Evening star., 1943-03-24
Women Shipbui|ders
In Britain Do Good
Work and Like L
Absenteeism Is Rure
And Usually Only
or Good Reasons
Third OF a Series.)
By HELEN KIRKPATRICK.

BY HELEN KIRKPATRICK,
Soreign Correspondent OF The Star and
Chicago Daily News.
!. LONDON, March 24.-Four ships
In different stages of construction
lay on the ways of one of Clydeside's
shipbuilding yards when your corre-
spondent paid recent visit there
and of the 5000 workers, 400 were
women, none of whom had worked
there 18 months before.
Women were scattered through
machine shops, boiler sheds and
yards. They were spray painting
the ship which will be the next to
be commissioned. They were weld
ing metal strips on the deck of an
other. Inside the ships they were
measuring of steel plates for cut
ting, drilling holes in deck plates,
carrying red-hot rivets to riveters
and running great overhead cranes.
One was handling the donkey en-
gine that hauls heavy steel from
machine shop to the ways.
About 200 of these women had
come from the government training
center, where they had been trained
rs engineers, electricians, welders
and steam filters. Others had come
IN as apprentices. The majority
were Glasgow. women-more than
half Of them married with husbands
working In the yards or in the serv-
Ices and children, whom they left
daily In nursery schools. Many had
never worked before. Others had
been cooks, domestic servants,
teachers, dressmakers and nurses.
x-Governess Likes Job.
One rosy-cheeked young woman,
welding strips on ship deck in the
sharp wind whipping up the Clyde,
had been governess. She said she
liked her present job better.
Whereas men in the shipbuilding
craft have to serve a five-year ap-
premiership. women today are serv-
ing 80 weeks, after which they are
paid on equal basis as are the men.
according to their skill At least 200
OF these women are making from
$40 to $25 week and working So
hour week on two weeks average.
They work three Sundays out of
every four in winter time-two out |
OF every four in summer, when long
daylight hours permit longer daily
overtime
Transportation, shopping and
children's illness are the three
principal problems, in that order of |
Importance. with which these wom-
en- shipbuilders have to contend. |
And here, as elsewhere, transpor-
tation Is not adequate. Some come
as much as 80 miles, twice daily. |
having had to move away from their
former homes when raids destroyed
them.
Shopping must be fitted in some
how for all those still running their
own homes. Saturday afternoon
provides most of them with the only
possibility of doing the weeks mar
keting and shopping. From time
to time, children are i'll, or husbands |
IN the army come home on leave.
These two reasons provide answers
to such absenteeism as exists.
Supervisor Was Dancing Teacher.
The women's supervisor-until the
war dancing teacher-produced |
figures showing the extremely low |
rate Of absenteeism and in 80 per
cent of the cases the reasons were
good and ample.
This particular yard employs high
type Scottish women. subjecting
them first to the most rigid physical
examinations. Modern first-aid posts
and two trained nurses watch the
workers health
More than half the women work.
ers, being married, do not contem-
plate working after the war. All of
them remember the black days of
Clydeslde when all but few yards
were closed down and unemployment
vas high. They have a very per-
sonal stake in Britains shipping
their livelihood depends on a big
export trade requiring large mer-
chant marine.
But some of them are now con-
vinced that they would rather con-
tinue work after the war and allow
their sons to 60 to high school,
technical school and even the uni
versity than have boys aged IS en-
terlng the shipyards. If women
have been able to learn the Jobs and
earn the same wages as men. after
80 weeks apprenticeship, they do
not see why their sons should serve
Ave years as apprentices at 81 or IS
weekly.
Many others, including some who
are married. want to work after the
war. They have Joined the Anal
eamated Engineering. Electrical and
Boilermakers' Union. But they
have not figured out what will hap |
pen II there are not enough jobs to
employ all the men and women, too
tCopyright 1943, ChicaEo Daily News, Inc.)
Thieves Get Buildings