was adopted of getting complete -lists of one busy week, one typical week, and one slack week in 1899, -leaving the employers to choose the weeks, unless our investigators -could make a complete record. In the following analysis we have -endeavoured to bring out the salient features of the statistics of each -firm separately, and we have then grouped together all the typical -weeks, either chosen by the employer or selected by us from the series; -and it is believed that this grouping gives an adequate idea of the -wages at a time which the trade regards as ordinary. - -The earnings of the 130 individual hands is a very valuable and, it may -be, almost unique record. Many interesting facts are brought out by -their study, and the records should have a place in sociological -literature apart from their interest in the present connection. - -It has been necessary to make a technical use of averages in collating -and tabulating the material, and we offer the following explanations. -Where the word "average" is used without qualification, it is the -ordinary arithmetic average, obtained by dividing the total by the -number of payees. This is the best for general quantitative -measurements. - -In most cases the median and quartiles and sometimes the dispersions -have been calculated. They may be explained as follows. Suppose the -wages of, say, sixty persons to be arranged in ascending order, _e.g._, -5_s._, 5_s._ 3_d._, 6_s._, 6_s._ 1_d._ ... 11_s._ 9_d._, 12_s._, 12_s._ -6_d._, then the wage _halfway_ up the list is the _median_ wage; thus, -there are as many individuals above the median as below it. The wages -halfway from the ends to the median (_i.e._, fifteenth and forty-fifth -from bottom), are the _quartiles_, so that between the quartiles half -the wages are grouped. Thus, if the median and quartiles in the above -list were 7_s._ 6_d._, 10_s._ 6_d._, 12_s._ 6_d._, there would be -fifteen earning less than 7_s._ 6_d._, fifteen more than 12_s._ 6_d._, -thirty between 7_s._ 6_d._ and 12_s._ 6_d._, thirty below and thirty -above 10_s._ 6_d._ For a single measurement of the grouping of the wages -about their median, the distance between it and the quartiles is -significant: in this example 3_s._ and 2_s._ are these distances. The -more convenient way of stating this is to express half the distance -between the quartiles (2_s._ 6_d._) as a fraction of their average -10_s._, which is generally very nearly the median. This fraction (1/4 or -.25) we call the _dispersion_, and it enables us to study the changing -character of a group in a very simple and efficient manner. - - -I.--STATISTICAL VIEW OF THE VARIOUS FIRMS. - -FIRM A. - -_Information obtained._--Wages of thirty-six hands tabulated week by -week through 1899. - -Total amount paid in wages and total number employed each week, -1885-1899. - -The whole wages sheet for one week in July and one week in November for -each of these fifteen years. - -A. is a firm employing from fifty to one hundred and ten women and girls -as folders, stitchers and sewers. The number employed has changed -gradually; in 1885-7 there were about a hundred: from 1888 to 1894 the -number continually diminished to sixty, and after a brief spurt in the -autumn of 1894 to one hundred and fifteen and a rapid fall, has from -1895 to 1899 gradually risen from fifty to ninety. - -Through the fifteen years which the statistics cover, 1885-1899, the -_annual_ average (roughly calculated) has fluctuated within the narrow -limits of 8_s._ 9_d._ and 10_s._ 6_d._; it was above 10_s._ in 1888, -1889, 1897, 1898, 1899; below 9_s._ in 1886 and 1894. This average -includes the learners. But when examined more minutely it is seen that -the fluctuations week by week and month by month are very rapid. -Briefly, there is a change of about 4_s._ in four-weekly cycles. Thus in -November, 1899, the averages for the five weeks were 10_s._, 11_s._ -2_d._, 13_s._ 9_d._, 13_s._ 10_d._, 12_s._ - -In November the wages are much higher than in July, and evidently more -regular in character; the number earning near the average is also -greater. Thus the "dispersion" in November is generally about .2 (the -quartiles and median being, for example, 12_s._, 15_s._, 18_s._); while -in July it is generally about .4 (_e.g._, 3_s._ 9_d._, 6_s._ 3_d._, -8_s._ 9_d._). Again, it seems quite doubtful each year whether there -will be any July wages worth the name; the median in four weeks selected -each year in July changes from 2_s._ 11_d._ to 8_s._ 2_d._; while that -for selected weeks in November is from 10_s._ 8_d._ to 17_s._ 11_d._, a -smaller proportionate variation. - -The majority are piece workers. - -The following table shows the wages in two weeks (slack and busy) in -1899. The figures are probably typical of similar weeks in previous -years. - - +-------------------+------------+------------+ - | FIRM A. | July 14th, | Nov. 29th, | - | | 1899. | 1899. | - | From to | Numbers | Numbers | - | _s.__d._ _s.__d._ | earning. | earning. | - +-------------------+------------+------------+ - | 24 0 26 0 | 1 | 2 | - | 22 0 24 0 | 0 | 5 | - | 20 0 22 0 | 1 | 12 | - | 18 0 20 0 | 0 | 9 | - | 16 0 18 0 | 2 | 5 | - | 14 0 16 0 | 4 | 14 | - | 12 0 14 0 | 5 | 10 | - | 10 0 12 0 | 4 | 11 | - | 8 0 10 0 | 11 | 1 | - | 6 0 8 0 | 17 | 2 | - | 4 0 6 0 | 11 | 2 | - | 2 0 4 0 | 6 | 2 | - | -- -- 2 0 | 1 | 1 | - +-------------------+------------+------------+ - July 14th, 1899: Median, 7_s._; - Quartiles, 5_s._ 8_d._, 9_s._ 11_d._; - Dispersion, .27. - Nov. 29th, 1899: Median, 14_s._ 6_d._; - Quartiles, 11_s._ 10_d._, 19_s._; - Dispersion, .23. - - +-------+-----------------------------------+ - | FIRM | Average | - | A. | Wage. | - | +-----------+-----------+-----------+ - | | 1st | 2nd | Year. | - | | Six | Six | | - | | Months. | Months. | | - +-------+-----------+-----------+-----------+ - | | _s._ _d._ | _s._ _d._ | _s._ _d._ | - | 1885 | 8 11 | 9 2 | 9 1 | - | 1886 | 8 4 | 9 5 | 8 10 | - | 1887 | 8 8 | 9 5 | 9 0 | - | 1888 | 8 0 | 10 7 | 9 4 | - | 1889 | 9 5 | 10 11 | 10 1 | - | 1890 | 10 4 | 10 10 | 10 6 | - | 1891 | 9 0 | 10 1 | 9 6 | - | 1892 | 8 4 | 9 8 | 9 0 | - | 1893 | 9 4 | 8 8 | 9 0 | - | 1894 | 8 2 | 9 8 | 8 11 | - | 1895 | 8 5 | 10 4 | 9 4 | - | 1896 | 9 5 | 10 0 | 9 8 | - | 1897 | 9 10 | 10 11 | 10 4 | - | 1898 | 10 6 | 10 1 | 10 4 | - | 1899 | 9 11 | 10 4 | 10 1 | - +-------+-----------+-----------+-----------+ - - +-------+-----------+-----------+ - | FIRM | Median | - | A. | Wage. | - | +-----------+-----------+ - | | Week | Week | - | | in | in | - | | July. | Nov. | - +-------+-----------+-----------+ - | | _s._ _d._ | _s._ _d._ | - | 1885 | 8 2 | 15 2 | - | 1886 | 4 5 | 17 0 | - | 1887 | 5 5 | 14 7 | - | 1888 | 8 9 | 14 6 | - | 1889 | 9 3 | 17 2 | - | 1890 | 6 7 | 17 11 | - | 1891 | 6 6 | 16 10 | - | 1892 | 7 0 | 15 4 | - | 1893 | 6 2 | 10 8 | - | 1894 | 3 0 | 13 11 | - | 1895 | 5 4 | 14 4 | - | 1896 | 5 7 | 11 8 | - | 1897 | 6 7 | 15 0 | - | 1898 | 4 7 | 11 4 | - | 1899 | 7 0 | 13 3 | - +-------+-----------+-----------+ - For the 15 years: - 1st six months, 9_s._; - 2nd six months, 10_s._; - year, 9_s._ 6_d._ - -FIRM B. - -_Information obtained._--Wages of five hands tabulated week by week, -for years 1886-99, 1887-99, 1896-99, 1898-99, 1899, respectively. - -Monthly earnings and half-yearly bonus for all regular hands, 1888-99. - -Weekly wages of all hands throughout eighteen months in the years -1886-96 and 1899, three weeks in 1877 and two in 1898. - -This firm employs folders, stitchers, and sewers.--The number of -permanent hands employed increased with slight variations from two in -1886 to twelve in 1899. Jobbers are occasionally employed, sometimes as -many as there are permanent hands. - -Considering the regular hands and choosing each year a wage earner near -the median for that year, we have the following table. - - +--------+-----------+-----------+------------------+ - | FIRM | Total | Bonus. | Average Earnings | - | B. | Wages | | per week, | - | | in Year. | | including bonus. | - +--------+-----------+-----------+------------------+ - | | L _s._ | _s._ _d._ | _s._ _d._ | - | 1887 | 18 0 (a) | 10 6 | 14 3 | - | 1888 | 39 6 | 21 8 | 15 6 | - | 1889 | 38 16 | 20 4 | 15 4 | - | 1890 | 36 6 | 16 6 | 14 4 | - | 1891 | 39 0 | 18 9 | 15 4 | - | 1892 | 39 12 | 20 0 | 15 7 | - | 1893 | 38 8 | 24 0 | 15 2 | - | 1894 | 40 3 | 15 0 | 15 9 | - | 1895 | 37 10 | 19 0 | 14 10 | - | 1896 | 40 7 | 20 0 | 15 9 | - | 1897 | 37 11 | 19 6 | 14 10 | - | 1898 | 40 7 | 20 0 | 15 11 | - | 1899 | 29 11 (b) | 14 9 | 15 6 | - +--------+-----------------------+------------------+ - (a) half-year - (b) 9 months - -In a typical week, January 5th-12th, 1899, the wages were: - - Full workers, average, 16_s._ 2_d._ - 1 at 21_s._ - 5 between 16_s._ and 17_s._ - 4 " 15_s._ and 16_s._ - 1 at 14_s._ 10_d._ - 1 " 12_s._ 9_d._ - - Learners in their third year, 2 at 10_s._ 6_d._ - " " second " 1 " 5_s._ - - 9 jobbers, average 5_s._ 5_d._ - 1 at 7_s._ 2_d._ - 4 between 5_s._ and 7_s._ - 4 less than 5_s._ - - Average, for all except learners, 11_s._ 7_d._ - -FIRM C. - -_Information obtained._--Complete list of wages for first week in every -month, from January, 1897, to February, 1900. - -Full lists in five weeks described as "slack," "busy," or "typical." - -The wages of fifteen hands tabulated, most of them throughout 1897-99. - -The work is divided into four departments:-- - -Binders, from twenty-nine to thirty-eight hands. The median wage -fluctuated in the three years between 11_s._ and 17_s._, excluding -holiday weeks; 13_s._ is the general average. About six are on time -wages. - -In the warehouse, where Government folding is done, five hands are -employed. The median wage of this group fluctuated in 1897 between -16_s._ and 27_s._, being low at the end of 1897. In 1898 and 1899 it was -a little steadier, averaging about 21_s._ (piece rates). - -In the envelope room, where folding and relief stamping is done, seven -to thirteen hands are employed. The median wage is very variable, -fluctuating from 9_s._ to 16_s._, and averaging about 12_s._, chiefly -time wages. - -Machine ruling is done by from four to eleven girls. Their median wage -was nearly steady at 6_s._ in 1897 and 1898, and rose regularly to 8_s._ -in 1899. Nominally these were time wages. - -The following table shows detailed wages in five selected weeks -(learners excluded). - - +------------------+--------------------------+-------+---------+ - | FIRM C. | Typical Weeks. | Busy | Slack | - | | | Week. | Week. | - | +--------+--------+--------+-------+---------+ - | | Nov., | Feb., | Nov., | Dec., | March, | - | | 1898. | 1899. | 1899. | 1899. | 1899. | - +------------------+--------+--------+--------+-------+---------+ - | Binders-- | No. | No. | No. | No. | No. | - | Above 20_s._ | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | - | 18_s._ to 20_s._ | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | - | 16_s._ " 18_s._ | 5 | 3 | 9 | 13 | 1 | - | 14_s._ " 16_s._ | 7 | 10 | 4 | 3 | 0 | - | 12_s._ " 14_s._ | 7 | 4 | 7 | 6 | 2 | - | 10_s._ " 12_s._ | 8 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 14 | - | 8_s._ " 10_s._ | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 9 | - | 6_s._ " 8_s._ | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | - | 4_s._ " 6_s._ | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | - +------------------+--------+--------+--------+-------+---------+ - | Envelope Room-- | | | | | | - | 20_s._ to 22_s._ | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | 18_s._ " 20_s._ | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | - | 16_s._ " 18_s._ | 2 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | - | 14_s._ " 16_s._ | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | - | 12_s._ " 14_s._ | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | - | 10_s._ " 12_s._ | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | - | 8_s._ " 10_s._ | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | - | 6_s._ " 8_s._ | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | - | 4_s._ " 6_s._ | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | - | 2_s._ " 4_s._ | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | - +------------------+--------+--------+--------+-------+---------+ - | Machine Ruling-- | | | | | | - | 8_s._ to 9_s._ | 2 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 0 | - | 7_s._ " 8_s._ | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | 6_s._ " 7_s._ | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | - | 5_s._ " 6_s._ | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 7 | - | 4_s._ " 5_s._ | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | - | 3_s._ " 4_s._ | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | - | 2_s._ " 3_s._ | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - +------------------+--------+--------+--------+-------+---------+ - | Warehouse | s. d. | s. d. | s. d. | s. d. | s. d. | - | Earnings. | 22 4 | 24 1 | 27 9 | 28 0 | 21 6 | - | | 22 1 | 24 1 | 26 10 | 26 10 | 20 8 | - | | 22 1 | 23 3 | 26 4 | 26 3 | 20 8 | - | | 20 5 | 22 1 | 24 6 | 24 9 | 19 3 | - | | 12 7 | 20 10 | 11 3 | 24 0 | 15 6 | - +------------------+--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+ - -FIRM D. - -_Information obtained._--Complete lists of wages in all weeks in 1899. -Wages of thirty-one hands tabulated week by week through 1899. - -The lists are made up in five divisions. - -1. Sixty-five to seventy-eight employed in sewing, folding and collating -(of whom eleven to seventeen are learners). Excluding Bank Holiday weeks -and learners, the average wage fluctuates only between 10_s._ and 13_s._ -9_d._ Average for 1st half, 12_s._; 2nd half, 11_s._ 6_d._; year, 11_s._ -9_d._ - -2. Eighty to ninety (including sixteen to twenty-three learners), -collating and sewing. Average from 10_s._ 7_d._ to 16_s._ 3_d._ Average -for 1st half, 13_s._ 5_d._; 2nd half, 13_s._ 2_d._; year, 13_s._ 3_d._ - -3. Eighty-three to ninety-two (including thirteen to thirty learners), -folding. Average from 10_s._ 6_d._ to 16_s._ 5_d._ Average for 1st half, -13_s._; 2nd half, 13_s._; year, 13_s._ - -4. Layers-on, about six. Average fluctuates from 12_s._ to 24_s._ 8_d._; -1st half, 15_s._ 7_d._; 2nd half, 16_s._ 11_d._; year, 16_s._ 3_d._ - -5. Lookers-over, four or six. Fluctuates from 11_s._ 8_d._ to 15_s._ -10_d._ Average for year, 13_s._ 8_d._ - -The following table shows detailed wages in five selected weeks. - - +------------------+-----------------+-----------------+--------+ - | FIRM D. | Slack Weeks. | Typical Weeks. | Busy. | - | +--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+ - | | Feb. | Feb. | June | Oct. | Dec. | - | | 24th, | 23rd, | 30th, | 13th, | 8th, | - | | 1899. | 1900. | 1899. | 1899. | 1899. | - +------------------+--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+ - | Above 24_s._ | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | - | 22_s._ to 24_s._ | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 5 | - | 20_s._ " 22_s._ | 2 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 16 | - | 18_s._ " 20_s._ | 6 | 3 | 11 | 10 | 33 | - | 16_s._ " 18_s._ | 23 | 20 | 26 | 40 | 36 | - | 14_s._ " 16_s._ | 45 | 58 | 51 | 52 | 59 | - | 12_s._ " 14_s._ | 40 | 44 | 45 | 38 | 17 | - | 10_s._ " 12_s._ | 35 | 32 | 26 | 24 | 19 | - | 8_s._ " 10_s._ | 24 | 19 | 15 | 24 | 17 | - | 6_s._ " 8_s._ | 15 | 15 | 6 | 18 | 7 | - | 4_s._ " 6_s._ | 9 | 9 | 4 | 5 | 0 | - | 2_s._ " 4_s._ | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - +------------------+--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+ - | | s. d. | s. d. | s. d. | s. d. | s. d. | - | Median | 12 9 | 13 4 | 14 0 | 13 8 | 14 10 | - +------------------+--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+ - | Quartiles | 15 0 | 14 9 | 15 6 | 16 0 | 18 0 | - | | 10 0 | 10 4 | 11 4 | 10 6 | 13 4 | - +------------------+--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+ - | Dispersion | .20 | .17 | .18 | .20 | .15 | - +------------------+--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+ - -FIRM E. - -_Information obtained._--Complete wage list for one week each month from -August, 1894, to December, 1899. - -Wages of eight hands tabulated, five through the whole period. - -Folding, stitching and sewing are done. Number employed was nearly -regular, but increased from forty to sixty, and fell back to fifty. - -The median fluctuates rapidly and greatly, but shows a gradual rise from -13_s._ (with fluctuations down to 8_s._ and up to 16_s._) to 16_s._ -(with fluctuations down to 10_s._ and up to 19_s._). The "dispersion" -has changed little, and was about .15. - -The following weeks (table p. 121) show the general run of wages. - - +------------------+---------+---------+---------+---------+ - | FIRM E. | Feb. | July, | Nov. | Feb. | - | | 1895. | 1895. | 1895. | 1899. | - +------------------+---------+---------+---------+---------+ - | Above 24_s._ | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | 22_s._ to 24_s._ | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | 20_s._ " 22_s._ | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | - | 18_s._ " 20_s._ | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | - | 16_s._ " 18_s._ | 1 | 5 | 3 | 0 | - | 14_s._ " 16_s._ | 4 | 10 | 10 | 3 | - | 12_s._ " 14_s._ | 8 | 17 | 18 | 4 | - | 10_s._ " 12_s._ | 13 | 8 | 14 | 12 | - | 8_s._ " 10_s._ | 9 | 7 | 7 | 19 | - | 6_s._ " 8_s._ | 4 | 5 | 2 | 10 | - | 4_s._ " 6_s._ | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | - +------------------+---------+---------+---------+---------+ - | | s. d. | s. d. | s. d. | s. d. | - | Median | 11 4 | 12 7 | 12 5 | 9 10 | - +------------------+---------+---------+---------+---------+ - | Quartiles | 12 11 | 14 7 | 14 4 | 10 11 | - | | 9 8 | 10 8 | 10 7 | 8 4 | - +------------------+---------+---------+---------+---------+ - | Dispersion | .14 | .16 | .14 | .13 | - +------------------+---------+---------+---------+---------+ - | FIRM E. | July, | Nov. | Dec. | A Slack | - | | 1899. | 1899. | 1899. | Week, | - | | | | | 1900. | - +------------------+---------+---------+---------+---------+ - | Above 24_s._ | 0 | 4 | 1 | 0 | - | 22_s._ to 24_s._ | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | 20_s._ " 22_s._ | 5 | 9 | 4 | 1 | - | 18_s._ " 20_s._ | 9 | 9 | 13 | 2 | - | 16_s._ " 18_s._ | 12 | 8 | 7 | 0 | - | 14_s._ " 16_s._ | 7 | 10 | 9 | 3 | - | 12_s._ " 14_s._ | 9 | 6 | 7 | 9 | - | 10_s._ " 12_s._ | 3 | 0 | 4 | 12 | - | 8_s._ " 10_s._ | 0 | 1 | 3 | 13 | - | 6_s._ " 8_s._ | 1 | 0 | 0 | 10 | - | 4_s._ " 6_s._ | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | - +------------------+---------+---------+---------+---------+ - | | s. d. | s. d. | s. d. | s. d. | - | Median | 16 5 | 17 8 | 16 3 | 10 3 | - +------------------+---------+---------+---------+---------+ - | Quartiles | 18 7 | 20 1 | 18 10 | 12 0 | - | | 13 5 | 15 5 | 13 9 | 8 4 | - +------------------+---------+---------+---------+---------+ - | Dispersion | .16 | .13 | .16 | .17 | - +------------------+---------+---------+---------+---------+ - -FIRM F. - -_Information obtained._--Wages for all hands each week in 1896, and -until March, 1900. So few are employed that no average can be given, and -the wages are treated later under individual hands. - -Also a small bookbinding firm. - - 1. A quick folder; wages generally from 12_s._ to 16_s._, but - fluctuations down to 5_s._ and up to 20_s._ - - 2. A quick sewer; very fluctuating, about 10_s._ - - 3. A collator at 31/4_d._ per hour; 12_s._, with fluctuations. - -FIRM G. - -_Information obtained._--List of wages paid in 2nd week in each month, -1896, February, 1900, and four other weeks. - -Wages of fourteen hands; six throughout the period. - -All Departments. - -_Weeks Selected at Beginning and End of Data._ - - +------------------+--------------+--------------+--------------+ - | FIRM G. | 1896. | - | +--------------+--------------+--------------+ - | | Feb. | July | Nov. | - | | 8th. | 11th. | 14th. | - | +----+---------+----+---------+----+---------+ - | | -- | Machine | -- | Machine | -- | Machine | - | | | Rulers. | | Rulers. | | Rulers. | - +------------------+----+---------+----+---------+----+---------+ - | Above 24_s._ | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | - | 22_s._ to 24_s._ | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 | - | 20_s._ to 22_s._ | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | - | 18_s._ to 20_s._ | 4 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 7 | 0 | - | 16_s._ to 18_s._ | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 9 | 0 | - | 14_s._ to 16_s._ | 7 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 9 | 0 | - | 12_s._ to 14_s._ | 3 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0 | - | 10_s._ to 12_s._ | 10 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | - | 8_s._ to 10_s._ | 1 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 4 | 0 | - | 6_s._ to 8_s._ | 0 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 2 | - | 4_s._ to 6_s._ | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | - | 2_s._ to 4_s._ | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - +------------------+----+---------+----+---------+----+---------+ - | (Apprentices excluded.) | - +------------------+------+-------+------+-------+------+-------+ - | Median (without | 14s. | -- | 15s. | -- | 16s. | -- | - | rulers). | 8d. | | | | 6d. | | - +------------------+------+-------+------+-------+------+-------+ - | FIRM G. | 1899. | - | +--------------+--------------+--------------+ - | | July | Nov. | Dec. | - | | 8th. | 11th. | 9th. | - | +--------------+----+---------+----+---------+ - | | -- | Machine | -- | Machine | -- | Machine | - | | | Rulers. | | Rulers. | | Rulers. | - +------------------+----+---------+----+---------+----+---------+ - | Above 24_s._ | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | - | 22_s._ to 24_s._ | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | - | 20_s._ to 22_s._ | 10 | 0 | 13 | 0 | 12 | 0 | - | 18_s._ to 20_s._ | 6 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 11 | 0 | - | 16_s._ to 18_s._ | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 0 | - | 14_s._ to 16_s._ | 2 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 8 | 0 | - | 12_s._ to 14_s._ | 9 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 8 | 0 | - | 10_s._ to 12_s._ | 13 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | - | 8_s._ to 10_s._ | 3 | 2 | 8 | 2 | 7 | 3 | - | 6_s._ to 8_s._ | 1 | 3 | 2 | 6 | 1 | 7 | - | 4_s._ to 6_s._ | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | 2_s._ to 4_s._ | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - +------------------+----+---------+----+---------+----+---------+ - | (Apprentices excluded.) | - +------------------+------+-------+-------+------+------+-------+ - | Median (without | 14s. | -- | 16s. | -- | 18s. | | - | rulers). | | | 6d. | | 2d. | | - +------------------+------+-------+-------+------+------+-------+ - -_Machine Ruling._--Four to nine hands, generally seven to nine. Time -wages. Median moves slowly and steadily from 6_s._ to 7_s._ during -1896-99. - -_Stamping._--Four, increasing to twelve hands, sometimes sixteen. The -low wages are time (presumably learners); the rest piece. Time hands are -excluded in the medians here, and in binding and despatch. Median is -sometimes fluctuating, but not far from 12_s._ or 13_s._ for long. - - _s._ _d._ _s._ _d._ - 1896 1st half-year 14 3 2nd half-year 11 0 - 1897 " " 13 0 " " 13 0 - 1898 " " 12 4 " " 11 11 - 1899 " " 12 6 " " 11 11 - 1900 " " 14 2 (two months) - -_Binding room_, including despatch, till middle of 1897, when numbers -fell from forty to twenty. The despatch room, beginning with twenty, -increased to thirty hands. - - Binding--median varies from 11_s._ to 17_s._ - - _s._ _d._ _s._ _d._ - 1896 1st half-year 14 1 2nd half-year 16 1 - 1897 " " 14 8 " " 15 4 - 1898 " " 15 0 " " 14 4 - 1899 " " 14 2 " " 13 11 - 1900 " " 14 2 (two months) - - Despatch--median steadier and rising. - - _s._ _d._ _s._ _d._ - 1897 1st half-year -- -- 2nd half-year 15 0 - 1898 " " 17 6 " " 18 11 - 1899 " " 19 4 " " 20 9 - 1900 " " 16 3 (two months) - -FIRM H. - -_Information obtained._--Wage list, 3rd week in every month, 1895-98. -Every week in 1899, and eight special weeks. Wages of three hands -tabulated throughout period. - -Work done.--Printers' folding, sewing, magazines. No bookbinding. -Twenty-four to thirty-eight hands. Median very variable; _e.g._, July, -1899, 14_s._ 2_d._, 16_s._ 6_d._, 13_s._ 7_d._, 15_s._ 10_d._ - - _s._ _d._ _s._ _d._ - 1895 1st half-year 11 5 2nd half-year 13 3 - 1896 " " 13 10 " " 12 4 - 1897 " " 12 11 " " 10 2 - 1898 " " 11 5 " " 16 0 - 1899 " " 13 1 " " 14 1 - General trend to 13_s._ - - +------+------+------+------+-------+------+------+-------+------+ - | FIRM | Feb. | Aug. | Jan. | March | Oct. | Aug. | Sept. | Apr. | - | H. | 15th | 16th | 24th | 9th | 7th | 25th | 15th | 6th | - | | 1895 | 1895 | 1898 | 1898 | 1898 | 1899 | 1899 | 1900 | - | | | | (a) | (b) | (c) | (a) | (c) | (b) | - +------+------+------+------+-------+------+------+-------+------+ - | 23s. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | - | 22s. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | 20s. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | - | 21s. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | - +------+------+------+------+-------+------+------+-------+------+ - | 19s. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | - | 18s. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | - | 17s. | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 4 | - | 16s. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | - | 15s. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | - +------+------+------+------+-------+------+------+-------+------+ - | 14s. | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 5 | 1 | - | 13s. | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | - | 12s. | 4 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 1 | - | 11s. | 6 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | - | 10s. | 4 | 4 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | - +------+------+------+------+-------+------+------+-------+------+ - | 9s. | 4 | 9 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 0 | - | 8s. | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | - | 7s. | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | 6s. | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | 5s. | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | | | | | (d) | | | | | - +------+------+------+------+-------+------+------+-------+------+ - | 4s. | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | 3s. | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - +------+------+------+------+-------+------+------+-------+------+ - | Me- | 11s. | 9s. | 10s. | 15s. | 17s. | 9s. | 14s. | 17s. | - | dian | | 4d. | 3d. | 6d. | | 3d. | 7d. | 2d. | - +------+------+------+------+-------+------+------+-------+------+ - (a) Slack. - (b) Typical. - (c) Busy. - (d) 3 learners - -FIRM I. - -Publishers and bookbinders. No printers' folding. - -_Information obtained._--Wage lists: 2nd week in each month, October, -1898, to March, 1900. Total wages every week to March, 1900. Wages of -nine hands tabulated throughout. - - +----+-------------+------+-----------------------------+------+ - | FIRM | - + I. +-------------+------+-----------------------------+------+ - | | Median | Quarterly Averages | - | | varies | (excluding Bank Holiday). | - | | from +------+-----------------------------+------+ - | | _s._ _d._ | 1898 | 1899 | 1900 | - +----+-------------+------+-------+-------+------+------+------+ - | C. | 11 0 - 21 4 | 20 2 | 19 3 | 16 9 | 13 4 | 20 8 | 17 3 | - +----+-------------+------+-------+-------+------+------+------+ - | S. | 7 0 - 15 6 | 14 0 | 12 8 | 9 10 | 8 6 | 13 6 | 13 0 | - +----+-------------+------+-------+-------+------+------+------+ - | F. | 8 3 - 14 2 | 13 2 | 13 0 | 8 11 | 10 0 | 12 2 | 10 5 | - +----+-------------+------+-------+-------+------+------+------+ - | T. | 13 0 - 16 4 | 15 8 | 15 11 | 13 6 | 13 4 | 15 0 | 14 0 | - +----+-------------+------+-------+-------+------+------+------+ - 48 hours: no record of overtime. - C. = Collators (18 to 23) - S. = Sewers (27 to 40) - F. = Folders (53 to 91) - T. = Time workers putting in plates (17 to 22) - - +------------------+------+-------+------+------+------+ - | FIRM I. | Nov. | March | July | Nov. | Feb. | - | | 11th | 10th | 14th | 10th | 9th | - | | 1898 | 1899 | 1899 | 1899 | 1900 | - +------------------+------+-------+------+------+------+ - | 32_s._ to 34_s._ | 1 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | - | 30_s._ " 32_s._ | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | - | 28_s._ " 30_s._ | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | - | 26_s._ " 28_s._ | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | - | 24_s._ " 26_s._ | 5 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 1 | - | 22_s._ " 24_s._ | 2 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 2 | - | 20_s._ " 22_s._ | 11 | 9 | 1 | 10 | 3 | - | 18_s._ " 20_s._ | 14 | 16 | 0 | 11 | 3 | - | 16_s._ " 18_s._ | 20 | 16 | 2 | 14 | 14 | - | 14_s._ " 16_s._ | 25 | 22 | 10 | 13 | 15 | - | 12_s._ " 14_s._ | 22 | 28 | 18 | 30 | 32 | - | 10_s._ " 12_s._ | 24 | 32 | 20 | 25 | 24 | - | 8_s._ " 10_s._ | 14 | 17 | 27 | 6 | 15 | - | 6_s._ " 8_s._ | 7 | 5 | 30 | 4 | 11 | - | 4_s._ " 6_s._ | 3 | 3 | 18 | 1 | 5 | - | 2_s._ " 4_s._ | 4 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | - | 0_s._ " 2_s._ | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - +------------------+------+-------+------+------+------+ - - The total wage bill was:-- - - 1898. L 1899. L 1899. L 1900. L - Oct. 462 Jan. 428 July 245 Jan. 330 - Nov. 483 Feb. 471 Aug. 263 Feb. 346 - Dec. 430 March 569(a) Sept. 502(a) March 408(a) - -- April 305 Oct. 417 -- - -- May 302 Nov. 403 -- - -- June 383(a) Dec. 420(a) -- - (a) Five weeks. - - L - Total in 4th quarter, 1898 1375 - " 1st " 1899 1468 - " 2nd " " 990 - " 3rd " " 1010 - " 4th " " 1240 - " 1st " 1900 1084 - -FIRM J. - -A firm undertaking magazine work. _Information obtained._--General -statement of ordinary wages. Wages in three selected weeks. - -Bookfolding, stitching, wrapping, etc. (magazine work). Work is regular -for three weeks; none in the fourth. - - +------------------+-------+---------+------------------+--------+ - | FIRM J. | Wages of all Employed. | - + +-------+---------+------------------+--------+ - | | Slack | Typical | -- | Busy | - | | (a) | (b) | | (c) | - +------------------+-------+---------+--+---------------+--------+ - | 22_s._ to 24_s._ | 0 | 1 | 34_s._ to 36_s._ | 2 | - | 20_s._ " 22_s._ | 0 | 0 | 32_s._ " 34_s._ | 0 | - | 18_s._ " 20_s._ | 0 | 2 | 30_s._ " 32_s._ | 3 | - | 16_s._ " 18_s._ | 0 | 4 | 28_s._ " 30_s._ | 0 | - | 14_s._ " 16_s._ | 0 | 4 | 26_s._ " 28_s._ | 3 | - | 12_s._ " 14_s._ | 0 | 1 | 24_s._ " 26_s._ | 1 | - | 10_s._ " 12_s._ | 3 | 1 | 22_s._ " 24_s._ | 0 | - | 8_s._ " 10_s._ | 4 | 1 | 20_s._ " 22_s._ | 3 | - | 6_s._ " 8_s._ | 6 | 0 | 18_s._ " 20_s._ | 1 | - +------------------+-------+---------+------------------+--------+ - | | s. d. | s. d. | | s. d. | - | Median | 8 0 | 15 9 | -- | 26 4 | - | Average | 8 4 | 15 7 | -- | 25 11 | - +------------------+-------+---------+------------------+--------+ - (a) Slack Week, Feb. 8th, 1901. - (b) Typical Week, Feb. 15th, 1901. - (c) Busy Week, March 1st, 1901. - -FIRM K. - -A publisher's bookbinder. _Information obtained._--Wage sheet for three -selected weeks in 1898-9. - -A week as slack as the slack week here given, was only experienced two -or three times. - - +------------+---------------+---------------+---------------+ - | FIRM K. | Typical. | Busy. | Slack. | - +------------+---------------+---------------+---------------+ - | | Av. | Av. | Av. | - | | No. _s._ _d._ | No. _s._ _d._ | No. _s._ _d._ | - +------------+---------------+---------------+---------------+ - | Folders | 46 13 1 | 55 15 8 | 43 8 7 | - | (piece) | | | | - +------------+---------------+---------------+---------------+ - | Sewing | 8 22 2 | 8 31 1 | 8 11 7 | - | machinists | | | | - | (piece) | | | | - +------------+---------------+---------------+---------------+ - | Collators | 3 26 10 | 3 27 2 | 5 14 5 | - | (time) | | | | - +------------+---------------+---------------+---------------+ - | Layers-on | 4 14 0 | 4 19 7 | 3 16 11 | - | (piece) | | | | - +------------+---------------+---------------+---------------+ - | Learners | 2 4 11/2 | 2 8 7 | 2 3 7 | - +------------+---------------+---------------+---------------+ - - +-------------------+-----------+---------------+-----------+ - | FIRM K. | Typical. | Busy. | Slack. | - +-------------------+-----------+---------------+-----------+ - | 36_s._ to 38_s._ | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | 34_s._ " 36_s._ | 0 | 1 | 0 | - | 32_s._ " 34_s._ | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | 30_s._ " 32_s._ | 0 | 7 | 1 | - | 28_s._ " 30_s._ | 1 | 1 | 0 | - | 26_s._ " 28_s._ | 1 | 1 | 0 | - | 24_s._ " 26_s._ | 0 | 1 | 1 | - | 22_s._ " 24_s._ | 1 | 2 | 0 | - | 20_s._ " 22_s._ | 9 | 4 | 0 | - +-------------------+-----------+---------------+-----------+ - | 18_s._ to 20_s._ | 3 | 13 | 2 | - | 16_s._ " 18_s._ | 6 | 8 | 3 | - | 14_s._ " 16_s._ | 7 | 14 | 4 | - | 12_s._ " 14_s._ | 11 | 10 | 2 | - | 10_s._ " 12_s._ | 13 | 7 | 15 | - +-------------------+-----------+---------------+-----------+ - | 8_s._ to 10_s._ | 3 | 1 | 16 | - | 6_s._ " 8_s._ | 3 | 0 | 9 | - | 4_s._ " 6_s._ | 1 | 0 | 4 | - | 2_s._ " 4_s._ | 1 | 0 | 2 | - +-------------------+-----------+---------------+-----------+ - | | _s._ _d._ | _s._ _d._ | _s._ _d._ | - | Median | 13 3 | 16 10 | 9 6 | - +-------------------+-----------+---------------+-----------+ - | Quartiles | 19 1 | 19 101/2 | 11 1 | - | | 11 1 | 13 101/2 | 7 10 | - +-------------------+-----------+---------------+-----------+ - -FIRM L. - -Compositors. _Information obtained_: Complete wages of the six hands -employed through 1900. - -No. 1 has been in the trade two and a half years. In 1900 she was away -seven weeks (three, slack trade; two, holidays; two, ill); in the -remaining forty-five weeks her wages fluctuated between 5_s._ and 18_s._ -3_d._, reached a total of L28 15_s._ 9_d._, making an average of 11_s._ -1_d._ weekly through the year, or 12_s._ 7_d._ per week employed. - -No. 2 lost four weeks in 1900 through slack trade. In the remaining -forty-eight weeks her wages fluctuated between 5_s._ 6_d._ and 23_s._; -reached a total of L40 4_s._ 11_d._, making an average of 15_s._ 6_d._ -weekly through the year. - -No. 3 made L52 9_s._, working fifty-one weeks at L1 per week, making -29_s._ overtime, and taking one week's holiday; average, 20_s._ 2_d._ -weekly for the year. - -No. 4 made L37 16_s._ in forty-four weeks, lost five weeks through -slack trade, and took three weeks' holiday; average, 14_s._ 6_d._ weekly -for the year. - -No. 5 made L39 1_s._ 9_d._ in forty-six weeks, lost four weeks through -slack trade, was ill one week and took one week's holiday; average, -15_s._ weekly for the year. - -No. 6 made L22 1_s._ 6_d._ in forty-eight weeks, lost three weeks -through slack trade, was ill for one week. She was unsuccessful in her -work, and only averaged 8_s._ 4_d._ a week through the year. - -FIRM M. - -A press warehouse. _Information obtained._--Wage list in three selected -weeks. - - +-----------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+ - | FIRM M. | Week | Week | Week | - | | Ending | Ending | Ending | - | | Feb. | Nov. | July | - | | 9th, | 24th, | 21st, | - | | 1900. | 1899. | 1899. | - | | Average | Average | Average | - | | wage. | wage. | wage. | - +-----------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+ - | | No. s. d. | No. s. d. | No. s. d. | - | Time workers | 36 15 0 | 37 15 6 | 31 13 5 | - | Folders (piece) | 41 13 3 | 50 14 5 | 31 11 10 | - | Sewers " | 7 14 7 | 7 13 6 | 12 9 1 | - | Apprentices | 11 4 1 | 11 4 2 | 5 4 4 | - +-----------------+-------------+-------------+-------------+ - - +------------------+-----------+-----------+------------+ - | FIRM M. | Feb. | Nov. | July | - | | 9th, | 24th, | 21st, | - | | 1900. | 1899. | 1899. | - +------------------+-----------+-----------+------------+ - | Above 26_s._ | 1 | 1 | 0 | - | 24_s._ to 26_s._ | 0 | 0 | 1 | - | 22_s._ " 24_s._ | 0 | 1 | 0 | - | 20_s._ " 22_s._ | 1 | 5 | 2 | - | 18_s._ " 20_s._ | 3 | 6 | 1 | - | 16_s._ " 18_s._ | 14 | 19 | 1 | - | 14_s._ " 16_s._ | 25 | 22 | 19 | - | 12_s._ " 14_s._ | 16 | 18 | 20 | - | 10_s._ " 12_s._ | 12 | 15 | 15 | - | 8_s._ " 10_s._ | 8 | 4 | 3 | - | 6_s._ " 8_s._ | 3 | 3 | 3 | - | 4_s._ " 6_s._ | 0 | 0 | 5 | - | 2_s._ " 4_s._ | 1 | 0 | 4 | - +------------------+-----------+-----------+------------+ - | | _s._ _d._ | _s._ _d._ | _s._ _d._ | - +------------------+-----------+-----------+------------+ - | Median | 14 3 | 14 9 | 12 9 | - +------------------+-----------+-----------+------------+ - | Quartiles | 15 9 | 17 0 | 14 9 | - | | 10 9 | 12 2 | 11 1 | - +------------------+-----------+-----------+------------+ - | Dispersion | .19 | .16 | .14 | - +------------------+-----------+-----------+------------+ - (Excluding Apprentices.) - -FIRM N. - -Bookbinders. _Information obtained._--Complete wage sheets for three -selected weeks. Folders, piece; collators, time. - - +-----------+--------------+--------------+--------------+ - | FIRM N. | Dec. | Oct. | Aug. | - | | 15th, | 6th, | 18th, | - | | 1899. | 1899. | 1899. | - | | Busy | Typical | Slack | - | | Week. | Week. | Week. | - | | Average | Average | Average | - | | wage. | wage. | wage. | - +-----------+--------------+--------------+--------------+ - | | No. s. d. | No. s. d. | No. s. d. | - | Collators | 18 15 7 | 17 11 3 | 18 11 0 | - | Folders | 20 13 9 | 12 11 10 | 9 9 0 | - | Learners | 16 4 6 | 5 4 1 | 7 2 9 | - +-----------+--------------+--------------+--------------+ - 1 Sewing Machinist, 23_s._ 9_d._ - - +------------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+ - | FIRM N. | Dec. | Oct. | Aug. | - | | 15th, | 6th, | 18th, | - | | 1899. | 1899. | 1899. | - | | Busy | Typical | Slack | - | | Week. | Week. | Week. | - +------------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+ - | 20_s._ to 22_s._ | 4 | 1 | 0 | - | 18_s._ " 20_s._ | 3 | 1 | 1 | - | 16_s._ " 18_s._ | 10 | 1 | 0 | - | 14_s._ " 16_s._ | 10 | 6 | 3 | - | 12_s._ " 14_s._ | 1 | 10 | 5 | - | 10_s._ " 12_s._ | 4 | 6 | 10 | - | 8_s._ " 10_s._ | 2 | 3 | 1 | - | 6_s._ " 8_s._ | 2 | 1 | 3 | - | 4_s._ " 6_s._ | 0 | 1 | 3 | - | 2_s._ " 4_s._ | 2 | 0 | 1 | - +------------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+ - | | _s._ _d._ | _s._ _d._ | _s._ _d._ | - | Median | 15 8 | 12 9 | 11 3 | - +------------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+ - | Quartiles | 16 6 | 14 6 | 12 9 | - | | 11 10 | 11 0 | 8 0 | - +------------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+ - | Dispersion | .16 | .16 | .21 | - +------------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+ - (Excluding Learners.) - -FIRM O. - -_Information obtained._--Wage lists in three selected weeks, probably in -first half of 1900. Five hands. - - +-----------+---------------+--------------+--------------+ - | FIRM O. | Typical Week. | Busy. | Slack. | - +-----------+---------------+--------------+--------------+ - | | _s._ _d._ | _s._ _d._ | _s._ _d._ | - | Folder | 17 6 | 20 0 | 12 6 | - | Stitcher | 21 0 | 26 0 | 15 0 | - | Sewer | 12 0 | 15 0 | 8 6 | - | Laying-on | 12 0 | 15 0 | 11 0 | - | Learner | 5 0 | 5 0 | 5 0 | - +-----------+---------------+--------------+--------------+ - -FIRM P. - -_Information obtained._--Wage lists in three selected weeks. Wages of -twelve selected workers in these weeks. - - +------------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+ - | FIRM P. | Aug. | Dec. | Dec. | - | | 11th, | 15th, | 22nd, | - | | 1899. | 1899. | 1899. | - +------------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+ - | | 1 at | 1 at | 1 at | - | | 27_s._ | 28_s._ | 30_s._ | - | | 4_d._ | 2_d._ | 8_d._ | - | | | | | - | Above 24_s._ | 0 | 2 | 0 | - | 22_s._ to 24_s._ | 0 | 0 | 2 | - | 20_s._ " 22_s._ | 0 | 1 | 12 | - | 18_s._ " 20_s._ | 0 | 13 | 24 | - | 16_s._ " 18_s._ | 8 | 23 | 21 | - | 14_s._ " 16_s._ | 17 | 30 | 21 | - | 12_s._ " 14_s._ | 26 | 20 | 13 | - | 10_s._ " 12_s._ | 24 | 9 | 9 | - | 8_s._ " 10_s._ | 10 | 7 | 1 | - | 6_s._ " 8_s._ | 3 | 0 | 1 | - | 4_s._ " 6_s._ | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | | -- | --- | --- | - | | 90 | 106 | 105 | - +------------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+ - | | _s._ _d._ | _s._ _d._ | _s._ _d._ | - | Median | 15 0 | 15 3 | 16 8 | - +------------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+ - | Quartiles | 14 0 | 17 2 | 19 2 | - | | 10 8 | 13 0 | 14 3 | - +------------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+ - | Dispersion | .11 | .14 | .15 | - +------------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+ - -FIRM Q. - -_Information obtained._--Wage lists in eleven selected weeks. Work -done--machine ruling in its higher branches, usually done by men; also -paging and numbering (see table, p. 131). - - +------------------+------------+-----------+------------+ - | FIRM Q. | 1890. | 1891. | 1897. | - +------------------+------------+-----------+------------+ - | | Nov. 8th. | May 9th. | May 14th. | - +------------------+------------+-----------+------------+ - | 20_s._ to 22_s._ | 3 | 3 | 0 | - | 18_s._ " 20_s._ | 2 | 2 | 3 | - | 16_s._ " 18_s._ | 9 | 6 | 4 | - | 14_s._ " 16_s._ | 9 | 8 | 11 | - | 12_s._ " 14_s._ | 15 | 14 | 12 | - | 10_s._ " 12_s._ | 5 | 7 | 6 | - | 8_s._ " 10_s._ | 6 | 9 | 6 | - | 6_s._ " 8_s._ | 6 | 8 | 10 | - | 4_s._ " 6_s._ | 8 | 8 | 6 | - | 2_s._ " 4_s._ | 5 | 6 | 1 | - | 0_s._ " 2_s._ | 0 | 0 | 0 | - +------------------+------------+-----------+------------+ - | | 68 | 71 | 59 | - +------------------+------------+-----------+------------+ - | | _s._ _d._ | _s._ _d._ | _s._ _d._ | - +------------------+------------+-----------+------------+ - | Median | 12 6 | 11 3 | 12 2 | - +------------------+------------+-----------+------------+ - | Quartiles | 15 4 | 14 3 | 14 6 | - | | 7 4 | 7 0 | 7 7 | - +------------------+------------+-----------+------------+ - | Dispersion | .3 | .3 | .3 | - +------------------+------------+-----------+------------+ - | FIRM Q. | 1897. | 1898. | - +------------------+------------+-----------+------------+ - | | Nov. 12th. | May 13th. | Nov. 11th. | - +------------------+------------+-----------+------------+ - | 20_s._ to 22_s._ | 0 | 3 | 0 | - | 18_s._ " 20_s._ | 2 | 4 | 2 | - | 16_s._ " 18_s._ | 6 | 5 | 7 | - | 14_s._ " 16_s._ | 10 | 8 | 10 | - | 12_s._ " 14_s._ | 12 | 13 | 12 | - | 10_s._ " 12_s._ | 6 | 4 | 5 | - | 8_s._ " 10_s._ | 7 | 8 | 8 | - | 6_s._ " 8_s._ | 7 | 4 | 4 | - | 4_s._ " 6_s._ | 3 | 2 | 4 | - | 2_s._ " 4_s._ | 3 | 5 | 6 | - | 0_s._ " 2_s._ | 0 | 0 | 0 | - +------------------+------------+-----------+------------+ - | | 56 | 56 | 58 | - +------------------+------------+-----------+------------+ - | | _s._ _d._ | _s._ _d._ | _s._ _d._ | - +------------------+------------+-----------+------------+ - | | | | | - | Median | 12 4 | 12 10 | 12 4 | - +------------------+------------+-----------+------------+ - | Quartiles | 14 9 | 15 6 | 15 0 | - | | 8 2 | 8 9 | 8 0 | - +------------------+------------+-----------+------------+ - | Dispersion | .3 | .28 | .3 | - +------------------+------------+-----------+------------+ - | FIRM Q. | 1899. | - +------------------+------------+-----------+------------+ - | | Feb. 10th. | May 12th. | Aug. 11th. | - +------------------+------------+-----------+------------+ - | 20_s._ to 22_s._ | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | 18_s._ " 20_s._ | 4 | 3 | 2 | - | 16_s._ " 18_s._ | 6 | 8 | 1 | - | 14_s._ " 16_s._ | 10 | 6 | 4 | - | 12_s._ " 14_s._ | 11 | 9 | 6 | - | 10_s._ " 12_s._ | 6 | 10 | 10 | - | 8_s._ " 10_s._ | 3 | 5 | 8 | - | 6_s._ " 8_s._ | 4 | 5 | 6 | - | 4_s._ " 6_s._ | 7 | 9 | 4 | - | 2_s._ " 4_s._ | 7 | 2 | 8 | - | 0_s._ " 2_s._ | 0 | 0 | 1 | - +------------------+------------+-----------+------------+ - | | 58 | 57 | 50 | - +------------------+------------+-----------+------------+ - | | _s._ _d._ | _s._ _d._ | _s._ _d._ | - +------------------+------------+-----------+------------+ - | Median | 12 0 | 11 4 | 9 6 | - +------------------+------------+-----------+------------+ - | Quartiles | 15 0 | 15 0 | 13 0 | - | | 6 0 | 7 3 | 6 0 | - +------------------+------------+-----------+------------+ - | Dispersion | .4 | .35 | .37 | - +------------------+------------+-----------+------------+ - | FIRM Q. | 1899. | - +------------------+------------+-----------+ - | | Nov. 10th. | Dec. 8th. | - +------------------+------------+-----------+ - | 20_s._ to 22_s._ | 0 | 1 | - | 18_s._ " 20_s._ | 2 | 2 | - | 16_s._ " 18_s._ | 10 | 9 | - | 14_s._ " 16_s._ | 9 | 10 | - | 12_s._ " 14_s._ | 7 | 10 | - | 10_s._ " 12_s._ | 5 | 7 | - | 8_s._ " 10_s._ | 7 | 4 | - | 6_s._ " 8_s._ | 5 | 6 | - | 4_s._ " 6_s._ | 6 | 14 | - | 2_s._ " 4_s._ | 8 | 1 | - | 0_s._ " 2_s._ | 0 | 0 | - +------------------+------------+-----------+ - | | 59 | 64 | - +------------------+------------+-----------+ - | | _s._ _d._ | _s._ _d._ | - +------------------+------------+-----------+ - | Median | 10 0 | 12 0 | - +------------------+------------+-----------+ - | Quartiles | 15 4 | 15 2 | - | | 6 4 | 6 4 | - +------------------+------------+-----------+ - | Dispersion | .41 | .35 | - +------------------+------------+-----------+ - - * * * * * - -Additional information from other firms, 1900-1901:-- - -FIRM R. Bookbinders. Folders and sewers, 14_s._, 15_s._; head banders, -15_s._; forty-eight hours weekly all the year. - -FIRM S. Eleven numberers; median, 17_s._ 8_d._ - -FIRM T. Printing works. Piece workers make 5_d._ an hour; time workers, -51/2_d._ Four compositors: average, busy week, 23_s._ 2_d._; typical, -19_s._ 11_d._; slack, 18_s._ 9_d._ - -FIRM U. Vellum sewers, 12_s._ to 13_s._ all the year round; numerical -printers, average week, 15_s._ to 16_s._; slack week, 10_s._ - -FIRM V. - - No. Median. Quartiles. - Folders (piece work): _s._ _d._ _s._ _d._ _s._ _d._ - Slack week 38 12 1 9 6 16 0 - Typical week 44 15 6 15 6 20 9 - Busy week 38 20 1 17 10 20 0 - - Counters - (time workers). Stitchers. 1 Packer. - No. Median. No. Median. - _s._ _d._ _s._ _d._ _s._ _d._ - Slack Week 16 10 0 9 9 9 19 1 - Typical Week 14 11 6 9 11 7 20 0 - Busy week 14 11 7 9 11 2 20 0 - -In this case there is very little to choose between the weeks entered as -"typical" and "busy" by the employer. - -FIRM W. - -Two compositors make, at 51/2_d._ an hour, 22_s._ or 23_s._ nearly every -week in the year. - - * * * * * - -The inclusion of the eighty-four workers, of whom we have sufficient -details in firms R. to W., would affect the figures on p. 133 below very -slightly, raising the median and upper quartile 2_d._, and increasing -the proportion between 18_s._ and 22_s._ to 131/2 per cent. of the whole -instead of 121/4 per cent. - - -II.--GENERAL GROUPING OF WAGES. - -The material is not sufficiently complete or homogeneous to allow any -complete account of wages at any date; but the tables now given -(supplemented occasionally by the raw material) allow us to offer an -estimate of the grouping in a typical week of 1899, supposing each firm -to be paying typical wages in one and the same week. This method is -rough, and will not support any fine calculations to be based on it; but -at the same time it affords a view, sufficiently accurate for most -purposes, of the general trend and distribution of wages. All classes of -workers, except apprentices and learners, are included. - - AN ESTIMATE OF WAGES IN A TYPICAL WEEK IN 1899 OF 1,001 WORKERS IN - ALL BRANCHES. - - Less 2_s._ 4_s._ 6_s._ 8_s._ 10_s._ - than to to to to to - 2_s._ 4_s._ 6_s._ 8_s._ 10_s._ 12_s._ - 1 17 41 68 92 131 - - 12_s._ 14_s._ 16_s._ 18_s._ 20_s._ 22_s._ Above - to to to to to to 24_s._ - 14_s._ 16_s._ 18_s._ 20_s._ 22_s._ 24_s._ - 174 177 131 72 55 17 25 - - Of those above 24_s._: - - 24_s._ 26_s._ 28_s._ 30_s._ 32_s._ 36_s._ - to to to to to to - 26_s._ 28_s._ 30_s._ 32_s._ 34_s._ 38_s._ - 11 6 4 1 2 1 - -These figures are so similar in many respects to those which generally -arise when a large group of trades are massed together, that they afford -strong evidence that they make a fair sample. - -Remembering the roughness of the hypothesis, and not assuming that these -wages multiplied by fifty-two give annual earnings, we find, in a week -which the employers regard as typical, the following: Average, 13_s._ -8_d._; median, 13_s._ 8_d._; quartiles, 10_s._ 6_d._, 16_s._ 10_d._; -dispersion .23. Thus, half the wage earners obtain between 10_s._ 6_d._ -and 16_s._ 10_d._; and 80 per cent. obtain from 7_s._ 4_d._ to 20_s._ - -There is some doubt as to who are and who should properly be included at -both ends of the series. At the lower end, no doubt, some learners have -been included, and some piece workers excluded, for in a typical week -there would certainly be some cases where the wages were abnormally low. -On the other hand, in the large number above 24_s._, no doubt many above -the status of the ordinary worker are included, and some are definitely -stated to be forewomen. - -If we omit all above 24_s._, we have: Average, 13_s._ 4_d._; median, -13_s._ 7_d._; quartiles, 10_s._ 5_d._, 16_s._ 6_d._ - -The difference in these averages is not significant. - -The table is best written in percentage. - - 2_s._ 4_s._ 6_s._ 8_s._ 10_s._ 12_s._ - to to to to to to - 4_s._ 6_s._ 8_s._ 10_s._ 12_s._ 14_s._ - 2 4 7 9 13 17 - - 14_s._ 16_s._ 18_s._ 20_s._ 22_s._ - to to to to to Above - 16_s._ 18_s._ 20_s._ 22_s._ 24_s._ 24_s._ - 18 13 7 51/2 2 21/2 per cent. earning. - -Note, that if these wages were repeated week by week through the year -the average worker would make about L35. - - -III.--CHANGE OF WAGES BETWEEN 1885 AND 1900. - -Where wages are continually fluctuating week by week and month by month, -while, in addition, there are depressions and inflations affecting -various groups of workers for one or two years, it is a matter of very -great statistical difficulty to determine whether wages have on the -whole been stationary, rising, or falling. Even if we had a complete -account year by year these difficulties would remain; but as it is we -are dependent on the records of only seven firms--good, bad, or -indifferent--since 1885, 1887, 1894, 1895, 1896, 1897, and 1898, -respectively. No amount of further research would make such records more -than very insufficient, for it is very rarely that the figures are -preserved for any length of time. What changes there are may very likely -be due to peculiarities of a particular firm, to its success, or to -changes in character of work, and only in case of agreement in all the -figures could we generalise. Our conclusions, then, will be chiefly -negative. - -There is no sufficient evidence that wages in 1899 are above or below -wages about 1895, 1890 or 1885; the only difference appears to be due to -individual busy or slack years. - -In the two cases (C. and G.) where machine rulers are separated their -wages have risen from 6_s._ to 8_s._ in 1897-99. - -As regards the years 1896-99, there is no general agreement as to any -two years, but the figures are consistent with a slight general -improvement from 1895 to 1900. - -There is nothing in the figures to show that the course of wages in Firm -A. given above is different from that in the trade in general, while -there is just a little evidence that it is the same. We therefore repeat -the annual average wage in that firm:-- - - 1885. 1886. 1887. 1888. 1889. - 9_s._ 1_d._ 8_s._ 10_d._ 9_s._ 9_s._ 4_d._ 10_s._ 1_d._ - - 1890. 1891-2. 1892-3. 1894. 1895. - 10_s._ 6_d._ 9_s._ 6_d._ 9_s._ 8_s._ 11_d._ 9_s._ 4_d._ - - 1896. 1897-8. 1899. - 9_s._ 8_d._ 10_s._ 4_d._ 10_s._ 1_d._ - - -IV.--WAGES IN DIFFERENT OCCUPATIONS. - -The occupations are so involved, and the arrangements differ so much -from firm to firm, that it is impracticable to state a definite wage for -any occupation, and the wages are so diverse that it is useless to -speak of an average wage. The table on p. 135 gives a general view of -the wages of those hands who can be labelled with some exactness, and it -is seen that the facts are so complex that they cannot be summarised in -a few words. The wages included are the actual weekly averages (total -annual receipts divided by fifty-two) in 1899, except where they are -otherwise distinguished. - - +--------------+-------------------------------------------------+ - | WAGES IN | Numbers whose average weekly wages were | - | DIFFERENT | _s._ | - | OCCUPATIONS. +---+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+-----+ - | | | 6 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 16 | 18 | 20 | | - | | > | to | to | to | to | to | to | to | to |Above| - | | 6 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 16 | 18 | 20 | 22 | 22 | - +--------------+---+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+-----+ - | BOOKBINDING | | | | | | | | | | | - | HOUSES | | | | | | | | | | | - +--------------+---+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+-----+ - | Handfolders | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | - +--------------+---+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+-----+ - | Folders | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | who were | | | | | | | | | | | - | also sewing | | | | | | | | | | | - | machinists, | | | | | | | | | | | - | gatherers, | | | | | | | | | | | - | placers, | | | | | | | | | | | - | or sewers | | | | | | | | | | | - +--------------+---+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+-----+ - | Handsewers, | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | - | or collators | | | | | | | | | | | - | and | | | | | | | | | | | - | gatherers | | | | | | | | | | | - +--------------+---+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+-----+ - >6 = Under 6 - - +--------------+-----------+ - | WAGES IN | Median. | - | DIFFERENT | | - | OCCUPATIONS. | | - +--------------+-----------+ - | BOOKBINDING | _s._ _d._ | - | HOUSES | | - +--------------+-----------+ - | Handfolders | 13 4 | - +--------------+-----------+ - | Folders | 12 6 | - | who were | | - | also sewing | | - | machinists, | | - | gatherers, | | - | placers, | | - | or sewers | | - +--------------+-----------+ - | Handsewers, | 15 0 | - | or | | - | collators | | - | and | | - | gatherers | | - +--------------+-----------+ - - +--------------+-------------------------------------------+-----+ - | WAGES IN | Numbers whose average weekly wages were | | - | DIFFERENT | _s._ | | - | OCCUPATIONS. +---+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+-----+ - | | | 6 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 16 | 18 | 20 | | - | | - | to | to | to | to | to | to | to | to |Above| - | | 6 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 16 | 18 | 20 | 22 | 22 | - +--------------+---+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+-----+ - | PRINTING | | | | | | | | | | | - | HOUSES: | | | | | | | | | | | - +--------------+---+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+-----+ - | Folders who | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 12 | 3 | 6 | - | were also | | | | | | | | | | | - | sewers | | | | | | | | | | | - | or stitchers | | | | | | | | | | | - +--------------+---+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+-----+ - | Folders in | 9 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 8 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 5 | - | typical | | | | | | | | | | | - | week, 1901 | | | | | | | | | | | - +--------------+---+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+-----+ - | Gatherers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | - +--------------+---+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+-----+ - | Inserters | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - +--------------+---+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+-----+ - | Numberers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 0 | - +--------------+---+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+-----+ - | Counters in | 0 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | typical | | | | | | | | | | | - | week, 1901 | | | | | | | | | | | - +--------------+---+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+-----+ - | Stitchers | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - +--------------+---+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+-----+ - | Compositors | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 2 | - +--------------+---+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+----+-----+ - - +--------------+----------+ - | WAGES IN | Median. | - | DIFFERENT | | - | OCCUPATIONS. | | - +--------------+----------+ - | PRINTING | _s._ _d._| - | HOUSES: | | - +--------------+----------+ - | Folders | 18 6 | - | who were | | - | also sewers | Maximum | - | or stitchers | 26 10 | - +--------------+----------+ - | Folders in | 15 6 | - | typical | | - | week, 1901 | | - +--------------+----------+ - | Gatherers | 18 0 | - +--------------+----------+ - | Inserters | -- | - +--------------+----------+ - | Numberers | 17 8 | - +--------------+----------+ - | Counters in | 11 7 | - | typical | | - | week, 1901 | | - +--------------+----------+ - | Stitchers | 11 6 | - +--------------+----------+ - | Compositors | 18 6 | - +--------------+----------+ - -[Illustration: Firm D.--Wages Week by Week in 1899. 1. _Looker-over_ -(_time_, 14_s._ 6_d._). 3. _Folder and Sewer (piece)._ Firm G.--1896. -_Dispatch (piece)._] - - -V.--EARNINGS OF INDIVIDUALS. - -Out of the 130 lists we have, showing the actual earnings week by week -of individuals for periods of one to fifteen years, thirty-nine have -been selected, twenty-six of which are tabulated on the following pages -(Appendix VI.), and twelve of which are represented in the following -diagrams. These have been selected as illustrating the various classes -of workers and of work. - -The most noticeable characteristic of the diagrams is the frequency and -violence of the fluctuations, and the same is found in a study of the -original figures throughout. - -A few time hands (Appendix VI.; diagram C), are nearly regular; only one -shows perfectly regular earnings; many fluctuate as rapidly as the piece -workers (Appendix VI.; diagram D. 2), and on the sheets we have several -actual records of lost time and overtime, showing how these changes -arise; others show a steady increase with slight movements (Appendix -VI.; diagram A. 4). - -The four Bank Holiday seasons are marked on most of the diagrams and -wage lists. - -The most interesting, novel, and important feature of these lists is the -light thrown on the very obscure relation (obscure in all branches of -industry) between "nominal," "average," or "typical" wages and actual -annual earnings; there are in existence very few actual records of -individuals' earnings over a series of years for any workers in the -United Kingdom. The workers included in the list are among the more -regular ones, who succeed in keeping their place month after month. -Though the wages vary so greatly week by week, yet when we come to take -the average over any period greater than, say, two months, we find there -is but little variation. Thus, in the example from Firm B. in diagram, -the quarterly average is between 16_s._ and 17_s._ for nine years, -except for absence in two quarters, and the annual average is still -more regular. The great bulk of the regular workers (folders and the -like) make a sum between L30 and L40 every year, and between L7 and L11 -every quarter. - -In view of this result, periodic pressure becomes relatively unimportant -for the regular hands. There is no season in the industry as a whole -shown in the wage lists. The different firms and different workers have -in many cases their regular times of pressure like bank clerks and -schoolmasters; these times are sometimes monthly, sometimes quarterly. -In other cases no rule is to be discovered. - -The most important effect of this irregular pressure is in the number of -jobbers employed. - - -VI.--JOBBERS. - -Jobbers usually come in at the busy season and make good money. As they -go from house to house, it is impossible to get a full account of any -particular jobber's earnings. - -Jobbers are frequently employed in Firm B, and in many cases the highest -wage earned is by a jobber. Thus in the last week of April, 1895, out of -thirty workers, fifteen were jobbers; the eleven highest sums were -earned by them, five being over L1. - - -VII.--TIME AND PIECE RATES. - -The distinction between time rates and piece rates is not vital; the -method of payment seems to be accidental, and the custom varies from -house to house. Machine rulers seem generally to have time rates, and -these are among the lowest earners, while some of the best paid -permanent hands are also time. On looking through the lists of -individuals' earnings, it is seen that time earnings are sometimes quite -as variable as piece earnings, for hours worked fluctuate continually. -In other cases the time payment is much more regular, showing -fluctuations only at holidays. - - - - -APPENDIX I.--POINTS UPON WHICH ENQUIRIES WERE MADE. - - -1.--TRAINING. - - (_a_) Method, Indentures or not. - - (_b_) Length. - - (_c_) Age when it begins. - - (_d_) Premiums. - - (_e_) Wages during training. - -Comparison between length of training in vogue now and formerly, to be -obtained where possible. - - -2.--WAGES (_Forms appended_). - -Wages throughout the factory or workshop for two or three slack and two -or three busy weeks to be obtained where possible, and for a few -ordinary hands throughout the year. - - -3.--CONDITIONS OF WORK. - - (_a_) Describe the nature of the work, and subdivisions. - - (_b_) Is it a season trade? - - (_c_) Is it healthy? Is there a special trade disease? - - (_d_) Is much strength or intelligence needed? - - (_e_) Is dangerous machinery used? - - (_f_) Average hours per week; meal hours. - - (_g_) Is there a chance of rising? If so, to what position? - - -4.--ORGANISATION. - -What attempts have been made to organise women, and with what success? - -Attitude towards, and knowledge about, Women's Unions? - - -5.--MARRIED AND UNMARRIED WORKERS. - -How long do women remain in the trade? - -Proportion of married to unmarried. - -Are there signs of married women lowering rates of pay? - -Comparison between married and unmarried as workers. - - -6.--SEPARATE FACTORY LEGISLATION. - -(A.) Economic effects:-- - - (_a_) Instances of women being turned off owing to Factory - Legislation. - - (_b_) Do the restrictions imposed by the Factory Acts hinder the - employment of women? - - (_c_) How far do these restrictions influence wages? - - (_d_) How far has legislation diverted the industry from or to, - factory, workshop, or home? - -(B.) Contrast between conditions of work before and after Act of 1867. - - -7.--MEN AND WOMEN. - -Instances where either sex replaces the other, and the reasons for it in -each case. - -Relative wages when men and women do the same work. - -If women's wage is lower, why is it? - -Attitude of Men's Unions towards female labour. - - -8.--WOMEN AND MACHINERY. - -How far has machinery increased or diminished women's work? - -How far does the cheapness of women's work tend to retard the -introduction of machinery? - - -9.--HOME WORK. - -In which branches is this done, and to what extent? - -Plant required. - -Rates of pay compared with work done inside. - -Why, from the point of view of the home worker in each case, is home -work done? - - -10.--INFLUENCE OF WOMEN'S WAGES ON THE FAMILY INCOME. - -Occupation of husband. - -Amount contributed towards home expenses. - - - - -APPENDIX II.--DESCRIPTION OF CERTAIN TYPICAL FIRMS. - - -1. A.,[94] _A well-known Printing Firm in London. Employee's -Information._ - -[Footnote 94: Index letters by which reference is made to the firm in -the body of the volume, except in the chapter on wages.] - -WORK.--Folding, sewing, numbering, etc. - -REGULARITY.--The work is not seasonal, at any rate at A. - -HEALTH.--Numbering is very bad for a weak chest and makes one's head -ache as well. Girls with weak chests cannot stand it. Folding, however, -is not unhealthy unless the hours are too long. - -HOURS.--At B. they are 48 per week; but at A. they are 531/2, distributed -as follows:--Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 6.30 p.m.; -Thursday, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Friday, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Saturday, 9 a.m. -to 1 p.m.; one hour for dinner and half an hour for tea being allowed -each full working day. - -GENERAL.--The sanitary arrangements are very bad at A., and lavatories -open straight out of workrooms, and are in very bad condition. One does -not use them unless she wants to get a fever. The company is very mixed. -"You can tell that it is rather a low place, because the girls wear -curlers and nothing is said. When one works at B. she has to take out -curlers before she comes. You can always tell the sort of place when the -girls wear curlers." - - -2. _A well-known Printing Firm in London. Forewoman's Information._ - -WORK.--6 or 7 girls are employed at machine ruling, and a few at vellum -sewing and folding. - -REGULARITY.--The girls are kept on all the year round. - -HOURS.--The hours are from 8 a.m. to 7.30 p.m., with one hour for dinner -and half an hour for tea. - -PROSPECTS.--Might rise to forewomen, but that not common. - -GENERAL.--Work girls have nothing to complain of now; they are always -very well looked after. - - -3. S., _Small Printing Firm in London. Employee's Evidence._ - -WORK.--16 girls and 1 man (who is an engineer) are employed, S. helping -himself. Upstairs there are 2 men "blocking," and 2 girls powdering for -them. The girls do all the printing, _e.g._, the informant can set up -the type, lock it into the frame, make ready, and then feed the platen -machine--which alone is used in this firm. Informant can also clean the -machine. She also does "bronzing," _i.e._, dusting-on bronze with a pad. -The girls powdering upstairs do nothing else. A few younger girls fold -circulars. - -REGULARITY.--Work is steady, and they are always busy. - -HEALTH.--Bronzing is most unhealthy. ----'s colour has all gone since -she was put on to it a few weeks ago. "You are supposed to have milk to -drink, but you never get more than half a cupful at the end of the day, -when it is too late. The inspector has been round and has asked about -the milk, but of course the manager said that milk was always given." -(Informant looked very ill.) She had to stay away from work all the -previous Thursday, and lost a shilling in consequence. Her father and -mother say she must leave the work or she will die. "You see, they lost -a brother of mine at twenty-three and a sister at thirteen, and they -don't want me to go off too." - -The powdering done by the girls in the blocking room is very unhealthy. -None of them can stand it long. They get ill and go off elsewhere. It -brings on consumption. - -Feeding machines is very tiring. - -One girl works the cutting machine, which is unfit for a woman and very -dangerous. A girl who worked it lost her finger and was six weeks in -hospital, but the firm paid her well not to tell. The printing machines -are dangerous, for you often get your fingers caught; it comes back -quicker than you expect. - -HOURS.--The hours are from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., with one hour for dinner -and a quarter of an hour for tea; on Saturdays, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., -with half an hour for a meal. They never get away at 6 though, not till -6.30 or later, for there are the machines to be cleaned and things to be -cleared up. - -GENERAL.--Mr. S. sometimes comes round and talks as if he were the -kindest of employers. "He'll say, 'Take care of your head, there, dear.' -It makes you sick to hear him. If he'd give better wages it would be -more to the point." - - -4. Q., _Job Printing Firm in London. Visit to Works._ - -WORK.--I went through the works and saw 10 extra young girls sticking on -pockets for stamps on to an appeal sheet of ...; one girl feeding a -platen machine which was gumming instead of printing; 4 or 5 upstairs in -the regular folding room folding.... - -REGULARITY.--Q. has only 4 or 5 regular hands, and when there is a rush -of work, he takes on job hands. "You put up a bill and can easily get -100 if you want them." He dislikes the custom, but does not see how it -is to be obviated in the printing trade. "You suddenly have 75,000 -circulars to do, and you don't know when the next order will be." - -HOURS.--The hours are from 8 a.m. to 6.30 p.m., with one hour for -dinner, ten minutes for lunch and ten minutes for tea. Girls prefer -this to half an hour for tea and leaving at 7. On Saturdays the hours -are from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., no meal time being allowed. The married -women, however, rarely come till 9 a.m. - - -5. L., _Printing, etc., Firm in London. Employee's Evidence._ - -WORK.--200 girls are employed at L.'s. Informant does folding now, used -to do sewing by machine. - -REGULARITY.--The work is regular, "but you never know when the work is -coming in. They are always busy with the ... guides at the end of the -month, and two or three job hands come in." - -HEALTH.--She has always found the occupation healthy. - -PROSPECTS.--None; is slow herself. She has worked at L.'s six years, and -has never known of anyone becoming a forelady. - -DANGERS.--She has never had an accident, and was working on a machine -for five years. - -HOURS.--The hours are from 8.30 a.m. to 7 or 8 p.m., with an hour for -dinner (from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m.), and half an hour for tea (4 p.m. to 4.30 -p.m.) and from 8.30 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturdays. Sometimes they are let -off early if there is no work. But some girls go and lark about in the -street, and then the manager scolds the forelady and she will not let -the others go. She never takes a holiday except Bank Holidays. - -GENERAL.--Only talks to a few of the girls, but they are quite a nice -set. - - -6. T., _Weekly Newspaper Firm in London. Visit to Works._ - -WORK.--Folding, gathering, collating, sewing (all sewing by machinery), -or stabbing with wire, insetting, wrappering (glue pot), feeding folding -machines. - -REGULARITY.--It is more or less regular, but there is the regular weekly -and monthly work, so there is less fluctuation than in "binding houses." - -Tuesday to Friday are busy days, and the forewoman employs some married -women who come in as long as they are wanted. - -DANGERS.--One stitching machine is dangerous, the forewoman said; the -folded sheet has to be pushed along with the hand and there is the -_chance_ of the hand being caught. - -HOURS.--The hours are from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., occasionally till 8; one -hour being allowed for dinner and half an hour for tea. - -PROSPECTS.--The girls may rise to forewomen and a sort of -deputy-forewoman, chosen by forewoman, to overlook certain rooms. The -girls are not, as a rule, at all eager for the responsibility. - - -7. _Large Bookbinding Firm in London._ - -(A.) _Manager's Information._ - -WORK.--Folding, sewing, collating, placing plates, laying-on gold, etc. - -REGULARITY.--The work is partly seasonal. They are busy in the winter -time, and work to limits allowed by the Factory Acts; they are slack in -the summer, and may even have no work for three weeks or so at a time. - -DANGERS.--They have only had two accidents. One was with an ordinary -sewing machine; the other was with a Bremner machine, when a little girl -was setting it up. She caught her finger in it, but was not away from -work a fortnight. - -HOURS.--They work 48 hours per week, allowing one and a half hours for -meals per day, _i.e._, from 8 a.m. to 12, from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., and -from 4.30 p.m. to 6.30 p.m.; on Saturdays, from 8 a.m. to 12. This -really comes to 49 hours a week if the girls are punctual, but he -reckons 48 hours because they are not punctual. - -PROSPECTS.--Only a chance of rising to forewomen. - -(B.) _Forewoman's Evidence._ - -REGULARITY.--It is a season trade and they are just beginning to be -slack (March) in Miss X.'s shop where the new work is done. - -HEALTH.--Miss X. "had been through it all," and thought folding -dreadfully tiring. There is nothing specially unhealthy about it. - -HOURS.--The hours are supposed to be 49 a week, but if there is any work -they do not keep to that. A 48 hours' week only means that the time -workers get paid extra. Miss X. worked in a place where they were -supposed to have 51 hours a week but rarely made more than 40. - -The firm make their girls stay as little as possible when there is no -work, but this is very different to most places, as the workpeople are -studied here. - -(C.) _Employee's Evidence._ - -WORK.--In E., Bible work and new or cloth work are quite separate, and -there are separate hands for each. She did folding for the Bible work -herself. - -HEALTH.--The work is not very healthy. "Sitting all day is bad for you," -but there is no special disease. Bible work is light work, as much of it -is on India paper; new work is much heavier. - -HOURS.--The hours are from 8.30 a.m. to 6.30 p.m., with an hour for -dinner and half an hour for tea, but when busy they work till 8 p.m. or -9 p.m. This happens about thirty times a year. They are allowed to go -home if there is not work. - -[There is a very nice set of girls at the Bible work; they are -particular there about whom they take, and it is a very good house to be -in.] - -GENERAL.--It is rather dull and tiring working because they are not -supposed to talk to each other at Bible work. - - -8. _Printing and Stationery Firm in London. General Information._ - -TRAINING. In the Book-folding and Vellum Sewing Department the girls -have an agreement to serve two years. - -_Age At Beginning._--Fourteen. - -_Premium._--None. - -_Wages._--6 months at 1_s._, 6 months at 2_s._ 6_d._, 6 months at 5_s._, -and 6 months at 7_s._ 6_d._ per week. - -IN THE NUMBERING, RELIEF STAMPING, ETC., PACKING Department there are no -indentures or regular system of apprenticeship but girls are expected to -serve about two years. - -_Age At Beginning._--Fourteen. - -_Premium._--None. - -_Wages._--Girls start at 1_s._ per week, for, say, three months, then -get three-quarter earnings. Very few are trained in this firm, they take -on workers who have learnt elsewhere. How many branches learners are -taught seems to depend on chance. Some old hands do all the processes, -some only one. - -MACHINE RULING.--In this department there is no system. Little girls -come and feed at 5_s._ and 7_s._ per week. When they have been at it a -year or two they are drafted off to other departments. - -LITHOGRAPHIC WORK.--There is no regular training in this department. It -only takes about two weeks to learn the work done by girls here. - -NOTEPAPER FOLDING requires no training. "Why! you could pick it up in a -week or two." - -WAGES.--The firm does much work for public bodies, and so has to pay -"fair" wages. The manager did not seem to know whether this applied to -women's work too, but evidently it does. - -DEPARTMENT I.--NUMBERING, ETC.--The manager gave wages as 11_s._ to -16_s._ per week, some being paid on time and some on piece work. The -foreman considered 14_s._ to be about the average. The following girls -were questioned:-- - - One packer got 12_s._ (time wages) per week. - - Another packer got 13_s._ (time wages) per week. - - One piece relief stamper got about 13_s._ (piece work) per week. - - Another piece relief stamper got about 16_s._ (piece work) per - week. - - One numberer got 15_s._ (piece work) per week. - -DEPARTMENT II.--LITHOGRAPHIC FEEDING.--Here girls start at 6_s._ and -rise up to 14_s._ (time wages). - -DEPARTMENT III.--MACHINE RULING.--In this department all wages are for -time work. Quite little girls receive 4_s._ or 5_s._ up to 7_s._ per -week. They are drafted off when they want higher wages than that. There -were, however, two older ones in the room who were folding and counting -the ruled foolscap paper at 14_s._ per week. - -DEPARTMENT IV.--BOOK-FOLDING, ETC.--Out of the 45 girls employed in this -department, 10 were on time work, and were being paid from 13_s._ to -16_s._ per week. The piece workers, according to the forewoman, were -making from 13_s._ to 16_s._ per week, taking all the year round. Some -were making over 20_s._ per week. - -DEPARTMENT V.--VELLUM WORK.--All 15 girls employed here were on time -work. They got 11_s._ per week when first out of their time; 12_s._ -after two years. None were receiving over 12_s._, except one who "makes -up" at 13_s._ a week. These wages were given by the forewoman. The -manager seemed surprised that they were not higher, and remarked that -they were lower than in the book-folding department. The forewoman said -that in most places the vellum workers got more than book workers, but -this firm had arranged otherwise. - -DEPARTMENT VI.--The girls FOLDING NOTEPAPER in the warehouse were -getting 13_s._ or 14_s._ (time wages) per week. - -WORK.--Department I.--NUMBERING, RELIEF STAMPING, PERFORATING, PACKING, -AND GUMMING going on. - -The numbering and the stamping are different trades, done by different -girls, but most of them can do packing as well, though in some cases -they learn packing only. They can mostly do perforating and gumming, -odds and ends too. Some were folding postal forms. Special envelope -orders are done here. About 35 girls were employed. - -There was one man doing the illuminating required and working at a -rather heavy press. There was also a good number of youths doing -numbering. I tried vainly to find out what they were paid. The manager -and the foreman said that they were not doing the same work; it was the -same except that a name was stamped on as well as a number (it was on -money orders). Two girls were also doing this, but I was assured that -that was only "by accident." Two or three boys were perforating and -stamping. - -DEPARTMENT II.--LITHO PRINTING. Girls were feeding machines and washing -rollers. About 12 girls were employed. - -DEPARTMENT III.--MACHINE RULING. Little girls were feeding the ruling -machines, and a few older ones were counting and folding the foolscap -paper; 18 girls were employed. - -DEPARTMENT IV.--BOOKBINDING AND SEWING. All sorts of folding, sewing and -stitching (by machine mostly), eyeletting, etc., etc., were being -carried on, and about 45 girls were employed. - -DEPARTMENT V.--VELLUM WORK. Sewing, folding, etc., for account books and -ledgers was being done; 15 girls were employed, also one girl -"laying-on" for cloth work, and two or three running errands. - -DEPARTMENT VI.--In the WAREHOUSE were three girls folding notepaper. - -REGULARITY.--Work here is constant all the year round. The forewoman in -the book-folding department said they only had in job hands about twice -a year. - -HOURS.--The firm works about 54 hours per week, _i.e._, from 8 a.m. to 7 -p.m., with one hour for dinner, half an hour for tea, and ten minutes -for lunch. On Saturdays they work from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. - -OVERTIME.--It was very difficult to get anything definite about overtime -pay. The manager first said that they all got 6_d._ an hour overtime. -Then he said that piece workers were simply paid at piece rates. The -forewoman in the book-folding department said that time hands got 4_d._ -an hour overtime. In the vellum work they never had any overtime. These -extra payments seem to be irregularly made. - -PROSPECTS.--The girls can rise to forewoman's position, here or -elsewhere. Vellum work forewoman mentioned that two of her young ladies -had become forewomen elsewhere. - -ORGANISATION.--The manager knew that a Women's Union existed, but -thought it was more of a Benefit Society than anything else. He assured -me that the problem of the organisation of women's labour was the -problem in trade, and seemed vaguely to regret that women were so -helpless and ready to be cut down. - -MARRIED AND UNMARRIED.--The manager estimated twelve years as the -average period that a woman remained in the trade. He fancied that there -were a good many married women here; but when we went round and asked -the different heads of departments we found that the only married ones -were 2 in the litho department, _i.e._, 2 out of 12 in that department, -_i.e._, 2 out of about 128 employed altogether. In the other departments -the forewomen or foremen did not care to have them because they were so -irregular. "You can never count on them." Two widows were employed in -the book-folding department. The head of the litho department had only -lately found out that two of his employees were married--one had run -away from her husband, the other's husband was a stone polisher and she -had to come out to keep the house going. The manager was very decided -that undoubtedly married women's work tended to lower wages. They only -want a little to supplement their husbands' earnings. He explained -afterwards that his remarks applied more to the provinces than to -London. He thought that the thing to aim at in improving the industrial -position of women was the abolition of the married woman worker. How -this could be done he could not say. The forewoman of the book-folding -and sewing department, who had had some experience of married jobbers, -said that they would not do ordinary work at ordinary rates, as they did -not consider it worth their while. They had not _got_ to earn any money, -as they had husbands to fall back upon. The manager said that in the -litho department the single girls thought it _infra dig._ to wash the -rollers, but the married women "made no bones about it." - -LEGISLATION.--In no case had women been turned away because of -restrictive legislation. A certain amount of folding and stitching has -to be done by men at night, and he would say that about 2 or 3 men were -employed at this for about one hour five nights in the week. Sometimes -the folding was not ready till 11 p.m., and the men had to hang about -before. The manager thought that the chief grievance of the Factory Acts -was that if only one woman in a department was employed overtime, one of -the thirty legal nights was thereby used up. The manager thought that it -was forty-eight nights you might work overtime, and seemed surprised on -looking up the notices to find that it was thirty only. He approved of -Factory Legislation on the whole, and thought that women had benefited -by it. Personally, he would like to see all overtime abolished by law -for men and women. Men worked worse next day when they had had to sit up -at night. Public bodies were the worst offenders in the matter, "They -have no consciences." The forewoman of the folding and sewing, where -overtime was worked, said that her girls disliked overtime very much; -and she did not think it worth while working them, as they could do less -work next day in consequence. She had much rather that the men did it at -night. She and the manager agreed that in places where women did not -make a decent wage by working ordinary hours they might want to work at -night. As to the effect Factory Legislation had upon the diverting of -work from the home to the workshop, or _vice versa_, the manager thought -that the tendency had been for work to come in to the factory. There -used to be much more home work. - -MEN AND WOMEN.--According to the manager, there is a hard and fast line -drawn by the various Societies in London as to what a woman may or may -not do. - -In _Bookbinding_ of all descriptions she is practically confined to -folding and sewing. She may not touch a glue brush or do any putting of -paper books or magazines into paper covers. - -In the provinces, on the other hand, the rules of the Consolidated -Societies are different. A woman may do flush binding (_i.e._, books -whose covers are cut on a level with the leaves and which have no -"turnings in") up and foolscap size, two quires. Hence women do diaries, -etc. In certain works at Tonbridge women are set to do this. - -_Litter-press Printing._--This firm had never tried female compositors. -They had 100 men. If they tried to introduce women, all the men would go -out and "you'd have a hornet's nest." The idea of paying women at the -same rate as men struck them as ridiculous. "They would never be worth -as much because they stay such a little time." They might some day try -women compositors in their country establishment. - -_Feeding Printing Machines._--They might not employ women on platen -machines because of the Union, but were going to try them on smallish -letter-press machines. The Union had no objection to that. - -_Machine Ruling._--The firm only had little girls for feeding. The -foreman remarked that at R.'s, "over the water," they had women to do -most of their ruling, but did not seem to think that it would be worth -while to train a woman for it. At first he said that the Men's Union -would object, then said that he thought they would not; only he would -have to give the woman the same pay as a man, "and fancy giving a woman -32_s._ a week!" This was uttered in a tone of supreme contempt. The -manager remarked that he supposed it would not matter paying the woman -the same if she did as much work, but the foreman smiled superior to the -idea. - -WOMEN AND MACHINERY.--The manager thought that the output of printed -matter had increased so enormously since the introduction of machinery -that more hands than ever were employed. - -The forewoman of the folding and sewing department said that it seemed -as if there must be fewer employed, and yet she had never turned any -off. - -HOME WORK.--No home work is given out by the firm. Since so much was -done by machinery it was not worth while to send work out. - -INFLUENCE ON FAMILY INCOME.--The manager and forewoman and foreman said -that none of the girls were working for pocket-money. Most lived at home -and helped their parents; some who had no parents lived with relatives. - -GENERAL.--The premises were rather nice and the people looked superior -and friendly. There was a great gulf fixed between the litho girls and -the others. The latter look down tremendously on these former and would -not think of speaking to them. They are a much lower set to look at and -their language is reported not to be choice. Many of them were arrayed -in curlers, whilst none of the girls in other departments wore these -decorations. - -The vellum sewers were said by their forewoman to be "a nice family -party." - - -9. _Lithographic Firm. General Information._ - -GENERAL.--I saw the manager; he was "very much on the spot," friendly -and communicative, and took me all over the works and was quite -interested in showing different processes. He said he had to look sharp -after his workers, and so they often thought him a bully. - -WORK.--Chief work done is lithography, but there is also a certain -amount of letter-press work. Engraving and stationery orders are given -out in sub-contract. - -TRAINING.--In the binding room, _i.e._, where folding is done, there are -no learners now, but they need to have one or two. These apprentices -were taken on from fourteen years of age without premiums, and were kept -two or three years according to ability. They were paid a few shillings -to begin with, and, if good at their work, they rose gradually. If slow -and stupid, they got nothing. The forewoman said she did not care to -take learners now; "they are more trouble than they are worth." - -In the litho room the firm never had apprentices. The new hands come in -and begin "taking-off" for about 8_s._ By-and-by, according to their -nimbleness, they are elevated to "layers-on." - -In card mounting there is no training. It is picked up in a few months, -and new hands start at about 8_s._ per week, time wages. - -WAGES.--_Binding Room._--The staff (12 girls) are all on time work, the -extra hands are paid piece work. Time wages range from 12_s._ to 14_s._ -I was shown last week's wages, and they ranged from 7_s._ to 15_s._, the -forewoman having L1 2_s._ 6_d._; 7_s._ to 8_s._ was the predominant -figure. Job hands on piece "make as much as 15_s._ in a full week," I -was informed, but the wage book that week showed they had only made -about 7_s._ or 8_s._ - -For overtime, time and a quarter is paid to all time workers, ordinary -rates to piece workers. - -_Litho Work._--All wages in this department are time wages, and vary -from 8_s._ to 12_s._ or 14_s._ In the wages book the predominant figure -was 7_s._; there were two 5_s._ and some 8_s._, and up to 12_s._ When -bronzing the workers appeared to get 1_s._ extra. - -_Card Mounting._--All time wages paid here, and they were said to range -from 8_s._ to 12_s._ In the wages book, however, 6_s._ and 7_s._ were -the predominant figures. Some were as low as 5_s._, and there were a few -girls who had drawn 8_s._ - -NO. EMPLOYED.--There were about 200 employees, of whom one-third were -women. The number fluctuated, I was told. - -_Litho Artists' Work._--8 or 9 men were employed on this, but no women -on the premises. The firm often accepted sketches from lady artists -living outside, some of whom could even work on stone. - -_Litho Machine Work._--Girls are employed feeding litho machines, and -they have about 30 when busy. When I was there only about 12 were -engaged. When bronzing by hand is wanted these girls are set to it (13 -were doing it last week). In the same room is - -_Card Mounting._--There were only 3 girls at that, but sometimes there -are as many as 12 or 13. This consists of pasting the advertisement, -almanac, etc., on to a piece of cardboard, varnishing it, eyeletting it, -tying the bits of cord through (the 3 girls were doing that), and -sometimes putting gelatine over the surface--a minor trade, at which -they get better paid. - -The same girls do occasional work in the _cutting_ room; not at the big -guillotines, but (_a_) at feeding a machine which cuts the strips down -or blocks into bent shapes like a small almanac of ----'s mustard which -I saw; (_b_) at putting shapes on to huge piles of sheets of -advertisements and labels, which are then pressed into the sheets by a -heavy top weight being brought down by steam. They were doing some big -"flies," on to which a string was to be put, so that they could be -whirled round and buzz. - -_Binding Room._--There were only about 12 girls employed, but there was -room for 100, and they have them in at a press of work. They do folding -by hand in this firm for certain newspapers and all sorts of -advertisements. Wire stitching is also done. They were folding various -things, packing up labels, and so on, when I was there. - -REGULARITY.--The firm's trade fluctuates, but by no regular fixed -seasons; they are always busy before Christmas. - -HEALTH.--I was told that it was quite a mistake to think bronzing -unhealthy. The manager stated he had known men at it for months at a -time without any evil effects. They sometimes imagined themselves ill, -but he had never known of a single case of real illness. They grumble at -doing it, and pretend that they are afraid of it because then they get -extra money (1_s._ extra a week). They really object to it because it is -bad for clothes--as you get covered with dust--and uncomfortable to be -all powdered with gold. - -He had a machine below on which most work was done, except when there -was a great press. Messrs. ---- gave him out so many thousand to do; he -could not do them fast enough with only one machine, and it was not -worth while having more than one as he had not work enough ordinarily. -No dust escaped from the machine. As a proof of the healthiness of -bronzing he said that he stood for three or four hours in the middle of -it all, "keeping them to their work" (which they want), and got all -covered over with the dust himself. "You wouldn't get a manager doing -that himself if it were unhealthy." He always gave his bronzers one pint -of milk a day to drink, he stated with pride. - -The other work, folding, card mounting, etc., was all quite healthy. -Indeed, work was unhealthy more on account of bad ventilation than of -any circumstance belonging to itself; he always had the window open and -a board put across the bottom, 6 ins. high, on the most approved plan. -The workpeople grumbled very much and tried to paste up every crevice -with brown paper, but they could not shut it. They objected to the -incandescent burners which he put in, for they liked the heat of the gas -and missed it. - -DANGERS.--Occasionally girls catch their skirts in wheels and so on, but -there are never any "bad accidents." "With people of that class it is -'funk' more than pain that they suffer; they will turn as white as -anything from just a little flesh wound with a cog-wheel." The Factory -Inspectors were very fussy about fencing machinery, he thought. He told -me long stories about men's carelessness and how the boys would sit on -the edge of the lift. He fined them 2_s._ 6_d._ for it. - -HOURS.--The hours are about 54 a week, from 8 a.m. to 6.30 p.m., with -one hour for dinner. The women are allowed by the forewomen to have -lunch in the middle of the morning and tea in the afternoon, and when -the men are industrious the manager has no objection to their taking -"snacks." If it is an idler, he objects. - -When busy, the work continues till 8 p.m. He had not used special -exemption once the last year. - -PROSPECTS.--There are no prospects except for the girls in the binding -room. The present forewoman ("a jewel") had been with the firm for -thirty years; one or two others whom she had trained could take her -place. - -ORGANISATION.--He had no knowledge of any Women's Unions covering the -women employed here. This is a Society house in every branch for the -men, but the manager said, "Trades Unionism is all humbug," and he would -like to do away with it altogether, if possible; but it is so strong in -London that if you want to get good men you must be a Society house. - -MARRIED AND UNMARRIED.--He employed 2 or 3 married women amongst litho -feeders. The firm ask no questions, but he said he knew most of the -workers. - -A lot of the job hands were married, but none of the regular hands in -binding room. - -LEGISLATION.--In manager's opinion legislation had not in any way -injured the position of women workers. It did not affect him at all. He -never employed men to fold at night, because it would not pay. -Occasionally, when the litho machines had to be kept working late, he -had to draft in men from other departments to feed them, and he could -understand that a small printer, without different departments, would -find it awkward. - -He would not himself have the place open at night with girls working in -it. He would not take the responsibility of that; they would "lark -about, etc." He thought it all to the women's advantage that they must -not work at night. - -The intentions of the Factory Acts are good, and he approved of them in -principle, but there was a lot of humbug about them and the L.C.C. -regulations,[95] _e.g._, making him have six basins for lavatory for his -workers. They never used more than two, preferring to follow each other, -and they broke the others, and then round came the inspector and said -you must have six. - -[Footnote 95: This is allowed to stand as an indication of the frequent -misunderstandings our investigators met with regarding the L.C.C. This -body appeared to be charged with everything that caused irritation.] - -The L.C.C. put a premium on burglary by making it compulsory to have a -way out on to the roof. The Factory Inspector was not a practical man, -and ordered a great deal of unnecessary fencing of machinery. He told me -how one night he kept the girls late without giving notice (the work -came in unexpectedly), and sat by the telephone so as to send up notice -to the forewoman if the inspector came. It was not the Factory Acts -which kept women from being compositors. - -MEN AND WOMEN.--Women did litho artists' work at home, and there was no -reason why they should not be quite as good at it as men. It was paid by -the merits of the sketch. - -_Feeding Litho Machines._--He used to have boys, and a few years ago -introduced girls. They were much better at it, cleaner, quieter, and -more careful to place the paper exactly than boys. - -He still had boys for _feeding letter-press machines_--why, he did not -quite know, except that it was the custom; then, having thought about -it, he said further, that it was because less care was needed. Girls -were no cheaper than the boys were, and were introduced solely on -account of being better workers. - -He had no women compositors, and employed only 12 men, and he did not -see how he could work the two together, though he did not see why women -should not do all the setting-up and the display work, though they could -not lift the formes. He did not think the Union objected. It never had -been the custom though. - -He never had women to work _cutting machines_. The men would object. - -Women never rose to mind the _printing litho machines_; he did not think -they could do it. - -He had only one _platen machine_, worked and fed by a boy; but in some -places, where cheap things were done by this machine, _e.g._, paper -bags, girls attended to it. - -Men used to do _folding_ in his youth, and they still did _stationers' -folding_, notepaper, etc., in some houses. - -HOME WORK.--The firm gave out a certain amount of folding when there -was a press of work. The forewoman knew of old hands and others who -could do it at home. He considered that to be quite a convenient -arrangement. - -INFLUENCE ON FAMILY INCOME.--Many of the job hands were married women, -who liked to come out occasionally for a few extra shillings. Others -were single girls, who preferred to be paid by the piece, and go about -from house to house, making as much as time workers for shorter hours. - - -10. _Paper Colouring and Enamelling Firm in London, also engaged in -Showcard Mounting and Varnishing and Book-edge Gilding. Employer's and -Manager's Information._ - -Both were very communicative. The former, after repeated questions from -me as to how things were done, took me over the whole place, intending -only to show me the varnishing, and finally letting me see everything. -He is a working-class master who has risen. His father had a small -business, and he has made it a big one. It is one of the biggest firms -in the trade. - -TRAINING.--_Card Mounting._--The firm indentures apprentices, who agree -to stay three or four years. They are taken on at fourteen years of age, -and are paid 4_s._ a week for the first year, and then receive a portion -of their piece work earnings, varying according to efficiency, from -one-fourth, one-half, three-fourths, two-thirds, and so on, according to -skill. They come for a month first to see if they suit. - -_Paper Colouring and Enamelling._--In this department apprentices are -also indentured for two years. They are taken on at fourteen, and are -paid 4_s._ a week first year, then a portion of their piece earnings as -above. - -_Varnishing and Sizing._--No training is given for this. Girls must be -tall, or they are no use. Any girl will be "good at it" after three -weeks. - -The employer remarked that parents could not afford to pay a premium. It -was very provoking when girls went off after four years, when a lot of -trouble had been spent in teaching them. I was shown some cards which a -girl, who was supposed to be competent, had spoilt by pasting the sheet -on so that there was a blister; 385 out of 500 were similarly spoilt, -and they cost 6_d._ each, he said. - -WAGES.--_Card Mounting and Paper Colouring._--Piece work rates are paid -here, with overtime at the same rate. It is difficult to give an -average. One girl would make 25_s._, while another girl would only make -7_s._ at the same work in the same time. After consideration, the head -gave it as his opinion that 12_s._ 6_d._ a week would be what the -ordinary girl would earn, taking the whole year round, slack with busy -times. They were kept on all the year at this firm. Sometimes a girl -would make as much as 28_s._ - -It was further stated that a girl might make 6_d._ in less than an hour -at night, when the colours were mixed and she was finishing a job, -whereas it might take her a whole morning to earn the 6_d._ next day. - -A quick girl could do 1,000 eyelets in an hour, eyeletting being paid at -10_d._ per 1,000. - -_Varnishing and Sizing._--Piece work wages are paid here, with overtime -at same rates. Wages are reckoned by the lump sum for the gross work -done, and divided equally amongst all the hands. The division is made by -the firm, not the workers. We asked one girl what she took last week, -and she said 14_s._; but my guide said that the average would not be so -high for the year, say 12_s._ - -WORK.--There are four separate departments or businesses here, in three -of which the work is done by women. - -_Varnishing and Sizing_, where 16 girls are employed. The calendars, -advertisements, and so on, to be varnished are placed in a pile on a -table underneath the long webbing band, and a girl sits there and feeds. -They are caught up and passed round rollers, and are sized or varnished -as the case may be. Another girl stands facing the machine, seeing that -they pass round all right. They are then carried over the top of the top -roller along the webbing band, which stretches the full length of the -room, till they come to the drum at the end, round which the band passes -on its return journey. There girls take them off and place them in -racks, the bottom one of which is on a small trolley. When a big pile of -racks (about 51/2 ft. high) is filled the girls wheel it off, lift up a -door, and push it into a big cupboard which takes up all the middle of -the room, and above which is a fan. There they are left to dry, and when -dry the girls wheel them out again and take out the sheets. - -There were two rooms in which this was being done, with about 8 girls in -each. There was also a third room at the side, where they make up odds -and ends, _e.g._, make up packets of "Happy Families," fold odd papers, -eyelet a few things, and so on. There was only 1 girl in this; sometimes -there are several. When a girl comes in first she does this work. - -_Card Mounting._--About 30 or 40 girls were employed at this. This -consists in putting the advertisements, calendars, and so on, on to the -big sheets of cardboard and finishing them off. There are various -different processes. The board has to be cut, and this is done either by -a man or a girl who feeds the rotary cutting machine. The sheet of card -is "lined," _i.e._, the back pasted on, and edges pasted over if -required. Then the picture (or calendar) that is to go on it is pasted -down, the girls covering the backs of about four pictures (or -calendars), and then pressing them down one after another. For some work -eyelets are then punched, and in the best work the edges are bevelled by -a little machine consisting of a wheel in a trough, along which the edge -is pushed. In the case of a good deal of School Board work there is a -narrow band of tin or brass at the top which finishes it off, and out of -which comes a brass loop by which to hang it up. The men cut the brass -into slips, and the girls work about five hand machines, the principle -of which is that you put in your map (_e.g._), put the tin or brass slip -of metal in the right position, pull down a handle, lift it up, and the -work comes out with the metal band pressed down on each side and the -loop fixed in the middle. For other work, such as big maps, charts, -diagrams, and so on, wooden rods are used as rollers, etc., and the work -of fastening is done by girls. - -_Paper Colouring and Enamelling by Hand._--Only 12 women were engaged -upon this work--a considerable decrease. The sheet of paper to be -coloured is placed in front of the girl, who then wets it over with the -colour (black when I saw it) by means of a brush like a whitewash brush -(the manager said that they were whitewash brushes with the handles -taken off), which she dips into a bowl. She then takes another round -brush, about 10 ins. in diameter, and brushes over the whole surface, so -that the colour lies quite evenly. The sheet of paper is then hung, as -it were, on to a clothes line to dry. These lines stretch over the room. - -Enamelling is done in identically the same way, only it is enamel, not -colour, which is put on. - -Enamelled paper is the very shiny coloured paper used for end pages of -books, for covering confectionery and similar boxes, etc. - -Marbling is never done by this firm. All the coloured paper is in plain -colours, marbling being a quite different process. - -_Book-edge Gilding._--Only men are employed in this. - -REGULARITY.--The _card mounting_ department is specially busy before -Christmas with calendars, almanacs, etc., but advertisement cards are -turned out all the year. - -_Paper colouring_ comes in rushes, but is not a seasonal trade. - -_Varnishing_ is sometimes busier at one time than at another, but it is -not seasonal. The work of this firm is such that no job hands are -employed. - -HEALTH.--_Paper Colouring and Enamelling._--Mr. ---- called down one -woman who had worked there fourteen years, and her mother before her. -She looked very strong and healthy. The other girls were not so robust -looking as she, but did not look _ill_. One was sitting in one of the -colouring rooms during the dinner hour, her hands all coated over with -paint, eating bread and butter. Mr. ---- rebuked her and told her that -she ought to wash her hands, and that he was always telling her to do -so, but she did not obey, and went on eating stolidly. - -The colouring girls were all splashed over, and so were the walls. The -rooms were close and dirty. Work was done standing. - -_Card Mounting._--The rooms were close and dirty, and the work seemed -tiring. - -_Varnishing and Sizing._--The smell and heat were enough to knock one -down when one first went in, though one ceased to notice it after a bit. -There are hot pipes connected with the machine to dry the papers. The -place looked very dirty, and my guide showed me how the dust all stuck -to any varnish about, so that the racks, if left out for a day, got -covered with flue. The girls did not look strikingly unhealthy. They -have to drag heavy loads about. One or two looked a bit pale. - -QUALIFICATIONS.--I should judge that strength was required for all three -departments, as girls are standing all day. Only tall girls are taken in -the varnishing room; short ones would be no good for moving about the -racks. The head said that no great intelligence was wanted for any -department, but a good deal of "perseverance" for card mounting and -paper colouring. If girls are careless at card mounting they spoil the -whole thing. - -DANGERS.--The only machinery was the varnishing machine, and the firm -had never had any accident with it, and there seemed no reason why there -should be any. If girls are careless they are dismissed. The employer -considered the Compensation Act to be very unfair: "If a girl slips on -your iron staircase because her shoelace was undone, you have to pay -her." - -HOURS.--The hours worked are from 9 a.m. to 7.30 p.m., with one hour for -dinner and half an hour for tea; on Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. On a -board a notice was put up stating that work begins as follows: 9 a.m. -for women, 8 a.m. for boys, 7 a.m. for men. - -PROSPECTS.--There is 1 girl in the _varnishing_ department who gets "a -trifle more than the others," owing to her skill. In _card mounting_ -there are no prospects. A foreman manages the _paper colouring_ -department, so that there is no chance of the women becoming forewomen. -The firm once tried a forewoman, but she was not a success. She could -not match the colours properly, etc. Mr. ---- and the robust worker -seemed to think such a thing beyond a woman's power (especially the -latter, who scorned the idea of a forewoman). - -ORGANISATION.--The head did not know if there was a Union or not. "They -do not give us any trouble." - -MARRIED AND UNMARRIED.--Only 1 or 2 married women were employed by the -firm, and they were confined to the colouring department. One married -woman had been there fourteen years. - -LEGISLATION.--My informant did not consider that legislation had injured -the woman worker at all, but had benefited her by lessening her hours of -labour. Legislation was very hard on him, however, especially in the -paper colouring and varnishing work. "A customer comes in with some work -at 1 o'clock on a Saturday. You say you cannot do it till Monday. -'Well,' he says, 'I shall get it done elsewhere.' People working at home -are found to do it, and as they have not got the machinery or appliances -it means that they work at it all Sunday, and make their little children -of nine or ten work too, whereas the grown women may not work an hour -longer in factories." Mr. ---- evidently feels bitterly about this. It -would not pay to keep men on this kind of work. He would like more than -thirty days a year exemption for overtime. Besides, the girls would -often like to make a few shillings extra overtime. This was corroborated -by the paper-staining girl. - -MEN AND WOMEN.--In the head's youth men used to do all the card -mounting; women were introduced for it about twenty-eight years ago. -They were brought in because the men drank so and kept away from work. -Men used to do paper colouring and varnishing, too, and were replaced -by women for the same reason. The Unions gave no trouble about this. - -No women were employed in book-edge gilding by this firm. Mr. ---- and -an old man employee said that some people got their wives to help lay-on -the gold and so on, but it did not come to much. - -MACHINERY.--_Paper colouring and enamelling_ machinery has diminished -women's work _considerably_. The head used to have 45 women at it--two -whole floors--and now only has 11. It is done by machinery elsewhere. A -certain amount is still done by hand, and must always be, as it is not -worth while putting anything under five reams on a machine. - -_Varnishing._--The head invented the present machines because the women -kept away so. There used to be many more women in the trade. - -_Card Mounting._--No machines are employed for this. Girls can feed the -rotary cutting machine, but it is generally done by a man. - -HOME WORK.--No work is sent out from here. A good deal of paper -colouring and of varnishing is done by people in their own homes (see -under "Legislation"). - -FAMILY INCOME.--Very little information on this subject could be had -here. One girl in the varnishing room was pointed out to me, dressed in -black, whose father had recently died. She was the eldest of eleven, and -was "keen on picking up an extra shilling or two." - -GENERAL.--The whole place was dirty, and there was hardly a vacant inch -to squeeze past in. Mr. ----, however, did not seem a bad sort of man; -the girls did not seem in the least in awe of him. All the girls looked -of the regular factory girl type, sloppy and dirty, and with their hair -in curlers or curl papers. - -Mrs. ----, the paper stainer, who came down to talk to me, seemed a -friendly, rough-and-ready, low-class woman. Her mother worked in the -trade, and when she herself was a baby her cradle was rocked on the -colouring board, and "many is the night" that she sat up all night as a -child helping her mother at home. She seemed to have thriven on it, and -to be immensely proud of her industrial career. - - -11. _Bookbinding Firm, West End. London. Employee's Evidence._ - -WORK.--Trade in the West End is quite different to that in City firms. -This employee picked to pieces and sewed. - -REGULARITY.--Hers was not a seasonal trade. She was busy all the year -round, but in January and July there was a special press, owing to the -number of magazine volumes then being bound. - -HOURS.--She worked 48 per week, the length of the ordinary day being -from 8.30 a.m. to 6 p.m. - -PROSPECTS.--She had never known anyone who rose to be a forewoman, but -supposed some did rise. Girls from West End shops could not be City -forewomen because they knew nothing about machines, and in all -advertisements for forewomen knowledge of sewing machines was put as a -necessary qualification. - -GENERAL.--I asked why their hours were so much shorter than dressmakers, -and have come to the conclusion that it was because the men had got an -eight-hours' day. She said this class of workers in City shops is lower -than in these West End places, and yet in the City workplaces the best -industrial training is given. - - -12. _Bookbinding Firm in London. Employee's Evidence._ - -WORK.--Works at a large place about five minutes' walk away (not the -same place where she learned). There are four rooms of women. N. M. -works in a room on the third floor, where there are 80 women under two -forewomen, sisters. In this room folding, stitching, gathering and -sewing (hand) is done. - -In the fourth room there are 12 girls doing machine sewing. - -The two lower floor rooms each have about 10 or 12 girls. In one of them -laying-on of gold is done. - -She herself does stitching, folding and gathering, hardly ever sewing. - -REGULARITY.--Orders are very slack sometimes, especially just now -(August). There had been a great deal of sitting idle, and they had only -been making 6_s._ or 7_s._ per week. They did not like to go "out to -grass" for fear of losing work if it should chance to come in. It was -difficult to get off for a holiday. Sometimes they were told at 1 p.m. -that they could go home. - -HEALTH.--_Gold laying-on_ was unhealthy. The dust got on the chest. -_Folding_ and _Sewing_ were very tiring, because "you are sitting in one -position all day." _Gathering_ is the most pleasant, because you walk -about and get a little exercise that way. - -PROSPECTS.--There is not much chance of rising. The forewoman and -under-forewoman are sisters, and stay on and on. If one of them were to -give up, her successor would be taken from the time workers. The piece -workers might rise to be time workers, if they cared. - - -13. _Bookbinding Firm in London. Employee's Evidence._ - -WORK.--This informant was engaged at gold laying-on exclusively, but was -originally a folder and sewer. - -REGULARITY.--In this firm it is a seasonal trade, and slack sometimes as -well. She left M. because of slackness. - -HEALTH.--It is not very healthy. Layers-on cannot have the windows open -because of the draught blowing the gold about, also the gas used for -"blocking" overheats the rooms. Girls sometimes faint three or four -times a day, and get anaemic. After working overtime at ----'s would -often stagger in the streets. "You have to drink a lot of tea to keep -you up." - -HOURS.--48 a week is about the normal working time, from 9 a.m. to 7 -p.m., with one hour for dinner and half an hour for tea, as at M., and 9 -a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturdays; or else from 8.30 a.m. to 6 p.m., as at N., -with one hour for dinner, and 8.30 a.m. to 12 noon on Saturdays. She -preferred 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., because then she got a tea half-hour. "One -got so faint going on till 6.30 p.m. from 2 p.m." - -At O. there was a great deal of overtime; not at M. - -PROSPECTS.--She could have been a sort of forewoman at sixteen over 6 -other girls at P., but an older hand persuaded her not to; and being -ignorant of the ways of the world she agreed not to, and then the older -hand became forewoman herself! That was her only chance of promotion. - - -14. J., _Bookbinding Firm in London. Employee's Evidence and Visit to -Works_. - -WORK.--Folding, numbering, perforating, sewing. The regular staff do -all, but the firm take in job hands for folding only, when busy. - -REGULARITY.--The regular hands are kept on all the year round. - -HOURS.--The hours worked average 54 a week, from 8.30 a.m. to 7.30 p.m. -My informant said they were "obliged by the Factory Act[96] to have half -an hour for lunch from 11 a.m. to 11.30 a.m., but they did not take more -than a quarter of an hour, or else they ate whilst working;" dinner from -1 p.m. to 2 p.m., and tea from 5 p.m. to 5.30 p.m. On Saturdays the -hours are 8.30 a.m. to 2 p.m., with 11 a.m. to 11.30 a.m. for lunch. - -[Footnote 96: This, of course, is incorrect.] - -PROSPECTS.--The girls may rise to forewomen. One who had just risen -quickly to that position was going off to be married. - -GENERAL.--They can cook food on the premises at this firm. - - -15. B., _Stationery Firm in London. Visit to Works_. - -WORK.--About 150 to 200 women are employed. - - (1) Hand folding and cementing of envelopes (includes putting band - round packet). - - (2) Machine folding and cementing of envelopes (includes putting - band round packet). - - (3) Black bordering. - - (4) Stamping, plain and relief. - - (5) Printing of addresses for circulars, etc. (small machines). - - (6) Packing twelve packets in long packets and sample packing. - - (7) Vellum sewing (folding, sewing, and looking over). - - (8) Perforating (in same room). - - (9) Machine ruling. - -The number of women at each process in the part of factory seen were as -follows:-- - - (1) About 27, (2) 30, (3) 1, (4) 4 stamping, (5) about 8, (6) 3 - and 1 sample packer (probably many more), (7) 4 sewing, 1 looking - over, 2 hanging about, (8) 1, (9) 4. - - There are 42 other workers who are all older hands. - - The girls employed in (1) are a superior grade to those in (2) - and will not mix at all. Wages about the same. (3), (4), (5), (6), - (7) and (8) are more or less same grade as (1); (9) are lower than - (2). - -REGULARITY.--The work here is steady all the year round. - -HEALTH.--All the girls are healthy, and the work is quite healthy. - -HOURS.--They work 51 hours per week. - -PROSPECTS.--Envelope hand folders can rise to be cementers or forewomen -(envelope hand folders being themselves a superior class to machine -folders or machine rulers); packers can rise to be sample packers. - - -16. R., _Stationery Firm (Christmas Cards, etc.) in London. Visit to -Works_. - -WORK.--There are three departments:-- - -(1) _Relief Stamping_, with 20 regular hands. These girls work the -presses, which are of the newest kind, and some of which are very heavy. -They do monograms and all sorts of designs on menus, wedding cards, -Christmas cards, ball cards, etc., and stamp in gold, silver, or -colours. - -(2) _Hand Painting_, with 21 regular hands. This means filling in -stamped-out or printed designs of various kinds of cards with colour, -_e.g._, figures of soldiers, flowers, and so on. - -(3) _Packing Department_, with about 12 regular hands. They do up the -cards in packets, fold and gum special wedding envelopes, paste pictures -on to cards, tie the little ribbon bows on cards, and do all the many -little processes required for finishing this kind of work. - -REGULARITY.--The work of this firm is very seasonal. The busy time is -for about three months before Christmas, but they are specially rushed -for the six weeks before Christmas. The regular hands are kept on all -the year round, but about 25 or 30 extra are employed for the packing -room for six weeks before Christmas. In the other departments they get a -few married hands just to come in and help. They are now (July) -preparing books of Christmas cards, but the orders for private Christmas -cards do not come in till November and December. - -The girls who work in the packing room pack scents, etc., at other times -of the year. - -HEALTH.--The work is quite healthy and the girls all appeared to be -healthy. The premises were light and airy. Two of the relief stamping -presses _looked_ very heavy indeed, and the forewoman said that they -were really men's work. The girls working them always had the same -machines, and did not look ill, though they said that it was very -tiring. - -MACHINERY.--Machinery has not displaced women in this firm. - -HOURS.--For _stamping and packing_ the hours are from 9 a.m. to 6.30 -p.m. with three-quarters of an hour for dinner and a quarter of an hour -for tea; on Saturdays, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., with half an hour for -lunch. For _painting_ they are from 9 a.m. to 5.45 p.m., with the same -meal hour; on Saturdays, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. - -The hours of painters had been shortened about a year ago, and it was -found that they did just as much work. For the six weeks before -Christmas they regularly work from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., with as much -overtime as is allowed, _i.e._, three nights a week. - -PROSPECTS.--They may rise to forewomen; _e.g._, the forewoman over the -stampers came as an ordinary hand. - -GENERAL.--There is a dining room, and every girl can pay 3_s._ a week -and get dinner of meat and pudding and tea every day. This covers all -expenses, wages of cook, gas for stove, all utensils, etc. Last year -there was money over, so they had free meals for a week. - - -17. G., _Large Stationery Firm in London. Visit to Works_. - -WORK.--About 60 girls are employed. _Stationery and Printing_ with -following divisions:--(1) Plain cameo and relief stamping (about 25 -girls), (2) illuminating, _i.e._, putting on the colour by hand (2 -girls), (3) envelope folding and cementing (9 girls), (4) packing, -including cleaning (girls in each department), (5) folding notepaper -(saw 3 little girls doing this), (6) feeding printing machines, big and -small, and lithographic machines (about 6 girls), (7) various odd jobs, -_e.g._, cutting visiting cards to proper size, (8) feeding ruling -machine (1 girl). - -REGULARITY.--This firm's trade is regular. They are busy all the year -round, though perhaps they are busiest at Christmas. The bulk of their -orders come from the country though. - -HEALTH.--The little printing and lithographic girls looked anything but -healthy. - -MACHINERY.--Machines have not displaced women. There was nothing -dangerous about the machinery used, though the small printing machine -which 1 girl was feeding _might_ be dangerous. - -HOURS.--The hours worked are from 8.30 a.m. to 7 p.m., with one hour for -dinner and half an hour for tea; on Saturdays, from 8.30 a.m. to 1 p.m. -They work overtime at Christmas. - -PROSPECTS.--Girls in (4) may rise to (1), and those in (1) to (2). - - -18. K., _Stationery Firm in London. Visit to Works_. - -WORK.--_Numbering and Perforating_; girls also dust and clean up after -blocking. - -REGULARITY.--The work in this firm is regular, "as they work for the -trade." - -SKILL.--Intelligence is required for numbering, or else valuable -material is spoilt, _e.g._, the other day a girl, who was six months out -of her time, never changed when she came to the 1,000 and so spoilt the -work, as one figure came out darker. Three numbers are harder to do than -two or four. The firm had tried to take two girls from the blocking work -and teach them numbering, but it was no good, they were not intelligent -enough. - -HOURS.--The hours worked are from 9 a.m. to 7.30 p.m., with one hour for -dinner, ten minutes for lunch, and ten minutes for tea; on Saturdays, -from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. - -PROSPECTS.--The girls can rise to be forewomen. - - -19. I., _Stationery and Stamping Firm in London. Employee's Evidence_. - -WORK.--Stamping, plain and relief, including tradesmen's cards, -notepaper, Christmas cards, etc. - -REGULARITY.--The work here is regular, because they work for the trade. - -SKILL.--The girls need arm strength. Artistic taste is also required. -Some never make good stampers on account of deficiency in taste. - -MACHINERY.--Machinery has not displaced women. - -HOURS.--The hours worked are from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., with one hour for -dinner, and half an hour for tea; on Saturdays, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. - -PROSPECTS.--Girls may rise to forewomen. "There is a little girl of -fifteen now, who has only been here a year, and the other day Mr. I. -(who does not say things when he does not mean them) told her that she -would rise to be forewoman one day. She is very good at her work and -knows how things should look." - -GENERAL.--The girls are very comfortable here. They have a room to -themselves upstairs, and a dining room and a stove to cook on. - - -20. F., _Stationery Firm in London. Employee's Evidence_. - -WORK.--(1) Envelope folding, which includes creasing, gumming, and -shuffling. - -(2) Envelope cementing. - -(3) Plain stamping. - -(4) Relief stamping. - -(5) Looking over and packing. - -REGULARITY.--Slack times vary in different houses. "You never can tell," -but summer, as a rule, is slack. Last summer there was very little work -all July and August at C. and D. and F. She made only 8_d._ or 9_d._ a -day sometimes. - -HOURS.--At C. and D. the hours worked are from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., with -one and a-half hours for meals; at E., from 8 a.m. to 6.30 p.m., with -one and a-half hours for meals on Monday and Tuesday; from 8 a.m. to 7 -p.m., with one and a-half hours for meals on Wednesday, Thursday, and -Friday; and from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturdays. - -MACHINERY.--Machinery has not taken work from women. - -GENERAL.--She remarked that G. was "a dreadful place." The girls cried -because there was no work. - - -21. X., _Stamping Firm in London. Employee's Evidence_. - -WORK.--There are about 100 girls in the _stamping_ room, about 30 of -whom pack up the work in boxes, etc. In some places the stampers have to -pack their own work. There is also _envelope work_, etc., done on the -firm, but my informant knew nothing of this. Some girls did the hand -illuminating, _i.e._, colouring part of a design that has been stamped. - -REGULARITY.--The trade is seasonal, and is slack in the summer and busy -in winter. - -SKILL.--"You have to be strong to stand the stamping," she said. She -herself had to give it up after she had been a learner for two years, -and take to packing. Her health gave way; she got very anaemic, and could -not stand the strain. Most of the packers were girls who could not stand -stamping. They had one very heavy press with big dies, and tried a girl -on it, but she got injured internally, so a man was put on it. At R. she -heard they had heavy presses. She said she knew of two girls who went -there, and both injured themselves. She thinks they had to go to the -hospital. The best paying work was done on the big presses. However, -many girls stood the stamping all right. Strength is absolutely -necessary. - -HOURS.--The hours worked are from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m., with one and a-half -hours off for meals; on Saturdays, from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. When busy they -work regularly from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., and three nights a week to 9.30 -p.m. - - -22 and 23. U. and V., _Two Stamping Firms in London. Employee's -Evidence_. - -WORK.--My informant did plain stamping, but never learnt relief work. -She once tried it, but did not get on with it. At U. there were only 5 -stampers, at V. quite 30. - -REGULARITY.--At U. work came in rushes, and they were always either very -busy or else very slack; at V. work was steady all the year. - -HEALTH.--My informant herself had grown rather crooked, and had to leave -off work. She did not know of any other girls similarly affected though, -nor did she consider it unhealthy. A good many were anaemic. She thought -that now she has had a rest she might be able to stand it better. The -big dies were the bad ones, and were tiring. - -HOURS.--At U. the hours were from 9.15 a.m. to 7 p.m., with one hour for -dinner and half an hour for tea; at V. from 9.15 a.m. to 6.30 p.m., but -at V. one could work till 7 or 7.30 p.m., if one cared. At U. they were -then working till 8 p.m. (December). She had never worked later than 9, -and that very rarely. - -PROSPECTS.--She thought that the chance of rising to forewoman was -exceedingly remote. - -GENERAL.--Both U. and V. were very nice and respectable shops, and -particular about whom they took on. At U. there was a dining room, and -things more comfortable than at V. - - -24. Y., _Machine Ruling Firm in London. Visit to Works_. - -WORK.--There are _two departments_. (1) Top floor: _Machine ruling_. (2) -Ground floor: _Perforating_, _numbering_, _and paging._ - -(1) The following is the general principle of the ruling machine: - -There is a band about 1 yd. wide which goes round and round in a large -ellipse (one flat side of the ellipse is about 31/2 yds. long). Upon this -band the sheets of paper are placed by the girls, and by it they are -drawn under a row of pens set at the required intervals for the lines. -They are then carried up and round by the revolutions of the band--being -held in their places by string which revolves with the band--and fall -out of the machine with the ink dry. - -A good many machines are fitted with a second row of pens which rules -the underneath side of the paper as well as the upper. - -The pens are fed by a piece of flannel which is kept soaked by a regular -flow of ink from a vessel fitted with a small tap. - -These machines are worked by power. They used to be worked by hand. - -(2) _Perforating_ is done by a machine worked by a treadle. A good many -foreign and colonial postage stamps are done here. - -_Numbering_ of loose pages, cheques, receipts, etc., is done by a -machine with a handle which has to be pulled down by hand. - -_Paging_, which is for made-up books, is done by a machine worked by a -treadle. - -REGULARITY.--The summer is a slack season in this trade as a rule. The -firm are especially slack just now (August) as there are no orders from -South Africa. - -HEALTH.--The upper floor was exceedingly, almost insupportably, stuffy. -The ground floor was fairly airy. The under-forewoman said that working -the treadle for paging was very hard work. "It always upset her inside," -so she had to give it up. - -SKILL.--Strength is required for paging. - -DANGER.--They had just had an accident with the perforating machine. The -bands upstairs were dangerous to long hair. One girl had her hair caught -and was carried right up to the ceiling. The band was loose and slipped -off the wheel, so she was let down again with no great injury. - -PROSPECTS.--The girls may rise to forewoman; the machine rulers may rise -to wet the flannels. - - -25. _Paper Bag Making in London. Employee's Evidence._ - -WORK.--(1) Cake bags, (2) tea bags, (3) sugar bags. These are different -classes of work and some hands can do only one class. - -The girls do their own cutting except for the very heavy work, which men -do. As a rule, the piece-rate girls make the bag right through from the -sheet, _i.e._, cut the paper, lay it out and paste. Tea bags are made on -a tin. There were 150 girls working in the room. - -REGULARITY.--The work is irregular, but if a girl can do all kinds it is -better for her. "There is always some work, but sometimes you may sit -idle doing needlework most of the day." - -HEALTH.--"It is very bad for you standing all day long," said my -informant. "Girls come in looking lively and healthy, but they soon get -run down." The standing and the used-up air are bad, the latter -especially in the winter-time when the gas is alight. She herself has -lost her health. - -MACHINERY.--Machinery had not displaced women. - -HOURS.--The hours are from 8 a.m. to 6.30 p.m., with one hour for -dinner, ten minutes for lunch, and twenty minutes for tea; on Saturdays, -from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. The girls have to be in by 8.15 or they are locked -out for the morning. - -When at overtime they work from 8 a.m. to 9.30 p.m. - -PROSPECTS.--The forewoman was at the bench once. - -GENERAL.--"On the floor below," said my informant, "are litho girls--not -the sort whom you _could_ speak to. That is a very bad trade." - - -26. _Printer's and Bookbinder's Firm in Leeds. Employer's Information._ - -I was shown over the factory. The rooms are all very large and lofty. -Electric instead of steam power is used, and so the factory is far less -noisy and cooler than most printing works. - -_One hundred and twenty girls_ of a very superior class are employed. - -The conditions under which work is carried on here are evidently very -good. - -They print large advertisement posters, time-tables, magazines, novels, -and make account books, cheque books, etc. - -TRAINING.--Girls begin by feeding ruling machines, packing, etc., and -the length of their "apprenticeship" depends entirely upon the girls -themselves. They are put on piece work as soon as they are fit for it; -they are taken on about fourteen without premium, and their wages begin -at 4_s._ 6_d._ or, sometimes, 5_s._, and rise by degrees till they are -paid piece work rates. - -WAGES.--_Folding and Sewing_ (piece work).--The pay ranges about 10_s._, -12_s._, 16_s._, up to 25_s._ per week. - -_Laying-on of Gold-leaf and Blockers_ (piece work) yields 18_s._ to -20_s._ per week. - -Girls who put _paper covers_ on to cheap novels, etc., earn about 20_s._ - -_Layers-on_ (_Letter-press and Litho_) are paid time wages and receive -8_s._, 10_s._, and 12_s._ per week. - -The employer says he has known three sisters take home L4 a week for -several months in succession. He thinks it pays well to give high wages. - -HOURS.--The hours are 521/2 per week: from 7.30 a.m. to 6 p.m., with -dinner from 12.30 p.m. to 1.30 p.m.; on Saturdays, 7.30 a.m. till 12.30 -p.m.; but overtime is worked thirty days in the year. Piece workers -receive no extra pay; time workers get time and a quarter. - -WORK.--_Folding_ is done chiefly by hand. There is one machine, but that -is self-feeding and a man minds it. - -_Sewing_ is done by hand and by machinery. - -_Perforating_ is done by a machine worked by power, which has simply to -be fed. - -Several girls were employed putting the wrappers on to 6_d._ novels, -while others were pasting cloth on to cardboard for school exercise -books. Little girls were feeding the ruling machine, punching labels, -eyeletting and packing. - -Girls were also engaged in gold laying-on and blocking, but none were -employed at this when I was there. - -In the litho and letter-press printing rooms a large number of very -respectable girls, about eighteen years of age, were employed as -layers-on. They were feeding large as well as small machines. - -REGULARITY.--The girls are employed all the year round, but they are -busier in the autumn and winter (from September to May). They are also -very busy the last week in each month. _Occasionally_, in June and July, -they only work half-time, but this does not happen often. - -HEALTH.--The work is very healthy. Before they had electric power the -employer had seen girls fall down and faint when "laying-on" at night -when the gas was lit and the room hot. Now that they have electric power -and electric light such a thing never happens. - -DANGER.--The use of electric power does away with the need of belting -shafts, etc. There is simply a small motor on the ground. - -ORGANISATION.--There is no organisation amongst the women, though the -men are all Unionists. - -MARRIED AND UNMARRIED.--Girls all leave when they get married. -Occasionally, when they are busy, an old hand who has got married comes -back, but 99 per cent. are unmarried. The employer did not know whether -they had any married women there then. - -FACTORY LEGISLATION.--Factory legislation has in no way limited the -usefulness of women. Girls do not mind working overtime when they can -make a little extra by it, but the employer said "overtime does not pay -anybody." _E.g._, when layers-on worked overtime they were paid time and -a quarter, and it did not pay to give that extra money. The restriction -of overtime to thirty days a year worked out very inconveniently for the -masters, but this employer thought the factory legislation was a very -good thing on the whole. - -One direct result of factory legislation here has been the introduction -of a self-feeding folding machine worked by electric power, which they -use when they are busy instead of getting in extra hands or working -overtime. When not busy this machine stands idle, and the folding is -done by hand. Another result of factory legislation is that they have to -employ more hands than they otherwise would, and so girls sometimes have -to work short time. - -MEN AND WOMEN.--The employer said there was a clearly drawn line between -men's work and women's work. The Union made a great point of keeping -women out of what they consider to be men's work, and there would be a -"row" amongst them if women were put on, but I found out later on that -girls do the laying-on and _gold blocking_ for the backs of books, etc. -The employer said he put them on to that about three years ago. At first -the men made a fuss about it, but it passed over. His reason for putting -girls on was that it was light work quite suitable for a girl. Only -skilled girls did it. They would get perhaps 12_s._ 6_d._, time wage, -while they were learning, and then go on to piece work and earn 18_s._ -or 20_s._ a week. A man's wage for the same work would be a minimum of -32_s._ a week (time), as that is the Trade Union minimum, and the Trade -Unionists generally get something above the minimum. - -This firm was the first in Leeds to introduce girls as layers-on for -letter-press and litho machines. That was about twenty years ago. The -reason was that it was impossible to apprentice the number of boys -required. The Trade Union regulation about the proportion of apprentices -to journeymen is very strictly enforced, and it was not fair to employ -boys and simply turn them off when they got older; so girls were -employed, and now the majority of layers-on are girls. They do the work, -on the whole, better than boys, and they are steadier. - -MACHINERY.--Machinery is continually being introduced and more women are -being employed in spite of the fact that the machines do work so much -more quickly. Production is made cheaper and so the demand is greater. - -HOME WORK.--No home work is given out. - - -_Relief Stamping Firms. General Summary._ - -We have information about twenty-one houses where women are employed at -stamping (covering over 300 women). - -TRAINING.--Out of these nine have a regular system of training, four do -not take apprentices, having found them more trouble than they were -worth; three have no settled system, while three refused to furnish -information on the subject. In four cases indentures were signed, and -there were two cases of premiums, in one of which L2 was paid, to be -returned with 5 per cent. interest after three years; in the other, -L10--with variations. "It varies with the girl," we were told. -"Sometimes girls with very respectable parents like to pay a premium, in -other cases it is waived." In eight out of the nine houses where there -is a regular system of training, the girls serve an apprenticeship -varying from two to three years. They begin by a few shillings -pocket-money and go on to receive a part of what they make at piece work -rates. In one house they gave from two weeks to two months for nothing, -during which time their earnings went to the forewoman who taught them. - -The following are some of the systems of payment during training:-- - - (1) 1st year (employed in warehouse), 3_s._; 2nd year, half - earnings, piece, with 4_s._ per month pocket-money; 3rd year, - three-quarter earnings, with 4_s._ per month pocket-money. - - (2) 1st year, 5_s._; 2nd year, 6_s._ 6_d._; 3rd year, 8_s._ - - (3) 2_s._ 6_d._ for first 6 months; rising 1_s._ every 3 months, - till 8_s._ 6_d._ is reached. - - (4) Start at 2_s._ 6_d._; rise to 10_s._ during training. - - (5) 1st year, half earnings; 2nd year, three-quarter earnings. - - (6) 3_s._ or 4_s._ first 6 months; 5_s._ second 6 months; then - 6_s._ for 2nd year. - - (7) Pay L2 premium. Put on piece work almost at once and receive - what they make. Premiums returned with 5 per cent. interest after - 3 years. - - (8) 3 months, nothing; 3 months, 2_s._ per week; next 3 months, - 3_s._; next, 4_s._; so on till 8_s._ - -One forewoman considered that three years' training was much too long, -and stated that there was a tendency in certain houses to do work cheap -by means of apprentices. She said that the girls in such houses get -disheartened and sick of work, and when they were out of their time it -was no use staying on, for all the work got given to the learners. Some -learners are quite quick by the end of three weeks. We often found that -when a girl came in to learn stamping she was set to run about the -warehouse or to do gumming for the first year. This, it was urged by one -employer, was done purely from humane motives. Since the girls were -often delicate when they came in, it was far better for them to do odd -jobs for a year than to be stuck down at once at some sedentary -occupation. - -Learners are taken at thirteen or fourteen years of age. Sometimes they -are left to "pick things up." Sometimes they are taught by a forewoman -or experienced hand. The relief stamper belongs to the upper class of -factory girl. - -REGULARITY.--Trade is tolerably steady. A few weeks in summer are -generally slack, and where there is Christmas card work the six weeks -before Christmas are extremely busy. - -HEALTH.--We were told almost unanimously that stamping was healthy work, -and undoubtedly, where the presses are light, it is so. Some of the -presses, however, are very heavy, and the girls who work them -acknowledged that the work was extremely tiring. Most houses have men to -work their heaviest presses. We heard of three cases in two different -houses of internal strain to girls working at these presses, and we -heard of one house where the girls in the packing room were recruited -from those who could not stand the stamping. - -SKILL.--Skill is required for illuminating. - -PROSPECTS.--In some cases it is possible to rise to forewoman, or from -plain to relief and cameo stamping and occasionally illuminating. - -WAGES.--Wages vary from 13_s._ to 25_s._ or 30_s._, mostly piece work. -Some of the piece work rates were 9_d._ per 1,000 impressions, 2_d._ per -1,000 plain (2,000 can be done per hour); 10_d._ per ream one die (takes -two hours to do one ream), 1_s._ 8_d._ per 1,000 impressions. - -MARRIED AND UNMARRIED.--Very few relief stampers are married. In some -houses married women are not allowed, in some they "come back to oblige" -at busy times. In one house only we heard "that many stampers marry, -though they might as well not, as they come back to work." - -DISPLACEMENT.--Men used to do relief stamping, but women, owing to the -cheapness of their labour, have superseded them in all but the heaviest -work. For the heavy presses men are still employed, "but it is a poor -trade for them." - -In some houses they do illuminating, as for this the women are found -not to possess sufficient skill and patience. One large house employs 4 -men for a superior sort of relief stamping--gold and silver on a -coloured surface. The crest or monogram has to be stamped in plain -first, then coloured, then stamped with the gold or silver by the men. -This last process requires great skill and accuracy and care, for if it -is crooked by a hair's breadth the thing is spoilt. Girls are stated not -to be accurate and careful enough for this work, although they are -employed for the simpler sort of gold stamping. - -Where heavy hand machines have come in they have ousted women. One -employer considered that if stamping machines worked by steam came in -women would be employed on them. In one house, however, where there was -machine stamping, it was done by men. We were told by a large employer -that there is now a new machine in the market which may supersede female -labour. It colours the surface first and then embosses it out. Another -new machine requires a feeder only, as the die is coloured, rubbed and -stamped down by machinery. - - -_Job Hands. Interview with Agent._ - -Miss R., like Mrs. B. before her, apparently acts as a sort of -bureau-keeper for job hands; sometimes she has work in to do herself and -keeps a certain staff, at other times she gets a notice to say that W. -has got a big job and wants so many hands; she collects them, sends -postcards all round, and goes and works herself too. Very few of her job -hands would touch magazine work; they usually work at prospectuses. Mrs. -B. used to do all the work for the ---- Societies. There were hundreds -of job hands, how many she cannot tell at all. - -REGULARITY.--The work is quite uncertain. "You never know when there -will be work; but July and August are usually the slack months, but this -year (1900-01) it has been slack all the year. Job hands, however, do -what they like when there is not work, whereas constant hands have to -come in and wait whether there is work or not." - -HEALTH.--It is hard work, but there is nothing unhealthy about it. - -GENERAL.--She spoke with pitying contempt of the "constant" hands and -their low prices and the long hours they worked. - - - - -APPENDIX III.--GENERAL GLASGOW REPORT. - - -(A.) _Letterpress Printing. Machine Feeding and Flying._ - -Girls are employed to "feed" the machines and to "take off" the -impressed sheet. A girl will learn "taking off," or "flying," in a -couple of days; but except in the old-fashioned and smaller -jobbing-shops flying is now done entirely by machinery. Machine feeding -is not so easy and simple a process as it seems. The girls stand and -perform the same movement repeatedly, each time giving to the sheet the -precise swing required to send it accurately into the grips. The work -requires little intelligence, and the extent to which it can be -characterised as exhausting depends partly on the speed of the machine, -but chiefly on the length of the "run." Three methods of treating the -girls may be distinguished. In some shops where there are very long -runs, perhaps extending to a couple of weeks, as in the case of the -printing of low-priced Bibles, the work is tiring. At the close of a -long run the machines have to be prepared afresh, and the girls enjoy a -spell for a day or two. This leisure they are sometimes inclined to -abuse by interrupting the work of others with conversation, and -consequently attempts are being made to employ them on other machines -during the interval. This innovation the girls are resisting. In other -shops the fatiguing nature of a long run is mitigated by removing the -girl to another machine with a different movement, but the "right" of a -girl to be so moved about and rested is not recognised; it is simply a -matter for the consideration of the foreman. To allow the claim to -frequent shifting might prove inconvenient in times of pressure. Lastly, -in establishments where the bulk of the work involves short runs, as, -for example, in printing the official matter of a municipality or a -college, the necessity for frequently preparing the machines affords -considerable leisure to the feeders. These intervals explain the groups -of girls often to be seen chatting and knitting in odd corners of the -machine-room. Some of these shops recognise the right of a girl to feed -and keep clean "her own machine" and no other. Where this is the case a -girl may be employed feeding for no longer than a quarter of the normal -working week of fifty-two and a half hours owing to the shortness of the -runs and the length of time spent in re-adjustment. The work is dirty -but not dangerous, as all machinery is well-fenced, and accidents are -of very rare occurrence. The day's work usually starts at 6.15 a.m. and -ends at 6 p.m., with meal hours at 9 and at 2 o'clock and half an hour -for tea when engaged on overtime. Saturday's shift is from 6.15 a.m. -until 10 a.m. Girls are paid 5_s._, in a few shops 6_s._, a week as -beginners. They get their first rise in three months, and are gradually -advanced to an average wage of 10_s._, while an expert feeder may earn -11_s._, or at the outside 12_s._, a week. When girls find that they can -feed well after a comparatively short time in a shop and that they are -getting only 7_s._ or 8_s._ a week they commonly seek and obtain the -average wage elsewhere. Managers fancy "it would not do" to advance a -girl abruptly from 6_s._ to 10_s._ a week in the same shop, but do not -blame the girls for leaving. "It is human nature." Girls are taken on at -any age after fourteen, and stay on till they are married or until they -are called away to domestic duties. Some remain on after marriage, but -not more than 1 or 2 per cent. A few come back as widows. Married and -unmarried as workers are "six of one and half a dozen of the other," -remarked an employer of both, while another thought married women "less -regular" in attendance. There are no signs of married women lowering -rates of pay. "Time and a half" is the overtime rate. Women workers who -do not get paid overtime when they work beyond the normal day get paid -over the holidays, but not otherwise. There are no fines. There is no -trade organisation among the machine feeders, and as the various unions -of the men are not directly affected they do not interfere. In some -firms feeding has been done by girls for a quarter of a century; in -others they have been introduced only within the last five or six years. -Boys were rough, irregular, scarce, and wanted higher pay. The girls, -although they also are drawn from a rough class, are steadier, cleaner, -and more economical in the use of material than boys. Besides, there are -more of them. There was no inducement for boys to continue at such work, -so they have been drafted into certain forms of unskilled, but fairly -well paid, labour, such as is offered by the Post Office or bread -factories. In some districts they go to the shipyards to assist -riveters, and are able to earn straight away twice the wages they would -obtain in a printing shop. As overtime by girls is restricted by -legislation, young men (over 18) are kept for feeding in one large -jobbing-shop where there are often seasons of great pressure (_e.g._, in -the printing of penny monthly diaries and time-tables) and where -"rushes" and overtime are inevitable. These young men would not be thus -employed but for the restrictions of the Factory Acts, as the manager, -for reasons stated above, much prefers girls for feeding. While all -modern machines are fitted with self-fliers, not one of the many -attempts to provide automatic feeders has proved quite satisfactory. For -long runs such feeders as have been designed may serve fairly well, but -in shops with much jobbing and many short runs too much time would be -spent in adjusting the feeder to the particular job. The sole advantages -of a mechanical feeder are that it neither "takes ill" nor "goes on -strike." Meanwhile it is imperfect and expensive, and the supply of -cheap female labour abundant. - - -(B.) _Lithographic Printing. Machine Feeding._ - -What has been said of feeders under letterpress printing is generally -true of feeders in the lithographic branch. The only difference seems to -be one of social position. Girls employed in feeding lithographic -machines are "higher,"[97] "less filthy in talk," etc. They form the -intermediate class, of which the girls in the bookbinding and warehouse -departments are at the top. In one shop where all three classes are -employed, the manager remarked that these caste distinctions were "clean -cut," and obvious to the most casual observer. - -[Footnote 97: They are supposed to be lower in London, Manchester, -etc.--[Ed.]] - - -(C.) _Letterpress Printing. Type-setting._ - -The employment of women as compositors is a "vexed question." In two -shops only are they so employed in Glasgow, and both are on the black -list of the local trade union. Inasmuch as the conditions which obtain -in these shops differ in important respects, they are here described -separately. - -Firm No. 1 introduced women as compositors some nine or ten years ago, -when a dispute with the union ensued. It now employs about a dozen women -at the cases. Girls are taken on at any age after fourteen. In three -months' time they are able to set up type in "solid dig," _i.e._, -newspaper or book matter, consisting of solid uniform paragraphs. Three -girls who have spent about eight years with this firm are declared to be -"good at displaying," and "more competent than the ordinary journeyman." -Beginners get 6_s._ a week during the first year, and in the third year -are put on piecework rates. There are no indentures. Capable women -compositors may earn 24_s._ a week, while their average earnings may be -put at 22_s._ a week, and they never sink below a pound. Young workers -make an average of 18_s._ a week or thereabouts. The normal week is one -of fifty-one hours, made up as follows:-- - - 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. on four days. - 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Wednesdays. - 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturdays. - -A compositor sometimes acts as "clicker," _i.e._, checks the amount of -piecework, but this is usually done by a clerk. No married women are -employed. Overtime is paid time and a half, and women are fined a penny -for being late. - -Firm No. 2 employed at one time about two dozen girls in the -composing-rooms. They were engaged solely on solid newspaper work, and -never in the higher branches of the trade, such as "displaying." Seats -were provided for them. They worked a forty-eight hour week for a "stab" -wage of 15_s._ or 16_s._, and had three weeks' holiday, off and on, for -which they were paid. Further, they were never turned away in slack -time. But the experiment was not altogether a success, and by to-day the -two dozen have dwindled down to two, who set for newspapers and get -16_s._ a week. The reasons assigned for the gradual reversion to the -employment of men are as follows:-- - - (_a_) Irregularity of the women's attendance at work. - - (_b_) Their shorter hours. - - (_c_) Marriage. - - (_d_) The introduction of the Linotype machine, of which there are - three in this establishment. This was urged as the most important - cause of the change back to men. - -Of the work in general, it may be said that some intelligence is needed, -that no dangerous machinery is used, and that the health of the workers -depends largely on the character of the workroom. The special trade -disease is that to which men are similarly subject, viz., "consumption" -in some of its many forms. - -In Glasgow the Typographical Association has strenuously, and, with the -above exceptions, successfully, resisted the introduction of women into -the composing-room. The attitude taken up by the men may be summarised -as follows: No objection would be offered to the employment of women at -the case provided that they served the usual seven years' apprenticeship -at the same rates as male apprentices, and then on its completion were -paid the full standard wage. "Underpaid female labour is equally unjust -to the legitimate employer and employee." To allow women unrestricted -access to the composing-rooms would probably lead in time, not only to -the reduction of the men's wages, but to the undermining of the trade -itself. The various branches of the trade which now demand many years of -apprenticeship before they are completely mastered by one man would be -split up and distributed among a number of highly-specialized workers. -Women would be employed for separate departments, and by being -continuously kept at one job or branch would become expert therein, but -would have no knowledge of the trade as a whole. - -The employers, on the other hand, are aggrieved that, while the union -prevents women from acting as compositors in Glasgow, the same trade -society allows them to work in Edinburgh. The result of the present -arrangement is to divert a certain class of trade, viz., "solid dig," or -book work, from other centres to Edinburgh. The cause of this is to be -found in the non-employment of women compositors in Glasgow, and is not, -as sometimes suggested, due to the superiority of Edinburgh printing. - -In answer to the claim of the union to equal pay for equal work for -women and men, it is urged by the masters:-- - - (1) Women when employed as compositors at piecework rates get the - best, _i.e._, the simplest jobs. They are put to do what boys - would be at when half through their apprenticeship. They are kept - always at pretty much the same kind of work, and thus become very - skilful at it. Boys, on the other hand, would claim to be shifted - on to the higher branches of the trade. - - (2) The man who now does the solid type-setting, which the - employer wishes to see a woman do, is paid higher than a woman - would or should be, because he is liable to be called on at any - moment to undertake the more complex operations of his craft, - while a woman is not. In other words, the man is paid for - potential ability. - - (3) If women were taken on freely to do solid setting, it is not - at all likely that they would seriously aspire to the higher - stages of the compositor's craft. - - (_a_) Partly for physical reasons. Women are not fitted to handle - the heavy formes. - - (_b_) Partly because they could not be relied upon to go through a - full course of training. They would be continually leaving in the - middle or at the end of it, and employers, therefore, would not - take the trouble to train them. "The pick of the girls get - married. The qualities which make a girl smart and successful at - her work would similarly make for her success in the marriage - market." - - (4) The cheaper type-setting of women is needed in order to - compete successfully with the Linotype machine. There is no doubt - that to a certain extent the comparatively low price of women's - labour tends to retard the introduction of machinery. - - -(D.) _Bookbinding._ - -In the bookbinding trade girls fold, put in plates and illustrations, -collate, sew by hand and by machine. Sewing used all to be done by hand, -but machines were introduced some fifteen years ago. In the case of -primers and stitched books girls do all except print the covers. They -make cloth cases as distinct from leather cases. Girls also lay the gold -leaf on covers, which are subsequently stamped by machines operated by -men. For at least half a century women have worked in these branches, -but while in earlier days they learnt a variety of operations the -tendency now is to keep them to a special process or machine. Hence a -smart girl can pick up her task in a week. The old custom of a four -years' apprenticeship still survives. Girls start at fourteen, or at -thirteen if they have passed the fifth standard. The initial wage is -still in some shops 3_s._ a week, but there is a decided upward -tendency, which in one case was found to reach 4_s._ 6_d._ for -beginners. On the termination of the apprenticeship an average wage of -10_s._ a week is paid, but in the exceptional case referred to above the -average was given as 12_s._ 6_d._, while 15_s._ is earned by expert -pagers, coverers, and perforators who have been in the employment of the -firm for some time. A chargewoman gets about 15_s._ a week, while the -principal forewoman in a firm employing nearly 300 girls in its -bookbinding branch is paid a guinea per week. Folders and hand-sewers -are paid piecework rates in the large shops, but not in the smaller -ones. To the casual visitor these pieceworkers exhibit a remarkable -swiftness and accuracy, and the work must involve no small physical -strain. Although the girls engaged in folding and the allied processes -are as a rule of higher intelligence than mill girls and machine feeders -and drawn from different social strata, there are many who come, frail -and under-fed, from very poor homes. To these especially the early hour -at which the day's work begins is a hardship. On a Glasgow winter's -morning to start work at 6.15 on a hurried bite of bread and margarine, -with the distant prospect of more bread and margarine three hours later, -leads logically to "broken time." There has been some slight tendency -towards beginning at 8 o'clock and stopping on Saturdays at 1, but two -of the largest firms still adhere to 6.15 a.m. and finish on Saturdays -at 10 a.m. The manager of one of these characterised the system as a -"relic of barbarism," and said he had tried to alter the hour to 8 -o'clock, but the men vigorously opposed the change and the scheme had to -be dropped. As matters now stand, and owing to the great irregularity of -the attendance during the week, work has often to go on from 11 till 2 -on Saturdays. Otherwise in this establishment overtime is systematically -avoided, the manager maintaining that the normal week of 521/2 hours is -quite exhausting enough for the girls. When, as at seasons of unusual -pressure, overtime is reluctantly resorted to, it is paid -time-and-a-quarter, as in the case of men. The busy season lasts from -August to March, but the girls are hardly affected, and have plenty of -work round the year. In another large firm, where much railway printing -is done, the conditions differ somewhat. The hours are as follows:-- - - 6.30 a.m. to 9 a.m. - 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. - 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. - Saturdays till 1 p.m. - -There are small fines for spoilt work, but the money goes to the -Workers' Benevolent Fund. These fines do not amount to more than -sixpence per head per annum. Overtime is worked to the full limit. It is -paid at a higher rate, but not at the same proportionally higher rate as -men. Girls are never suspended in slack seasons, but are put on time -wages of 13_s._ or 14_s._ a week for the best workers. - -The employment of married women is regarded as exceptional, but all -large firms have a small number of such--3 or 4 per cent., perhaps. The -usual practice is for girls to come from school and remain on until they -get married or leave for some domestic purposes. Some come back as -widows or when living apart from their husbands. Some firms boast a -considerable number of workers who have been employed for very long -periods, ranging from 15 to 30 years and upwards. There are no signs of -married women lowering the rates of pay. It is customary for those who -return after a long absence to do so at the old wages. Efforts have been -made from time to time to organise the women into unions, but they have -invariably proved disappointing. Indirectly the women have gained by the -successful efforts of the men to shorten the hours of toil. Generally -speaking the attitude of the men's unions is not so much one of -hostility as of indifference to women's work, except where it threatens -to encroach on the men's preserves. There is no positive agreement as to -the line of demarcation; it is determined tacitly by use and wont. The -men profess to see a tendency among employers to extend the field of -female labour. This extension of woman's sphere they deprecate as likely -to lead to the lowering of men's wages. Just as men are never employed -in folding in the bookbinding department of a publishing firm, so -certain processes are invariably never done by women. As a rule men do -the heavier and more complicated work, while women do that which is -preparatory or supplementary. In jobbing-shops where odd volumes come in -to be bound in various styles women are unsuitable, and men do the work -right through; but in large publishing houses where orders run into -thousands women specialise on particular processes. Women's work is apt -to be extended where there are large quantities involved and where the -work can be sub-divided. While women perform many of these sub-divisions -quite as skilfully as men, they do not exhibit a like concentration of -effort, and are more inclined to scamp. - -Opinions differ as to the amount of homework done nowadays. The plant -required is just a folder--a piece of bone. There is no doubt that to -some extent folding is still done at home by the older girls who have -_during the day been employed in the factory_. One employer admitted -that on "not more than three or at most four nights in the year" do -girls take work home from his shop. The cause is set down to the -impatience of the public. Everybody wants his order executed -immediately. Rates paid for homework are, if anything, a shade less than -those paid for work done in the factory. While such work increases the -total earnings this is not the main motive for undertaking it. A good -deal of it is forced, and due to the urgency of the public demand. -During very busy months some firms have a great deal of folding done as -_outwork_ by widows and married women _not_ now employed in the factory -during the day. But this practice is declining. Twopence per 1,000 extra -is paid by one firm, _i.e._, 10_d._ as against 8_d._, for this outwork -to compensate for lack of facilities in the home. - -Despite the great number of sewing and folding machines introduced in -recent years there are probably more women employed at the trade than -ever. There is more work. The small shops tend to retain women's labour. -Their jobs are so small in amount and varied in character that it would -not pay them to introduce machinery. Further, in the large shops, -folding machines have not always proved satisfactory. Doubtless, had men -been engaged in folding during the last fifty years, employers would ere -this have perfected a folding machine, but the cheapness of women's -labour takes away some of the incentive to invention. Sometimes the -introduction of a machine reduces women's work in one department and -increases it in another. Take as an example the wire-stitching machine -used in the production of tens of thousands of penny pocket time-tables -and diaries. If the diary is not out during the first three days of the -month it may as well not appear at all. There is a short selling time -during which sales are keen. Without the device of the stitching machine -the only way in which large quantities of such ephemeral publications -could be placed quickly on the market would be by the employment of a -very large staff of women. But the big and rapid output possible by -means of the machine, although it reduces the work of women stitchers, -brings increased work to the women folders. - - -(E.) _Machine Ruling._ - -Girls who start as feeders are sometimes promoted to the supervision of -simple ruling machines. Men look upon this with disfavour, as it used to -be considered their work. One firm is said to have only two men now -employed where there were once forty, and the two that remain are -tenters, who supervise the girls and the machines. Machine ruling is -paid at time rates. Wages rank as high as 17_s._ a week, where men -formerly got 28_s._ For more complex machines girls would need to be -specially trained, but managers think they could easily be prepared, as -intelligence rather than strength is necessary. The girls themselves -believe they would succeed if given a chance. - - -(F.) _Type and Stereotype Founding._ - -No type founding is done in Glasgow, and no women are employed here in -stereotype founding. Such work is considered unsuitable for women, and -there seems no likelihood of their taking it up. - - -(G.) _Paper Staining._ - -This work has always been done by women. There is no formal -apprenticeship, but it takes a couple of years before the girls are -thoroughly initiated. They are taken on at thirteen or fourteen at a -wage of 4_s._ a week, paid 5_s._ at the end of the first year and 6_s._ -at the end of the second. Afterwards their wages range from 12_s._ to -14_s._, with an average of about 12_s._ 6_d._ per week. There is no -piecework and no fines are exacted. The working hours are 56 per week, -distributed as follows:-- - - 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. - 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. - 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. - Saturdays, 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. - 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. - -Work is plentiful all the year round. No dangerous machinery is used, -and there is no special trade disease. The girls remain on till they get -married. They are drawn from the "better sort" of working-class -families, and some were reported as coming to the factory on cycles. -They have no trade organisation, and there do not seem to have been any -attempts on the part of the girls to supplant men in the allied -processes. No machinery has yet been devised capable of doing the work -of the girls. - - -(H.) _Paper-box Making._ - -Girls come from school and begin by dabbling about the shop and running -messages. Presently they become "spreaders," and in two or three years' -time "coverers," the highest position open to them. The cutting of the -paper and cardboard is done by machines, which men operate. The material -thus prepared to the required sizes is passed on to the girls to be -glued up into boxes. The girls use no machinery, and stand to their work -at benches. At the height of summer, and despite the gluey atmosphere of -the workrooms, the girls have the usual reluctance to open windows. -Wages start at 3_s._ or 3_s._ 6_d._ Spreaders are paid from 5_s._ 6_d._, -to 7_s._ 6_d._; coverers, 10_s._ and 11_s._ Hours vary from shop to -shop. Some begin at 8 and finish at 6.30 (Saturdays, 12.30), with a meal -hour at 1 o'clock. Others allow an hour and a quarter for dinner, so as -to enable girls to get home. The week is then arranged as follows: - - 7 a.m. to 9.15 a.m. - 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. - 3.15 p.m. to 6.30 p.m. - Saturdays, 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. - 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. - - -(I.) _Pattern-book Making._ - -This trade consists in making pattern-books for travellers, and is -usually found in close alliance with box-making. Girls get 4_s._ to -start, and rise to 13_s._ a week. The hours in one factory visited were -found to be as follows:-- - - 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. - 2 p.m. to 6.30 p.m. - Saturdays, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. without a break. - - - - -APPENDIX IV.--WOMEN IN THE PRINTING TRADES IN BIRMINGHAM. - - -FIFTEEN firms were visited. - -No women compositors were found in the chief printing businesses visited -in Birmingham. The wife of the manager of one factory said that ten -years ago in non-society places there had been a very few women -compositors in Birmingham. They took 15_s._, as compared to 33_s._ taken -by the men compositors for the same work. It is now fifteen years since -the informant left the trade, and she believes that at present none -exist in Birmingham. She imagines that it is the strength of the -Compositors' Union which has driven them out. - -Only one owner of a printing business considered that factory -legislation was detrimental to the interests of women in the printing -trade. He says that he keeps a number of youths where he would otherwise -employ women, as in stress of trade overwork has to be done, including -Sunday work, _e.g._, at the time of the great cycle boom. He tried to -get permission for the women to work on Sunday, but could not. - -Another manager considered that the Compositors' Union spoilt the chance -of women workers in the printing trade. He himself, if it were not for -the Union, would like to train girl compositors. No other printer -expressed this opinion. All said that, on the whole, men were better in -the compositors' room, as they could be set on any job, and the pressure -of women would necessitate much rearrangement. - - -MACHINE RULING. - -_Training and Wages._--_Machine Ruling_ is the only process for which -training can be said to exist. In some houses women are still articled -or apprenticed to this branch, but in many they simply learn their trade -as they can, from the foreman or forewoman. They generally begin as -machine feeders of the ruling machine. The secretary of the Union of -Bookbinders and Machine Rulers gave the information that women had been -first employed as machine rulers about twenty years ago. He himself had -learnt his trade under a woman who was head of the whole department. The -final wage of a woman machine ruler is 17_s._ to 20_s._ In one case a -female ruler was taking 22_s._, but I was told that was because she was -a relative of the employer. The minimum wage of a man belonging to the -Union is 32_s._ I was informed, however, that the man always worked a -heavier machine, generally made the pens, was responsible for the good -condition of all the machines, and that his output was always in advance -of that of a woman. - -_Men and Women._--In six businesses (the largest in Birmingham visited) -the proportion of women machine rulers is about three to one man. An -attempt was made about eight years ago to organise the women machine -rulers in Birmingham, but met with no response. The secretary of the -men's union informs me, "The reason why the attempt failed is probably -that they have little to complain of. The wages vary from 4_s._ to 5_s._ -per week for beginners, to L1 per week of fifty-two hours." - - -TABLE PROCESSES. - -All _table processes_, such as folding, knocking-up, gumming, numbering, -paging, interlaying, etc., are done by women. The average wage varies -from 8_s._ to about 12_s._ 6_d._ Numbering seems to be about the best. -Three numberers had taken 15_s._, but the average maximum was between -11_s._ and 12_s._ 6_d._ - - -ENVELOPE MAKING. - -_Training._--A beginner is given a teacher, that is, a more experienced -worker, for six weeks. The teacher gets the profits of the beginner's -work, and the beginner is paid about 4_s._ per week. - -All the work in the establishment was piecework, with the exception of -the new Scotch folding machine, which turns out 25,000 envelopes per -day, as against 2,000 done by hand. The day wage is 12_s._ per week. - -_Sub-divisions._--Envelope folders take 7_s._ to 15_s._ The smallest -envelopes are 6_d._ per 1,000, the largest 1_s._ 10_d._ - -_Average wage_ for folding is 10_s._ to 12_s._ _Stamping_, 7_s._ to -10_s._ _Stitching_, 8_s._ to 10_s._ _Gumming_, 10_s._ to 14_s._ - -_General Remarks._--Envelope making is not a seasonal trade. - -_Hours._--Maximum, 491/2 per week. - -8.30 a.m. to 6.30 p.m., winter. - -8 a.m. to 6 p.m., summer. - -One week's holiday in August. - -One week's holiday at Christmas. - - -COLOUR PRINTING. - -Colour Printing takes about six months to learn well. - -_Wages._--10_s._ to 12_s._ for a woman. A man employed on a heavier -machine took 20_s._ - -The forewoman takes 14_s._ - - -BOOKBINDING. - -By the rules of the Machine Rulers' and Bookbinders' Consolidated Union -women may only bind paper pamphlets. They are not allowed to bind -regular books. They may book-stitch with thread or wire, glue, fold, -bronze, and gild. - - -PAPER-BAG MAKING. - -_Business No. 1._ - -_Conditions._--Cap bag-making is all piecework, except for beginners, -who start at 4_s._ In fifteen months, manager says they should be able -to earn 10_s._ per week by piecework. - -_Average Wage._--13_s._ to 15_s._ Manager considered that in heavy cap -bag-making 19_s._ was top wage ever taken by an extra good hand in extra -busy time. - -Eighteen girls were employed in cap bag-making. - -A rougher class of girls were employed in the sugar bag department, -which is heavier work. The wages were higher for this heavier work. The -average wage approached 15_s._ - -The bag-stringing machine was the only machinery employed in this -business. It was worked by a foreman and forewoman. No married women -were employed. The clerks were all women, taking 20_s._ per week. The -manager preferred them to men because they were content with that wage -as a maximum. - -_Outwork_ given to old workers under known conditions, as since the bags -are for the grocery trade it is important to know home conditions. Same -price as for inworkers, but outworkers found their own paste and -brushes, etc. - -_Hours._--8 a.m. to 7 p.m., 1 hour dinner, 20 minutes tea. Saturday, 8 -a.m. to 1 p.m. - -_Remarks._--The contrast between this business and the business next -door (see following case) was very striking as regards relation between -manager and employees. - -_Business No. 2._ - -Girls are employed here in bag-making and table processes. The employer -considered that the girls could average 9_s._ to 10_s._ He gave the -highest wage for machine laying-on, which begins at 7_s._ and goes up to -12_s._ and 13_s._ This wage was given because of the danger of the -process (I think the machine was the "Arab," which in union houses women -may not work "because of the danger"). Manager believed a good many of -his hands were married women. He did not care whether they were married -or not. The forewoman and the girl in the warehouse were each taking -11_s._ - -_Homework._--Given out in busy times to whoever applied, without further -precautions. Manager thought no outworker took more than 4_s._ to 5_s._ -per week. - -_Hours._--8 a.m. to 6.30 p.m. - -Fifty-two and a half hours per week regular time. Just now (December) -they were working ten hours per day. - -August slackest month. Manager generally turned off hands then. Manager -spoke of difficulty of getting workers--he could not get boys to feed -the machines, for example, because it led to nothing. - -Manager said he "conducted his business on purely business principles" -and got his work done as cheaply as he could. - - -MACHINE FEEDING. - -This is the lowest work in letterpress printing. Girls are employed -largely as feeders, and are replacing boys. The managers said that the -work was not liked by boys, as leading to nothing, and it was difficult -to get them. The wages for a machine feeder are 4_s._ 6_d._ to 5_s._ -6_d._ initial wage, which rises to 8_s._ 6_d._ or 9_s._ In the best -workshops we were told that the firm tried to find better work for -machine feeders when they had been some time with them and had proved -themselves capable and steady. Other firms did not know what became of -machine feeders when they grew dissatisfied with the small wage paid to -them. - -_Employment of Married Women._ - -It is curious to notice how few married women there are in the printing -trade in Birmingham compared to the pen trade, for example. A better -class of girl seems to go into the printing trade, coming from better -homes than women employed in the hardware trades. It is very exceptional -for a girl who marries a skilled artisan in Birmingham to continue her -work, and in these trades girls appear to belong more to the skilled -artisan class. Several employers refuse married women; one employer told -me that he never had had an application for work from a married woman. -Only one employer was indifferent as to whether he employed married -women, and did not know whether his hands were married or not. - -_Women and Machinery._ - -It was very difficult to ascertain whether the machinery introduced -meant dismissal of hands. In one business, for example, the thread -sewing machine introduced 12 months ago did the work of 12 girls. The -machinist was taking 12_s._ per week in place of 12 girls at 10_s._ to -12_s._ 6_d._ The manager said that they had not dismissed any thread -sewers when this machine was introduced, but had absorbed them in other -processes. They would, however, engage no more girls as thread sewers. - -The new Scotch folding machine for envelopes, which turns out 25,000 per -day against 2,000 done by hand, also was _said_ not to have been -productive of dismissals.[98] - -[Footnote 98: The only actual cases of dismissal of workers owing to -introduction of machinery which I can ascertain is that of the new -grinding machines for pens. The employer, who has invented the machine, -told me he meant to dismiss about half his grinders and supply their -places with girls fresh from school, as very little skill will be needed -to work the machine. I hear that the largest pen business has ordered -sixty of these machines, but I have not yet ascertained what effect it -will have on that business. The employer in the first business mentioned -spoke of the grinders as the most indocile of his workers, and as many -of them belonged to the Penworkers' Union, he hoped that the machine -would help in annihilating the union. In two businesses I was told that -the cheapness of women labour retarded the introduction of thread sewing -machines, etc.] - -_Continuity of Employment in Printing Trade._ - -The printing trade in Birmingham is slackest in August and September. -The busiest times are November, December, and towards Easter time. In -the best businesses the hands are asked to take half-holiday in turns in -slack times, or short hours are worked, but the managers appeared to -make every effort to keep the workers employed as far as possible, and -in no cases actually to dismiss hands. In the worst businesses dismissal -in slack times is common. - -_Overtime and the Factory Laws._ - -Only one employer considered that the factory laws against overtime -militated against women's employment. All spoke of their endeavour to -reduce overtime, owing to the fact that their union men asked one and a -half and twice usual rate. No employer acknowledged that women were ever -kept overtime, although, from the account of one worker, apparently this -does sometimes occur. - -All concurred that the cheapness of women's work compared to men's -outweighed any inconvenience arising from special legislation for women -and young persons. In no case was the cheapness of women's work -attributed to legislation, but to absence of unionism and different -standards of life for men and women, and inferiority of physical -strength and mental ingenuity, and also to custom. - - - - -APPENDIX V. - - -The following tables of wages paid to the workwomen as described, form, -we believe, a unique record in wages statistics. The occupations and the -nature of the wages, _e.g._, time or piece, are as follows:-- - - 1. Hand Folder in Bookbinding House (Piece). - - 2. Hand Folder in Bookbinding House (Piece). - - 3. Hand Folder in Bookbinding House (Piece). - - 4. Hand Folder in Bookbinding House (Piece). - - 5. Hand Folder in Bookbinding House (Piece). - - 6. Hand Folder in Bookbinding House (Time). - - 7. Learner. Folder in Bookbinding House (Piece). - - 8. Folder and Gatherer in Bookbinding House (Piece). - - 9. Hand Sewer in Bookbinding House (Piece). - - 10. Hand Sewer in Bookbinding House (Piece). - - 11. Machine Sewer in Bookbinding House (Piece). - - 12. Learner. Sewing and Collating in Bookbinding House (Piece). - - 13. Folding, Sewing and Collating in Bookbinding House (Time). - - 14. Collating and Sewing in Bookbinding House (Piece). - - 15. Plate hand in Bookbinding House (Time). - - 16. Plate hand in Bookbinding House (Time). - - 17. Layer on of Gold in Bookbinding House (Piece). - - 18. Printers' Binding (Piece). - - 19. Printers' Binding (Time). - - 20. Printers' Binding (Time). - - 21. Printers' Binding (Piece). - - 22. Printers' Binding (Piece). - - 23. Printers' Binding (Piece). - - 24. Hand Folder in Printers' Warehouse (Piece). - - 25. Envelope Packer (Time). - - 26. Machine Ruler (Time). - - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 1. HAND FOLDER IN BOOKBINDING HOUSE. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | _Piece Rates._ | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 1898 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | - | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | - | 41 | 14 10 | 3 | 16 11/2 | 20 | 11 81/2 | 37 | 11 10 | - | 42 | 15 21/2 | 4 | 14 5 | 21 | 7 81/2 | 38 | 12 9 | - | 43 | 15 71/2 | 5 | 14 111/2 | 22 | 11 111/2 | 39 | 12 91/2 | - | 44 | 15 71/2 | 6 | 15 71/2 | 23 | 9 1 | 40 | 14 2 | - | 45 | 15 0 | 7 | 15 01/2 | 24 | 8 10 | 41 | 14 21/2 | - | 46 | 15 7 | 8 | 15 11/2 | 25 | 11 101/2 | 42 | 13 7 | - | 47 | 15 5 | 9 | 15 6 | 26 | 6 41/2 | 43 | 14 01/2 | - | 48 | 15 0 | 10 | 14 10 | 27 | 6 21/2 | 44 | 14 1 | - | 49 | 14 71/2 | 11 | 13 21/2 | 28 | 9 9 | 45 | 14 0 | - | 50 | 16 11/2 | 12 | 12 0 | 29 | 8 71/2 | 46 | 13 6 | - | 51 | 16 41/2 | 13 | 10 101/2 | 30 | 11 31/2 | 47 | 9 31/2 | - | 52 | 7 111/2 | 14 | 5 4 | 31 | -- | 48 | 7 11/2 | - | | | 15 | 11 2 | 32 | 4 01/2 | 49 | 13 1 | - | 1899 | | 16 | 9 21/2 | 33 | 10 91/2 | 50 | 11 2 | - | Week | | 17 | 9 81/2 | 34 | 12 7 | 51 | 8 10 | - | 1 | 10 101/2 | 18 | 8 2 | 35 | 12 1 | 52 | 6 2 | - | 2 | 14 4 | 19 | 10 31/2 | 36 | 12 5 | | | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 2. HAND FOLDER IN BOOKBINDING HOUSE. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | _Piece Rates--Quick Hand._ | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 1899 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | - | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week.| s. d. | - | 1 | 7 91/2 | 14 | 16 2 | 27 | 7 1 | 40 | 13 3 | - | 2 | 9 1 | 15 | 12 10 | 28 | 9 81/2 | 41 | 12 8 | - | 3 | 16 91/2 | 16 | 20 10 | 29 | 13 0 | 42 | 15 21/2 | - | 4 | 19 6 | 17 | 17 5 | 30 | 12 9 | 43 | 14 0 | - | 5 | 14 0 | 18 | 10 8 | 31 | 12 0 | 44 | 11 61/2 | - | 6 | 12 3 | 19 | 9 7 | 32 | 5 11 | 45 | 16 21/2 | - | 7 | 13 9 | 20 | 26 2 | 33 | 14 7 | 46 | 17 5 | - | 8 | 18 5 | 21 | 17 4 | 34 | 21 3 | 47 | 18 9 | - | 9 | 11 4 | 22 | 15 01/2 | 35 | 16 9 | 48 | 15 0 | - | 10 | 7 7 | 23 | 10 3 | 36 | 15 8 | 49 | -- | - | 11 | 14 41/2 | 24 | 11 71/2 | 37(a)| -- | 50 | -- | - | 12 | 15 6 | 25 | 13 91/2 | 38 | 13 8 | 51 | -- | - | 13 | 15 5 | 26 | 9 11/2 | 39 | 15 4 | 52 | -- | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | (a) Missing from wage sheets. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 3. HAND FOLDER IN BOOKBINDING HOUSE. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | _Piece Rates_--_Quick Hand._ | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 1899 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | - | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | - | 1 | 25 0 | 14 | 6 11/2 | 27 | 25 11 | 40 | 21 0 | - | 2 | 22 3 | 15 | 25 6 | 28 | 25 81/2 | 41 | 23 01/2 | - | 3 | 20 3 | 16 | 19 01/2 | 29 | 16 11 | 42 | 22 101/2 | - | 4 | 23 7 | 17 | 23 10 | 30 | 16 8 | 43 | 22 1 | - | 5 | 19 11 | 18 | 24 2 | 31 | 8 4 | 44 | 20 6 | - | 6 | 26 10 | 19 | 28 1 | 32 | 6 2 | 45 | 17 01/2 | - | 7 | 21 6 | 20 | 22 4 | 33 | 21 61/2 | 46 | 26 6 | - | 8 | 14 6 | 21 | 14 2 | 34 | 22 1 | 47 | 20 81/2 | - | 9 | 23 51/2 | 22 | 22 3 | 35 | 19 11 | 48 | 21 3 | - | 10 | 25 11 | 23 | 23 41/2 | 36 | 19 9 | 49 | 28 9 | - | 11 | 25 3 | 24 | 25 101/2 | 37 | 20 2 | 50 | 24 101/2 | - | 12 | 23 0 | 25 | 22 11 | 38 | 20 0 | 51 | 23 4 | - | 13 | 17 9 | 26 | 25 0 | 39 | 20 8 | 52 | -- | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 4. HAND FOLDER IN BOOKBINDING HOUSE. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | _Piece Rates--Typical Hand._ | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 1899 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | - | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 1 | 16 9 | 14 | 6 8 | 27 | 16 11/2 | 40 | 12 7 | - | 2 | 14 91/2 | 15 | 13 6 | 28 | 17 3 | 41 | 15 101/2 | - | 3 | 14 5 | 16 | 11 6 | 29 | 16 0 | 42 | 18 0 | - | 4 | 15 1 | 17 | 19 5 | 30 | 14 8 | 43 | 22 101/2 | - | 5 | 15 0 | 18 | 20 3 | 31 | 15 10 | 44 | 19 3 | - | 6 | 14 9 | 19 | 13 8 | 32 | 3 9 | 45 | 15 6 | - | 7 | 15 8 | 20 | 13 10 | 33 | 10 10 | 46 | 16 51/2 | - | 8 | 11 111/2 | 21 | 11 21/2 | 34 | 16 10 | 47 | 16 3 | - | 9 | 16 91/2 | 22 | 19 1 | 35 | 17 10 | 48 | 17 4 | - | 10 | 16 1 | 23 | 17 71/2 | 36 | 14 11 | 49 | 19 21/2 | - | 11 | 15 2 | 24 | 15 6 | 37 | 11 11 | 50 | 15 6 | - | 12 | 15 6 | 25 | 18 3 | 38 | 11 8 | 51 | 15 41/2 | - | 13 | 9 3 | 26 | 18 01/2 | 39 | 15 01/2 | 52 | 4 4 | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 5. HAND FOLDER IN BOOKBINDING HOUSE. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | _Piece Rates--Slow Hand._ | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 1899 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | - | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 1 | 3 41/2 | 14 | 3 0 | 27 | 8 8 | 40 | 7 10 | - | 2 | 5 10 | 15 | 7 21/2 | 28 | 9 7 | 41 | 8 5 | - | 3 | 7 1 | 16 | 7 51/2 | 29 | 8 3 | 42 | 10 0 | - | 4 | 7 6 | 17 | 9 7 | 30 | 7 3 | 43 | 10 0 | - | 5 | 7 4 | 18 | 11 8 | 31 | 8 10 | 44 | 10 71/2 | - | 6 | 7 8 | 19 | 7 7 | 32 | 6 31/2 | 45 | 7 7 | - | 7 | 7 9 | 20 | 8 1 | 33 | 11 01/2 | 46 | 8 1 | - | 8 | 6 51/2 | 21 | 5 61/2 | 34 | 8 10 | 47 | 9 0 | - | 9 | 8 7 | 22 | 10 0 | 35 | 9 7 | 48 | 9 0 | - | 10 | 7 8 | 23 | 8 1 | 36 | 2 51/2 | 49 | 11 1 | - | 11 | 7 8 | 24 | 8 10 | 37 | -- | 50 | 8 10 | - | 12 | 6 111/2 | 25 | 8 9 | 38 | 3 9 | 51 | 10 9 | - | 13 | 5 91/2 | 26 | 8 111/2 | 39 | 5 7 | 52 | 2 3 | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 6. HAND FOLDER IN BOOKBINDING HOUSE. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | _Time Rates._ | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | This worker was paid 18_s._ per week steadily throughout | - | the year 1899. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 7. LEARNER. FOLDER IN BOOKBINDING HOUSE. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | _Up to week 8 receives Fixed Sum, afterwards | - | Half Earnings at Piece Rates._ | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 1899 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | - | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 1 | 2 0 | 14 | 3 11/2 | 27 | 7 8 | 40 | 6 01/2 | - | 2 | 2 0 | 15 | 6 1 | 28 | 5 21/2 | 41 | 7 31/2 | - | 3 | 2 0 | 16 | 5 81/2 | 29 | 5 41/2 | 42 | 6 01/2 | - | 4 | 2 0 | 17 | 6 91/2 | 30 | 4 11 | 43 | 6 91/2 | - | 5 | 2 0 | 18 | 7 7 | 31 | 4 10 | 44 | 8 01/2 | - | 6 | 2 0 | 19 | 7 2 | 32 | 3 10 | 45 | 6 4 | - | 7 | 2 0 | 20 | 6 41/2 | 33 | 6 101/2 | 46 | 6 41/2 | - | 8 | 2 0 | 21 | 3 91/2 | 34 | 2 2 | 47 | 6 2 | - | 9 | 6 6 | 22 | 6 91/2 | 35 | -- | 48 | 6 01/2 | - | 10 | 7 7 | 23 | 6 111/2 | 36 | 4 2 | 49 | 7 4 | - | 11 | 5 91/2 | 24 | 6 51/2 | 37 | 6 21/2 | 50 | 6 31/2 | - | 12 | 6 11/2 | 25 | 5 91/2 | 38 | 6 11/2 | 51 | 7 1 | - | 13 | 4 9 | 26 | 6 2 | 39 | 5 8 | 52 | 1 10 | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - - +------+--------+------+--------+-------+--------+------+--------+ - | 8. FOLDER AND GATHERER IN BOOKBINDING HOUSE. | - +------+--------+------+--------+-------+--------+------+--------+ - | _Piece Rates._ | - +------+--------+------+--------+-------+--------+------+--------+ - | 1899 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | - | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | - +------+--------+------+--------+-------+--------+------+--------+ - | 1 | 7 51/2 | 14 | 5 9 | 27 | 4 3 | 40 | 14 0 | - | 2 | 16 4 | 15 | 11 31/2 | 28 | 9 11/2 | 41 | 13 1 | - | 3 | 10 1 | 16 | 21 2 | 29 | 13 5 | 42 | 16 7 | - | 4 | 18 7 | 17 | 20 0 | 30 | 17 7 | 43 | 14 3 | - | 5 | 14 9 | 18 | 12 81/2 | 31 | 7 0 | 44 | 13 5 | - | 6 | 11 81/2 | 19 | 12 5 | 32 | 9 1 | 45 | 14 1 | - | 7 | 13 9 | 20 | 27 11 | 33 | 15 4 | 46 | 19 10 | - | 8 | 19 111/2 | 21 | 15 71/2 | 34 | 18 8 | 47 | 21 11 | - | 9 | 13 3 | 22 | 15 11 | 35 | 17 9 | 48 | 18 21/2 | - | 10 | 4 3 | 23 | 9 5 | 36 | 6 11 | 49 | 11 11/2 | - | 11 | 14 6 | 24 | 14 5 | 37(a) | -- | 50 | 14 71/2 | - | 12 | 17 7 | 25 | 12 1 | 38 | 8 0 | 51 | 8 91/2 | - | 13 | 19 71/2 | 26 | 14 31/2 | 39 | 19 31/2 | 52 | 8 6 | - +------+--------+------+--------+-------+--------+------+--------+ - | (a) Week missing from wage sheets. | - +------+--------+------+--------+-------+--------+------+--------+ - - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+---------+ - | 9. HAND SEWER IN BOOKBINDING HOUSE. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+---------+ - | _Piece Rates--Slow Hand._ | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+---------+ - | 1899 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | - | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+---------+ - | 1 | 3 31/2 | 8 | 12 21/2 | 15 | 8 10 | 22 | 10 51/2 | - | 2 | 5 10 | 9 | 10 81/2 | 16 | -- | 23 | 7 5 | - | 3 | 9 10 | 10 | 7 6 | 17 | 11 5 | 24 | 8 61/2 | - | 4 | 10 1 | 11 | 9 3 | 18 | 5 5 | 25 | -- | - | 5 | 11 9 | 12 | 8 5 | 19 | 6 01/2 | 26 | 5 5 | - | 6 | 8 4 | 13 | 10 3 | 20 | 13 11/2 | 27 | 1 7(a) | - | 7 | 8 101/2 | 14 | 6 11 | 21 | 9 91/2 | | | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+---------+ - | (a) She left after this. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+---------+ - - +------+--------+------+--------+-------+--------+------+--------+ - | 10. HAND SEWER IN BOOKBINDING HOUSE. | - +------+--------+------+--------+-------+--------+------+--------+ - | _Piece Rates--Quick Hand._ | - +------+--------+------+--------+-------+--------+------+--------+ - | 1899 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | - | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | - +------+--------+------+--------+-------+--------+------+--------+ - | 1 | 5 101/2 | 14 | 12 0 | 27 | -- | 40 | 10 8 | - | 2 | -- | 15 | 13 4 | 28 | -- | 41 | 12 31/2 | - | 3 | 15 81/2 | 16 | 20 6 | 29 | 14 3 | 42 | 10 3 | - | 4 | 14 3 | 17 | 20 3 | 30 | 13 11 | 43 | 12 5 | - | 5 | 16 11 | 18 | 4 11 | 31 | 10 6 | 44 | 14 3 | - | 6 | 14 81/2 | 19 | 6 5 | 32 | 6 8 | 45 | 13 11 | - | 7 | 13 4 | 20 | 19 6 | 33 | 14 7 | 46 | 16 1 | - | 8 | 18 6 | 21 | 14 6 | 34 | 18 10 | 47 | 16 101/2 | - | 9 | 16 4 | 22 | 14 3 | 35 | 19 4 | 48 | 13 8 | - | 10 | 10 7 | 23 | 10 11/2 | 36 | 17 4 | 49 | 15 7 | - | 11 | 14 (a) | 24 | 12 31/2 | 37(b) | -- | 50 | 13 6 | - | 12 | 10 71/2 | 25 | 16 11/2 | 38 | 16 11 | 51 | 12 5 | - | 13 | 16 31/2 | 26 | 1 51/2 | 39 | 14 7 | 52 | 4 10 | - +------+--------+------+--------+-------+--------+------+--------+ - | (a) 5-12 | - | (b) Missing from wage sheets. | - +------+--------+------+--------+-------+--------+------+--------+ - - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 11. MACHINE SEWER IN BOOKBINDING HOUSE. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | _Piece Rates._ | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 1899 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | - | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | - | 1 | 17 31/2 | 14 | 8 10 | 27 | 18 1 | 40 | 20 21/2 | - | 2 | 15 0 | 15 | 16 6 | 28 | 20 1 | 41 | 18 8 | - | 3 | 15 71/2 | 16 | 16 6 | 29 | 14 0 | 42 | 20 71/2 | - | 4 | 15 4 | 17 | 17 10 | 30 | -- | 43 | 17 111/2 | - | 5 | 15 71/2 | 18 | 19 3 | 31 | 12 2 | 44 | 19 51/2 | - | 6 | 16 7 | 19 | 16 8 | 32 | 11 21/2 | 45 | 17 10 | - | 7 | 16 3 | 20 | 16 10 | 33 | 18 11 | 46 | 21 9 | - | 8 | 16 91/2 | 21 | 10 8 | 34 | 18 9 | 47 | 20 5 | - | 9 | 18 51/2 | 22 | 18 21/2 | 35 | 15 2 | 48 | 23 3 | - | 10 | 17 51/2 | 23 | 16 9 | 36 | 14 01/2 | 49 | 23 5 | - | 11 | 19 9 | 24 | 13 6 | 37 | 22 2 | 50 | 18 41/2 | - | 12 | 16 3 | 25 | 10 4 | 38 | 18 7 | 51 | 20 11/2 | - | 13 | 13 0 | 26 | 17 8 | 39 | 18 1 | 52 | 6 51/2 | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 12. LEARNER. SEWING AND COLLATING IN BOOKBINDING HOUSE. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | _Receives Half Earnings at Piece Rates._ | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 1899 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | - | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | - | 1 | -- | 14 | 8 101/2 | 27 | 2 6 | 40 | 3 31/2 | - | 2 | 4 21/2 | 15 | 5 1 | 28 | 3 7 | 41 | 5 51/2 | - | 3 | 5 01/2 | 16 | 5 5 | 29 | 4 81/2 | 42 | 7 4 | - | 4 | 5 11/2 | 17 | 6 4 | 30 | 4 61/2 | 43 | 7 2 | - | 5 | 8 10 | 18 | 6 71/2 | 31 | 7 2 | 44 | 8 5 | - | 6 | 2 10 | 19 | 4 6 | 32 | 7 5 | 45 | 4 5 | - | 7 | 4 6 | 20 | 4 101/2 | 33 | 8 8 | 46 | 4 101/2 | - | 8 | 4 91/2 | 21 | 5 4 | 34 | 7 71/2 | 47 | 7 01/2 | - | 9 | 6 01/2 | 22 | 5 81/2 | 35 | 7 11/2 | 48 | 6 8 | - | 10 | 5 01/2 | 23 | 4 0 | 36 | 7 1 | 49 | 10 91/2 | - | 11 | 5 71/2 | 24 | 9 21/2 | 37 | 7 6 | 50 | 6 41/2 | - | 12 | 5 01/2 | 25 | 7 9 | 38 | 9 101/2 | 51 | 5 21/2 | - | 13 | 6 61/2 | 26 | 3 4 | 39 | 8 1 | 52 | 1 91/2 | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 13. FOLDING, SEWING, COLLATING IN BOOKBINDING HOUSE. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | _Time Hand._ | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 1898 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | - | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | - | 41 | 19 8 | 7 | 19 8 | 28 | 15 6 | 49 | 18 3 | - | 42 | 19 41/2 | 8 | 19 4 | 29 | 17 4 | 50 | 18 71/2 | - | 43 | 19 6 | 9 | 19 10 | 30 | 15 6 | 51 | 19 6 | - | 44 | 19 8 | 10 | 19 4 | 31 | 15 6 | 52 | 11 2 | - | 45 | 20 0 | 11 | 17 6 | 32 | 10 2 | | | - | 46 | 19 10 | 12 | 18 10 | 33 | -- | 1900 | | - | 47 | 19 6 | 13 | 14 0 | 34 | 14 2 | Week | | - | 48 | 20 4 | 14 | 9 2 | 35 | 17 2 | 1 | 20 2 | - | 49 | 19 10 | 15 | 16 6 | 36 | 17 4 | 2 | 18 5 | - | 50 | 19 8 | 16 | 16 0 | 37 | 17 2 | 3 | 17 0 | - | 51 | 19 8 | 17 | 16 4 | 38 | 17 6 | 4 | 16 8 | - | 52 | 11 8 | 18 | 16 2 | 39 | 18 8 | 5 | 17 11 | - | | | 19 | 16 4 | 40 | 18 8 | 6 | 17 61/2 | - | 1899 | | 20 | 16 4 | 41 | 19 2 | 7 | 18 1 | - | Week | | 21 | 10 4 | 42 | 19 8 | 8 | 12 101/2 | - | 1 | 19 10 | 22 | 16 4 | 43 | 20 11 | 9 | 11 6 | - | 2 | 19 10 | 23 | 15 6 | 44 | 20 11 | 10 | 13 41/2 | - | 3 | 19 8 | 24 | 15 4 | 45 | 20 9 | 11 | 15 91/2 | - | 4 | 19 8 | 25 | 16 4 | 46 | 19 4 | 12 | 15 9 | - | 5 | 19 6 | 26 | 15 4 | 47 | 19 8 | 13 | 11 6 | - | 6 | 19 10 | 27 | 12 6 | 48 | 19 6 | | | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 14. COLLATOR AND SEWER. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | _Piece Rates--Quick Hand._ | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 1899 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | - | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | - | 1 | 20 3 | 14 | 10 5 | 27 | 18 7 | 40 | 18 2 | - | 2 | 18 9 | 15 | 15 31/2 | 28 | 18 31/2 | 41 | 18 31/2 | - | 3 | 18 9 | 16 | 18 2 | 29 | 15 41/2 | 42 | 18 11 | - | 4 | 18 41/2 | 17 | 20 81/2 | 30 | 16 4 | 43 | 21 3 | - | 5 | 18 10 | 18 | 22 1 | 31 | 15 11 | 44 | 21 71/2 | - | 6 | 20 1 | 19 | 19 101/2 | 32 | 9 10 | 45 | 18 10 | - | 7 | 18 11 | 20 | 18 11 | 33 | 19 6 | 46 | 18 9 | - | 8 | 19 11/2 | 21 | 12 9 | 34 | 17 71/2 | 47 | 18 01/2 | - | 9 | 21 6 | 22 | 20 0 | 35 | 16 01/2 | 48 | 19 91/2 | - | 10 | 20 4 | 23 | 18 9 | 36 | 17 61/2 | 49 | 22 4 | - | 11 | 19 101/2 | 24 | 17 5 | 37 | 18 0 | 50 | 19 5 | - | 12 | 19 11/2 | 25 | 17 11 | 38 | 17 10 | 51 | 19 6 | - | 13 | 14 4 | 26 | 19 11/2 | 39 | 17 4 | 52 | 6 31/2 | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+---------+ - | 15. PLATE HAND IN BOOKBINDING HOUSE. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+---------+ - | _Time Rates, 13_s._ for 54 hours till October, then 14_s._ | - | Overtime, 3_d._ an hour._ | - +------+--------+------+--------+-------+--------+------+--------+ - | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | - | 1 | 12 8 | 14 | 7 11 | 27 | 11 4 | 40 | 13 71/2 | - | 2 | 12 5 | 15 | 13 9 | 28 | 12 8 | 41 | 12 8 | - | 3 | 12 8 | 16 | 14 41/2 | 29 | 13 71/2 | 42 | 14 101/2 | - | 4 | 12 8 | 17 | 13 6 | 30 | 13 0 | 43 | 13 9 | - | 5 | 12 101/2 | 18 | 13 0 | 31 | 13 0 | 44 | 13 101/2 | - | 6 | 12 61/2 | 19 | 13 0 | 32 | 8 2 | 45 | 13 71/2 | - | 7 | 12 9 | 20 | 14 41/2 | 33 | 12 91/2 | 46 | 14 71/2 | - | 8 | 12 101/2 | 21 | 9 11/2 | 34 | 13 0 | 47 | 18 6 | - | 9 | 12 101/2 | 22 | 14 6 | 35 | 13 6 | 48 | 15 3 | - | 10 | 13 0 | 23 | 10 9 | 36 | -- | 49 | 13 6 | - | 11 | 13 0 | 24 | 12 101/2 | 37(a) | -- | 50 | 13 6 | - | 12 | 12 9 | 25 | 13 41/2 | 38 | 13 0 | 51 | 13 101/2 | - +------+--------+------+--------+-------+--------+------+--------+ - | (a) Missing from wage sheets. - +------+--------+------+--------+-------+--------+------+--------+ - - +------+--------+------+--------+-------+--------+------+--------+ - | 16. PLATE HAND IN BOOKBINDING HOUSE. | - +------+--------+------+--------+-------+--------+------+--------+ - | _Time Rates_, 16_s._ _for 54 hours. Overtime_, 31/2_d._ _per | - | hour for first 3 hours_, 4_d._ _per hour afterwards._ | - +------+--------+------+--------+-------+--------+------+--------+ - | 1899 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | - | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | - | 1 | 14 8 | 14 | 9 10 | 27 | 13 91/2 | 40 | 15 8 | - | 2 | 14 7 | 15 | 16 51/2 | 28 | 15 5 | 41 | 15 81/2 | - | 3 | 14 8 | 16 | 18 01/2 | 29 | 15 81/2 | 42 | 15 7 | - | 4 | 15 11/2 | 17 | 17 01/2 | 30 | 15 5 | 43 | 15 101/2 | - | 5 | 15 5 | 18 | 15 7 | 31 | 15 7 | 44 | 16 2 | - | 6 | 14 10 | 19 | 15 0 | 32 | 10 31/2 | 45 | 15 3 | - | 7 | 14 8 | 20 | 19 21/2 | 33 | 15 7 | 46 | 17 21/2 | - | 8 | 13 41/2 | 21 | 10 11 | 34 | 16 0 | 47 | 18 101/2 | - | 9 | 15 11/2 | 22 | 17 41/2 | 35 | 16 101/2 | 48 | 16 101/2 | - | 10 | 14 31/2 | 23 | 15 7 | 36 | 18 101/2 | 49 | 15 101/2 | - | 11 | 14 81/2 | 24 | 15 5 | 37(a) | -- | 50 | 15 7 | - | 12 | 14 81/2 | 25 | 16 101/2 | 38 | 16 31/2 | 51 | 15 5 | - | 13 | 15 7 | 26 | 15 101/2 | 39 | 16 31/2 | 52 | 9 11 | - +------+--------+------+--------+-------+--------+------+--------+ - | (a) Missing from wage sheets. | - +------+--------+------+--------+-------+--------+------+--------+ - - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 17. LAYER-ON OF GOLD. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | _Piece Rates._ | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 1899 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | - | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | - | 1 | 22 0 | 14 | 8 4 | 27 | 9 71/2 | 40 | 20 111/2 | - | 2 | 19 3 | 15 | 18 1 | 28 | 19 11 | 41 | 20 5 | - | 3 | 17 8 | 16 | 15 8 | 29 | 7 61/2 | 42 | 16 111/2 | - | 4 | 17 6 | 17 | 10 0 | 30 | 9 9 | 43 | 17 101/2 | - | 5 | 19 11 | 18 | 1 4 | 31 | 19 5 | 44 | 15 11/2 | - | 6 | 17 101/2 | 19 | -- | 32 | 16 91/2 | 45 | 13 9 | - | 7 | 15 10 | 20 | -- | 33 | 18 8 | 46 | 15 11/2 | - | 8 | 11 8 | 21 | -- | 34 | 24 61/2 | 47 | 11 71/2 | - | 9 | 22 0 | 22 | 11 31/2 | 35 | 18 7 | 48 | 18 8 | - | 10 | 18 8 | 23 | 20 11 | 36 | 5 31/2 | 49 | 14 10 | - | 11 | 22 1 | 24 | 16 6 | 37 | 18 2 | 50 | 9 71/2 | - | 12 | 19 3 | 25 | 16 91/2 | 38 | 26 3 | 51 | 11 8 | - | 13 | 15 10 | 26 | 12 41/2 | 39 | 15 1 | 52 | 4 11/2 | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 18. BINDING DEPARTMENT IN PRINTING HOUSE. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | _Piece Rates--Quick Worker._ | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 1898 | | 1898 | | 1898 | | 1898 | | - | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | - | 1 | 18 1 | 14 | 16 8 | 27 | 21 1 | 40 | 19 5 | - | 2 | 17 5 | 15 | 15 7 | 28 | 21 11 | 41 | 14 7 | - | 3 | 17 3 | 16 | 21 0 | 29 | 25 1 | 42 | 13 5 | - | 4 | 12 3 | 17 | 18 11 | 30 | 24 5 | 43 | 19 5 | - | 5 | 14 4 | 18 | 16 9 | 31 | -- | 44 | 17 1 | - | 6 | 19 8 | 19 | 21 1 | 32 | -- | 45 | 13 4 | - | 7 | 17 11 | 20 | 21 3 | 33 | 23 7 | 46 | 17 8 | - | 8 | 18 9 | 21 | 21 5 | 34 | 24 1 | 47 | 18 0 | - | 9 | 20 1 | 22 | 17 8 | 35 | 25 1 | 48 | 18 5 | - | 10 | 18 11 | 23 | 23 3 | 36 | 24 2 | 49 | 20 10 | - | 11 | 20 7 | 24 | 27 2 | 37 | 21 5 | 50 | 19 8 | - | 12 | 20 10 | 25 | 26 8 | 38 | 21 9 | 51 | 18 1 | - | 13 | 20 2 | 26 | 23 11 | 39 | 19 11 | 52 | 12 5 | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 19. BINDING DEPARTMENT IN PRINTING HOUSE. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | _Time Worker at_ 16_s._ | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 1899 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | - | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | - | 1 | 14 5 | 14 | 12 5 | 27 | 16 0 | 40 | 15 7 | - | 2 | 17 4 | 15 | 13 11 | 28 | 13 4 | 41 | 14 7 | - | 3 | 15 10 | 16 | 16 11 | 29 | 14 0 | 42 | 15 7 | - | 4 | 15 3 | 17 | 15 7 | 30 | 18 3 | 43 | 15 5 | - | 5 | 16 0 | 18 | 16 3 | 31 | 16 3 | 44 | 15 7 | - | 6 | 2 5 | 19 | 15 7 | 32 | -- | 45 | 15 9 | - | 7 | -- | 20 | 15 5 | 33 | 15 5 | 46 | 15 9 | - | 8 | 14 11 | 21 | 10 1 | 34 | 15 5 | 47 | 16 8 | - | 9 | 15 2 | 22 | 16 0 | 35 | 14 3 | 48 | 17 11 | - | 10 | 15 1 | 23 | 16 0 | 36 | 16 6 | 49 | 16 8 | - | 11 | 14 10 | 24 | 16 8 | 37 | 15 1 | 50 | 17 11 | - | 12 | 15 4 | 25 | 17 1 | 38 | -- | 51 | 16 3 | - | 13 | 11 0 | 26 | 15 7 | 39 | 10 1 | 52 | 10 2 | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - - +------+-------+------+--------+------+----------+------+-------+ - | 20. QUARTERLY AVERAGES OF A TIME WORKER--PRINTERS' FOLDING | - | AND SEWING, &c. | - +------+-------+------+---------+------+---------+------+-------+ - | | s. d. | | s. d. | | s. d. | | s. d. | - | 1886 | 14 1 | 1890 | 14 4 | 1893 | 13 10 | 1896 | 15 10 | - | | | " | 14 8 | " | 16 0 | | | - | 1887 | 15 3 | " | 11 0 | | | 1897 | 17 4 | - | " | 14 4 | " | 4 5(a) | 1894 | 16 0 | " | 16 0 | - | " | 14 1 | | | " | 15 8 | " | 16 7 | - | " | 14 3 | 1891 | 14 4 | " | 17 3 | " | 16 4 | - | | | " | 15 3 | " | 16 11 | | | - | 1888 | 15 6 | " | 14 11 | | | 1898 | 16 6 | - | " | 14 8 | " | 16 11 | 1895 | 16 10 | " | 15 11 | - | " | 13 11 | | | " | 15 6 | " | 15 9 | - | " | 14 3 | 1892 | 15 0 | " | 10 0(b) | " | 19 3 | - | | | " | 15 2 | " | 16 0 | | | - | 1889 | 15 11 | " | 15 7 | | | 1899 | 19 10 | - | " | 14 0 | " | 16 6 | 1896 | 18 6 | " | 18 9 | - | " | 14 2 | | | " | 15 0 | " | 18 8 | - | " | 15 9 | 1893 | 15 4 | " | 17 8 | " | 18 10 | - | | | " | 15 8 | | | | | - +------+-------+------+---------+------+---------+------+-------+ - | (a) Absent 9 weeks. | - | (b) Absent 4 weeks. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+---------+------+-------+ - - - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 21. PIECE HAND IN BINDING DEPARTMENT OF PRINTERS AND | - | STATIONERS. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 1895 | | 1896 | | 1897 | | 1897 | | - | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | - | 44 | 15 2 | 21 | 16 1 | 1 | 13 10 | 33 | -- | - | 45 | 18 01/2 | 22 | 9 101/2 | 2 | 14 11/2 | 34 | -- | - | 46 | 14 61/2 | 23 | 13 0 | 3 | 17 31/2 | 35 | 14 4 | - | 47 | 18 51/2 | 24 | 16 1 | 4 | 17 11/2 | 36 | 14 11/2 | - | 48 | 17 4 | 25 | 11 81/2 | 5 | 15 4 | 37 | 17 81/2 | - | 49 | 16 41/2 | 26 | 15 91/2 | 6 | 11 9 | 38 | 18 01/2 | - | 50 | 13 9 | 27 | 13 7 | 7 | 16 21/2 | 39 | 14 7 | - | 51 | 15 51/2 | 28 | 16 11/2 | 8 | 18 71/2 | 40 | 14 8 | - | 52 | 7 9 | 29 | 6 51/2 | 9 | 15 41/2 | 41 | 16 0 | - | | | 30 | 17 6 | 10 | 20 11/2 | 42 | 16 71/2 | - | 1896 | | 31 | 19 4 | 11 | 15 21/2 | 43 | 16 61/2 | - | Week | s. d. | 32 | 13 31/2 | 12 | 16 01/2 | 44 | 18 2 | - | 1 | 7 21/2 | 33 | -- | 13 | 15 5 | 45 | 20 51/2 | - | 2 | 14 2 | 34 | -- | 14 | 16 41/2 | 46 | 19 11 | - | 3 | 12 91/2 | 35 | 15 4 | 15 | 15 01/2 | 47 | 19 01/2 | - | 4 | 13 01/2 | 36 | 18 21/2 | 16 | 15 5 | 48 | 17 21/2 | - | 5 | 19 01/2 | 37 | 16 9 | 17 | 12 81/2 | 49 | 17 91/2 | - | 6 | 18 1 | 38 | 17 0 | 18 | 17 6 | 50 | 20 1 | - | 7 | 14 5 | 39 | 17 0 | 19 | 18 8 | 51 | 20 61/2 | - | 8 | 14 21/2 | 40 | 15 10 | 20 | 19 1 | 52 | 20 2 | - | 9 | 14 10 | 41 | 16 10 | 21 | 18 1 | | | - | 10 | 17 5 | 42 | 19 2 | 22 | 18 41/2 | 1898 | | - | 11 | 17 5 | 43 | 15 41/2 | 23 | 14 2 | Week | s. d. | - | 12 | 13 71/2 | 44 | 16 11/2 | 24 | 9 01/2 | 1 | -- | - | 13 | 17 11/2 | 45 | 16 4 | 25 | 7 2 | 2 | -- | - | 14 | 14 01/2 | 46 | 18 2 | 26 | 13 9 | 3 | -- | - | 15 | 11 21/2 | 47 | 17 41/2 | 27 | 15 6 | 4 | -- | - | 16 | 15 2 | 48 | 14 01/2 | 28 | 11 11 | 5 | -- | - | 17 | 17 3 | 49 | 14 2 | 29 | 15 11/2 | 6 | -- | - | 18 | 17 1 | 50 | 15 21/2 | 30 | 18 81/2 | 7 | -- | - | 19 | 19 41/2 | 51 | 15 4 | 31 | 14 2 | 8 | -- | - | 20 | 11 91/2 | 52 | 13 0 | 32 | 10 5 | 9 | -- | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 1898 | | 1898 | | 1899 | | 1899 | | - | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | - | 10 | -- | 39 | 14 3 | 12 | 17 2 | 41 | 15 4 | - | 11 | -- | 40 | 13 91/2 | 13 | 15 5 | 42 | 14 71/2 | - | 12 | -- | 41 | 14 51/2 | 14 | 11 21/2 | 43 | 19 101/2 | - | 13 | -- | 42 | 14 9 | 15 | 15 81/2 | 44 | 18 9 | - | 14 | 17 21/2 | 43 | 16 9 | 16 | 17 9 | 45 | 19 1 | - | 15 | 16 01/2 | 44 | 14 11 | 17 | 18 3 | 46 | 19 6 | - | 16 | 12 31/2 | 45 | 19 1 | 18 | 18 6 | 47 | 21 2 | - | 17 | 13 11/2 | 46 | 18 2 | 19 | 18 6 | 48 | 18 6 | - | 18 | 14 01/2 | 47 | 20 31/2 | 20 | 16 1 | 49 | 16 91/2 | - | 19 | 18 81/2 | 48 | 20 3 | 21 | 12 7 | 50 | 18 01/2 | - | 20 | 20 31/2 | 49 | 20 6 | 22 | 16 5 | 51 | 19 9 | - | 21 | 20 31/2 | 50 | 18 2 | 23 | 18 2 | 52 | 11 101/2 | - | 22 | 20 31/2 | 51 | 16 11/2 | 24 | 11 101/2 | | | - | 23 | 16 6 | 52 | 18 1 | 25 | 15 6 | 1900 | | - | 24 | 17 9 | 53 | 10 2 | 26 | 20 2 | Week | s. d. | - | 25 | 19 1 | | | 27 | 15 81/2 | 1 | 17 91/2 | - | 26 | 20 31/2 | 1899 | | 28 | 15 11 | 2 | 19 21/2 | - | 27 | 20 41/2 | Week | s. d. | 29 | 11 11/2 | 3 | 18 3 | - | 28 | 15 8 | 1 | 20 11/2 | 30 | 14 9 | 4 | 18 5 | - | 29 | 14 1 | 2 | 18 1 | 31 | 17 11/2 | 5 | 16 91/2 | - | 30 | 16 51/2 | 3 | 18 71/2 | 32 | 16 5 | 6 | 20 5 | - | 31 | 20 3 | 4 | 19 5 | 33 | -- | 7 | 20 1 | - | 32 | 14 81/2 | 5 | 20 2 | 34 | -- | 8 | 19 0 | - | 33 | -- | 6 | 16 7 | 35 | 17 91/2 | 9 | 19 11/2 | - | 34 | -- | 7 | 18 4 | 36 | 16 4 | 10 | 19 51/2 | - | 35 | 15 101/2 | 8 | 18 51/2 | 37 | 17 10 | 11 | 20 5 | - | 36 | 19 01/2 | 9 | 17 6 | 38 | 18 0 | 12 | 19 2 | - | 37 | 14 6 | 10 | 14 6 | 39 | 20 0 | 13 | 16 51/2 | - | 38 | 15 3 | 11 | 16 21/2 | 40 | 17 2 | 14 | 20 2 | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 22. HAND FOLDER AND SEWER IN PRINTING HOUSE. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | _Piece Rates._ | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | | Half- | | Half- | | Full- | | Full- | - | | pay | | pay | | pay | | pay | - | 1895 | Earner | 1895 | Earner | 1895 | Earner | 1896 | Earner | - | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 7 | 2 51/2 | 25 | 3 91/2 | 42 | 16 3 | 5 | 12 1 | - | 8 | 3 51/2 | 26 | 5 01/2 | 43 | 14 3 | 6 | 17 8 | - | 9 | 3 9 | 27 | 7 4 | 44 | 12 31/2 | 7 | 10 0 | - | 10 | 4 10 | 28 | 2 91/2 | 45 | 14 4 | 8 | 10 2 | - | 11 | 3 9 | 29 | 3 51/2 | 46 | 15 4 | 9 | 14 5 | - | 12 | 5 41/2 | 30 | 5 81/2 | 47 | 14 4 | 10 | 14 3 | - | 13 | 6 8 | 31 | 6 5 | 48 | 16 5 | 11 | 8 3 | - | 14 | 5 8 | 32 | 3 31/2 | 49 | 15 4 | 12 | 11 81/2 | - | 15 | 2 4 | 33 | 2 0 | 50 | 12 61/2 | 13 | 10 1 | - | 16 | 2 7 | 34 | 3 91/2 | 51 | 13 9 | 14 | 12 7 | - | 17 | 5 11 | 35 | 5 1 | 52 | 8 1 | 15 | 5 6 | - | 18 | 6 111/2 | 36 | 7 6 | | | 16 | 9 0 | - | 19 | 6 71/2 | 37 | 3 3 | 1896 | | 17 | 14 7 | - | 20 | 3 4 | 38 | 3 31/2 | Week | s. d. | 18 | 14 8 | - | 21 | 2 81/2 | 39 | 5 10 | 1 | 12 4 | 19 | 17 10 | - | 22 | 5 6 | 40 | 6 0 | 2 | 9 8 | 20 | 18 6 | - | 23 | 4 111/2 | 41 | 5 3 | 3 | 12 7 | 21 | 7 3 | - | 24 | 6 61/2 | | | 4 | 9 8 | 22 | 9 11 | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | | Full- | | Full- | | Full- | | Full- | - | | pay | | pay | | pay | | pay | - | 1896 | Earner | 1897 | Earner | 1898 | Earner | 1899 | Earner | - | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 23 | 15 11/2 | 21 | 14 61/2 | 18 | 16 101/2 | 15 | 17 9 | - | 24 | 10 4 | 22 | 16 3 | 19 | 17 91/2 | 16 | 18 3 | - | 25 | 13 8 | 23 | 19 11 | 20 | 15 10 | 17 | 14 5 | - | 26 | 10 01/2 | 24 | 15 10 | 21 | 11 61/2 | 18 | 18 3 | - | 27 | 9 4 | 25 | 14 21/2 | 22 | 15 6 | 19 | 19 5 | - | 28 | 12 5 | 26 | 13 2 | 23 | 10 2 | 20 | 15 2 | - | 29 | 5 8 | 27 | 16 11/2 | 24 | 8 11 | 21 | 5 51/2 | - | 30 | 7 0 | 28 | 12 10 | 25 | 12 51/2 | 22 | 12 9 | - | 31 | 11 2 | 29 | 9 2 | 26 | 18 0 | 23 | 19 11 | - | 32 | 13 9 | 30 | 9 91/2 | 27 | 17 41/2 | 24 | 22 21/2 | - | 33 | 18 91/2 | 31 | 6 4 | 28 | 8 6 | 25 | 18 4 | - | 34 | 9 0 | 32 | 12 9 | 29 | 15 81/2 | 26 | 20 7 | - | 35 | 9 8 | 33 | -- | 30 | 9 7 | 27 | 18 11/2 | - | 36 | 13 3 | 34 | -- | 31 | 15 11 | 28 | 19 91/2 | - | 37 | 11 21/2 | 35 | -- | 32 | 17 101/2 | 29 | 17 1 | - | 38 | 11 8 | 36 | 13 51/2 | 33 | -- | 30 | 20 0 | - | 39 | -- | 37 | 8 0 | 34 | -- | 31 | 16 6 | - | 40 | 4 5 | 38 | 6 8 | 35 | 15 51/2 | 32 | 13 10 | - | 41 | 18 31/2 | 39 | 7 0 | 36 | 19 3 | 33 | 22 8 | - | 42 | 10 111/2 | 40 | 11 21/2 | 37 | 18 4 | 34 | 9 51/2 | - | 43 | 10 1 | 41 | 15 2 | 38 | 18 7 | 35 | -- | - | 44 | 16 61/2 | 42 | 9 9 | 39 | 19 3 | 36 | 14 01/2 | - | 45 | 14 0 | 43 | 10 4 | 40 | 23 5 | 37 | 20 31/2 | - | 46 | 14 8 | 44 | 10 21/2 | 41 | 18 81/2 | 38 | 19 2 | - | 47 | 3 61/2 | 45 | 16 41/2 | 42 | 18 5 | 39 | 15 9 | - | 48 | 12 4 | 46 | 16 101/2 | 43 | 12 0 | 40 | 18 6 | - | 49 | 12 31/2 | 47 | 15 10 | 44 | 16 9 | 41 | 20 01/2 | - | 50 | 13 5 | 48 | 17 6 | 45 | 20 3 | 42 | 18 11 | - | 51 | 13 10 | 49 | 9 11/2 | 46 | 18 5 | 43 | 17 2 | - | 52 | 7 7 | 50 | 15 8 | 47 | 15 111/2 | 44 | 20 5 | - | | | 51 | 11 6 | 48 | 17 91/2 | 45 | 18 4 | - | 1897 | | 52 | 8 81/2 | 49 | 19 0 | 46 | 19 71/2 | - | Week | s. d. | 53 | 7 8 | 50 | 18 91/2 | 47 | 18 5 | - | 1 | 10 3 | | | 51 | 14 5 | 48 | 19 9 | - | 2 | 14 1 | 1898 | | 52 | 12 3 | 49 | 20 0 | - | 3 | 7 41/2 | Week | s. d. | | | 50 | 19 31/2 | - | 4 | 6 41/2 | 1 | 17 11 | 1899 | | 51 | 16 6 | - | 5 | 10 6 | 2 | 5 0 | Week | s. d. | 52 | 9 61/2 | - | 6 | 15 4 | 3 | 7 6 | 1 | 19 11/2 | | | - | 7 | 16 9 | 4 | 10 51/2 | 2 | 19 10 | 1900 | | - | 8 | 15 2 | 5 | 16 7 | 3 | 17 111/2 | Week | s. d. | - | 9 | 14 7 | 6 | 12 8 | 4 | 8 8 | 1 | 14 10 | - | 10 | 14 7 | 7 | 11 7 | 5 | 15 2 | 2 | 19 01/2 | - | 11 | 15 3 | 8 | 12 11 | 6 | 19 81/2 | 3 | 20 91/2 | - | 12 | 18 0 | 9 | 16 0 | 7 | 16 9 | 4 | 19 61/2 | - | 13 | 12 0 | 10 | 17 5 | 8 | 8 9 | 5 | 18 6 | - | 14 | 12 91/2 | 11 | 18 0 | 9 | 11 71/2 | 6 | 22 4 | - | 15 | 15 1 | 12 | 16 2 | 10 | 17 7 | 7 | 21 7 | - | 16 | 8 5 | 13 | 13 31/2 | 11 | 17 5 | 8 | 22 0 | - | 17 | 9 7 | 14 | 16 8 | 12 | 15 01/2 | 9 | 18 9 | - | 18 | 11 4 | 15 | 9 10 | 13 | 12 9 | 10 | 17 51/2 | - | 19 | 18 111/2 | 16 | -- | 14 | 14 0 | 11 | 15 3 | - | 20 | 10 3 | 17 | 13 31/2 | | | | | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 23. FOLDER AND SEWER IN BINDING DEPARTMENT OF PRINTING HOUSE. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | _Piece Rates--Slow Hand._ | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 1898 | | 1898 | | 1898 | | 1899 | | - | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 19 | 6 8 | 33 | 6 2 | 47 | 3 3 | 6 | 6 2 | - | 20 | 7 11 | 34 | 9 1 | 48 | 8 9 | 7 | 5 9 | - | 21 | 7 11 | 35 | 8 3 | 49 | 8 3 | 8 | 7 11 | - | 22 | 7 6 | 36 | 8 0 | 50 | 10 9 | 9 | 8 3 | - | 23 | 8 7 | 37 | 8 10 | 51 | 11 8 | 10 | 7 10 | - | 24 | 8 10 | 38 | 8 3 | 52 | 4 10 | 11 | 11 8 | - | 25 | 6 0 | 39 | 8 11 | | | 12 | 10 11 | - | 26 | 7 1 | 40 | 7 11 | 1899 | | 13 | 7 0 | - | 27 | 8 1 | 41 | 5 1 | Week | s. d. | 14 | 4 2 | - | 28 | 6 6 | 42 | 4 6 | 1 | 7 9 | 15 | 7 10 | - | 29 | 8 2 | 43 | 2 10 | 2 | 8 4 | 16 | 7 6 | - | 30 | 7 5 | 44 | 6 2 | 3 | 5 11 | 17 | 9 11 | - | 31 | 5 9 | 45 | 6 0 | 4 | 8 6 | 18 | 4 5 | - | 32 | 9 5 | 46 | 1 10 | 5 | 8 1 | | | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 24. HAND FOLDER IN PRINTERS' WAREHOUSE. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | _Piece Rates._ | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 1898 | | 1898 | | 1898 | | 1899 | | - | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d .| Week | s. d. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 1 | 19 1 | 14 | 15 10 | 27 | 29 0 | 40 | 14 7 | - | 2 | 22 2 | 15 | 16 4 | 28 | 26 4 | 41 | 20 1 | - | 3 | 20 2 | 16 | 20 7 | 29 | 19 8 | 42 | 18 11 | - | 4 | 17 10 | 17 | 22 1 | 30 | 29 2 | 43 | 21 7 | - | 5 | 22 6 | 18 | 23 4 | 31 | 18 10 | 44 | 22 1 | - | 6 | 19 0 | 19 | 29 9 | 32 | 19 7 | 45 | 20 2 | - | 7 | 22 4 | 20 | 27 2 | 33 | 22 3 | 46 | 18 7 | - | 8 | 21 9 | 21 | 27 4 | 34 | 19 6 | 47 | 18 5 | - | 9 | 19 6 | 22 | 20 11 | 35 | 19 11 | 48 | 21 3 | - | 10 | 20 10 | 23 | 27 6 | 36 | 19 4 | 49 | 24 9 | - | 11 | 19 5 | 24 | 20 1 | 37 | 19 10 | 50 | 27 0 | - | 12 | 19 6 | 25 | 21 7 | 38 | 20 5 | 51 | 21 7 | - | 13 | 23 10 | 26 | 24 1 | 39 | -- | 52 | 15 5 | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 25. ENVELOPE PACKER. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | _Time Work_, 14_s._ | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 1898 | | 1898 | | 1898 | | 1899 | | - | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | Week | s. d. | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - | 1 | 13 8 | 14 | 9 10 | 27 | 13 5 | 40 | 13 0 | - | 2 | 13 8 | 15 | 11 4 | 28 | 13 8 | 41 | 14 0 | - | 3 | 13 8 | 16 | 13 8 | 29 | 12 5 | 42 | 14 0 | - | 4 | 13 2 | 17 | 13 9 | 30 | 14 6 | 43 | 14 0 | - | 5 | 13 9 | 18 | 13 9 | 31 | 11 6 | 44 | 13 10 | - | 6 | 13 8 | 19 | 13 10 | 32 | 13 10 | 45 | 13 10 | - | 7 | 13 8 | 20 | 13 10 | 33 | 13 9 | 46 | 14 0 | - | 8 | 13 8 | 21 | 11 2 | 34 | 13 3 | 47 | 14 0 | - | 9 | 13 9 | 22 | 11 4 | 35 | 13 10 | 48 | 13 10 | - | 10 | 13 9 | 23 | 13 11 | 36 | 14 0 | 49 | 13 9 | - | 11 | 13 8 | 24 | 13 9 | 37 | 14 0 | 50 | 13 9 | - | 12 | 13 9 | 25 | 12 5 | 38 | 14 0 | 51 | 13 9 | - | 13 | 13 11 | 26 | 13 9 | 39 | 9 1 | 52 | 8 9 | - +------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+------+--------+ - - +------+-------------+------+-------------+------+-------------+ - | 26. MACHINE RULER. | - +------+-------------+------+-------------+------+-------------+ - | The figures in brackets to the left of the wage give | - | the nominal time wage. | - +------+-------------+------+-------------+------+-------------+ - | 1897 | | 1898 | | 1899 | | - | Week | s. d. s. d. | Week | s. d. s. d. | Week | s. d. s. d. | - | 1 | (4 6) 3 4 | 1 | (6 6) 5 10 | 1 | (7 6) 1 2 | - | 2 | " 4 9 | 2 | " 6 5 | 2 | " 6 8 | - | 3 | " 4 6 | 3 | " 6 4 | 3 | " 6 0 | - | 4 | " 4 6 | 4 | (7 0) 6 10 | 4 | " 7 3 | - | 5 | " 4 6 | 5 | " 6 11 | 5 | " 7 5 | - | 6 | (5 0) 5 0 | 6 | " 7 0 | 6 | " 7 6 | - | 7 | " 4 11 | 7 | " 6 9 | 7 | " 6 2 | - | 8 | " 5 0 | 8 | " 7 0 | 8 | " 7 8 | - | 9 | " 3 4 | 9 | " 6 10 | 9 | " 7 6 | - | 10 | (5 6) 5 6 | 10 | " 5 1 | 10 | " 6 11 | - | 11 | " 5 6 | 11 | " 6 11 | 11 | " 7 5 | - | 12 | " 5 6 | 12 | " 6 10 | 12 | " 7 6 | - | 13 | " 5 6 | 13 | " 6 11 | 13 | " 5 5 | - | 14 | " 5 6 | 14 | " 5 1 | 14 | " 6 1 | - | 15 | " 5 6 | 15 | " 4 2 | 15 | " 7 9 | - | 16 | " 4 0 | 16 | " 6 11 | 16 | " 7 10 | - | 17 | " 4 7 | 17 | " 6 10 | 17 | " 7 9 | - | 18 | " 5 0 | 18 | " 6 10 | 18 | " 7 7 | - | 19 | " 5 5 | 19 | (7 6) 7 5 | 19 | " 7 10 | - | 20 | " 5 6 | 20 | " 7 4 | 20 | " 7 9 | - | 21 | " 5 5 | 21 | " 7 5 | 21 | " 6 0 | - | 22 | " 5 4 | 22 | " 5 11 | 22 | " 7 4 | - | 23 | " 5 5 | 23 | " 7 11 | 23 | " 7 5 | - | 24 | " 4 8 | 24 | " 8 0 | 24 | " 7 5 | - | 25 | " 5 5 | 25 | " 7 4 | 25 | " 7 3 | - | 26 | " 4 6 | 26 | " 7 6 | 26 | " 5 7 | - | 27 | (6 0) 5 11 | 27 | " 7 3 | 27 | " 6 6 | - | 28 | " 6 0 | 28 | " 5 10 | 28 | (8 0) 6 5 | - | 29 | " 5 11 | 29 | " 7 5 | 29 | " 7 10 | - | 30 | " 5 11 | 30 | " 7 9 | 30 | " 7 11 | - | 31 | " 5 10 | 31 | " 5 1 | 31 | " - -- | - | 32 | " 3 11 | 32 | " 6 6 | 32 | " 6 0 | - | 33 | " 4 10 | 33 | " 7 2 | 33 | " 7 10 | - | 34 | " 5 5 | 34 | " 7 6 | 34 | " 7 11 | - | 35 | " 5 2 | 35 | " 7 6 | 35 | " 8 3 | - | 36 | " 5 10 | 36 | " 7 6 | 36 | " 7 9 | - | 37 | " 5 11 | 37 | " 7 5 | 37 | " 7 10 | - | 38 | " 5 10 | 38 | " 6 8 | 38 | " 7 10 | - | 39 | " 6 0 | 39 | " 5 8 | 39 | " 7 8 | - | 40 | " 5 10 | 40 | " 7 5 | 40 | " 7 9 | - | 41 | " 5 11 | 41 | " 7 4 | 41 | " 7 9 | - | 42 | " 6 0 | 42 | " 7 5 | 42 | " 8 2 | - | 43 | " 5 10 | 43 | " 7 6 | 43 | " 8 0 | - | 44 | " 5 11 | 44 | " 6 10 | 44 | " 8 1 | - | 45 | (6 6) 6 4 | 45 | " 7 3 | 45 | " 7 11 | - | 46 | " 6 2 | 46 | " 6 9 | 46 | " 8 0 | - | 47 | " 6 5 | 47 | " 7 5 | 47 | " 8 2 | - | 48 | " 6 5 | 48 | " 6 8 | 48 | " 8 5 | - | 49 | " 6 4 | 49 | " 7 4 | 49 | " 8 3 | - | 50 | " 6 4 | 50 | " 7 4 | 50 | " 8 1 | - | 51 | " 6 3 | 51 | " 7 6 | 51 | " 8 2 | - | 52 | " 4 0 | 52 | " 4 6 | 52 | " 5 0 | - +------+-------------+------+-------------+------+-------------+ - - - - -APPENDIX VI. - - -In view of the importance of the preservation of authentic wages figures -we reprint the Appendix published in 1849 by Mr. Dunning to his "Reply -to a Letter from the Committee of the Southwark Auxiliary Bible Society, -&c.," as under:-- - -No. I. - - +------------+---------------+----------------+----------------+ - | EARNINGS ON THE PREMISES. | - +------------+---------------+----------------+----------------+ - | _Piece Workers._ | - +------------+---------------+----------------+----------------+ - | 1845. | Sept. 6th. | Sept 13th. | Oct. 11th. | - | | L _s._ _d._ | L _s._ _d._ | L _s._ _d._ | - +------------+---------------+----------------+----------------+ - | Ashford | 0 6 8 | 0 6 81/2 | 0 6 4 | - | Aggersbury | -- | -- | 0 7 10 | - | Blichenden | 0 7 53/4 | 0 7 11/2 | 0 7 7 | - | Burkitt, | 0 5 23/4 | 0 4 33/4 | 0 4 101/2 | - | Mrs. | | | | - | Brown, | 0 6 9 | 0 7 1 | 0 6 51/4 | - | M. A. | | | | - | Berridge | -- | -- | 0 5 71/4 | - | Bozankae | 0 1 81/2 | 0 4 8 | 0 4 01/2 | - | Betherston | 0 0 91/2 | -- | -- | - | Carpenter, | 0 4 53/4 | -- | 0 4 31/2 | - | Mrs. | | | | - | Carpenter, | 0 7 0 | 0 7 93/4 | 0 6 63/4 | - | M. P. | | | | - | Cooper, | 0 5 41/2 | 0 5 01/2 | 0 4 8 | - | Ann | | | | - | Diggles | 0 7 43/4 | 0 7 91/2 | 0 7 3 | - | Day, Mary | 0 7 2 | 0 6 111/2 | 0 7 33/4 | - | Elliott, | 0 4 9 | -- | -- | - | E. | | | | - | Facey | 0 1 71/2 | 0 4 31/4 | 0 6 41/2 | - | Hart, E. | -- | 0 6 2 | 0 5 01/2 | - | Joyce, | 0 7 7 | 0 7 81/4 | -- | - | M. A. | | | | - | Leggatt, | -- | -- | 0 3 51/2 | - | Mrs. | | | | - | Pepper | 0 7 101/4 | 0 8 51/2 | 0 8 111/4 | - | Rogers, E. | 0 6 61/2 | 0 6 41/2 | 0 6 71/4 | - | Richardson | 0 8 11/4 | 0 7 81/4 | 0 8 4 | - | Spencer | -- | -- | 0 4 10 | - | Satchell, | 0 6 01/2 | 0 5 111/4 | 0 5 91/4 | - | A. E. | | | | - | Such, E. | -- | -- | 0 6 10 | - | Smith, | 0 3 11/2 | 0 7 81/2 | -- | - | Mrs. | | | | - | Speak, | 0 6 21/2 | 0 7 103/4 | 0 8 51/4 | - | Mrs. | | | | - | Touse, | 0 4 10 | 0 5 03/4 | 0 4 91/2 | - | M. A. | | | | - | Wilkins, | 0 12 2 | 0 11 01/4 | 0 12 31/4 | - | A. | | | | - | Wilkins, | 0 7 01/2 | 0 7 93/4 | 0 8 111/4 | - | E. | | | | - +------------+---------------+----------------+----------------+ - | | L6 15 11 | L7 3 7 | L8 3 5 | - +------------+---------------+----------------+----------------+ - - +------------+---------------+----------------+----------------+ - | _Time Workers._ | - +------------+---------------+----------------+----------------+ - | 1845. | Sept. 6th. | Sept. 13th. | Oct. 11th. | - | | L _s._ _d._ | L _s._ _d._ | L _s._ _d._ | - +------------+---------------+----------------+----------------+ - | Osborne, | 0 11 6 | 0 10 6 | 0 10 0 | - | C. (10_s._ | | | | - | per week) | | | | - +------------+---------------+----------------+----------------+ - | Burrows, | 0 12 0 | 0 12 111/2 | 0 12 0 | - | E. (12_s._ | | | | - | per week) | | | | - +------------+---------------+----------------+----------------+ - | Aurnett | 0 14 2 | 0 12 7 | 0 11 10 | - | (12_s._ | | | | - | per week) | | | | - +------------+---------------+----------------+----------------+ - | Holloway | 0 4 4 | 0 4 0 | 0 3 10 | - | (learner) | | | | - +------------+---------------+----------------+----------------+ - | Dew (7_s._ | 0 8 11/2 | 0 7 91/2 | 0 7 7 | - | 6_d._ | | | | - | per week) | | | | - +------------+---------------+----------------+----------------+ - | Bocking | 0 3 0 | 0 3 0 | 0 3 0 | - | (learner) | | | | - +------------+---------------+----------------+----------------+ - | Routledge | 0 9 4 | -- | -- | - | (4 days' | | | | - | work) | | | | - +------------+---------------+----------------+----------------+ - | Emery, A. | -- | 0 1 0 | 0 1 0 | - | (learner) | | | | - +------------+---------------+----------------+----------------+ - | Mills. M. | -- | -- | 0 10 0 | - +------------+---------------+----------------+----------------+ - | | L3 2 51/2 | L2 11 10 | L2 19 3 | - +------------+---------------+----------------+----------------+ - - +-------------+---------------+----------------+----------------+ - | WOMEN WHO WORKED AT THEIR OWN HOMES. | - +-------------+---------------+----------------+----------------+ - | 1845. | Sept 6th. | Sept. 13th. | Oct. 11th. | - | | L _s._ _d._ | L _s._ _d._ | L _s._ _d._ | - +-------------+---------------+----------------+----------------+ - | Atchiller, | 0 8 1 | -- | -- | - | S. | | | | - | Anstead, | -- | 0 8 1 | 0 7 8 | - | Mrs. | | | | - | Aldred | -- | -- | 0 7 1 | - | Bruce, C. | 0 4 111/4 | -- | 0 4 31/2 | - | Bullmore | 0 5 9 | 0 3 71/4 | 0 3 81/2 | - | Birch, | 0 8 61/2 | 0 8 9 | 0 16 73/4 | - | Mrs.(a) | | | | - | Bell, Mrs. | -- | -- | 0 2 2 | - | Burton, S. | -- | -- | 0 6 41/4 | - | Clarke, M. | -- | -- | 0 4 81/2 | - | Cauline, | 0 10 33/4 | 0 7 10 | 0 11 01/2 | - | E. | | | | - | Cox, Mrs. | 0 6 51/2 | 0 5 1 | -- | - | Collier, | -- | 0 3 81/2 | -- | - | A. | | | | - | Fothergill | -- | 0 2 11 | -- | - | Fisher | -- | -- | 0 7 0 | - | Foster, | -- | -- | 0 2 1 | - | Mrs. | | | | - | Green, | 0 7 81/2 | 0 4 0 | 0 5 63/4 | - | Mrs. | | | | - | Gulliers | 0 11 31/4 | 0 7 73/4 | 0 4 51/2 | - | Glover, | -- | 0 9 33/4 | 0 3 5 | - | M. A. | | | | - | Haydram, | -- | -- | 0 2 6 | - | Mrs. | | | | - | Hayes, | 0 9 13/4 | 0 8 91/2 | 0 9 41/2 | - | Mrs. | | | | - | Hartopp | 0 4 1 | 0 3 51/4 | -- | - | Hearn, | -- | 0 3 8 | 0 2 83/4 | - | Mrs. | | | | - | Humphreys, | -- | 0 6 93/4 | 0 6 41/4 | - | Mrs. | | | | - | Hobdell | -- | 0 6 71/2 | 0 3 73/4 | - | Hatfield | -- | -- | 0 5 23/4 | - | Hall, Mrs. | -- | -- | 0 6 101/2 | - | Joyce, | -- | -- | 0 8 91/2 | - | M. A. | | | | - | Knight, | 0 9 1 | 0 9 11/4 | 0 7 8 | - | H.(a) | | | | - +-------------+---------------+----------------+----------------+ - | Carried | L4 5 41/2 | L4 19 41/2 | L6 19 41/4 | - | forward | | | - +-------------+---------------+----------------+----------------+ - | 1845. | Sept 6th. | Sept. 13th. | Oct. 11th. | - +-------------+---------------+----------------+----------------+ - | Brought | L4 5 41/2 |L4 19 41/2 | L6 19 41/4 | - | forward | | | | - | Knight, E. | 0 6 11/4 | 0 6 61/2 | 0 3 11 | - | Kelly, | -- | -- | 0 7 13/4 | - | or Skelly, | | | | - | Mrs. | | | | - | Lawrance, | 0 4 10 | 0 4 41/4 | 0 6 101/2 | - | Mrs. | | | | - | Latham | 0 5 3 | 0 3 101/4 | 0 1 8 | - | McDaniell | -- | -- | 0 5 11/2 | - | Matthews | 0 7 31/2 | 0 5 01/4 | 0 7 31/2 | - | Mills, Mrs. | 0 8 93/4 | 0 7 71/2 | 0 4 21/2 | - | Mozer, E. | 0 6 81/4 | 0 5 01/2 | 0 6 21/2 | - | Margetts | -- | 0 7 21/2 | 0 5 51/4 | - | Mayes | -- | 0 1 61/2 | 0 5 5 | - | Moseley | -- | 0 0 91/2 | -- | - | Neascomp | 0 6 8 | -- | -- | - | Norris, | -- | -- | 0 7 8 | - | M. A. | | | | - | Nichols, | -- | -- | 0 1 71/2 | - | Mrs. | | | | - | Pottiee | -- | -- | 0 4 61/2 | - | Parker, | 0 3 01/2 | 0 3 113/4 | 0 4 101/2 | - | Mrs. | | | | - | Pool | 0 2 41/2 | -- | -- | - | Potter, E. | 0 5 71/2 | 0 5 73/4 | 0 7 01/4 | - | Pontifex, | -- | 0 6 63/4 | 0 7 71/2 | - | A. | | | | - | Pearce, C. | -- | 0 5 11/2 | -- | - | Rumball, | 0 12 11/4 | 0 11 2 | 0 7 91/2 | - | Mrs.(a) | | | | - | Rudge | -- | 0 6 81/2 | 0 4 81/2 | - | Ross, Mrs. | -- | -- | 0 1 71/2 | - | Scott, Mrs. | -- | -- | 0 4 0 | - | Sleap | -- | -- | 0 2 23/4 | - | Slater | 0 10 51/4 | 0 11 31/4 | 0 6 41/2 | - | Sharp, C. | -- | -- | 0 3 11/2 | - | Such, E. | 0 9 4 | 0 4 71/2 | -- | - | Smout, M. | -- | 0 4 33/4 | 0 5 1 | - | Sumner, | 0 10 11/2 | 0 8 2 | 0 7 23/4 | - | Mrs. | | | | - | Tucker, | 0 4 10 | 0 3 41/2 | -- | - | Mrs. | | | | - | Truscoat, | 0 5 61/2 | 0 3 101/2 | -- | - | A. | | | | - | Tattersall | -- | -- | 0 8 43/4 | - | Todd | -- | -- | 0 7 53/4 | - | Wichelam | -- | -- | 0 3 01/2 | - | West, Mrs. | 0 4 21/2 | 0 4 11/2 | 0 2 113/4 | - | Weedon | -- | 0 3 5 | 0 5 31/4 | - | Williams, | -- | -- | 0 3 71/4 | - | Eliz. | | | | - | Williams, | -- | -- | 0 4 81/2 | - | Eleanor | | | | - | Woods, Mrs. | -- | -- | 0 5 113/4 | - | Wacey | -- | -- | 0 1 51/4 | - +-------------+---------------+----------------+----------------+ - | | L9 18 73/4 | L11 3 81/2 | L15 11 03/4 | - +-------------+---------------+----------------+----------------+ - | (a) Bills marked thus were for work done by more than one | - | person. | - +-------------+---------------+----------------+----------------+ - - -No. II. - -The following names are a transcript, as far as it extends, of the -Wages' Book of July 28th, 1849:-- - - FOLDERS. - _s._ _d._ - Stone 6 101/4 - Carroll 6 10 - Donald 7 61/2 - Fenning 10 13/4 - Nalty 6 0 - Zugg 9 8 - Read 5 61/4 - Thomson 5 33/4 - Frazier 4 7 - Parker 7 2 - Philpots, Mrs. (2 weeks) 9 1 - Salter 7 1 - Routledge 10 23/4 - Giles 7 111/2 - Name not known 8 71/2 - Hodnett 7 101/2 - Measor 6 6 - Moss 7 11/2 - Smith 3 21/4 - York 6 61/4 - Ainsworth 6 5 - Smith 5 10 - Surridge 5 03/4 - Read 5 111/4 - Hone 6 113/4 - Stroud (2 weeks) 14 111/4 - Pritlove 6 11/2 - Jolly 7 103/4 - Thomas 6 101/2 - Olpin 8 73/4 - Brown 7 01/2 - Desaper 7 03/4 - Harlow 3 111/4 - Glynn 7 03/4 - Haywood 7 53/4 - Cooper 6 1 - Charles 7 113/4 - Gauntry 5 51/2 - Leat 4 41/2 - Beattie 7 21/2 - Lockwood 8 71/2 - Burton 5 93/4 - Cook 6 111/4 - Spall 5 01/4 - Name not known 6 21/2 - Shay 6 10 - Hockley 8 41/4 - Hodson 4 2 - Coghan 3 91/2 - Charles 4 91/4 - Donovan 6 61/4 - Newham 3 91/2 - Brown, O. 7 93/4 - Cleaver 6 93/4 - Mallison 6 8 - Chelsom 3 81/4 - Griffiths 6 41/2 - Timlett 7 0 - Guyon 5 43/4 - Johnson 5 4 - Smith 5 7 - Daniells 3 4 - Paris 5 101/2 - Rawlings 7 111/2 - Long 3 111/4 - Macintosh 5 7 - Cracknell 5 4 - Old 7 2 - - SEWERS. - _s._ _d._ - Clarke 5 91/2 - Trimnell 8 33/4 - Abbott 7 03/4 - Hawkins 5 71/2 - Hubbard 5 33/4 - Deacles 6 6 - Norcutt 6 31/4 - - _Time Workers._ - _s._ _d._ - Mrs. Brinton (Lewis) 15 9 - Mary Shea 7 6 - Mary Carpenter 9 0 - Anne Cooper 8 101/2 - E. Manvill 10 11 - Hardy 10 11 - Norris 9 1 - Aldred 8 11 - Collis 8 11 - Hayes 10 0 - Kinder 10 11 - Wilkins 10 0 - Joyce 7 3 - Dew 7 3 - M. Joyce 7 41/2 - - -No. III. - - +----------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+ - | FOLDERS' WAGES FOR THE FOUR WEEKS BEFORE THE DISPUTE. | - +----------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+ - | | Aug. | Aug. | Aug. | Aug. | - | | 4th. | 11th. | 18th. | 23rd. | - | | L _s. d._ | L _s. d._ | L _s. d._ | L _s. d._ | - +----------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+ - | M. E. Zugg | 0 10 61/4 | 0 8 31/4 | 0 9 8 | 0 7 13/4 | - | A. Harlow | -- | -- | -- | 0 3 111/2 | - | M. A. Long | 0 8 4 | 0 8 6 | 0 7 11 | 0 5 0 | - | S. Olpin | 0 8 33/4 | 0 7 61/2 | 0 8 9 | 0 5 11 | - | M. Fowler | 0 6 0 | 0 5 11 | 0 6 1 | 0 2 71/2 | - | M. Morris | -- | -- | -- | 0 5 1 | - | M. Beatie | 0 7 4 | 0 7 0 | 0 7 01/2 | 0 3 2 | - | M. Parker | 0 8 01/4 | 0 8 4 | 0 7 9 | 0 5 9 | - | M. A. Jolly | 0 9 31/2 | 0 8 9 | 0 7 5 | 0 5 3 | - | M. Thomas | 0 8 3 | 0 7 1 | 0 6 101/2 | 0 4 51/2 | - | E. Carroll | 0 6 7 | 0 6 41/2 | 0 6 7 | 0 4 6 | - | M. Sheay | 0 6 9 | 0 6 13/4 | 0 6 5 | 0 2 111/2 | - | H. Donovan | 0 6 4 | 0 6 13/4 | 0 7 01/4 | 0 4 0 | - | E. Hone | 0 8 4 | 0 7 31/4 | 0 6 113/4 | 0 4 111/2 | - | S. Moss | 0 6 6 | 0 7 0 | 0 6 10 | 0 7 11/2 | - | E. Hainsworth | 0 7 0 | 0 7 7 | 0 8 3 | 0 4 3 | - | E. Timlett | 0 7 0 | 0 6 111/2 | 0 7 2 | 0 6 111/2 | - | M. Cracknell | 0 6 0 | 0 5 9 | 0 5 6 | 0 6 0 | - | C. Guyon | 0 6 4 | 0 7 0 | 0 7 2 | 0 1 11 | - | Mrs. Philpot | 0 4 2 | 0 4 0 | 0 4 6 | 0 2 8 | - | P. Measor | 0 7 8 | 0 6 11 | 0 6 5 | 0 5 101/2 | - | M. Cooke | 0 6 1 | 0 4 6 | 0 6 4 | 0 1 4 | - | M. Stone | 0 6 4 | 0 6 6 | 0 6 10 | 0 3 63/4 | - | M. Cleaver | 0 6 43/4 | 0 6 7 | 0 6 6 | 0 4 0 | - | M. E. Reide | 0 6 31/2 | 0 6 81/2 | 0 6 4 | 0 4 0 | - | M. Foweraker | 0 9 11 | 0 12 0 | 0 8 73/4 | 0 5 11 | - | A. Hodnett | 0 8 6 | 0 9 6 | 0 7 4 | 0 5 01/2 | - | M. Smith | 0 6 71/2 | 0 6 4 | 0 6 6 | 0 2 101/2 | - | A. Smith | 0 7 2 | 0 5 4 | 0 6 21/2 | 0 1 93/4 | - | M. Frazier | 0 6 5 | 0 4 3 | 0 4 61/2 | 0 4 31/2 | - | M. Roach | 0 6 3 | 0 4 2 | 0 5 9 | 0 3 3 | - | C. Mallison | 0 5 6 | 0 5 0 | 0 5 9 | 0 3 21/2 | - | S. Macintosh | 0 4 4 | 0 5 0 | 0 4 11 | 0 2 01/2 | - | B. J. Salter | 0 9 6 | 0 9 01/4 | 0 8 11/2 | 0 6 13/4 | - | M. J. Smith | 0 7 01/4 | 0 6 111/2 | 0 5 6 | 0 3 0 | - | E. Daniels | 0 5 31/2 | 0 4 61/4 | 0 3 63/4 | 0 1 111/2 | - | M. Brown | 0 7 01/4 | 0 6 03/4 | 0 5 6 | 0 3 21/4 | - | E. Rallians | 0 7 31/2 | 0 7 61/4 | 0 7 0 | 0 5 0 | - | W. Reide | 0 8 4 | 0 8 11/4 | 0 7 73/4 | 0 5 0 | - | M. A. Lockwood | 0 5 03/4 | 0 8 11/2 | 0 7 11/2 | 0 6 8 | - | E. Spall | 0 7 53/4 | 0 6 1 | 0 5 6 | 0 4 0 | - | J. Griffith | -- | 0 4 81/2 | 0 4 3 | 0 2 81/2 | - | M. Thomson | 0 6 9 | 0 6 31/2 | 0 6 4 | 0 4 11/2 | - | L. Farris | 0 4 61/2 | 0 5 1 | 0 3 4 | 0 1 91/2 | - | M. Glyn | 0 7 0 | 0 6 71/2 | 0 6 9 | 0 3 101/2 | - | L. Yorke | 0 6 4 | 0 6 01/4 | 0 6 3 | 0 4 1 | - | C. Brown | 0 8 31/2 | 0 8 0 | 0 7 01/2 | 0 4 101/2 | - | M. Fenning | 0 8 7 | 0 8 31/2 | 0 8 0 | 0 6 41/2 | - | E. Burton | 0 7 0 | 0 6 31/2 | 0 6 0 | 0 5 21/2 | - +----------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+ - | | L16 4 63/4 | L15 18 21/2 | L15 7 101/2 | L10 7 31/2 | - +----------------+-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+ - - +---------------+-----------+-----------+------------+-----------+ - | SEWERS' WAGES FOR THE FOUR WEEKS BEFORE THE DISPUTE. | - +---------------+-----------+-----------+------------+-----------+ - | -- | Aug. | Aug. | Aug. | Aug. | - | | 4th. | 11th. | 18th. |23rd. | - | | L _s. d._ | L _s. d._ | L _s. d._ | L _s. d._ | - +---------------+-----------+-----------+------------+-----------+ - | M. Richardson | 0 6 4 | 0 6 10 | 0 7 11/2 | 0 4 9 | - | M. Touse | 0 5 10 | 0 6 0 | 0 5 11 | 0 4 6 | - | E. Hawkins | -- | -- | -- | 0 4 81/4 | - | A. Hanson | 0 6 01/4 | 0 5 10 | 0 5 11 | 0 5 1 | - | M. Clements | 0 6 0 | 0 6 3 | 0 6 1 | 0 4 71/2 | - | L. Thomson | 0 6 41/2 | 0 6 10 | 0 7 41/2 | 0 5 2 | - | E. Webb | 0 7 7 | 0 7 3 | 0 8 3 | 0 8 0 | - | E. Wigmore | 0 6 101/2 | 0 7 0 | 0 7 21/2 | 0 4 81/2 | - | H. Gammon | 0 7 0 | 0 6 6 | 0 6 0 | 0 2 6 | - | A. Butcher | 0 10 0 | 0 10 4 | 0 10 10 | 0 9 71/2 | - | E. Taylor | 0 7 0 | 0 7 6 | 0 7 11/2 | 0 2 0 | - | M. Wheatley | 0 7 2 | 0 6 5 | 0 7 0 | 0 5 11 | - | E. Harris | -- | 0 5 0 | 0 5 41/2 | 0 3 13/4 | - | J. Williams | 0 7 3 | 0 7 0 | 0 7 1 | 0 2 6 | - | H. Hutchinson | 0 6 9 | 0 6 91/4 | 0 6 21/2 | 0 5 21/2 | - | E. Ashford | 0 7 0 | 0 7 6 | 0 7 10 | 0 8 1 | - | R. Howell | 0 8 8 | 0 6 8 | 0 6 4 | 0 4 21/2 | - | M. Hubbard | 0 7 0 | 0 6 10 | 0 6 6 | 0 5 01/2 | - | M. Abbott | 0 8 0 | 0 8 4 | 0 8 1 | 0 6 8 | - | M. Akerman | 0 8 0 | 0 8 6 | 0 8 6 | 0 7 2 | - | A. Hall | 0 7 4 | 0 7 2 | 0 7 0 | 0 5 6 | - | E. Ellis | 0 3 11 | 0 4 5 | 0 5 6 | 0 1 6 | - | M. Gildbody | 0 7 1 | 0 7 4 | 0 7 6 | 0 3 6 | - | M. Mack | 0 10 7 | 0 10 1 | 0 10 4 | 0 9 10 | - | E. Potter | 0 7 6 | 0 7 0 | 0 7 4 | 0 6 6 | - | C. Collier | 0 9 0 | 0 8 6 | 0 7 9 | 0 7 0 | - | M. Smiley | 0 5 2 | 0 4 10 | 0 5 0 | 0 4 3 | - | A. Clarke | 0 7 0 | 0 5 3 | 0 6 1 | 0 4 5 | - | B. Mealoney | 0 6 81/2 | 0 7 0 | 0 6 0 | 0 4 6 | - | M. A. | 0 7 0 | 0 7 5 | 0 8 3 | 0 6 6 | - | Sullivan | | | | | - | M. Diggles | 0 6 61/2 | 0 6 51/2 | 0 6 3 | 0 6 1 | - | J. Purvey | 0 6 0 | 0 6 13/4 | 0 6 3 | 0 5 61/2 | - | M. Reding | 0 9 91/2 | 0 9 2 | 0 9 4 | 0 8 21/2 | - | L. Tattersall | 0 6 10 | 0 7 0 | 0 6 6 | 0 7 0 | - | E. Treacher | 0 5 31/2 | 0 5 6 | 0 5 21/2 | 0 3 81/2 | - | M. Davis | 0 9 11/2 | 0 9 0 | 0 9 7 | 0 7 01/4 | - | E. Griffiths | 0 7 5 | 0 7 31/2 | 0 7 0 | 0 7 01/2 | - | M. Clarke | 0 8 101/2 | 0 9 31/2 | 0 9 0 | 0 7 11/2 | - | M. Perkins | 0 7 31/2 | 0 6 10 | 0 7 71/2 | 0 5 01/2 | - | E. Marshall | 0 7 0 | 0 6 11/2 | 0 6 6 | 0 4 81/2 | - | G. Trimnell | 0 6 21/2 | 0 5 53/4 | 0 4 21/2 | 0 2 11 | - | H. Night | 0 6 11/2 | 0 5 101/2 | 0 6 0 | 0 4 3 | - | M. Norcott | 0 5 10 | 0 6 01/4 | 0 6 0 | 0 6 51/2 | - | M. Goldwin | 0 6 31/2 | 0 6 63/4 | 0 6 5 | 0 5 41/2 | - | E. Ainyouns | 0 6 51/2 | 0 6 0 | 0 5 3 | 0 4 1 | - | M. Newnham | 0 6 0 | 0 6 11/2 | 0 6 0 | 0 5 8 | - | M. Rodgers | 0 7 0 | 0 6 101/2 | 0 7 0 | 0 6 01/2 | - | C. Greentree | 0 7 01/2 | 0 7 0 | 0 7 5 | 0 4 11 | - | J. Greenaway | 0 7 53/4 | 0 8 6 | 0 7 0 | 0 3 11 | - | E. Carrington | 0 7 11/2 | 0 7 71/4 | 0 7 6 | 0 5 111/2 | - | S. Greenaway | 0 6 21/2 | 0 6 11/2 | 0 6 6 | 0 4 3 | - | M. Key | 0 7 6 | 0 7 0 | 0 5 2 | 0 5 91/4 | - | S. Williams | 0 8 4 | 0 5 11/2 | 0 7 1 | 0 6 01/4 | - +---------------+-----------+-----------+------------+-----------+ - | | L18 1 103/4 | L17 18 91/2 | L17 19 111/4 | L14 4 21/4 | - +---------------+-----------+-----------+------------+-----------+ - -These tables are also valuable on account of the light they throw upon -the organisation of the bookbinding trade in the middle of last century. -It will be seen for instance that the week indicated by "October 11" in -Table I was a specially busy week, and that in consequence the payments -made to the home workers were much above those made for September 6th or -13th. Under September 6th, twenty-eight home workers were engaged, and -next week thirty-nine, but under October 11th the number had risen to -fifty-seven. It is also worthy of note that E. Such was an indoor worker -under October 11th, but a home worker during the other two weeks, whilst -M. A. Joyce worked at home in the third week, but in the workshop during -the other two. This condition of disorganisation has now fortunately -almost disappeared from the trade. - -It should also be noted that slight errors of a few farthings in the -additions have crept into the totals of some of the columns, but as they -do not affect the accuracy of the wage figures the Appendix has been -copied exactly as it was published. - - - - -APPENDIX VII.--TABLE FROM CENSUS, 1901 - - -Table from census, 1901, stating the number of males and females -employed in the trades enumerated at various ages in England and Wales, -and showing that the number of females employed between 15 and 20 is -nearly twice as great as at any other age. - - +------------------------------------------------------------+ - | PAPER MANUFACTURE. | - +-----------+-------------------------------------+----------+ - | | Females. | | - | Age. +------------+-----------+------------+ Males. | - | | | Married | | | - | | Unmarried. | or | Total. | | - | | | Widow'd | | | - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - | 10 - | 163 | -- | 163 | 335 | - | 14 - | 378 | -- | 378 | 616 | - | 15 - | 2,995 | 15 | 3,010 | 3,079 | - | 20 - | 1,814 | 224 | 2,038 | 2,328 | - | 25 - | 856 | 504 | 1,360 | 3,583 | - | 35 - | 301 | 564 | 865 | 2,504 | - | 45 - | 124 | 446 | 570 | 1,690 | - | 55 - | 56 | 289 | 345 | 897 | - | 65 - | 15 | 95 | 110 | 277 | - | 75 and | | | | | - | upwards | 3 | 9 | 12 | 50 | - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - | Total | 6,705 | 2,146 | 8,851 | 15,359 | - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - | PAPER STAINERS. | - +-----------+-------------------------------------+----------+ - | | Females. | | - | Age. +------------+-----------+------------+ Males. | - | | | Married | | | - | | Unmarried. | or | Total. | | - | | | Widow'd | | | - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - | 10 - | 19 | -- | 19 | 57 | - | 14 - | 21 | -- | 21 | 90 | - | 15 - | 97 | 1 | 98 | 396 | - | 20 - | 41 | 5 | 46 | 290 | - | 25 - | 22 | 18 | 40 | 520 | - | 35 - | 7 | 21 | 28 | 365 | - | 45 - | 4 | 19 | 23 | 202 | - | 55 - | 1 | 7 | 8 | 81 | - | 65 - | 0 | 3 | 3 | 28 | - | 75 and | | | | | - | upwards | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - | Total | 212 | 75 | 287 | 2,032 | - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - | STATIONERY MANUFACTURE. | - +-----------+-------------------------------------+----------+ - | | Females. | | - | Age. +------------+-----------+------------+ Males. | - | | | Married | | | - | | Unmarried. | or | Total. | | - | | | Widow'd | | | - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - | 10 - | 84 | -- | 84 | 36 | - | 14 - | 297 | -- | 297 | 107 | - | 15 - | 1,921 | 1 | 1,922 | 811 | - | 20 - | 1,237 | 41 | 1,278 | 709 | - | 25 - | 603 | 107 | 710 | 1,209 | - | 35 - | 185 | 56 | 241 | 732 | - | 45 - | 55 | 54 | 109 | 483 | - | 55 - | 15 | 28 | 43 | 217 | - | 65 - | 2 | 10 | 12 | 65 | - | 75 and | | | | | - | upwards | 0 | 2 | 2 | 12 | - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - | Total | 4,399 | 299 | 4,698 | 4,381 | - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - | ENVELOPE MAKERS. | - +-----------+-------------------------------------+----------+ - | | Females. | | - | Age. +------------+-----------+------------+ Males. | - | | | Married | | | - | | Unmarried. | or | Total. | | - | | | Widow'd | | | - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - | 10 - | 103 | -- | 103 | 5 | - | 14 - | 254 | -- | 254 | 13 | - | 15 - | 1,276 | -- | 1,276 | 72 | - | 20 - | 654 | 26 | 680 | 62 | - | 25 - | 339 | 98 | 437 | 84 | - | 35 - | 99 | 98 | 197 | 76 | - | 45 - | 41 | 74 | 115 | 33 | - | 55 - | 22 | 36 | 58 | 18 | - | 65 - | 7 | 16 | 23 | 7 | - | 75 and | | | | | - | upwards | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - | Total | 2,795 | 348 | 3,143 | 370 | - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - | PAPER BOX AND BAG MAKERS. | - +-----------+-------------------------------------+----------+ - | | Females. | | - | Age. +------------+-----------+------------+ Males. | - | | | Married | | | - | | Unmarried. | or | Total. | | - | | | Widow'd | | | - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - | 10 - | 780 | -- | 780 | 144 | - | 14 - | 1,727 | -- | 1,727 | 192 | - | 15 - | 10,062 | 51 | 10,113 | 784 | - | 20 - | 5,342 | 628 | 5,970 | 476 | - | 25 - | 2,304 | 1,339 | 3,643 | 714 | - | 35 - | 547 | 1,094 | 1,641 | 481 | - | 45 - | 171 | 724 | 895 | 304 | - | 55 - | 58 | 271 | 329 | 144 | - | 65 - | 9 | 91 | 100 | 65 | - | 75 and | | | | | - | upwards | 0 | 11 | 11 | 6 | - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - | Total | 21,000 | 4,209 | 25,209 | 3,310 | - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - | OTHER WORKERS IN PAPER, &c. | - +-----------+-------------------------------------+----------+ - | | Females. | | - | Age. +------------+-----------+------------+ Males. | - | | | Married | | | - | | Unmarried. | or | Total. | | - | | | Widow'd | | | - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - | 10 - | 88 | -- | 88 | 107 | - | 14 - | 168 | -- | 168 | 138 | - | 15 - | 1,139 | 4 | 1,143 | 676 | - | 20 - | 687 | 36 | 723 | 516 | - | 25 - | 330 | 87 | 417 | 1,097 | - | 35 - | 73 | 63 | 136 | 796 | - | 45 - | 24 | 53 | 77 | 617 | - | 55 - | 8 | 25 | 33 | 381 | - | 65 - | 0 | 11 | 11 | 169 | - | 75 and | | | | | - | upwards | 2 | 1 | 3 | 31 | - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - | Total | 2,519 | 280 | 2,799 | 4,528 | - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - | PRINTERS. | - +-----------+-------------------------------------+----------+ - | | Females. | | - | Age. +------------+-----------+------------+ Males. | - | | | Married | | | - | | Unmarried. | or | Total. | | - | | | Widow'd | | | - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - | 10 - | 394 | -- | 394 | 1,309 | - | 14 - | 988 | -- | 988 | 3,362 | - | 15 - | 4,898 | 7 | 4,905 | 18,692 | - | 20 - | 1,999 | 76 | 2,075 | 15,360 | - | 25 - | 730 | 120 | 850 | 26,051 | - | 35 - | 146 | 112 | 258 | 16,155 | - | 45 - | 42 | 65 | 107 | 9,514 | - | 55 - | 21 | 56 | 77 | 4,584 | - | 65 - | 4 | 23 | 27 | 1,256 | - | 75 and | | | | | - | upwards | 1 | 11 | 12 | 205 | - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - | Total | 9,223 | 470 | 9,693 | 96,488 | - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - | LITHOGRAPHERS, COPPER AND STEEL PLATE PRINTERS. | - +-----------+-------------------------------------+----------+ - | | Females. | | - | Age. +------------+-----------+------------+ Males. | - | | | Married | | | - | | Unmarried. | or | Total. | | - | | | Widow'd | | | - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - | 10 - | 35 | -- | 35 | 97 | - | 14 - | 97 | -- | 97 | 243 | - | 15 - | 518 | 4 | 522 | 1,721 | - | 20 - | 198 | 21 | 219 | 1,616 | - | 25 - | 91 | 20 | 111 | 2,966 | - | 35 - | 19 | 12 | 31 | 2,022 | - | 45 - | 5 | 12 | 17 | 1,170 | - | 55 - | 3 | 7 | 10 | 616 | - | 65 - | 0 | 1 | 1 | 214 | - | 75 and | | | | | - | upwards | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 | - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - | Total | 966 | 77 | 1,043 | 10,682 | - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - | BOOKBINDERS. | - +-----------+-------------------------------------+----------+ - | | Females. | | - | Age. +------------+-----------+------------+ Males. | - | | | Married | | | - | | Unmarried. | or | Total. | | - | | | Widow'd | | | - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - | 10 - | 364 | -- | 364 | 108 | - | 14 - | 1,204 | -- | 1,204 | 311 | - | 15 - | 7,623 | 20 | 7,643 | 2,107 | - | 20 - | 4,310 | 222 | 4,532 | 1,933 | - | 25 - | 2,190 | 653 | 2,843 | 3,146 | - | 35 - | 647 | 692 | 1,339 | 2,340 | - | 45 - | 291 | 525 | 816 | 1,575 | - | 55 - | 101 | 250 | 351 | 811 | - | 65 - | 30 | 83 | 113 | 281 | - | 75 and | | | | | - | upwards | 7 | 11 | 18 | 52 | - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - | Total | 16,767 | 2,456 | 19,223 | 12,664 | - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - | TYPE CUTTERS AND FOUNDERS. | - +-----------+-------------------------------------+----------+ - | | Females. | | - | Age. +------------+-----------+------------+ Males. | - | | | Married | | | - | | Unmarried. | or | Total. | | - | | | Widow'd | | | - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - | 10 - | 8 | -- | 8 | 17 | - | 14 - | 31 | -- | 31 | 32 | - | 15 - | 97 | -- | 97 | 237 | - | 20 - | 30 | -- | 30 | 187 | - | 25 - | 11 | 2 | 13 | 345 | - | 35 - | 1 | 1 | 2 | 216 | - | 45 - | 1 | 0 | 1 | 141 | - | 55 - | 1 | 0 | 1 | 75 | - | 65 - | 0 | 0 | 0 | 35 | - | 75 and | | | | | - | upwards | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - | Total | 180 | 3 | 183 | 1,287 | - +-----------+------------+-----------+------------+----------+ - - - - -INDEX. - - - Ages of Workers, 203 - Apprenticeship, 55-62 - - Bible Society Controversies, 32-36 - Birmingham, Trades in, 179-183 - Blackbordering Described, 12 - Bond, Mrs., 38 - Bookbinders' Agreement, 7-9 - Bookbinders and Tea Half-hour, 31 - Bookbinding Described, 3 - Bookfolders' Union, 38 - Bookfolding, 3 - - Census Figures, 17-21, 203 - Character in Relation to Work, 11, 67, 85 - (footnote), 111 - Children's Employment Commission, 1862-66 ... 69-71 - Compositors, Women: - Apprenticeship, 62 - Birmingham, 179 - Edinburgh, 29, 45, 47 - (footnote), 48 - (footnote), 49 - (footnote), 74 - Glasgow, 172 - Historical, 24-25 - Legislation, 74, 75 - London, 27-28 - Miscellaneous Places, 46 - Perth, 29, 45-46, 47 - Work done by, 46, 47 - Conditions of Employment, 1866 ... 69-71 - - Dining Arrangements at Works, 161 - - Employers and Women's Unions, 37, 42 - Envelope-making Described, 11 - - Factory Law. _See_ Legislation. - Family Health and Women's Work, 112 - _See also_ Health - Family Life and Women Workers, 67, 102-106 - "Folding-houses," 76-78 - - Gentility, 67 - Girls _v._ Women, 53, 96 - Glasgow, Trades in, 170-178 - - Health, 10, 11, 16, 66, 88-89, 112 - _See also Sections under_ Typical Firms, 141-169 - Home-work, 99-101, 152, 157, 176, 181 - Nos. Employed, 21, 99 - and Legislation, 75-76 - and Machinery, 99, 148 - and Organisation, 202 - Hours in Glasgow, 171, 172, 175, 177, 178 - Hours in Birmingham, 180, 181, 183 - _See also Sections under_ Typical Firms, 141-169 - - Illuminating Described, 13 - - Job Hands, 3, 79, 137, 169 - Wages, 137 - - Legislation: - Conditions before Legislation, 69-71, 84-86 - Economic and Industrial Effects, 73-93, 147, 151, 166, 171, 179, - 183 - Employers' Opinions, 81-84, 91-93 - Employees' Opinions, 84-86, 87 - Forewomen's Opinions, 86 - Home-work, 75-76, 101 - Limitation of Employment, 75, 89 - Machinery, 73-74 - Married Women, 84 - Nightwork, 71, 78, 80, 81, 82, 89, 152 - Provisions of the Law, 71-73 - Wages, 79, 90, 91 - Want of Elasticity, 91-93 - Women Compositors, 74 - _See also_ Overtime. - Letterpress Printing Described, 2 - Lithography Described, 10 - Health, 10 - London Society of Compositors and Women, 26, 27-28 - London Trades Council and Women, 36 - - Machine-ruling Described, 9 - Machinery: - Effect of Women's Labour upon, 46 (footnote), 97, 98 - Effect on Women's Employment, 1, 48, 94-98, 148, 157, 160, 161, - 162, 165, 167, 169, 173, 182 - Folding, 48, 94, 95, 182 - Home Work, 99 - Machine-ruling, 97 - Paper colouring, 96 - Re-introduction of Men's Labour, 95, 173 - Sewing, 95 - Stamping, 48 (footnote) - Typography, 96, 173 - Manchester and Salford Society of Women Employed in Bookbinding, - 40 - Marriage as an Industrial Influence, 64, 67 - Married Women as Workers, 84, 102, 106-112, 147, 151, 166, 168, - 171, 175, 182 - Family Health, 112 - In Birmingham, 182 - In Bristol, 110 - In Leeds and Bradford, 111 - In London, 108-109 - Moral Influence, 111 - Nos. Employed, 203 - Wages, 106-108, 171, 175 - Men and Women, 11, 44-52 - As Competitors, 12, 14, 45, 49-52, 156, 168, 173 - Bookbinders, 36, 38, 44 (footnote), 51, 175 - Compositors, 25, 26, 45, 173-174 - Division of Work between, 7-9, 11, 148, 152, 166, 175, 180 - Effect of Machinery, 95, 96 (footnote) - Machine Rulers, 177 - Men's View, 47, 173-174 - Methods of Work, 81 (footnote) - Nightwork, 79, 88, 89 - Paper Colouring, 97 - Relative Skill, 46-47, 50, 52, 58 - - National Bookfolders' Union, 39 - Nightwork, 14, 77, 79, 80, 81, 82, 84-86, 88, 89 - _See also_ Overtime. - Numbering Described, 10 - - Organisation of Women: - Bookbinders, 30-41 - Compositors, 29, 41 - Miscellaneous Trades, 41-42, 180 - Women's Views upon, 42 - Overtime, 78-79, 81, 82, 84-89, 146, 183 - And Wages, 78, 87, 88 - _See also_ Nightwork. - - Paging Described, 10 - Paper-bag Making, 101 - Paper Making Described, 1 - Paterson, Mrs. Emma, 36 - Perforating Described, 10 - Perth Dispute, 45 - Piece Rates of Wages, 137 - Premiums, 55, 56, 59-60, 62 - Printers' Folding Described, 3 - Prospects, _See Sections under_ Typical Firms, 141-169 - - Regularity of Employment, 183 - _See also Sections under_ Typical Firms, 141-169 - - Scottish Typographical Association, 29, 45, 173 - Show Card Mounting Described, 13 - Society of Women Employed in Bookbinding, 36-38 - Stamping, Plain, etc., Described, 12 - - Technical Classes, 63, 66 - Training for Women, 52, 53 - Time and Piece Wages, 137 - Trade Union Congress, Women at, 36, 37 - Trade Unionism and Women: - Attitude of Bookbinders, 30-32 - Conflicts with Compositors, 25-30, 179 - _See also_ Organisation of Women - Training for Women, 55-68, 144, 149, 153, 165, 167, 170, 179, 180 - Lack of and Marriage Prospects, 64 - Typefounding Described, 14 - Typical Firms, Conditions in, 141-169 - Typographical Association, 25, 26, 47 - Scottish, 29, 45, 173 - - "Use and Wont" in Women's Work, 52 - - Wages, 113-137 - Birmingham, 179, 180, 181, 182 - Bookbinders' (1834-50), 33-35, 196-202 - Earnings of Individuals, 136-137, 184-195 - Effect of Legislation upon, 79, 90 - 1840-1890 ... 91 (footnote) - 1866 ... 90 - 1885-1900 ... 134 - Glasgow, 171, 172, 174-175, 176, 177, 178 - How far Supplementary, 103-106 - Kept up Without Unions, 41 - Learners, 55-62 - Married Women's Influence upon, 106-108, 171, 175 - Men's and Women's, 47 (footnote) - Time and Piece Rates, 137 - Why Low, 46, 50-51, 105 - Women _v._ Boys, 15, 47, 50 - Women's Competitors, 11 - _See also_ Men and Women; Women _v._ Boys; Girls _v._ Women. - Women Compositors. - _See_ Compositors, Women. - Women Workers, Number, 17-23, 203 - Ages of, 203 - Ambition, 11, 64, 65, 66 - Domestic Sphere Predominant, 67 - Gentility, 67 - Irregularity, 50, 66 - Women's Work, Characteristics of, 51, 63-64 - - - - - -End of Project Gutenberg's Women in the Printing Trades., by Various - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WOMEN IN THE PRINTING TRADES. *** - -***** This file should be named 42275.txt or 42275.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/4/2/2/7/42275/ - -Produced by Odessa Paige Turner and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This book was -produced from scanned images of public domain material -from the Google Print project.) - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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