The Durham recorder. [volume] (Durham, N.C.) 1879-19??, 1911-10-13
| WHY WOMEN ARE UNDERPAID,|
BY Teresa Ellington Grelg

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Labor has won from the modern
world an admission that 1t has beer
unduly handicapped in the life-strug
giles. and this admission is the foun
dation OF much recent legislation
But as in all such cases, the new con
seriousness of wrong done is largely
nulified in action for want OF cleai
diagnosis of the disease.
Large numbers of people want L
help to set things right; very few o.
them will take the trouble to equiI
themselves for the task.
This is especially true with regart
to the case of the woman workers
Their state is admitted on every side
to be much worse than that ftht
men workers. But no special study
is undertaken to find the cause Of
this special discrimination; the cir
cumstances is glibly experienced al
being due to lack Of organization
to lack of the suffrage, to lower
physical capacity and intelligence, t.
the working of the law OF supply
and demand, or to the temporary
mature of the employment Of women
compared with that of men
All these explanations are unsat
isfactory, though an element ol
truth may be discovered in each .ol
them. They may show how things
have remained so bad, why the,
have baffied the reformer; but they
supply no hint OF the original cause
of the lower economic status of wo
men. They deal rather with secon,
! ondary effects on the first cause
which in their turn aggrayate the
orig nal evil, and as the popular ex
plantations fall short of the truth
so the popular solutions based upor
them fell short OF their purpose.
, The possession Of the vote vii
! not remove the world, though IL ma,
be made one means towards tha.
end. The lack OF trade unions ha:
not caused the industrial plight Of
. women, and their institution alon,
! will not abolish it. Women are no
underpaid and over-worked becaus,
! they are physically and mentally OF
lower level than man, who ar,
comparatively well paid; they ar,
physically and metally on a love-
; level because they are anderpaid anC
over-worked. These are not causes
they are effects reacting again al
secondary causes.
The whole truth lies beyond al
these suggestions. and each OF then
can be woven into the fabric o
which il is the foundation. Til,
root cause Of the peculiarly un
happy condition of women workers 4
that they suffer a double handicap
Men are handicapped once, as work
ers; women are handicapped twice
, once as workers and once, as womei
F-fMen are handicapped b. capital. wo
men are handicapped first by capita
and second by man.
The burden OF capital falls with
out regard TO sex. At the best
Is imposed equally on men and NO
} men: at the worst Il lies more cruel
: ly, as with all burdens Of this natur,
I upon those who are already handi
: capped. But this Is not the weak
) ness which the first handicap ha
, produced. Ii serves 70 make ba,
: condition worse, TO increase an in
, itial disability. The original han
dicapping OF women, without which
their present condition would no
be, will be found 10 proceed from
quite a different aource.
In the days OF primitive and do
nestle industry women performed
large share OF the labor OF III.
world; but they performed Il in tn,
home. and they did not perform q
as free agents. the fruit OF the wo
mans toll was the possession or tn,
husband. all that she had was his
all that she made was his. Hei
labor In the home made no differ.
ence TO her dependant position. The
law held that she was maintained
by her husband: the fruits Of heI
labor In the home we're never re.
garded as being any concern OF hers:
and as they came 70 her husband
automatically, as a matter Of course
he regarded them as OF little account
The value Of the work 0l all women
was seriously deprecated BY this
condition. Women's work was not
work: Il was duty. and as such IL
had no money value.
From this source has come the
underpayment OF women IN the Ia.
Dor market. wife-malntenance Is
theoretically universal. and its full
credit Is counted to the man. whether
tho wife. who Is maintained" Is 4
parasite or serf makes no differ
ence to the theory. which has sui.
feed TO lay a special sex burden
upon women In the Industrial world
The prevalence OF this low level OF
wage return for women: il has limit.
ed opportunity for them: Il has de-
MED them training and apprentice.
ship; Il has committed them to the
most casual and unpleasant employ
ment: and Il has provided excuse
for the employers. who sseat women.
aud the public too which permits
this sweating.
The initial sex-handicap imposed
upon women workers has made Itself