The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1895-08-31
WOMEN AND WAGES.
From the Washington Post.

From the Washington Post.
An inquiry into the cause or causes OF
the decline of the wages of women in New
iork mas brought out the statement that
one OF tnc principle reasons for the de-
crease IS that men are encropchlny M
Helds heretofore occupied exclusively by
women. For example, men are appiyine
tor. ana, II appears. obtaining employ
.neht IN such occupations as the manufac-
ture or mats. caps, suspenders dressmak-
ing, cioakmak.ng. laundry work, and sim
'iar occupations. The men who thus com
pete with women are Poles, Hungar.ans
ana itaEans, and they work for lower
wases than tne average woman can afford
70 accept unless driven to do so by the
stern compulsion Of want Another causa
ana perhaps the chief one, Is assigned ky
Mss Woodbridge. secretary Of the Work.
ing Women's society. who says "the
s1uIle s,1 ~ NEE " SO many more women to
MI places than there are places to fll"
Ia -.lI:-
BY reason OF the immigration of work.
ing women, who have come over in i'm.
mense numbers. and are crowd,ng the
eh"ap tenemcnts Of New York and other
large citIes the market for women's
work is glutted. The amount Of work to
be done has not Increased 80 rapidly as the
supply OF women who depend on work for
subsistence. The Inevitable result of this
cond!tion are declining wages and all tho
suffering incidental thereto. Wages were
cruelty low before the decrease began.
and they are now depressed to a p,tjfuj
degree. Women born and reared in this
country are the greatest sufferers for
they cannot adapt themselves to condi-
tions OF lie to which the Poles, Hun
gar!ans and Italians are accustomed.
-.ll:--
But while women are complaining that
men are doing their work and taking their
bread, the census shows another state OF
things. We find in the Chicago Tribune a
citation from the census tables which
proves that women are doing much OF the
work formerly done by men, II appears
that OF 27$.66l people who work for
weekly wages or yearly salaries in the
cent. are women and girls Or these
1.206.S76 are engaged In hoiisework of some
sort; this leaves to lS.S20,95O men about 80
per cent OF the gains that they could
make were women not employed In work
other than domestic. That Is to say, Is,-
820.9 $50 men. earning 80 per cent of ali that
10 earned as wages or salaries support so
per cent. Of the women and girls Of the
country. or. In round numbers, $4,000, 900
wives. daughters and female relatives.
count as l.oT.5I. against 4.O64.tA men, or
as more than rs per cent. Of the whole
number employed.
The Tribune quotes the census 10 prove
that there are Industrial fields from which
woman all but completely has driven man
More than three-fOurths Of the teachers
In schools are women; the qensusr figures
standing as 2i5.230 females to S6,5n males.
There are 21.s85 Women employed as
stenographers and but 1918 men. The
saleswomen form one-fifth of the selling
force In retail stores. In medicine woman
IL not a strong numerical factor; she
counts as 1855, against 104, 500 masculine
N. DIS. She shows slightly In architec.
tutre, there being % ladies' engaged in the
profession, while the number Of men is re-
data were collected, the proportion Of
women Ia these pfofesions and occupa-
tions has Increased very larsely. and the
movement is stHl going on. We have no
doubt that there are ten women In posi-
tons formerly hiled BY men to one man
who 10 doing q womans work.