World of Work

NZ Truth, Issue 578, 15 July 1916, Page 3

World of Work

— Pithy Points for Proletarian Plugs —

1 BY "HOKBaTAS."

If one Is to believe all one hears or all one reads In the day-lies concerning the tallies pat ap m the quest for qalds by munition workers, male and female, then the Golden Age of British Industry has returned to do a second stunt. Seated'at the same luncheon table with "Honestas" and a lady friend m a Wellington restaurant, was a Waira*pa farmer and Ills lady friend. The farmer started to talk of the weather and then veered round to the war and from that skidded on to the wages the monition workers were earning at Home. "Honestas" insinuated that tho higher wages were not so much the result of increased rates as increased hours worked, and that even the advantage this gave the toller was modilied considerably by the Increased cost of living. The farmer could not agree. "Bven the women were corning enormous wages!" To support thla ho appealed to his lady frlond, who proved to be a Cockney Miss Just "throe weeks from 'Omo." Yes, her sister was earning £ 2 I a week In .Woolwich shell making. Sho j persisted In saying this was the "ordinary" wage of the "ordinary" girl and ''without overtime." Aa their lunch waa finished, the farmer and his lady friend went off, leaving "Honestas" wondering why that young London i lass left such good wages to come to Noo Zee to be a farmer's slavey for a "quid" a week at most — unless she had other expectations.

That same night "HonosUis" lit on the following la the WelUngrton "Evening Post": It was m a great popular London, restaurant. A largo number of women and girl*, In two. throes, and fours, composed a great proportion of those present. "Before the war I wiu» a constant customer here." aald an ofllcer to a "Dally Mall" reporter. "It wan quite uncommon to »cc women have lunch- j eon or dinner unescorted by man. But now the men havo nearly nil go.no tho women scorn to be allppln»r Into their placea and keuplui; their habits warm for them. Look over there," ho pointed to two Kirl« who had Just Bat down, ''did you ever ccc women ordering' their meals In that critical uplrlt In the old days?" The two ctrl« quizzed and frowned over the menu. They consulted the waiter jrravely. "By Jovo!" whispered tho offlcer. 'they're consulting Uie wine W«t." Tho two irlrls, more gravely and critically than ever, ordered a halfl»otUo of llpht claret. At the end of' their luncheon tho clsrscr waiter brotiKht up hla travelHnsr wajrson to them, and ihny AtOectod ci^iirelWH with all th« pn^ißlon and acumen of ihe "knut" of old. "W)!Q are they?" iUlkod Uu- otlU-or nf th' head waiter when they had iron.*. "Tho ymmt: ladli*. I b«- --! lii.vi-," Kuld the waiter. "ar«> i*m!)U>;»t) m war work m Whitehall. pir, They're tn«Tit (TormoiKeurx, «(r, •Will have 'H'trythlni; cooht*d ju«t ;,n. urul inlehry particular übotil ' thrjr chtr* i. rtlr.' 1 • SiUl. "Hoiu-^u •*" was not eonvltio^d. TiuH, a. fv-.* iHf:!iUi later, ht- n»ail In U»u ; »;i:m- W>:Un?ton paper that common clcrkf?, a «!:uh« of worker previously : abuut \lw puort-itt pnid m UrHaii). were j drawing rt-ich cnynnyuß tralaritHt thit I they wore Lavuttlnff tha lurplu* la

Bbipping shares and becoming their own bosses. "Myl" thought " Honestaa," "what & Rood tlmo the plugs are having In old 'Blighty at last I M • • • Then he turned to open his Home newtipapers, which bad arrived by that day's mail. In "Reynolds'a Newspaper" he found the following: Apparently there la otiH room for reform m munition, works with regard to the boors and labor of girls. In several mat anew girls have worked thirty consecutive nights. The working week of one girl was ninety -three hoars (perfectly illegal) at a snlitry of ju«t over 2V4d per hour. Others have to leave home At four m the morninjr and <U> not got home' until übovit ten at night. Buroly some chnnge can be made here? Such a system mak»a neither tor good work nor phymc:u tmutas, A ninety-threo hours' week and nino farthings an hour! "Enormous wageo!" Dining on tho beat at the best cafes 1 Half -bottles of light claret and cigarettes after dinner — and all on nine farthings an hour!

"Honostaa" opened the "London Dally Chronicle," a paper that has championod Lloyd George all through hla political caj^eer. the paper. In fact, that helped to moke his career poraible. Surely it would explain thb unsettling paragraph In "Reynolda'a." His «ye i caught the name of Margaret Bondfiold. | He knew Margaret In the old days, i Bho was ono of the "upper-class" that j dabbled In social reform. Sho had ; since come right over to the aide of the workers and has been much In evi- | donee In U>e advanced Labor movement I for a number of years. But what was Margaret doing? Why, she wan addressing a meeting of ladle** interested In frlrl munition workers. The meeting was held m I>ady Hamblcdon'a house, and Mlsa Bondfleld was saying: In ono factory the w^men worked five days a wvwk from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m., on Saturdays from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m., and on Sundays from 6 ium. to 6 p.m. The work, the making of hand grenades, was paid for tit the rate of 2&d an hour. Even In the Hweated Industry of tin -box making, before the war, the wage had boon ejitftbUflhed at 3%d an hour. The procoMt of cartridge making known an the twelfth operation had to be Cone through 18,009 times before 3» could be earned. "Think." wild Mlas Hondtield, 'lrtua.uK: ally, '"what it would mean if you even brushed your hair 18,000 ttin*« and you will realise the mechanical labor of it." Hut that la not all. Had ft* th«ae conOttlotm strf, they «r«i made worse by tho action of the volunteer worker — -the War Uuiy—who tltxtmtY ne«*l to work for v living <u»d 1h uJwnyii well fed, well houtted. w*ll clothed and well groomed, No doubt, the War Lady was friendly and well-rmvmlng. Whatever came iihe grtnn*d aad bore It. And employers take Advantage of that ttpiril. Rut Jet tlmt Jit)«> lady journntlsr. Mary Boyle O'HHUy. wh<», v yenr or two <igo, returned to tine land thai m-iu her'futMr Intu v\\Uk U;\\ the «tory an ah« doca In out ot the many p:ii>t«r« that take h«r work: This town don't hold bed» onouf b (or all lv workam, The

mlnuto one girl tumbles out another lays her head on tho pillow. Nor are thero any decent kitchens. Tho wiser girls uaw their health must Huffcr and called a meeting. "Wo ask only Iho tuune coxo tho War Offlco gives tho other army," waa their motto. But tho War Lady cried, "Nonsense; now is not the time for fussing." That ended the health campaign. Sundays the women rested In bed, but tho War ' Lady rnotorod home! Come Monday, tho superintendent stopped bosldo tho War Lady's machine. "The ! Munitions Ministry will learn of your irood Influence here," ho told her. "I hope you will help to lncreaso tho output. Things look critical In Plandera" Then tho War Lady "aped up," and tho "gaffers" sold "What ono can do, all must do." They forget that the War Lady woh better fed and of stronger physique. It's convenient to forget i^hlnjrs some time. But Miss O'Reilly continues: ''Theso women are growing rich," said the master, showing visitors around the works. "Growing rich?" | when scores of girls on government 1 work recolvo three halfpence an I ,hour for fuse-making? •'Growing rich," when girls are making bombs for tou shiUlngs a week? "Wo can't live on such wages with food at the presont price." one girl told j another. "Tho masters aro making j millions. They can afford to pay." ' Then a meeting was dolled to ar- \ bitrato for fair wages, To please j tho firm, all agreed that tho War Lady should tako tho chair. "Wo meet," she said "to discuss woI moo's wages In war time. While I our brothers and lovers ore fightingj m France, this Is not the time to ; argue about wages. Twopence or I sixpence an hour aro minor matj tors whan the country needs us. I j for one, will gladly give my labor j for tho period of tho war. llun- ' dreda of women 1 know will do llkoj wlso." Then abo «at down. The bosses roarod. applause, but a j thousand women saw the trick. i Who cored to hear them say that ! they must earn to live, that long j hours and sweating wages threaten j tho -future of England? The War j Lady had dono her bit. But tho < harm she did roust bo paid for by women who cannot afford to pay.

"Hnonnoua wages. l " Dining on the beat at the best cafes! Half-bottles of light claret and cigarettes after dinner for our girl munition workers! P'r'arxt— but not Just yet. But. say, why don't the " 'Spllt'-Post'* and the oth«?r day-lies givo rji «omo of these thinß-tf from "Ueyuolda's." tho "Chronicle." and other London pa pom, If only H3 a foil to the eternal ha'penny Harmsworth, the "DlUy Mole. 1 *