The Dominion. SATURDAY, NOVEMBER. 6, 1915. WOMEN WAR WORKERS

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2612, 6 November 1915, Page 4

The Dominion. SATURDAY, NOVEMBER. 6, 1915. WOMEN WAR WORKERS

The women workers in Britain, who have come forward to fill some of the gaps in the industrial world caused by the call for fighting men, appear to be giving very general satisfaction. It was absolutely necessary for the national wellbeing that substitutes - should be found to carry on the work of the thousands and tens of thousands of able-bodied men who have joined Kitchener's armies. The vacancies in. shops and offices and workshops and other departments of industry have had to be filled. As a result thousands of women are now engaged in strange occupations.- For example, over 800 women are acting as conductors on the Glasgow trams. Many hundreds are employed on the railways as cleaners and porters, and they aro also showing their capabilities in other walks of life which have hitherto bpen regarded as set apart exclusively to the male sex. The novelty of the new order of things is now wearing off, and people are beginning to pronounce judgment as to the merits and merits of tho woman war worker. On tho whole, the verdict seems to be a deoidedly favourable one. At the conference of the Municipal Tramways Association recently held in London the work' of tho women conductors was highly praised. The manager of the Glasgow system declared that they were performing their duties in an "altogether satisfactory" manner. The women who applied for situations were, he said, given eight days' training. The first day was spent in "school" with a ticket inspector as teacher. The pupils had to make themselves proficient in the art of inquiring the destinations of passengers, issuing and punching tickets, and calling out the stations. The conference was unanimously of opinion that the women conductors were a. great success. It was generally agreed that they exercised a good influence, and that they were more successful than male conductors in dealing with unruly passengers. The test appears to have .shown that the women are quick to learn, tactful, and conscientious.

The women employed on the railways seem to be giving quite as much satisfaction as the tram women. Most women have a keener eye for tidiness than the average man. It is, therefore, not surprising to find that the railway carriages are cleaner than before. One woman asked a higher official for a drop of ammonia every day m order to make the train windows shine like out-glass. As a matter 'of fact they arc inclined to be a' little too thorough in their' attention to detail. They. often want to do too much—-to mind other people's business. An official tells how he had to threaten to ' b;ick'' one girl who would persist in shutting all the carriage doors when the train was moving. It was not her job, and it was a dangerous job to a person wearing, skirts. There is nothing perfect in the world—not even the woman. worker. Though they are punctilious in most things,, they seems to regard punctuality as a master of secondary importance. The tramway managers find it difficult to get them to realise the value of time. They often act as though it iB not of much consequence if they are a few minutes late in signing on or in taking up a relief. - The sin of talkativeness is also laid to their oharge; Wo are told that thoy are sometimes late because they have something to say to the other woman, and will stop to say it. It has been found necessary to appoint, women inspectors to deal with this failing. The railway women are»also' too fond of talking, but one official finds a set-off against this in' the fact that they are not so fond of reading the newspapers as men, so "it balances out in the end." The merits of the women workers certainly outweigh their shortcomings, and the nation owes them a debt of gratitude for their valuable help in keeping the industrial machinery going in these anxious days. As regards the future, it is quite certain that, as a result of the war, .many thousands of girls who have hitherto had comfortable homes provided for il.em will have to-cam their own living. How is suitable employment to be found for them without creating a very serious industrial crisis'! This is a problem which will have to bo faced, and the testing of the capacities of women in unnccustoaiad jvjiicji. i| now

going on should provide some useful indications as to the place women shall take in the new era for which tho present great upheaval is preparing the way.