"SWEATING" EVIL.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVI, Issue 43, 20 February 1935, Page 12

"SWEATING" EVIL.

WOMEN AND GIRL WORKERS.

EXPOSURE IN SYDNEY.

(From Our Own Correspondent.)

SYDNEY, February 13.

For Some time past our newspapers have at intervals published particulars of "sweating" in this city, which might almost make one imagine that we are back once more in, the days of Tom Hooi and the "Song of the Shirt." Last September the Langite party, through the medium of a "radio drama" circulated under the title of "Machine Song" a bitter attack upon the "sweat shop" and its greedy owner. Immediately afterwards "Smith's Weekly" took up the subject, and in a sensational article entitled, "Sydney's Sweated Slaves of the Sewing Machine," it made some startling disclosures regarding the amount of "home sewing" by which Sydney's clothes market is supplied, and the disgracefully low rates of wages that the girls and women thus employed receive. Frocks retailed at 15/, made up by "back verandah" seamstresses for lOd; ladies' top coats, half lined, with fur collar, made up for 1/1; scores of women and girls working from eight to twelve hours a day in their own homes, including Saturday and sometimes Sunday, for from 5/ to 8/ per week—such were the startling disclosures made. A further investigation showed that some employers "farmed out" frocks to women and girl 3, to be made up at 5d each. Earning a Penny an Hour. In the knitting trade, babies' bonnets were being turned out under the same conditions at 10/ per dozen. In many cases the wages received by the workers averaged out at about Id per hour! The- excuse offered for this atrocious form "of slavery was that "the women are glad to get the money," and that the employers can find hundreds more, if necessary, to take their place. Similar investigations in the boot-making trades, as recorded by "Smith's," showed that many employers —including a large number of Bulgarians, Greeks and Yugoslavs, who have specialised in the manufacture of "fancy" shoes here —have developed a system of compelling their girls to sign "for the statutory wage and the regulation number of hours, at the same time forcing them to work overtime and to accept only a small fraction of their wages. One foreigner, who has been fined several hundred pounds for such offences already, came before the Court again last week, and was severely dealt with.

38 Dresses Made for 38/3. So strong an impression has been produced upon the public mind by these successive disclosures that the State Government has been forced to take action, and last week Mr. Dunningham submitted to Parliament a Factories and Shops (Amendment) Bill which is intended to provide more effective safeguards against sweating for the future. Among the cases quoted by the Minister in justifying his bill were the following: A woman was paid at the rate of 1/3 for coats that took her two hours to machine. During Christmas week she made 38 dresses, for which she received 38/3; and to finish her task within the appointed time she sometimes had to start work at 2 a.m. and go on till midnight. Another woman was paid 4/0 a dozen for making pyjamas, and she "sublet" part of her contract to another woman, who had to be content with an even lower rate of pay.

The Minister was strongly supported by the Labour members, who were well supplied with "shocking examples" appropriate to the occasion. Mr. O'Sullivan mentioned one case of a woman who made pyjamas at 2d a pair, and who by working every day from 5 a.m. to 0 p.m. could make barely 17/0 a week. These disclosures naturally aroused indignatiqn, both in Parliament and outside, and it is long since any measure has been received here with such strong expressions of approval as this antisweating bill.

Sale of "Rubbish." One section of the bill which has little to do with "sweating"' carries with it a strong popular appeal, It deals with the sale of inferior goods, virtually rubbish, more especially in the mattress and pillow trades, and some of the facts supplied by the Minister amazed and disgusted members as well as the general public. "Mattresses," said Mr. Dunningham, "are sold as containing the best quality hair, when actually the filling is dyed coconut and hessian fibre. In some cases it is merely factory floor sweepings. We have purchased mattresses in shops and found them to contain filth. One case was brought to my notice where a woman purchased a pillow supposed to contain new kapok. It was found to contain filthy torn-up cast-off clothing— rags apparently obtained from a tip."

Shocking Disclosures. At a later stage the Minister said: "I was told by a deputation that mattresses had been sold containing mill sweepings, verminous and second-hand kapok and flock. We went to a lot of trouble to find out where this filthy material came from, and we found that one firm had entered into a contract for the removal of old blankets and linen from a mental institution, and no doubt some of that stuff got into the mattresses."

Shocking as these disclosures are, it is necessary to let the light of day into such dark places. But such flagrant offences against decency and business morality are of less moment than the terrible evil of "sweating," and it is well to know that now that this menace to industrial well-being has revealed itself here once more, Parliament is prepared to take vigorous measures to ensure its prompt suppression and eradication.