The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1924-06-24
Continued from page u

opportunity for advancement"
Confesses Bunk.
II you can catch one Of these young
women with her Western Electro
company manners off, she will tell
you what she really thinks of the
whole damned works, and it won't
sound like the talk put over in the
company magazines, either
Miss Norton, one Of those who ques-
ton, pump, grill, quiz and cross-exam-
inc the girl who has decided to try
sorting small parts of electrical ma
chimes, for nine and a half hours a
day, as life career, was in a con-
fidential mood when I applied for a
job at Western Electric on the morn
ing of June 8.
Many Called; Few Chosen.
Fat chance you'll have for job
in that place, grille" / had already
been told by girl lettering near the
gate when began to run the gauntlet
of the uniformed police that guard the
Idoorways to the entrance of the build
ings. She was girl of about fifteen
thin, scrawny, and extremely nervous.
1--WE been hanging around here for
almost two weeks now, and the only
treason l keep coming back is that
they're always firing girls from the
factory and taking on just few. If
you're lucky you may happen to get
into vacancy"
| Inside the women's employment Of
flee forty girls, few of them over six
teen, waited nervously for the coldly
impersonal interview Of Miss Ketter-
ing, first on the board of examiners.
HIre-Fire Treatment.
Many of these girls had worked in
the factory before, had been fired and
were now going back to be taken in
all over again. To the company, the
fact that these girls had been fired
once-or more than once-was not to
be held against them.
Constant firing and re-hiring of en-
ployes is a trick known to big fac
tories. Fear of 'the sack" is an ex-
cellent method of keeping the force
screwed up to a high pitch Of nervous
efficiency.
why did you come back?" I asked
of one of the girls who hoped to be
taken in again. rs the work here
pleasanter than the work in other
places?"
Work Embarrassing.
"Of course it's not, but we can't
pick and choose" was the answer. The
work is terribly uninteresting. The
hours for the factory girls are from
1880 to 6. Some of that is overtime,
but overtime work isn't voluntary at
all-you have to stick out your nine
and half hours day if you want to
stay here. They pay you $3.50 a
week for that, unless you can make
more by speeding up on piece-work.
II left last time because the noise in
the machine-rooms almost deafened
me. But I've got to go back; can't
help it."
Unions? My God, no. No unions
allowed in here. And they don't pay
you enough to let you join anything"
BY this time Miss Kettering had de-
cided to let me have QUESTIONABLE.
Stacks of questionaires were littering
her desk, and had been littering her
desk all thru the half-hour that l had
waited, on one Of the hard benches
lining the sides Of the room. But !
couldn't touch one until was told to.
Want Life History.
Western Electric is owned by the
American Telephone Company, and
expects very much the same stand
ards of its slaves. Go to the American
Bell Telephone Co. for job, and
you'll find that there isn't anything
about your past, your present or your
future life that the company doesn't
think it ought to know.
Where did you work last? How
long? Why did you leave? Where did
you work before that? Was there a
strike while you were working there?
Did you take part in the strike? If
you did, why? If you didn't, why not?
Are you married, single, widowed,
divorced? Have you any children?
Is that your home, or friends home,
or boarding house? How long have
you been thereY HOW mucn VIII you
work for in this company?
Western Electric is not far behind
it's sister trust in its third-degree
methods of inquiring into prospective
employees pasts.
Miss Kettering went over my ques-
tionaire carefully with me, glancing
at me sharply as she repeated the
questions and the answers l had given.
Psychological.
was passed on, after this grilling,
to a room in which l was given a
series, of psychological tests. l dis
covered, later. that these tests are
made the basis Of dividing the girls
into two groups-those most likely
to be contented with the wage slavery
of the factories, and those who might
rebel a little, and wish to do Office
morL