Hide Article Text (OCR)
THE MATCH-GIRLS’ STRIKE.The gentlemen in the East-end who are interesting themselves In the case of the girls on strike from Messrs. Bryant and May's factory, and whose letter stating the case for the girls was printed yesterday, had an interview yesterday with Mr. Theodore Bryant and Mr, Frederick Bryant, in the presence of several other directors and managers. The letter printed yesterday was gone through paragraph by paragraph, and the following is given as the substance of the firm’s reply to the statements contained in it:—As to the grievances of the “ fillers,” the firm state that they receive ij., not f§tfn per hundred coils, and that, younger girls being employed, on account of the work being now lighter, their condition is as good or better than in the days when “frames’' were used. They deny that the new machines break down more frequently than the old ones. They admit that the girls pay 6d. for their brushes, and state that it is a necessary arrangement to prevent their being wasted.With reference to the “cutters-down,” the firm state that when the old frames were used the girls received 2}(d. per three gross, 3(d. going to children to empty the frames, etc.; but that if a woman chose she might have earned that herself, thus making 3d. per three gross. After the coils were introduced the racking-out was done by machinery, and the price paid was reduced to z%d. per three gross. Children were employed to fetch and carry for the cutters-down until the girls should get used to the new machinery, and were discontinued at the girls' own request. The firm also state that the girls can earn more money under the new arrangement.As to the “packers,” the firm state that the charge of 3lt;/. for children to fetch their paper has been discontinued for a long time, and that the firm has nothing to do with the 2d, for booking, which is an arrangement made by the girls themselves. The 6d. for stamps is admitted by the firm, who state that the stamping is enforced in the girls’ own interests, to protect an innocent girl from the accusation of bad packing.With reference to fines, the firm state that the only fines imposed are for the wilful ‘‘firing” and deliberate waste of matches. They deny emphatically that fines are inflicted for such offences as are mentioned in our former letter, and scout the suggestion that so much as 2s. 6d. is ever imposed on one girl in a week. They also deny that girls are fined for arriving late, in addition to the loss of the half-day, and they state that the total amount of fines throughout the factory during the last three months is £ only.Upon the question of wages, the elaborate precautions taken in the distribution of the girls’ weekly money were described to us, and we were told that if any girl had a complaint to make as to the amount of money rec. ived, she could have her grievance attended to at the office on Monday, on bringing the envelope in which her wage is handed to her, and! which is marked by the firm with the proper amount. They do not admit that four to six shillings represents the average weekly wage for the last few weeks, but explain the low wage of this summer by the statement that the bad weather has interfered with the usual exodus of girls for the pea and strawberry picking, and consequently an exceptionally large number of girls are left in the factory in the slack period. They referred to the wage of 114 2d, whxh they had published as the average adult wage, and stated that it was calculated last year upon a period of some months, including part of the summer, at the request of a shareholder, after the discussion at the Church Congress. They also say that, though it includes the wax-match makers, these girls do not receive an appreciably higher wage than the rest of the workers.Finally, they state that the girls have no grievances, and that there is no justification for the strike. In evidence of this they produced two work-girls, who declared that the girls were quite contented, and “would do anything” for their respective foremen. In answer to a question of ours, they said that they were forewomen. One of them also said that her niece, a girl of fourteen, had earned I3j. in a recent week. We have now put as exactly as we can the directors’ version of the points mentioned in our former letter.
Newspaper Details
London St James Gazette An Evening Review and Record of News
London, Middlesex, GB
Fri, Jul 13, 1888
Page 12
Full Page
Clipped by
Canton S.
OK, USA 26 Oct 2023
Other Publications Near London, Middlesex
Bingleys Journal
Arminian Magazine
London Daily Mail
London Stars and Stripes
London Daily Universal Register
