The labor journal. [volume] (Everett, Wash.) 1909-1976, 1921-11-25
HEALTH PROBLEMS
OF WOMEN IN
INDUSTRIES
published by U. S. Department of
Labor.)
The Pin Money Fallacy


them for an adequate wage, wom-
en- must struggle constantly against
the old "pin-money" fallacy. A
man feels that wife and children or
other dependents are something Of
burden, but he is recognized as
the breadwinner, or the potential
breadwinner, for a family group,
his wages are based accordingly,
and his burden is lightened. A
woman may, and often does, have
an equally heavy burden of depend
ents, but this burden is not made
lighter for her by the popular sup
erstition that she is working to
make little extra money and will
soon get married and be on "easy
street for the rest of her life.
The Women's Bureau hopes shortly
to have comprehensive figures show
ing the extent of the responsibility
for the support of others among
wage-earning women. Even before
this material is prepared, however
there is ample evidence that this
responsibility is much greater and
more universal than is generally
supposed.
Aside from house and wages and
general working conditions there
are certain conditions in industry
which need to be especially studied
for their effects on the health of
women so that proper regulations
may be instituted for their control
The very widespread use of the
piecework system in industries
where women are employed is a
condition which is now challenging
much attention. Nearly every man
ufacturer will say that he employs
women most successfully on the re-
petitive processes in his plant, the
processes that require IN infinite
number of rapid repetitions of the
same movement such as placing
small bits of metal under a press
and releasing the press SO that the
metal is cut or hammered into
shape; feeding machines which
means putting one tin can after
another in the same place as fast
as the hands can move; wrapping
and packing cigarettes; or running
an electrically driven sewing ma
chine which makes two thousand or
more stitches a minute. Such oc-
equations, which are paid for by
the number of finished articles
turned out, naturally are carried on
at full speed, in some cases I'M
der conditions of machinery or kind
of work which require very care
full attention. The pathological eff
feet on the nerves and health of
u woman of this continued tension
and activity has never been defin-
itely determined. Any casual OBJ
server of women working at these
processes will know, however, that
they must have pathological signifi-
canoe. Indeed, when girl after girl
in group of cigarette packers is
found to be afflicted with con-
slant jerking OF rhythmic motion of
her body which follows the motions
she makes while at work, resulting
in extreme fatigue and nervous
ness. it would seem that the effect
of the speeding up of pieceworkers
in some Occupations was so obvious
as to need but little research to
stamp it as being serious menace
There is great need for careful and
full examination of the effects of
| this system in order that it may
be properly controlled.
Posture at work is another sub.
| iect which has received insufficient
attention, although the need of some
| regulation has been more generally
recognized. 1t is very common t.
find State laws requiring that seat!
| be provided for women who ar,
employed in industry, but there ha'
| as yet been no definite STANDARD
established of the kind of seat tina
should be required. An old BIO,
with a plank nailed against it TO
back, high stool with no bacl
and no foot rest, barrel, woodel
kitchen chair, are some of the seat
which are commonly found wher
women are employed. Many re
quests are made to the Women
Bureau by managers of factorie
for descriptions of the best typ
of factory chair for women, but S,
far no investigation of the subjec
has been complete enough to war
rant definite recommendation
The fundamentals of proper seat
ing, the need for a back, foot rest
rounded front to the seat, and indi
vidual adjustment, have been estab
lished, but there is still much which
needs to be known from the medica
end of the question before a com
plete seating "code" can be for
mulated.
Very little has been gathered Of
the effect upon women's health o.
continued standing or sitting
Standing, of course, has received
more attention as it's effects are
more quickly noticed, but that sit
ting for 8, 9, or 10 hours day car
in itself be harmful is new ides
to many employers as we'll as tt
the workers themselves. 1t is quite
possible in the majority of cases t.
regulate the height of work table
and chair so that worker may
either sit or stand conveniently al
work. but before such a treatment
of thep roblems of posture car
become general the need for it must
be very strikingly illustrated by q
definite account of the effect on q
woman's health of too much stand
ing and sitting.
An attempt has been made in
several states to fix standard
weight which a woman may lift
without harm to herself, but as this
has been done with apparently little
medical knowledge or study of the
subject, the legislation is haphaz-
ard and may result in unnecessarily
restricting the employment of wo-
men.
In Ohio and Pennsylvania wo-
man may not lift core and core
box the combined weight of which
is more than Is pounds. In New
York women in the core rooms of