Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1918-09-13
MANY have ALREADY been LISTED
Country Will Await Their Patriotic
Response With hAssuranee-They Will
Be Needed Not Only as Munitipn
Workers; But In Many Other Fields
of Indus<ry

following the statement by Bernar'
NJ. Baruch, Chairman Of the War In
dustries Board. that the country ha
only begun to Use its woman power
plans for tapping tie huge reservoir
are going forward with 4 rush.
Conferences between tive War In
dustries Board and the National La
Dor Policies Boa, looking to the mos
effective means of mobilizing the wo
men Of the Nation behind the men a
the front are already in progress. Th'
plans have not been rounded into fl
nal shape, but 1t Is oaid that an inten
sive drive to bring out the full woman
power of the country will begin with
in few weeks.
AS a basis for its work thu Govern
ment has list Of not more than g..
$4,000 women who, in response to
call by the Council Of National De
fense, registered themselves as willing
to enter any work the Government
finds them needed in. Nothing like al
of these will be found available for th'
tasks that must be attacked, but al
estimate that 100000 women ma!
have to b.; found before the middle o.
next summer to take their place In in
dustry Is not disconcerting any OFF,
cials here.
Latest statistics available. show tha'
of the l7.623.s92 women in England
there are now employed. exclusive Of
domestic servants. saleswomen. wal
nurses, etc, 4.53S.000. or slightly more
than 25 PR cent. Tao women OF the
United States, according to the 1slC
census, numbering 45.2Ss,76l. The
number employed was little more
than 3.647.O00 or about per cent
These figures show that to make the
proportion Of women employed here
equal to the showing by the women oi
England 1t would be necessary fol
more than 100000 American women
to take up behind the lines the bur
den Of war. It Is estimated that 60O,-
900 have already replaced men called
for military sorv,cc.
.t.fts Ssf..Ecipal agency IN accomplish
ing this Is the United States Employ.
ment Service Of the Department OF
Labor, which is already enlarging anc
improving its machinery. WitE 6OC
branches scattered throughout the
country. particularly in large indus
trial centres, this organization, the or
iginal function of which was finding
Jobs for immigrants. Is finding workers
for jobs.
In it's work so far as the employment
service has had the benefit of the ma
chinery built up by the National Lea
que for Woman service. which even
before the United States entered the
war sent investigators to France and
England. II has also had at command
the government surveys showing Its
essential and less essential Industries
1t has also had the active cooperation
of labor unions in many places.
The general plan followed so far
and which will doubtless form the ba-
sis of the big drive, Is to recruit will
ing, but unframed women through wo-
mems organizations and to draft train
ed women from less essential WORK
into the war plants. An illuminating
instance of how it did the latter wa:
recently when a gas mask factory es'
tablished by the Government On Ions
Island rcqaired 1000 stitchers. Agents
of the Employment Service visited
such plants as the collar fcctories o.
Troy cnd won recruits. In Manhattan
factories where women had worked OF
women's fancy collars. baby caps ant
corsets more were located. Within
week the thousand needed were fount
and at work.
The variety Of Industries In which
women have already been found capa
BILE Of replacing men Is almost with
out limit. Thousands ave taken theil
places in munition plants. But whel
the big cell for women workers came
other less romantic. but necessary in
dustries will have to be supplied. The!
will be needed In pl:.nts not apparent
ly directly connected with the wal
but vital in come way to tie militar'
forces Of the civilian population.
The railroad. will need them. Tn
PENNSYLVANIA is already employing 2.
500 in places formerly held by mel
and they are making good as ca
cleaners. messengers. drawbridge ten
ders, crossing watchmen, parcel room
attendants, ticket agents md even sec
ton hands.
In Ohio. women are replacing me
in glass factories. In Arkansas the
are at work in lumber camps. On tn
coast they have been placed in tn
shipyards as painters and carpenter
In hundreds Of shops they are alread
proving capable as machinists and !
various kinds of other metal work.
Schools Fit Them For Work.
! In many munition centers there ar
already maintained by factories "vesti
bule schools" all: it is through ther
that trained women find their way {
pertinent work at the bench. Plan
already made for increased use Of VIC
men contemplate the enlargement
these schools and the establishment 9
more.
, Such statistics as are available her
show that women already taking tn
place Of fighting men are working ar
proximately the same hours as tn
men and receiving equal pay for equa
work. As beginners they naturall
have not received as high compensa
ton as experienced men. but with ez
perience some have even outstrippe
male shopmates- In almost all INDUS
tries, reports to the Department OF La
Dor indicate, they have proved them
! selves efficient, and in some kinds
machinery work, notably the manufac
ture of certain shell cases. have gener
ally proved more adept.
The principal call for women l