THE SWEATING SYSTEM

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 2001, 30 November 1888, Page 2

THE SWEATING SYSTEM

A very sad story of ' sweating' ia tild m the columna of the " Pall Mall Gazette," Mts OYloman, a Nowcaßtlo woman, has been brought up at tailoring, and was forewomun at AIJ, Chariton's establishment. Hor husband was an employo of Mr Jackßoo, the contractor, and was engaged oa the now Towor Bridge. An accident disabled him, and to earn a little money Mr» Oolemnn tried whut she oou'd do among tho ' sweaters ' She straightway hnd experiences of what piecework bysub-coilrrg is. Onojman offered her work m tioißhing clothes, and at the beßt she could only have earned threepence ia two hours by tho hardest labour. She fled from hi* pres3noa and enterol another establishment, where two pair of trousers, best Inverness tweed, were handed hei to sew. She made no inquiry ia to re numeration, but as she estimated that eaoh pair would sell at 2ts to 25=>, ond that the aub-oontractor would get 6 a Od for .the work, she expected at lewst 2s To her astonishment en the second day the 'sweater' offered her U a pair I She declined <o work at this rate and demanded paymentfor what she had done. Tho employer offered her sixp nee ! refused it m tcorn One worker m Ihe place said she could make three pairß a day by beginning at five m tho morning an I toiling on till eleven at night. Tho misfortune is that muoh of this work is well paid for by the firms who give it our, but the small middleman, who carefully eo-)oalB where he gets hia work, grinds the life out of the poor.