Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1919-04-07
Training Household SERVANTS
London Times.

The Women's Advisory Committee of the
Ministry of Reconstruction were asked by DR.
| Addison in December to consider tht domestic
service problem (Which now confronts the
housewives of the country in acute form. and
! to indicate the lines on which the available
| supplies of labour can be used in the best in
terests of the nation The committees pro-
| cedure was to appoint four subcommittee OF
people specially qualified to consider the ques-
| ton from these aspects:-O Training; (2) ma
| chnery of distributions: 60 home helps; and ca
organization and conditions
The report of the subcommittee on training
is now available. 1t urges the importance of a
better training of domestic servants, not only
as a corrective of the waste and friction that
arise out of inefficient domestic labour, but also
as prime means OF raising the status OF the
occupation itself.
"One of the root causes" it says, (which has
led TO the present low status OF domestic service
as an occupation. is the lack Of opportunities for
training, such as will enable girl to become a
skilled worker" Training of this kind is pro-
vided to limited extent. but parents are i'll too
many cases unable to meet the loss that they
must suffer if they encourage their daughters
to undergo such training rather than to enter a
commercial or industrial occupation. I'VE are
OF opinion that, SO long facilities for training
are beyond the reach of most working-cass
homes, the occupation will suffer from its pres
ent lack of status, and continue to receive the
greater number of its recruits from women who
are driven into it by economic necessity. 1t is
essential that domestic service should take its
place as a skilled occupation, and that the con-
ditions of employment should be made compar-
able with those which exist in other occupa-
tons"
The report then goes to detail the exist
ing facilities for the training of women and
girls in domestic service, showing that in 1914,
apart from phianthropic agencies and other in
Wales was far less than 700 pupils. Some of
these institutions were closed during the war.
At the end OF 1917 the pupils in attendance num-
bered less than 800
Reference is also made to the fact that the
bulk Of domestic servants obtain such training
as they possess either from mistress or, in
large household. from upper servants under
whom they work. Some mistresses of small
households" says the report, both understand
the work themselves and take pains to teach
their maids, but the unsatisfactory nature of the
instruction given by many mistresses, owing to
their own ignorance of, and lack OF system in,
domestic matters has been brought prominently
to the notice of the committee"
The training received by young girls work
ing under other servants is criticized by the COM
mttee as being often superficial, in that the up
per servant may have neither the time nor the
ability to explain the reasons for the various
processes which have been adopted as result
of experience. Hence the pupils intellect is not
trained; she tends to become mechanical in her
work, and her intelligence suffers in conse-
quence. Two further disadvantages present
themselves in this kind of training. In the first
place the number of large households is not
enough to provide training for all; secondly, the
girl leaves school at IA, and the committee and
all the witnesses examined were unanimous in
agreeing that girls should not enter domestic
service under the age of To-
In Part II Of their report the committee
describes the training which they consider most
desirable. The schools where it is given should
fall in the category of junior technical schools
to secure recognition of domestic service as
skilled occupation. In certain particulars the
course suggested follows that laid down by some
of the more enterprising educational authori-
ties. The training should, however extend over
two years, beginning at the age of IA, when the
girl leaves school During the second year
specialized training should be undertaken, which
if possible should include work in some house
connected with the school. The cost of such
training should be borne entirely by the local
education authority. aided by state grants.
Maintenance grants to the pupil should be made
his daughter to undertake this training without
greater financial expenditure than would be en-
tailed if she entered some industrial or CONNER
cial calling
Without some such policy" the report adds
there is little chance OF raising the status of
domestic service. and thereby providing a skill
ed occupation for large number of women
Though conditions OF domestic service were not
within the scope of this particular sub-commt
tees inquiry, they report themselves unable to
conclude their recommendations without stating
emphatically their opinion that the mere pro-
vision of training facilities will not suffice to
attract girls to homework, unless the condi-
tons of service are radically altered as to
conform with those of other occupations