The Employments of Women: A Cyclopædia of Woman's WorkPenny, Virginia
General
The Employments of Women: A Cyclopædia of Woman's Work
Penny, Virginia
Women -- Employment
$2.25 for men; $1.75 for women." The proprietor of the Kenyon mills, R.
I., writes: "Probably one half the operatives in mills, in this part of
the world, are women. Weavers are paid by the yard, and earn from $3 to
$6 per week. Men are generally hired by the day. An intelligent woman
will be able to run her loom after two or three weeks' practice. It is
common to put learners on looms with experienced weavers for two or
three weeks. From 20th March to 20th September, my working time is from
sunrise to sunset, the remainder of the year, until eight o'clock in the
evening. My weavers prefer to work full time as they are paid by the
yard. There is generally a demand for good weavers in this part of the
country all the year. Weavers make most money in summer. Large mills are
being supplied with foreign help. Very few Americans are willing to work
with them. Women are employed in mills on all kinds of work which they
can do, and are preferred because they are more steady. Nearly all my
mill girls are daughters of farmers in the neighborhood, and have had a
fair common school education. Several of my weavers take newspapers or
other periodicals, and carry them into the mill to read, when they can
do so without interfering with their work. Some take sewing or knitting.
Board $1.75 for women; $2.25 for men. If we did not keep comfortable
boarding houses, our help would find employment in other places. Any
smart, good girls, who want work, need have no hesitation in coming to
Rhode Island to look for work in mills."
=190. Woollen Shawls.= The secretary of the Waterloo Woollen Shawl
Company writes: "Women are employed by us in weaving, carding, &c. The
work is not unhealthy. It is paid for mostly by the piece, and hands
earn from $2.50 to $3 per week. Most of them earn as much as males; and
some, more. They are employed twelve hours. Skill, industry, and good
character are necessary. The prospect of future employment is good.
There is no difference in the seasons for work. In weaving there is no
surplus. We employ two hundred and fifty women, because they do better
work than men. We employ but very few young girls, and they generally
work at home under the eyes of parents, and attend school at least four
months in the year."
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