The Link
White Slavery in Despicable Factory
By Chief Reporter Mr J. Cameron
Female factory workers are being mistreated through poor work conditions at Bryant and May Match Stick Factory in Bow, London.
An investigative report has found out that the world famous ‘Bryant and May’ matchstick factory has been abusing its female staff by forcing them to work inhumanely long hours. The factory’s staff, who are mostly women, are forced to work shifts of up to 12 hours a day, 6 days a week. To make matters worse, the pay does not reflect the amount of effort put in as they take home less than a pound a week.
Sadly, these hard-done-by female workers have little choice in the matter as the factory is usually a last resort for many. As the staff do not have references from previous jobs, they can only be employed by the factory, whose long hours and frightful conditions would put off most people from applying, were they not so desperate for money.
The long hours are made worse still as employees are not even allowed to talk during work hours, only being able to converse during their lunch breaks. Anyone caught having conversations by the unsympathetic foremen is automatically fined (usually by as much as threepence). Spirits are broken further as the ladies have to stand for those long hours.
Working in such depressing conditions also has health risks as staff live in constant fear of the horror of ‘Phossy Jaw’. To create the part of the
matchstick that ignites, the ladies have to dip their sticks into a horrendous chemical known as phosphorous. When breathed in over long periods of time, it accumulates in the teeth and gums, rotting away jaws and painfully swelling the gums. The only known cure is to have part of the infected jaw removed by a dentist. This is often too expensive for the underpaid staff and the end result is death.
We interviewed one worker (Maggie Johnson) about conditions and she had this to say:
“It’s horrendous. The girls work terrible hours and I saw one girl die in my first year working here. The foreman doesn’t care a jot for the girls. We need to stick together.”
We tried to get an interview with the foreman (Mr Watkins) but he declined to comment.
The future looks grim for these girls as they have little choice in where they work. Until changes to work conditions are introduced nothing will change for them.