(De Toqueville, Alexis. Oeuvres Completes. 1835) Wages determined the living standards of Lancashire cotton workers. From the middle of the nineteenth century the wages of cotton factory workers increased and they were regarded as one of the better paid industrial occupations. The majority of factory workers were paid on piece rates, so that their wages were determined by how much yarn was spun or cloth woven, with the result that the take home pay of individual workers varied. There were also important differences between and within the different sectors of the industry. Strippers and grinders were among the highest paid operatives in the carding sector. In spinning the spinner was the highest paid operative. He was responsible for paying other members of his team (the big piecer and the little piecer). Wages also depended on the type of spinning done. Bolton spinners who produced fine yarns were better paid than those who produced the coarser yarns in towns such as Oldham. In the weaving sector the wages received by male and female weavers were the same in theory, an unusual feature for the Victorian period, though in practice male weavers usually received slightly higher wages. Even so this did not stop female weavers from being among the highest paid female industrial workers. Weavers were also vulnerable to a system of fining whereby their wages would be reduced if they produced unsatisfactory cloth. As many members of the same family worked in the mill the overall living standards were determined by the family wage rather than that of the adult male wage earner. Many mill workers were paid via the 'truck system'. This meant they were paid 'in kind' with meat, groceries and fuel from the millowner's own warehouse where the prices for such goods were way above that in the market place. Mill owners often built a number of small cottages close to their mill and rented them out to their own workers at the 'going rate'. The working day for adults usually began around 5am and finished about 7pm. For children it was slightly shorter (see Child Labour). There was a break of half an hour for breakfast at 8am and an hour for dinner at noon. Many workers did overtime in their breaks to carry out maintenance or cleaning jobs which could not be done while the machinery was in motion. The spinning sheds were usually too hot; the weaving sheds too cold. The air was thick with cotton dust and the noise was deafening. Mill workers suffered from chest complaints, headaches, and stomach ailments (see Health and Diet). John Byng (1740-1813; 5th Viscount Torrington and nephew of Admiral Byng), visited Manchester in 1790 and 'wandered about this great nasty manufacturing town'. He liked the Exchange but found the market to be a bad one. 'Who', he wondered, 'could live in such a hole; where the slave, working and drinking a short life out, is eternally realing before you from fatigue or drunkeness' Adam Daber Glynis Greenman View the Mill workers collection to find out more > |
