New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-06-14


I'VE provided cheap meals on a o
cents head basis. and encouraged the
women in cooking the meals themselves.
They were carefully instructed as TO
the nutritive value of the food they
prepared. and on the whole made eX-
cellent progress.
cone of our schemes OF work in the
training centres was the making OF
cradles out Of banana crates. In re-
port on the first two months work OF
the cradle workroom the honorary su-
perintendent said:
First, there is the great practical
advantage 70 the women OF being
taught TO use their hands, to handle a
hammer and saw. and, above all. TO
sew. Most of the workers are
factory hands. . We have .
couple who had literally never handled
a needle. II was one of these who vol
unteered 10 me the remark that it's
nice to be learned. The progress made
by some of these women Is
very remarkable
1.-THE second point of educational
value is the training IN ingenuity and
taste. | believe il has been
revelation to some of the women TO see
how the commonest Of materials I'M
bleached calico can, with little
trouble. be made TO look quite pretty.
"All this refers TO the transltory
period after the outbreak OF war. Then
came the time when the demands on
the services of women became increas-
ingly heavy. Millions of men were
Joining the army, the need for women
i'm munitions work became more siren
Gus. and instead Of looking for jobs
for women we had TO find the trained
women to fill the multitudlnous jobs
awaiting them.
Women Workers Increase
an this connection | want chiefly
to speak as the secretary of the Wom-
ems League of Trades Unions. In
this wholesale launching of women
into occupations they previously had
not entered. We have experienced ootn
gains and losses as regards conditions
of women's employment.
81 would say this right now: As
the result of our experience, II we
had the same time over again, we
should fight even harder than we
have done for women's industrial free
dom and rights.
"The total number of women in EN-
ployment in the United Kingdom, &C
co-ding 10 the census Of 1911. was
nearly six millions. About a million
and three-quarters Of these were in
domestic service. Leaving these
aside. the estimated number in other
occupations in July, 1914, excluding
all those who were employers or work.
ing on their own account, or as out
. D,, - mn
1916, it is estimated that the number
had increased TO 100000, or by $751;
900, and by July, 1916, further in
crease is estimated to have taken
place, which brought 1t up to over
100000 Since then there has been
a further addition of quite 100000.
1.-THE increased number of women
in these occupations is due TO several
causes: A large number of women
who have transferred their services
from the ranks of domestic servants.
Many transferences have been made
from the ranks OF outworkers. small
employers on their own account. etc.
The wastage at the later years has
been less, women remaining in indus
try 20 a later age, after marriage, etc,
while girls from school have come
quickly into employment Married
women, widows, etc. have returned to
employment in large numbers. both
for economic and patriotic reasons.
A certain number of mlddle-class
women have entered industry.
Substitution a Great Problem
"The great question that has con-
fronted US throughout and which has
been the cause of anxious negotiation
between the government. employers,
men trades unionsts and We represen-
tatives Of women's trades unions has
been that of substitution.
There are four forms Of substitu-
ton. and when these are examined il Is
clear that in the second and fourth the
actual fact of substitution or replace
ment may be overlooked. They are:
First Direct substitution of one
woman for one man. This is not very
frequent in the case of skilled workers,
though lately there has been n large
number Of direct requirements. II ~
found where semi-skilled or unskilled
workmen have been employed, and IS
customary throughout the vehicular
trades.
Second Indirect substitution. where
a woman or girl takes the place OF an
unskilled or partially skilled man, or
occasionally of youth, and thus sets
free an unskilled or partially skilled
worker TO take the place of fully
skilled man. In such cases, which are
frequent in the metal trades, the fact
of the original substitution is often
overlooked, because the woman is only
indirectly replacing, or making possible
the replacement of, the skilled worker
upon whom attention is concentrated.
Third. Group substitution, where .
group of women takcs the place Of q
smaller group Of men. doing the same
work but giving a smaller output per
worker. This is d form of substitution
very commonly found in the dstrbutive
trades, but the lessening Of output
may be temporary in some cases, and
due 70 the employment Of unframed
workers.
Fourth. Substitution by re-arrange-
ment. when women with the help Of
improved or automatic machinery may
take over work previously requiring
the attention Of fully skilled workers,
or By n arrangements Of the work a
group Of women workers with the SUI
pervision of one skilled worker do a
job previously done by skilled workers.
Million Women Available
There are still over a million women
who have commercial or industrial ex-
perience who might be used TO take the
place Of men, but the majority OF these
are over thirty-five and have homes and
children. It would not be a national
advantage TO take such women into in
dustry Already many women have had
10 find substitutes 70 do the work Of
their homes, and many are also acting
as the unpaid substitutes for domestic
servants.
There are practically no trades in
which some process of substitution
has not taken place. but in several
there are processes which of their