Grown‐ups, boys and girls in the Ghent cotton industry
The Voortman mills, 1835–1914∗
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 11933847 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Peter Scholliers (0000-0002-8308-2544, Fund for Scientific Research, corresponding author) |
| Year | 1995 |
| Volume | 20 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 201-218 |
| Publication date | 1995-05-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Social History (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0307-1022 • E-ISSN: 1470-1200 |
| Publisher | Routledge (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/03071029508567935 |
| OpenAlex | W2004400534 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 3 |
| References cited | 15 |
In studies of the workforce in modern factories, the production cost advantage of female and child labour is merely mentioned.' Some research considers this labour in connection with the episodic development of technology or the labour market.2 Yet many contemporaries testified to the advantages for the employer of the ever-increasing share of employment for female workers in modern factories, and particularly textile factories, thus suggesting a long-term managerial strategy. For instance, in i845, when investigating work conditions in the Ghent cotton mills, the physicians J. Mareska and J. Heyman noted 'la tendance evidente qui se manifeste partout a remplacer les hommes par les femmes', the reason for this being 'economiser la main d'oeuvre'.3 Up to the First World War, similar observations with regard to the cotton industry were made.4 There was another advantage: the (supposed) high docility and amenability to work discipline of women and young people made employers keen on enlisting female and young workers.5 This paper looks at the changing composition of the workforce of cotton mills and, more particularly, it is concerned with the possibility of applying an employment policy as a variant of cost-saving practice. Various questions can be asked. Did this policy play an important role in the whole managerial strategy of cost saving? When did it emerge? Was it
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Vertical Integration in the British Cotton Industry, 1825–1850
The Development of British Industry and Foreign Competition, 1875-1914
Class and Gender
T. S. Ashton Prize Essay for 1976 Labour, Power, and the Size of Firms in Lancashire Cotton in the Second Quarter of the Nineteenth Century
Family Income of Ghent Working-Class Families Ca. 1900
Invisible Handshakes in Lancashire
Employers and Labour in the English Textile Industries, 1850-1939
| Unique citing works | 3 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,11 |
| Citation span | 1999 - 2017 (19) |
| Citation velocity | historical |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 3 |