The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1904-11-19
WORKING GIRLS
FEEL IT UNJUST
RESENT SWEEPING INSINUATION
MADE BY REFORM WORKERS.
Employers Also Feel That the Insinua-
ton Should Not Have Been Made
Public without More Careful sift-
ing-The Clerks Union Likely to
Take the Matter Up.

Employers and employees Of represen-
tative department stores were stirred to
Indignation and resentment by the pub
LEGATION in a morning paper, Of an at
ployed in the department stores. The
statement was contained in a report of
meeting of East Side men held last
night, under the auspices Of the Mems
club of Andrew church. The meeting
was addressed by J. NJ. Anderson Of the
count of the detective work of the
league, said that in one resort the pro-
prietors offered to send for department.
store girls.
If they mean business and want to
get at the facts instead Of bes%1rch,ng
ment Of one large employer. 81 d like to
know why they. didn It really investi-
gate that proposition. If they intend
ed to cast reflections on honest, hard
working girls by representing them as
the associates Of disreputable ones. why
what prevented them from saying
Here send for. your girls If they
had done that they might talk. -
The employer was as much wrought
up by the aspersion cast on his en-
p1oyees by this indiscriminate condem-
ters or sisters. =
"Do you know what the result would
have been if they had really sifted the
matter to the bottom7 Either the pro-
Drietor would have had to withdraw
his offer as mere talk or there would
have been no difficulty in proving that
the girls representing themselves as
store employees were liars.
Clerks Morale Is High.
cit is not to be supposed that there
is never a girl of bad character slips
into store thru deception nor one who
falls into bad ways after getting en-
ployment, but I, can say, without fear
Of contradiction, that there is no other
class, of .workingwomen, whose moral
standard is higher than the employees Of
the average store. In our establish
ment we look into a girls record very
closely before we employ her and If
she does not live at home we must be
satisfied Of the character Of the people
with whom she lives. And we don It
stop with that; we keep close watch OF
our employees and if any irregularity
is detected we sift the matter to the
doubt, but she goes if she is shown un-
worthy. It would cost an employe, even
Of high standing. his position to shield
anyone Of bad character. No consid-
Grafton of efficiency out weighs charac-
teri Hal Il ...:......
GIRLS Are 1nd1gnanC. ;r-0..-.
The cloud such reports cast upon them
is keenly felt by the saleswomen, as
they realize that the unthinking public
puts them all in the same category
"We are used to gossip" said one Of
the women, ''but this is worse, because
it comes from people that you would
suppose would be careful about such
things and customers naturally sup
pose that such statement would not
be permitted ina newspaper unless it
had some foundation. Such talk makes
four work harder because women who con
slider us unworthy and in a different
class from themselves naturally bea1
down on us and show their disapproval
"The idea of the inferiority Of 6
woman working in store is very com
mon. Women often say to me, why
} am so surprised to find an educated, re
| fined woman like you employed in {
, store If they only knew it, I am NJ
l exception. .., ~.
, The source of this charge constitutes
its seriousness and the statesmen are in
| clined to take the matter up before theil
union with a view of demanding that i
be either proved or retracted. If this
demand is made, they WILL offer thei1
services to facilitate a genuine Sitting
Of the charge. H. ."E.|. r..