HI) THE LIBRARY OF THE NEW YORK STATE SCHOOL OF INDUSTRIAL AND LABOR RELATIONS AT CORNELL UNIVERSITY Cornell University Library The original of tiiis book is in tine Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924002303737 WOMEN'S EDUCATIONAL AND INDUSTRIAL UNION BOSTON DEPARTMENT OF RESEARCH STUDIES IN ECONOMIC RELATIONS OF WOMEN VOLUME III PROPERTY OF LIBRARY MEW Y8RK STATE mm. wrnmihi AND imn relations CORNELL UNIVERSITY Women's Educational and Industrial Union, Boston Department of Research Studies in Economic Relations of Women Volume I. Vocations for the Trained Woman. Opportu- nitieB other than Teaching. Edited by Agnes F. Perkins. Svo., S1.20 net. Postage extra. Volume II. Labor Laws and their Enforcement, with Special Reference to Massachusetts. By Charles E. Persons, Mabel Parton, Mabelle Moses and Three "Fellows." Edited by Susan M. Kingsbury, Ph.D. Svo., S2.00 net. Postage extra. Volume III. The Living Wage of Women Workers. A Study of Incomes and Expenditures of 450 Women in the City of Boston. By Louise Marion Bosworth. Edited with an introduction by F. Spencer Baldwin, Ph.D. Svo.. Sl.OO net. Postage extra. Longmans, Green, and Co. new york, london. bombay. and calcutta THE LIVING WAGE OF WOMEN WORKERS A STUDY OF INCOMES AND EXPENDITURES OF 450 WOMEN IN THE CITY OF BOSTON BY LOUISE MARION BOSWORTH Prepared Under the Direction of the Department of Research WOMEN'S Educational and Industrial Union, Boston EDITED WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY PROFESSOR F. SPENCER BALDWIN, Ph.D. boston university LONGMANS, GREEN, AND CO. FOURTH AVENUE & 30TH STREET, NEW YORK LONDON, BOMBAY AND CALCUTTA 1911 PROPERTY OF LlBRARy Copyright, 1911, by The American Academy of Political and Social Science Philadelphia CONTENTS PREFATORY NOTK PAGE Plan and Scope of the Investigation 1-3 CHAPTER I. Introduction 4-18 Field covered in the investigation, 4 — Need of definite information concerning cost of living of wage-earning women, 4 — Increase in number of women workers, 4 — Cause of this increase, 5 — Existing literature on the subject, 5 — Problems raised by increase of women workers, 6 — Problem of low pay only one dealt with fully thus far, 7 — Causes of low wages, 7 — This volume classified by occupa- tions and wage groups, 8 — Nine to eleven dollars, the minimum living wage, g — Facts revealed by comparison of expenditures, 12 — Difference between expenditures of families and expenditures of wage-earning women, 13 — Summary of significant features of ex- penditures, 14. Table l. Average annual expenditures of women workers, by occupation, 16 — ^Table 2. Average annual expenditures of women workers, by wage groups, 17 — Table 3. Percentages of Expenditures of Normal Families in the United States, 18 — ^Table 4. Percentages of Expenditures of Families in New York City, 18 — Table 5. Percentages of Expenditures of Families in New York City, 18 — Table 6. Percentages of Expenditures of Workingmen's Families in Massachusetts, 18. CHAPTER II. Homes and Lodgings 19-32 Range in conditions of living, 19 — Longing for a home almost universal, 19 — Illustrations from experiences of some girls, 20 — Schemes for co-operative housekeeping, 21 — ^The woman in lodgings, 22 — ^Dangers to unprotected girls, 23 — Conditions in different quar- ters of the city, 23 — ^The South End, 24 — The West End, 26 — Conditions in the suburbs, 27 — Comparisons of house privileges in city and in suburbs, 27 — The Working Girls' Homes, 29— Problem of housing for single men and women even more important than for family, 30 — Girls who live at home, 31 — Comparisons of experi- ences of girls living at home and in lodgings, 31. m iv Contents ! CHAPTER III. PAGE Nominal Versus Actual Incomes 33-39 Weekly wages of working girl not indicative of actual yearly income, 33 — ^Various causes of shrinkage of income, 33 — Girl on low wage has heaviest loss, 33 — Distribution of loss by occupa- tions, 33 — Comparison of losses by occupation, 33 — Heaviest loss from unemployment, 34 — How this curtailment of income is met, 35 — Compensations provided by the work itself, 35 — Additions to income tend to be complementary to losses, 35 — Disproportion of losses shows that efficiency is more highly rewarded than is indicated by difference in nominal wages, 36 — Nominal rate of wage from 4 per cent to 14 per cent above actual income, 36. Table I. Modifi- cation of incomes by losses and gains, by occupation, 37 — ^Table 2. Modification of incomes by losses and gains, by wage groups, 37 — Table 3. Sources of losses, by occupation, 38 — Table 4. Sources of gains, by occupation, 39 — Table S- Sources of gains, by wage groups, 39. CHAPTER IV. Food 40-48 Food problem most serious for woman on small wages, 40 — Oppor- tunities for board, 40 — Conditions in dining rooms of the "homes," 40 — The basement dining rooms, 42 — Cheapest method is for girl to cook her own food, 43 — Work as a waitress considered a solu- tion of problem for woman on low wage, 44 — Standard of living in respect to food according to occupation, 45 — Classification of food expenditure by wage groups, 45 — Tendency of lowest paid workers to seek positions including board, 46 — Table I. Average annual expenditures for food, by occupation, 47 — Table 2. Average annual expenditures for food, by wage groups, 47 — Table 3. Number of meals received as wages, and number doing own cooking, by occu- pation, 47 — ^Table 4. Number of meals received as wages, and number doing own cooking, by wage groups, 48. CHAPTER V. Rent 49-64 Proportion of income spent for rent according to occupations, 49 Factory girls and waitresses spend very little, 50 — Effect of working conditions on standards, 50 — Amount spent for rent rises as income increases, 51 — Forms of economy in rent, 52 — Roommates, S2 — Windows, 53— Lighting, 54— Heat, 54— House privileges, 55— Parlor, Contents v PAGE SS — Laundry, 55 — Advantages resulting from ability to pay higher rent are privacy, heat, and sunshine, 56 — ^Advantages of living at home, 57 — Table i. Average annual expenditures for rent, by occu- pation, 59 — Table 2. Average annual expenditures for rent, by wage groups, 59 — Table 3. Extent of suburban residence, by occupation, 59 — ^Table 4. Extent of suburban residence, by wage groups, 60 — Table 5. Number of roommates, by occupation, 60 — Table 6. Number of roommates, by wage groups, 61 — Table 7. Size of room and exterior light, by occupation, 61 — Table 8. Size of room and exterior light, by wage groups, 62 — Table 9. Artificial light and heat, by occupation, 62 — Table 10. Artificial light and heat, by wage groups, 63 — Table 11. House privileges, by occupation, 63 — ^Table 12. House privileges, by wage groups, 64 — Table 13. Contributions to support of family by women workers living at home, 64. CHAPTER VI. Clothing 65-75 Results of investigations do not support common opinions regarding working girl's extravagance in dress, 65— Value of good clothes to woman worker, 66 — Installment buying condemned, 67 — Require- ments of dress according to occupations, 67 — Influence of individual taste and economy, 68 — Higher standard required of workers in contact with public, 70 — Problem of laundry, 70 — Theoretical ranking of occupations in respect to expenditure for clothing, 71 — Proportion of income expended, 71 — Other factors which determine clothing expenditure, 72 — Shorter hours, 72 — Working conditions, 72 — ^Average cost by wage groups, 73 — Table i. Average annual expenditures for clothing, by occupation, 74 — Table 2. Average annual expenditures for clothing, by wage groups, 74 — ^Table 3. Home dressmaking and laundry work, by occupation, 75 — Table 4. Cost of clothing and laundry, by wage group's, 75. CHAPTER VII. Health 76-78 Expenditures for health vary according to amount of outlay, and its proportion to income, 76 — Comparison of expenditures by occu- pation, 76 — Comparison of expenditures by wage groups, 77 — Insufficient wages do not permit of necessary medical treatment, 77 — High wages tend to diminish need of such treatment, 77 — Use of free beds in hospitals, 77 — ^Table i. Average annual expenditures for health, by occupation, 78 — Table 2. Average annual expenditures for health, by wage groups, 78. vi Contents CHAPTER VIII. PAGE Savings and Debts 79-84 Difficulty of obtaining information, 79 — General apathy among women toward saving, 79 — Report of Women's Committee on Savings Bank Insurance of Boston, March, 1910, 80 — Comparison of savings by occupation, 81 — Comparison of savings by wage groups, 82 — Form of savings, 82 — Co-operative savings bank, 82 — Stamp savings, 82 — Insurance only permanent form, 82. Table I. Average annual savings and debts, by occupation, 83 — Table 2. Average annual savings and debts, by wage groups, 83 — Table 3. Average annual amount of insurance by wage groups, 84. CHAPTER IX. Miscellaneous Expenditures, Including Recreation and Education. 85-90 Separate classification of expenditures for recreation and education of necessity arbitrary, 85 — Opportunities in Boston, 85 — Comparison by occupation, 85 — Miscellaneous expenditures on others rather than for self, 86 — Comparison of amounts spent for others by wage groups, 87 — Conclusion that average working woman does not squander surplus, but devotes it largely to others, 87. Table i. Average annual expenditures for recreation, education, and other objects, by occupation, 88 — Table 2. Average annual expenditures for recreation, education, and other objects, by wage groups, 89 — Table 3. Average annual expenditures for self and others, by occu- pation, 90 — Table 4. Average annual expenditures for self and others, by wage groups, 90. PREFATORY NOTE PLAN AND SCOPE OF THE INVESTIGATION A tentative beginning of this investigation was made in Septem- ber, 1906, when the Department of Research of the Women's Edu- cational and Industrial Union attempted to gather data concerning the cost of living for working girls dependent on their own resources through inquiries among lodging-house proprietors. The few sched- ules that were filled out by this means were so inadequate, however, that they were found to be useless for the purposes of the present report. In January, 1907, the work of investigation was taken up by Miss Jane Barclay, who had received training in welfare work in a Boston department store. The method followed at this time con- sisted in the distribution of schedules to be filled out by women workers, assisted through personal visits by the investigator. In this way 100 schedules were started. After several months it became clear that authoritative infor- mation as to minor expenses could not be obtained in this fashion. In order to secure such information the Department of Research prepared and printed a classified account book for the use of the women workers dealt with in the investigation. At this point the work was taken up and carried forward to its conclusion by Miss Bosworth, who held a fellowship for the years 1907-1909. Ac- count books were distributed to the 100 women already engaged in filling out schedules. The result was an immediate depletion in their ranks. The interest of others also gradually waned. In fact, most of the women had been interested in the beginning only through the vision of higher wages, and when they found that the investigator could not promise them living wages immediately on the completion of a year's accounts, they decided that the bother of account keeping was not worth while. Thus, one by one, they dropped out. The investigation was then extended along different lines. In various ways the investigator got into touch with working girls — through the medium of clubs, unions, settlements, department stores, and through addresses furnished by societies, institutjons (I) 2 The Living Wage of Women Workers and the state free employment offices. Account books were dis- tributed to the women who were thus reached and were followed up as far as possible. This work with the account books finally yielded a return of 30 books completely and accurately filled out. Information was also gathered from about 470 women through schedules covering the items of expenditure and the conditions of living in detail. These were filled out through personal interviews either by the investigator herself or other members of the Depart- ment of Research. Shorter schedules were sent to workers in factories and stores who could not be reached by a personal interview. Doubt has frequently been expressed as to the possibility of getting accurate statements of expenditure when the figures are given from memory and not taken from books. This criticism is, of course, a fair one. The only way of securing absolutely trustworthy data is by examining account books. Undoubtedly, however, the schedules, when filled out intelligently and honestly, give the main facts and show the main trend of expenditures. In general, the investigator has been surprised by the accuracy and detail with which women, especially those on low wages, are able to recall their earnings and expenditures. In some cases the recollection has been very complete. Indeed, this facility of recollection is, after all, not remarkable. When the investigator begins with general questions concerning current expenses, such as board and room, and then proceeds to details, the latter come to the mind with comparative ease. In this way such details as the time lost by sickness, unemployment, and the like, can be recalled. The same method brings out the itemized expenditures for clothing ; first, such easily remembered items as suits and hats are determined, and minor details are then added in natural order. Doubtless the state- ments of expenditures on some of the schedules are only approxi- mate. Inaccuracies, however, probably occur chiefly under the head- ings of miscellaneous expenditures. On the whole, the figures given undoubtedly show the general proportion of all classes of ex- penditures. The total number of schedules received was roundly 500. The rejection of schedules for incompleteness, inconsistencies and other causes reduced the number of schedules suitable for tabulation to 450. Of the workers represented on the schedules about 200 were Prejatory Note 3 interviewed by Miss Bosworth, and about lOO by another investiga- tor. The remaining schedules were turned in by members of the Department of Research, employers and workers. The investigation was conducted throughout under the direction of Miss Mabel Parton. In the initial phases of the study Miss Bosworth also had the advice of Professor William Z. Ripley, as a part of a research course at Radcliffe College. Upon Miss Par- ton's illness, the present director assumed an advisory relation to Miss Bosworth in her organization of material and interpretation of data. Acknowledgment of kindly assistance is due to the lead- ers of working girls' clubs and to the superintendents of "homes," and especially to the large number of girls who consented to give their experience and interest in order to advance the welfare of fellow-workers. Susan M. Kingsbury, Director of the Department of Research, Women's Educational and Industrial Union. Boston, April 3, 1911. CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION This study of the expenditures of women workers is based on detailed records of the living expenses of 450 wage-earning women in the city of Boston. The material was collected through budget schedules and personal interviews. Although the investigation was thus limited in scope, it is believed that the results are fairly repre- sentative of the living conditions among working women of all ranks in one American city.* The question of the living wage for the woman worker is hardly touched at all in the existing literature of work and wages. There are numerous studies of women's work, but they do not deal with the living wage; there are also various treatises on the latter subject, but they do not discuss it with reference to women workers. The need of definite information on the cost of living for the wage-earning woman is a real one. A few years ago a group of working women, in making a demand upon their employer for higher wages, declared, "We cannot live on what we earn." The employer inquired, "Then what wages can you live on?" No one of the women could answer the question definitely or in any other way than by an estimate of her own individual needs. In general, the employer who wishes to pay a living wage to his wOmen employes cannot tell what the amount should be. The determination of standards of expenditure and remuneration for women is thus a matter not merely of academic interest, but really of practical importance. In recent years there has been a general awakening o.f interest in all questions relating to the industrial employment of women. This has come as a natural result of the great increase in the number of women workers. The proportion of women workers in the employed population of the United States has increased notably in recent decades. In 1880 women workers made up 13.5 per cent, of the total number of bread-winners, 3.2 per cent, of those employed in trade and transportation, and 15.4 per cent, of the employes in manufacturing industries.^ In 1900 the corresponding iSee Prefatory Note. ''See Adams and Sumner, "Labor Problems," p. 41. (4) Introduction 5 percentages were 16.6, lo.i and 16.9. The census figures of 1910 are not yet available, but there can be no doubt that the increase in the number of women workers, as shown by the figures given for previous decades, has gone on at an even greater rate during the last decade. The increase in the field of trade and transportation is particularly striking. This class of occupations includes clerks, stenographers and other branches of employment in which women have largely displaced men. The fact that recent additions to the ranks of women workers have taken place chiefly in this field aggravates the problems centering about the cost of living for wage-earning women, as these are city occupations which involve a higher scale of expenditure in proportion to earnings than the average employment in manufacturing industries. The causes of the recent influx of women into all fields of employment are easily discernible. The main cause is not, as is often assumed, the desire to earn "pin money." A recent investi- gator declares that the girls working for pin money are negligible factors. "The women were working from economic compulsion." That is unquestionably the principal motive of the economic activity of women. It is supplemented in some cases by higher and finer motives of personal ambition, or the determination to make an independent career, to realize the possibilities of personal develop- ment and social service, which in the past have been reserved largely for men. The pressure of economic necessity, it should be noted, has been increased greatly in recent years by the advance in the cost of living, which has forced women into the trades to supplement inadequate family incomes. The growing interest in problems of women's work and wages has produced a large output of literature in this field within the last year or two. Miss Elizabeth B. Butler's volume on "Women in the Trades" in the Pittsburgh Survey Series of the Russell Sage Foundation, 1909, is an intensive local study of the working women of the steel metropolis. Miss Edith Abbott's "Women in Industry," 1910, is a comprehensive historical review of the expansion of woman's sphere of industrial activity. Miss Annie M. MacLean's "Wage-Earning Women," 1910, is an extensive national survey of the present conditions of women workers based on material gathered under the direction of a committee of the Young Women's Chris- tian Association. Mr. William Hard's and Mrs. Rheta Child Dorr's 6 The Living Wage of Women Workers articles on "The Woman's Invasion" in Everybody's Magazine, 1908-1909, are popular and picturesque in style, but discriminating and illuminating in treatment. None of the previous studies dealt with the cost of living for working women. The Report on Con- ditions of Women and Child Wage-Earners in the United States issued by the Bureau of Labor under a Resolve of 1907, authorizing an investigation in this field, will, when completed, present a mass of information relating to the subject. Thus far two volumes have been issued, dealing with the "Cotton Textile Industry" and "Men's Ready-made Clothing." If one may judge by the plan and scope of these volumes, the report will contain very little matter bearing directly upon problems of expenditure and the living wage. The National Consumers' League, however, has collected information covering the earnings and expenditures of self-supporting women in New York City. This material has been worked up in articles on "Working Girls' Budgets," by Mrs. Sue Ainslie Clark and Miss Edith Wyatt, published in McClure's Magazine, 1910. These articles present the material according to the case method ; that is, they are made up of a series of stories of the experiences of individual workers. Thus no systematic study has yet been made of the ques- tions of expenditure and the living wage for working women. In general, there is a lack of definiteness and conclusiveness about the work of investigators and writers who have dealt with the subject of women's work and wages. A mass of material is laid before the reader, but it is not interpreted and illuminated by the author. There is a failure to define clearly at the outset the objects of inquiry and the questions at issue, to direct the investigation con- sistently toward these ends and to focus the final results in such a way as to throw light on the problems in this field. The existing literature of the subject in general makes interesting reading, but does not afford satisfactory answers to the many questions that arise in the reader's mind. Thus most of the investigation concerning women's employment thus far appears to be rather aimless, point- less and useless. The problems raised by the increasing participation of women in gain-bringing pursuits are many and various. In general, what is the efifect of industrial employment on the status of woman, mar- riage and family ? That is to say, is the new role degrading woman, antagonizing marriage, and disintegrating family life, or is its infiu- Introduction 7 ence in these directions elevating? Again, is the competition of women workers a menace to male workers? On the side of earn- ings, the chief problem in this field relates to the causes of the low pay of women and the possibility of applying remedies. On the side of spending, the main question concerns the amount of expendi- ture that may be regarded as constituting a living wage. What is the minimum amount necessary to decent and comfortable existence for the woman worker? How is the income distributed among the several objects of expenditure — food, rent, clothing, etc.? How does the distribution of expenditures for the woman wage-earner compare in detail with the distribution of individual or family expenditures in general, as shown by investigations in this field? How do expenditures vary according to occupation? How accord- ing to earnings? What special problems of expenditure suggest themselves in the light of a study of working women's budgets ? The investigations thus far made with reference to the employ- ment of women throw a good deal of light on the problem of low pay, but almost no light at all on the question of the living wage. The causes of the low rate of earnings for women are fairly well understood and progress toward the improvement of conditions in this respect has already been made. The primary cause of the low pay of women is undoubtedly comparative inefficiency, due to vari- ous reasons. The physical limitations of woman make her a less efficient worker than man in certain occupations. Her lack of trained skill is also a handicap. In this connection, the fact that many women take up industrial employment as a temporary make- shift rather than as a life career is important. Women workers in this position are not likely to make any great effort to master thor- oughly the requirements of their occupations and thus to fit them- selves to earn higher wages. Moreover, not only is woman actually less efficient as compared with man in some branches of employ- ment, but she is often regarded as his inferior in general. The traditional notion of woman's inferiority stands in the way of the advance of her wages to the level of men's. It leads employers to pay women workers less than men, even when their labor may actually be of equal value. Lack of organization, furthermore, is a potent influence in keeping the rate of women's pay unduly low. Women workers have not in the past combined to protect their 8 The Living Wage of Women Workers interests, and modern political economy recognizes the truth that if the worker does not seek his interest alertly and persistently his interest will not seek him. The fact that woman's relation to her work is often parasitical is another factor in the situation. The wages of many women workers are not their only means of support, but are merely supplementary to income derived from other sources. Thus, part of the supply of female labor is of the nature of a by- product, and is correspondingly cheap. Finally, the sheer inertia of custom stands in the way of the advance of women's wages. The employer does not pay full wages to women because it is not the general practice to do so. The established custom of paying women low wages is thus in itself a barrier to reform. As the causes of low wages have come to be understood reme- dies have been applied. Facilities for the industrial training of women workers have been provided. Additional safeguards have been thrown about women's employment by the improvement of the labor code and the education of public opinion, and women workers have been organized in trade unions in some branches of employ- ment. Of course, much still remains to be done toward the better- ment of working conditions for women, but a substantial beginning has been made in this field. On the other hand, in the field of expenditures, hardly a begin- ning has yet been made. The problems relating to expenditures and the living wage remain unsolved. Indeed, the facts requisite for intelligent consideration of these problems have not yet been col- lected. The study of the cost of living of a considerable number of Boston working women presented in this volume makes no pre- tense of offering final answers and solutions of the problems in this field. It does, however, represent a serious attempt to collect and interpret a body of material that may give help toward such solution. In tabulating and presenting the returns the investigator has adopted a two-fold classification, namely : according to occupations and according to earnings.^ The incomes and expenditures of each class and group have been averaged; thus the figures given in the tables are in all cases averages. The classification of occupations contains six divisions, namely: professional women, clerical work- >Tlie editor of this volume had no part in determining the methods or directing the course of the Investigation. His task began only when the final results wers submitted In manuscript form. Introduction 9 ers, saleswomen, factory employes, waitresses and kitchen workers.^ The wage groups are five in number, namely: (i) $3 to $5 per week; (2) $6 to $8 per week; (3) $9 to $11 per week; (4) $12 to $14 per week; (5) $15 and over per week. As not all of the 450 schedules which were recetVed-contained entries under all headings ofi inquiry the number of cases repre- sented in the different tables varies somewhat. The number of schedules giving returns for clothing, which was about the average number in the different divisions of the investigation, was 399, dis- tributed as follows: Occupations. Wage Groups. Professional 37 (i) 51 Clerical 143 (2) 185 Sales 49 (3) 102 Factory 88 (4) 36 Waitresses 64 (s) 25 Kitchen 18 Total 399 Total 399 The general summaries on pages 16 and 17 bring together the chief results of the study of expenditures. The expenditures of the $9 to $11 wage group may be taken as representing the minimum living wage. This class stands mid- way in the wage scale and represents roughly the average of all women workers covered by the investigation. It appears, moreover, that the average inconje and the average expenditures of this class approximately balance each other, whereas in the two classes stand- ing lower in the scale there is a deficit of income below expendi- tures, and in the two classes standing higher in the scale a surplus of income over expenditures according to the tabulated returns. This fact indicates that the income first becomes adequate to meet expen- ditures when this wage group is reached. There are also other indications that the expenditures of this class represent a fair minimum standard of decency and comfort. In the case of food expenditures, in the second wage group as com- iBmployees In dressmaking and tailoring establishments are Included in the group of factory workers. For a fuller discussion of income and expenditures of professional women see Susan M. Kingshury, Report of a Committee on Economic Efficiency of College Women. Association of Collegiate Alumnae Magazine, February, 1910. lo The Living Wage of Women Workers pared with the first there is a large increase in the amount, but a fall in the percentage. The percentage is still unduly high, how- ever, being over 46. The difference between the second group and the third group, or the middle class, is much less marked ; the amount increases only slightly and the percentage drops to about 35. As the investigator remarks: "It appears that the increase of income up to $8 is used to provide a better dietary. The slighter increase both in regular board and extra food in the next higher division would seem to indicate that the most pressing needs in these direc- tions are met at about a $9 wage." The figures of expenditure for rent show a similar tendency. There is a large increase in the amount in the second group as compared with the first, while the percentage remains practically the same. The latter is still unduly high, slightly above 20 per cent. In the third group, however, the" amount is only slightly larger than in the second and the percent- age drops to about 15. This indicates, as the investigator points out, that with the $9 to $12 wage the essential decencies and com- forts of living conditions have been achieved. The expenditures for clothing are not so clear in their indi- cations with respect to the position of the third group, as are the expenditures for food and rent. In the case of both the latter, there is a sharp increase in the amount from the first to the second group, while the percentage remains about the same, or falls slightly ; then there is a small advance in the amount from the second to the third group, while the percentage declines notably. In the case of cloth- ing, however, the amount increases more from the second to the third group than from the first to the second group, while the per- centage in the third group is not appreciably lower than in the sec- ond. In this case the fourth group shows conditions more analo- gous to those of the third group in the case of food and rent. That is to say, there is a marked increase in the amount up to this point and a small increase thereafter, with a pronounced fall of the per- centage. On the whole, however, as the average amount of the expenditure for clothing by the third group comes closest to the general average of approximately $1.50 per week, it seems reas- onable to take the expenditure of this class as representing the living wage standard. The expenditure for health increases greatly in amount until the third group is reached ; then it remains practically stationary in the Introduction 1 1 fourth group. The percentage at the same time declines only slightly from the first to the second group, but very noticeably from the second to the third group, and thereafter falls sharply. It appears, also, that the amount hardly increases at all for the fourth group, and decreases finally for the fifth. The figures indicate that the need of medical treatment is met more adequately as the wage level of the third group is reached. The expenditure of this group appears to represent the standard required for maintenance of health and efficiency. The figures for savings also point to the third group as repre- senting the living wage standard. The amount of savings first becomes an appreciable factor in the third group, where it exceeds $30 per year. In the first two groups the savings amount only to a few dollars annually. The amount increases greatly in the fourth and fifth groups. It thus appears that the earnings for the third group first afford some margin for savings. The statistics for miscellaneous expenditures need not be con- sidered in determining the question under consideration. The figures in the table are somewhat uncertain on account of difficulties in classification mentioned in the text. They do not warrant any conclusions concerning the relation of expenditures to the wage scale. An examination of the movement of expenditures with increas- ing incomes clearly indicates the third group as representing the living wage. The expenditures of the third group are as follows : Annual Expenditures Representing Living Wage. Food $169.70 Rent 7481 Clothing 88.99 Health 22.09 Savings 31-63 Miscellaneous 117.06 Total $504-28 It appears accordingly that annual earnings of approximately $500 a year, or $10 a week, may be taken as the amount of a living wage for women workers in Boston. The investigation shows clearly 12 The Living Wage of Women Workers that on the whole it is not possible for a self-dependent woman to live on less than this amount in decent comfort with any margin for saving. It is interesting to trace through the table of average annual expenditures by wage groups the effect of increase of earnings upon expenditures in general and upon the several items of expenditure in particular. In the case of food, rent and clothing the amounts expended all increase, while the percentages of income represented by the amounts all decrease. There is absolutely no exception to this rule. The amount expended for health increases up to the highest wage group, when it declines, the percentage meanwhile falling steadily. The amount of saving is slightly less in the second than in the first group, but thereafter it increases notably, while the percentage also increases. The figures for miscellaneous ex- penditures show no regular tendency, although the percentage for the fifth group is considerably lower than that for the first. The movement of the expenditures of working women, as shown by this table, does not conform in general to the well-known law of the growth of expenditures formulated by Dr. Ernst Engel, former Chief of the Royal Bureau of Statistics of Prussia. This law embodies four propositions, as follows : ( i ) The percentage of expenditure for food diminishes as the size of the income increases ; (2) the percentage for clothing is approximately the same what- ever the income; (3) the percentages for rent and for fuel and light are invariably the same whatever the income; (4) the per- centage for sundries becomes larger as the income increases. The first proposition alone holds true of working women's ex- penditures as determined in this investigation. Other tendencies here appear to be directly opposed to the propositions of Engel's law. The percentages for clothing and rent decline greatly as the income becomes larger, and the expenditure for sundries shows a slightly downward tendency. Comparison of the expenditures of women workers with those of family units, as shown in other investigations, reveals some significant facts. The tables on page 18 afford a basis for such comparison.^ 'For a general discussion of family expenditures, see "The Standard of Living" fcy Frank Hatch StrelghtofC, 1911. Introduction 13 Comparison of the percentages in these tables discloses a gen- eral similarity as regards the chief items of expenditure. All the tables show a considerable increase in the case of clothing and sun- dries. The expendityre for rent does not change appreciably in the first table, but falls in the others. In the case of the first two tables the expenditure for food decreases notably as the income increases. When the percentages of family expenditures are compared with the percentages of working women's expenditures some note- worthy differences appear. The percentage of expenditure for food is much higher for the low-wage groups of women workers than it is for the small-income classes of families. The same is true of the expenditures for rent. The higher rates of expenditure for food and rent among women workers are doubtless to be explained by the fact that it is more difficult and expensive for a single woman to provide for herself table board and lodging accommoda- tions than it is for a single man or for a family. The problem of board and lodging is a much more serious one for self-dependent women than for working men and families. Another striking feature of the expenditures of women workers, as contrasted with family budgets, is the extremely high percentage for clothing. This phenomenon again is readily understood. Women workers are obliged to spend proportionately more for clothes than men or families. The wardrobe is necessarily a large item in the working girl's budget. When the changes in percentages of expenditures with advanc- ing incomes are compared two differences stand out conspicuously. In the first place, the fall in the case of both food and rent is much greater for women workers than for families. As the necessary outlay for food and rent is a much heavier drain on the small incomes in the case of women workers than in the case of families, so the reduction of the percentages of expenditure for these pur- poses as earnings increase is more marked for women workers. In the second place, the percentages for clothing and sundries decrease in the case of women workers, while they increase for families. Here, again, the difference is doubtless due to the fact that the cost of clothing is of necessity disproportionately high for the woman on low wages. On the other hand, the well-paid women of the pro- fessional class represented in the highest wage group are, as a rule, economical and resourceful in the matters of clothing and sundries 14 The Living Wage of Women Workers This study has revealed many significant features of methods of expenditure which cannot be touched upon in this introductory survey. In the iield of food expenditure interesting details relate to the efforts made by the women of low wages to cope with this difficult problem. The devices consist mainly in the practice of cooking at home, and the tendency to take work that provides meals in part payment for services. The extent to which these practices prevail is shown by the tables and analyses in the chapter on food. The problem of rent is also a most difficult one for the low-paid working woman. The economies practiced in this field consist in taking roommates in order to reduce rent and in sacrificing the somewhat expensive advantages of heat and sunlight in the living quarters. With reference to clothing, the investigator shows clearly the commercial necessity of dressing well as a means of securing and retaining employment. The standard of expenditure here is found to be necessarily variable. The requirements of occupation in re- spect to dress vary widely for the different classes, and the reaction against the monotony of employment, which naturally encourages extravagance in dress and amusement, is far greater in some cases than in others. The cost of clothing depends to a great extent on individual taste and ingenuity. Economy is sought in this field through home sewing and bargain hunts. Installment buying also comes into play as a method of procuring a season's outfit at one time. This practice is generally disliked and condemned, but it is followed largely as a matter of necessity. The statistics of expenditure for health bring out the tendency of such expenditure to increase in amount as the income becomes larger. It thus appears that the conservation of health must be neglected largely by the low-paid women workers. In the chapter on Savings and Debts the fact is brought out that the amount of saving is practically nil in the low-wage groups, and that really permanent saving hardly begins to an appreciable extent before the highest group. It appears further that the only form of permanent saving is insurance. Savings that are made in other ways are usually drawn upon freely to meet special demands or emergencies. An impressive detail in the field of miscellaneous expenditures is the large amount of benevolence shown by working women. Indeed, it appears that in the fourth and fifth wage groups, with earnings Introduction 15 above the average level, the amount spent for others under the head of miscellaneous expenditures is considerably larger than the amount spent for self. The statistical picture of the condition of the women workers in one large city presented in this volume, incomplete as it may be in many respects, is, on the whole, a valuable contribution to practical sociology. It is to be hoped that one effect of this inves- tigation may be to stimulate similar studies in other cities. There are many questions of importance relating to the living conditions of working women to which answers can be furnished only by such detailed study of facts. In particular, an investigation that would show the proportion of women workers receiving less than a living wage and the conditions in this submerged group would have the greatest value. F. Spencer Baldwin, Professor of Economics, Boston University. i6 The Living Wage of Women Workers Eh o H •a a « M i> pq " ■B ■43 » Aoj^S ? =■ 1 ° g-.S 5 S o CO Sur- plus of income over expen- diture. F| o o o o O otal ver- eex- ndi- irre. s 3 cq OS so i-i eo c- r-- 1 .o eo ">a< T-< '^ CO eq C^ U3 ro •^unoray S SS i '-SS r^ sj^ ° s t^ t- OQ OS & *.s ■* g S S g B •fjunouiy OO OO 1- ^ w w o> cc t- -^ C^ ■* CQ ca tH ■B 1 P3 N U3 «3 CO ea OQ 3! g § « s •ijanomv U C CO •%Ta\auiy C4 ^ «» tg >n CO U3 to s m 2 £2 "* ■* S! CO '!).uiionry o eq OS tn CO i» SS S S S G ^ 8 s s s sg & ^ 00 c CD U3 C4 ■!^unomv g s: s ^ s S «» w tL 0} ^ S a □ ^ s ? So 3 o CO ^ll s CO » ss ^ s d i o M 1 P. 1 i 3 o O 1 1 1 3 s CO 1* 1 1 a isl - ° o a ® ^' tH '^ "3 §1 o I .a sill I .a g| § g:^ >> L. 09 (fi O C— tH a OS - ■sS-Si,aoS af^aP^ 5S 5 P< o J -. to Introduction 17 I L, i^ ^ i sj a ©■3 .3 O m M o IS o M a M K M >j ■See Table 1, p. 37. 2 In reckoning wages of waitresses, board is figured at $3 per week for three meals per day, $2.10 per week for two meals, and $1.20 for one meal per day, according to the estimate made by the lunch rooms of the Women's Educational and Industrial Union in reckoning salaries for employes' benefit. Room is figured at $3 per week If Included in wages all the year round. If a regular rent is paid during part of the year, the room, when supplied as part of the wages, is figured at the same rate. ■ See Tables 1, 2 and 3. pp. 37, 38. (.33) 34 The Living Wage of Women Workers due in part to the long periods of short hours and lay-offs on account of slack trade. Among sales girls the 4.50 per cent, loss through ill- ness is a large factor in the high rate. But the greatest source of loss for all classes is unemployment. The factory girls pay the high- est penalty here, having an out-of-work loss of 7.14 per cent., fol- lowed closely by the waitresses, with 6.89 per cent. The latter probably increase their out-of-work time considerably by changing places between seasons, working summers at the beach and winters in the cities. Sales girls have 6.66 per cent, loss from out-of- work; clerical workers, 5.75 per cent; kitchen, 5.43 per cent; professional, 3.85 per cent. The losses of the professional woman are comparatively small. The 3.85 per cent, loss from unemployment is the chief one. There is a 2.70 per cent, loss through vacations, which are usually volun- tary, and are taken in addition to her regular vacation 'A one week, two weeks or one month. The percentage for illness is only 1. 41 per cent., and the reductions on account of lay-offs and holi- days are less than i per cent. each. The clerical worker also has no very considerable loss beyond that of unemployment. She is almost always paid for holidays and vacations, and even "days off" ; she is seldom docked for illness or fined for tardiness, and hardly knows what "laid off" means. The sales girl, on the contrary, loses almost as much because of illness as for no work, but a very small amount through fines. Waitresses pay more for trade ex- penses than any other class of workers. Factory workers, on the other hand, lose 5.73 per cent, through being laid off and 2.57 per cent, by illness. Comparison of the losses by illness shows two facts; first, that the clerical and professional occupations do not commonly de- duct pay for illness ; second, that the occupations having the largest percentage of loss, sales, factory and kitchen employment, require a larger expenditure of physical energy, with probably worse con- ditions of work. The offices where clerical and professional women work are better ventilated than are the big department stores and factories. Then, too, health is influenced by hours of work and the demand of that work upon physical strength. This question will be considered again in the chapter on Health. It appears that the heaviest loss for all occupations comes from no work, that sales girls pay the highest amount for illness. f Nominal Versus Actual Incomes 35 professional workers for vacations, factory employes for holidays and laid-ofi times, waitresses for fines and trade expenses, and that in general the low-wage groups pay a higher proportion back to the firm than the high-wage groups. The manner in which the working girj meets this curtailment of income remains to be considered. Obviously, on wages of $6, or less, something must be done. A girl making ends meet on inadequate wages cannot allow any margin for unforeseen reduc- tions of her small income. Certain compensations, however, are provided by the work itself.^ The factory girl, to offset her loss of almost 13 per cent, from out-of-work and lay-offs, gains almost I per cent, in overtime. This, it can be seen, would hardly con- firm the theory that extra work in rush seasons makes up loss in slack seasons. The waitress, however, more than makes up her total loss of 10.74 P^r cent, by tips alone, which amount, on the average, to 11.74 per cent, of her entire income. In many cases, where the hours of work and physical health permit, a secondary occupation adds a small amount. But the chief means of addi- tional revenue for all occupations are those included under the heading "other sources." In most cases this means help from home, relatives or friends, or drawing upon the savings of previous years, sometimes care during an illness or gifts of clothing, and in many cases charity from various sources. One or two girls have incomes from a small property. As a whole, these additions to income tend to be complementary to the scale of losses. The largest percentage of gains comes to the group earning $9 to $11 per week, while the two lower groups have an almost equal percentage. The more highly paid women, with small losses, have also a small percentage of gains. It be- comes clear, then, that it is real necessity which makes outside help important, and not extravagance. Women on comfortable wages are not forced to work overtime and at outside work, nor to receive partial support from outside sources, as are those on smaller wages. The losses of women earning $15 and over are less than one-third, in proportion, than those of girls earning but $3, $4 or $5. The income from gains does not equal these losses, which are unforeseen and incalculable, so that all effort at supplementing > See Tables 4 and 5, p. 39. 36 The Living Wage of Women Workers incomes by extra work and charity does not even keep the income up to its nominal level. The fact that low wages are really much lower even than they appear to be, by reason of disproportionately great losses, means that efficiency is more highly rewarded than is indicated by the difference in nominal wages. In addition to good pay, the worker of the high-wage groups is further rewarded by practical immunity from loss. To what extent the unforseen shrinkage of income is unfair to the poorly paid worker depends on her expectation of loss. A girl who would refuse an actual wage of $4.25, may un- wittingly accept a nominal wage of $5, although the real earnings, after reduction of losses, rnay be no more than the former amount. It is the element of potential deception that makes the reductions seem unfair. In some cases a firm expects and counts on a cut in its pay-roll by means of what are often unavoidable fines, en- forced absences, holidays and vacations, so that in offering a wage of $5 per week they have no intention of paying that full amount. Scarcely less unfair. is the enforced lack of vacation and holidays. When the worker is not only docked for any recuperative period, but is actually debarred from taking such time at her own expense/ it means that the firm is not offering her reasonable and possible terms of employment. It becomes a temporary job to last only so long as the human machine can stand the strain. In such cases doctors' bills should rightly be considered one of the various forms of pay-docking, since the firm profits by its demands on strength at the worker's expense. Any consideration of the low wages of women, or of minimum wages, must, therefore, recognize that the nominal rate of wage, in whatever occupation, is from 4 to 14 per cent, above the actual income;^ that is, the supplementary income in the trade is very small, averaging, in any case, barely more than 4 per cent., except among waitresses, while the loss from trade causes ranges from 8 td 18 per cent. This results in from about 35 cents to $1.25 reduc- tion each week on a $9 wage, disregarding income from other sources, because it is not determined by the wage. 1 See Tables 3 ana 4, pp. 38, 39. Nominal Versus Actual Incomes 37 TABLE I. — Modification ov Incomes by Losses and Gains, BY Occupation. Aver- . age income. Average loss. Average gain. Average actual income. Average net loss or gain. Occupation. < Per- cent- age of income. d < Per- cent- age of income. j Per- cent- age of income. Amount. Per- cent age of income. Professional Clerical $682.33 516.98 382.92 406.99 344.71 374.83 $60.22 42.67 49.97 75.01 37.02 33.63 8.83 8.25 13.05 18.43 10.74 8.97 $73.30 25.28 24.39 50.39 56.73 1.10 10.74 4.89 6.37 12.38 16.46 .29 $695.41 499.59 357.34 382.37 364.42 342.30 101.91 96.64 93.32 93.95 105.72 91.32 +$13.08 — 17.39 — 25.58 — 24.62 + 19.71 — 32.63 + 1.91 —3.36 Sales —6.68 —6.05 Waitresses Kitchen workers.. . +5.72 -8.68 TABLE 2. — Modification of Incomes by Losses and Gains, BY Wage Groups. Average income. Average loss. Average gain. Average actual income. Average net loss or gain. Wage. Amount. Per- cent- age of income. Amount. Per- cent- age of m- come. Amount. Per- cent- age of income. Amount. Percent- age of income . S3. 00 4.00^ . S.ooj 6.00 7.00^ . 8.00) 9.00) 10.00^ . 11.00) 12.00 13.00^ . 14.00 15.00 and > . over ) S250.31 367.65 515.10 664.51 903.65 S39.13 47.31 66.39 56.47 46.63 15.63 12.87 12.89 8.50 5.16 S20.18 29.81 44.83 21.24 28.29 8.06 8.38 8.70 3.20 3.13 S231.36 350.15 493.54 629.28 885.31 92.43 95.24 95.81 94.70 97.97 -S18.95 - 17.50 - 21.56 - 35.23 - 18.34 -7.57 -4.76 -4.19 -5.30 -2.03 38 The Living Wage of Women Workers o O >• n o o •sroooui JO ??! J5i ^ SS s s; ^ro aSB^naojej c» nfi eo 00 O 00 j^^ "3 . CO ^ 6 S ■araoonT jo s3B:i.uaoj9j T-1 Sg H is •auiooui JO s i Ss? a3^1uaoj9 s g s a a 33'B:).TIdOJ3(2 O kfl o 1-1 CO •axuooni eSisioAy tH ^ s m cS a ^ So «» a : i .2 : rM Is "d O t£ c. T ? "t C4 C t? iS & -fl Nominal Versus Actual Incomes 39 ^- , 'S'K dJ 11 1^1 CO 00 g s N d o o o O ■o n ^ 1 i ■* lO O m » EQ i s g o 8 s o O ^^.s -" xn g < b 3 s o « "* s s o o w •. •§-§ CS ^ S3 IV s? ^ < 11 (S -2 '"' ^ n cq" 2 < ■5 1 4 o s eo CO o" hi P9o o ^ IC S S c o m o 1 &^.B " C4 C4 O ^ h S ^ 00 C4 ui "|J p 00 1 -S a s 03 s lO < w l~l m CQ o ^ ■g ■5 1 ^ ^ I> IC o g s 1- ■ ... 14.00 J 15.00 "j and !- ... over J I I 2 12 3 7 12 8 S 64 30 4 13 10 I 2 10 80 42 3 2 CHAPTER V Rent Between one-fifth and one-ninth of the working woman's income is spent for shelter. It appears that professional women, clerical employes, sales girls and kitchen workers pay in actual amount approximately the same rent, between $1.50 and $1.60 per week, while factory girls and waitresses pay a little over $1 per week.^ One would naturally expect that the comparatively high standard of living of professional women would place them at the top of the list in regard to the amount paid for rent. Qerical employes, too, approach this standard, partly because they must come from fairly prosperous circumstances, in order to afford the expense of special business training, partly because they are usually surrounded by industrial conditions that make for high standards. But the higher pay of the professional woman gives her the lowest percentage of income spent for rent, 11.55 P^'^ cent., while the clerical worker pays a very large proportion for rent, 16.56 per cent. It will be noted that the relative position of the professional woman in respect to rent expenditure is about the same as it is in reference to food outlay. The presence of kitchen workers in the class paying the higher rents seems strange. The explanation is found in the fact that most kitchen workers are not young girls; they are usually middle-aged women, and a large percentage of them have others dependent on them. When it has been possible to do so, the investigator has reckoned the share of the rent that should be charged to the persons living with the worker, and, if the latter pays it all, has entered the amount of the formers' share under "support of others." In many cases, however, this was impossible. The large number of such cases in this group is doubtless responsible for the appearance of kitchen workers among the higher rent payers. It would seem also that sales girls do not properly belong in this group, from the point of view either of education or of income, Evidently their personal standards are influenced by the attractive goods which they often deal in, for their percentage of expenditure 'See Table 1, p. 59. (49) 50 The Living Wage of Women Workers for rent is extremely high, 22.3 per cent., or almost one-fourth of their income. Factory girls and waitresses spend for rent about the same amount, a little over $1 a week, and about the same proportion of income, 15 per cent. This is natural. In these two occupations the amount of education is likely to be practically .equal. Girls with no special knowledge of any kind of work probably enter these occu- pations, as they afford openings for uneducated, untrained workers. This might be said of sales girls as well, but in stores, especially in the large department stores, the girls come in contact with the beautiful. Everything is kept up to a high standard, from the scrub- bing of the floors to the care of stock and personal appearance. Constant contact with light and color would naturally tend to create a distaste for dirty and stuffy lodgings. Factory girls, on the other hand, see the seamy side of things. The conditions that surround the workers in many factories, despite the sanitary laws, are sug- gestive of the sordid. The investigator occasionally visited girls in their noon. hours at factories of various sorts and found conditions generally depressing. In one factory of a well-known hat company the women stitch all day in a gloomy room with bare and dirty brick walls, the floor cluttered with crumbs, crusts and dirty cups from the brief lunch on the work tables. They work ten hours a day, only stopping long enough to heat some cold tea at noon. Every minute during the day counts toward the few weekly dollars ; the investigator felt guilty in taking their attention even for a moment. In a box factory the girls take off their street suits and put on old skirts and waists matted with glue and dirt, in which they spend ten hours a day "scoring," cutting and snipping, wetting great sheets of paper with paste by laying them on a board thinly spread and lifting the heavy finished boxes back and forth, or deftly covering little ones and throwing them rapidly into a basket, at a few cents a day. In an overall factory the light is so poor, and soot-caked windows make it so dim, that some of the women who work there say that they cannot stand the eye-strain and will have to seek work elsewhere. In one shoe factory town many complaints are heard about the ventilation; in winter the windows are kept closed until the girls' shirt waists are wet with perspiration. Then at 5 they suddenly emerge into the winter air and consequently have perpetual coughs. What kind of Rent 51 life is this to inspire women to cultivate the niceties of home life? Their energy and their patience are exhausted at the end of tfen hours of close application at piece-work, and little is left for ambi- tion to work upon. The investigator spent two weeks as waitress in one of the best hotels in New England, a hotel where conditions of work and of living for the help are, from all that could be learned from the waitresses, far above the average. Convenient devices were every- where in evidence for making the labor of cooking, serving and dish-washing expeditious and smooth-running. The organization was well-planned and well-managed. But the kitchens were not clean, and one of the most frequent and heart- felt remarks heard in the servants' dining-room and kitchen was, "I'm glad I don't have to eat the stuff that's cooked out there. Those poor guests little know what they're eating." These unappetizing conditions have an obvious effect upon the waitresses. Seeing the food manipulated before they take it on their trays frequently causes indifference and sometimes lack of conscience in serving. A certain attitude of irresponsibility toward the food becomes the normal standard, and even girls who seem to be naturally fastidious drop into this atti- tude. On the whole, then, the marked difference between the rent paid by sales girls and by factory girls and waitresses indicates that working conditions do have a tangible effect in elevating or lower- ing the standard of living. The amount spent for rent rises as income increases, while the percentage of income taken by this expenditure falls. In both these respects the cost of rent bears the same relation to income as that of food.^ The amount increases from less than $1 per week for the $3 to $5 wage group to over $2 per week for the $15 and over wage group, but the percentage declines from 21.56 to 13.06. The advance in expenditure for rent, as for food, is especially marked in the case of the second, or $6 to $8 wage group, as compared with the lowest, or $3 to $5 wage group, namely, from less than $1 per week to nearly $1.50 per week. It appears that the first increase in the amount of income goes largely for better lodgings and board. A sharp drop in the percentage of rent expenditure comes with the $9 to $12 wage, indicating that here the essential decencies and com- forts of living conditions have been achieved. •See Table 2, p. 59. 52 The Living Wage of Women Workers The whole story of standards in rent, however, is not told in terms of dollars and cents, as over one-third of the total number live in the suburbs and this tends to make the general average of rent paid among these workers lower than the city average.^ One-quar- ter of the professional women, one-third of the kitchen workers and factory workers and two-thirds of the clerical workers concern- ing whom information was obtained are suburbanites." Roommates are another form of economy in rent. And hall bedrooms, unhealed rooms, rooms without light, all come cheap, and reduce the ratio of rent to income. If a fair priced room is divided among two or more occupants, the cost to the individual imme- diately drops to an amount that would come far short of paying for adequate living conditions by itself. But this is at a cost of privacy and independence which make it doubtful whether a large room shared in this way is any more adequate than a small unheated room held in sole possession.* The tables show that i6 out of 28 profes- sional women report no roommate; 11 report one roommate; i reports two. The clerical division shows only 13 out of 62 report- ing no roommate ; 30 share their room with one ; 19 share with two or more. Sales girls in this respect apparently preserve a much more adequate standard. Thirty-one out of 52 report a room to them- selves; 16 have one roommate; 5 have two or more. Factory girls report 17 out of 57 living in single rooms, 25 sharing with one, 15 with two. The fact that 62 per cent, of the entire number of women are living two or more in a room adequately explains the generally low average of expenditure for rent. The wear and tear on an individual is doubtless very much less when she lives with members of her own family and not with strangers. In a total of 134 cases of girls not living alone in their rooms, 43 live with rela- tives. A living wage can perhaps purchase nothing which is of greater value than the luxury — which should really be considered a necessity — of a room to one's self. Sharing one's room is the easiest, and, as the tables show, the most common way, of reducing rent expenses. By doing so a girl can afford a room that wOuld other- wise be beyond her means, in point of size, warmth, comfortable iSee Tables 3 and 4, pp. 59, 60. 2To the rent of this class should he added car fares when suburban and city rents are compared. •See Tables 5 and 6, pp, 60, 61. Rent 53 furnishing and general good surroundings, both in the house and the quarter of the city in which it is situated. Individual taste varies in no respect more than in these details. Some women are happier in a cold attic room in an attractive part of the city than in an entirely comfortable place where the sights and sounds around them and the atmosphere of the street through which they have to pass are distasteful. Others care little about exterior surroundings that do not touch them directly, provided that they are satisfied with their own corner. The returns in regard to neighborhoods are unsatisfactory and can be classified in no hard-and-fast manner, for the "goodness" or the "badness" of a neighborhood, unless it be extreme, depends largely upon the individual viewpoint. The matter of adequate com- forts and necessities of living, however, is more definite. In the case of women workers, whose nights for the most part are §pent in their own rooms, size is an important item of comfort from the recuperative standpoint. The majority live in small rooms.^ This means, in the city, hall bed-rooms, in the suburbs, rooms correspond- ing more or less in size to the hall bed-room. Eighty-four report living in large rooms; 142 in small rooms. As the number report- ing roommates is 134, it is evident that some among this number are sharing even small rooms with another person. This is true especially in tenements of the West End. The investigator noted one case in which three Russian Jewish girls shared one tiny room, which was barely large enough for one double bed in which the three slept, a bureau and one chair. The room contained one window, looking out upon a small court, and opened into the common room of the family, which was used for cooking, eating, laundry and gen- eral living purposes. This was the only case found by the investi- gator of three persons in one small room. There were several cases, however, in which such a room was shared by two girls. The number of rooms having no windows is 22 out of 219.^ Though but a small proportion of the rooms have no direct outside ventilation, the fact that there are any of this sort in which girls must sleep seems too barbarous a condition to be tolerated. The rents for such rooms are, of course, very low. Sometimes the indirect supply of air from windows in the next room seems more iThe size of the room has been determined by the Inyestlgator's opinion of sufficient or Insufficient size. 'See Tables 7 and 8, pp. 61, 62, 54 The Living Wage of Women Workers adequate than the direct ventilation that some rooms have from a small court on which innumerable other windows open. The investi- gator noted a few cases in which the windowless room opened by large double doors into a well-ventilated room, and was informed that the problem was solved by having these doors open at night, thus practically turning the, apartments into one large room. This, of course, could be done only when the next room was occupied either by relatives or friends who were willing to allow such a privi- lege. Some cases there were in which the windowless room opened into an equally windowless hallway, and had no possibility of any circulation of air. The majority of the rooms, however, have out- side ventilation, and but few of them open on a small court or air- shaft. All but 65 in a total of 204 report sunshine in their rooms during some part of the day. It should be stated that the investi- gator has dealt with but few cases in the over-crowded foreign quarters of the city. Doubtless an investigation of housing among the tenement dwellers would reveal less encouraging conditions. The lodging houses of Boston, however, so far as the results of this investigation show, do not lack in general for light and air. The matter of lighting is of less importance than sun and air, but still is a factor in the adequacy of a room.^ The greater number are lighted with gas. Of a total of 223 rooms reported, only 16 have electric lights; 71 have kerosene lamps. But the kind of light is comparatively immaterial. It is the quantity and situation of Ught in the room that is significant. On this point the data are not sat- isfactory. Oftentimes, and almost always in the working girls' homes, the light seemed to the investigator inadequate for reading or sewing, but was rarely the subject of complaint by the occupant of the room. Eye-strain could quite as often .be accredited to poor lighting during the day at work, or to abuse of the eyes then, as to the small remote gas jets in the room at night. As a general condi- tion, however, the gas jets are small and remote, entirely inadequate for more than one occupant of a room, and are almost never pro- vided with burners giving a good light. In one of the smaller work- ing girls' homes each room is provided with a drop-light, but this is rare. The most important detail in both the cost and the comfort of a room is the amount of heat provided." Only 80 of the total of 'See Tables 9 and 10, pp. 62, 63. 'ma. Rent 55 191 rooms reported are furnace-heated; 17 are wanned by coal stoves; 8 by oil stoves; 86 have no heat whatever. An unheated room is not so bad when the woman can use the rest of the house for general living purposes, but becomes a real factor in physical deterioration when it is used, as is ordinarily the case with women lodgers, as a general living room. In some cases where the hallway is heated, and the room is specially sheltered, or gets much sunshine, the discomfort is not so great, except during really severe weather. Complaints about cold rooms are rare. In general, however, un- heated rooms, even to one accustomed to cold, must be, if not a severe discomfort, at least a serious drain upon vital energy. Next in importance, if not surpassing the physical features of the room itself, come the rights and privileges in the house.^ When there is a bathroom the lodger always has the use of it. In 96 cases out of 226 reported, the house has no bathroom. This usually means in a tenement or apartment building a toilet in the hall used in common by all the dwellers on a floor or in a building. The toilet is usually a tiny dark closet in the hall lighted artificially, if at all, and almost totally unventilated and uncleaned. The privilege of using a parlor in the house is of secondary importance. For the occupant of an unheated room the privilege may be valuable. The parlor is usually a reception room in which to entertain callers. This, as has been pointed out, has less bearing on the problem of adequate accommodations, which is one of privacy and not of etiquette, than might superficially appear. The returns show that 127 out of a total of 229 have such privileges. This pro- portion is doubtless large, because of the number of women living in homes for working women, and in suburban private homes. A privilege considered of primary importance by women is that of doing one's own laundry. Of 232 reporting, 168 have the privilege, and many of the 64 not having it do bits of laundry "on the sly." The institutions always give this privilege. Sometimes a small charge of ten cents is made, as at the Grey Nuns' Home, for the use of heat for the irons. The girls always buy their own soap and starch. Laundry is expensive, and most women, even when tired after a hard day's work, would rather "earn the money" themselves by doing their own scrubbing than pay it to any one else. The effects of increase of income upon housing conditions can iSee Tables 11 and 12, pp. 63, 64. 56 The Living Wage of Women Workers be traced to some extent. The distribution according to city or suburbs seems not to be affected by the wages earned, possibly because some women earning low wages live in the suburbs for the reason that they have work there, while those receiving higher wages and working in the city have car fare to pay, if they move into the suburbs, which equalizes the difference between city and suburban rent. An increase in income evidently goes in part at least to securing a room without a roommate. In the lowest wage group between one-fourth and one-fifth share their room with more than one roommate. The proportion drops to less than one- fifth in the next higher wage group, and in the two highest wage groups disappears entirely. Again, almost 90 per cent, of the number giving information from the lowest wage group have one or more roommates, while less than 25 per cent, of the highest wage group have roommates. Evidently a value is set upon having a room to one's self, and roommates are not in general chosen because of the companionship which they afford. The size of the room is apparently of lesser importance. No very marked variation in this occurs between the lowest and highest wage groups. In the matter of ventilation, the two highest wage groups do not report any windowless rooms, but the number of windows, apparently, does not vary with the different groups. This is probably because the low-paid girl can have a large room with more than one window by sharing it with one or more other girls, while the high-wage girl who can afford a room alone has to con- tent herself with a room of smaller dimensions. The proportion of sunny rooms rises directly with the increase of income, being valued evidently next to privacy. The proportion using kerosene lamps for light decreases with increasing wages, though always, excepting in the lowest wage group, gas predominates. The per- centage having no heat is another detail that decreases steadily with increasing wages. It appears that the chief advantages which the girl on higher wages gains by her ability to pay higher rent are a room to herself, heat of some sort and sunshine. These advantages come to the majority only when the wage has reached at least $9. It is somewhat astonishing to discover the large proportion of women who are unable to secure the advantages of privacy through rooming alone and the social amenity of an opportunity to receive Rent 57 callers outside of their own room, while from the point of view of health the number who live in unheated rooms presents a serious factor. Forty-five per cent, of those who reported are thus seen to be forced to meet the dangers to health which may come from an unheated living room. On the other hand, even including the privileges of a reception room which come through the working girls' homes, about 35 per cent, are forced either to surrender the privileges and pleasures of social relationship with men, or to over- step the boundaries of conventionality. Here then, may be found the fundamental basis for the lack of certain social properties and even moralities on the part of our working girls. With cold rooms, with no opportunities to receive guests and without the privacy even of a single room fully 35 per cent, of our working girls, if these proportions may be considered typical, are in danger of overstepping social and moral law. These conditions may be distinctly traced not only to the inadequate wage which our working women receive, but to our effete laws which have failed to keep pace with the changing conditions of home environment on the part of such a large group of its working citizens. Furthermore, poor economy is presented in the makeshift housing opportunities offered by the average landlady who, with little capital and no ability, is endeavoring to make her living in the face of a landlord ignorant of how to equip his tene- ment so as to receive a good return or to give adequate accommodations. It is important, finally, to discover in the case of the girl living at home the amount paid per week and how many of the essential expenses of living it provides.^ The headings in the tables rep- resent only the more obvious necessities. Much more in the way of service and privileges, both trifling and important, comes to the girl living in a family than can possibly be classified or analyzed. It is also true that the girl so living gives to the family much more than the value of her weekly payments. She has often the place of a daughter in the house, even when the family is not her own, and with this place go duties and responsibilities as well &s privi- leges. She usually helps with the housework, the family cooking and cleaning, the laundry and sewing. These duties, coming outside of her regular working day, are as truly "secondary work" as the cooking, laundry and cleaning that the girl by herself in lodgings does to make ends meet, and differ but little in effect from the >See Table 13, p. 64. S8 The Living Wage of Women Workers evening and holiday sewing, typewriting, or table waiting that other girls do in order to have their cooking and laundry done for them. Oftentimes, however, these duties are not required, while, on the other hand, many extra services are included in the relatively small weekly payment for lodging. The housework is all done for her, her room is cared for, her laundry and mending done, sometimes her sewing as well. The working girl in a home like this is fortunate, indeed, for much of the physical and mental strain of self-support is lifted from her shoulders and she is relieved of the hardest part of the struggle of earning her living. It appears that in all cases in which information was obtained the weekly amount of $3.06 to $6.43 pays for board and, in all but one case, for room ; in 59 out of 73 cases it pays for laundry ; in 24 out of 70, for clothing ; and in 46 out of 6y, for mending. In pos- sibly 25 per cent, of the cases the average payment of $4.63 per week pays practically all the necessary expenses. The average earnings of this group are %7.y6 per week. Among the girls on low wages some give their services in entire payment of room and board, many make a regular bargain of pay- ment in part money and part service, and others contribute their services in return for the many extra comforts of their life. Only 13 out of 85 cases giving this information report no household duties. In 60 cases it is possible that the girl is working either for the sake of spending money or to help somewhat toward her own support. In the greater number of cases, however, the payment covers only board and room, frequently laundry, and sometimes the small but important service of mending. It is perhaps a fair amount to pay for board and room when the cost to the family of the extra person is considered. But the home privileges which go with it cannot be purchased in a lodging house or restaurant for any price, and it is the privileges that make this kind of living real economy to the woman worker, freedom beyond the four walls of one room, social companionship and variety of diet and living. As these privileges are worth more than money to her, so she pays for them not with money but with her own service. Rent 59 TABLE I. — Average Annual Expenditures for Rent, BY Occupation. Average income. Average expenditure for rent. Occupation. Amount. Percentage of , income. Professional $695.41 499-59 357-34 382-37 364.42 342-30 $80.33 82.73 79.70 55-76 53-29 82.17 11-55 16.56 22.30 14.58 14.62 24.00 Clerical Sales . . Factory TABLE 2. — Average Annual Expenditure, for Rent, BY Wage Groups. $3.00 4.00 5.00 6.00 7.00 8.00 9.00 10.00 II .00 12.00 13.00 14.00 . 15.00 " and over Wage. Average income, $231.36 350.15 493-54 629,28 885.31 Average expenditure for rent. Amount. $49-87 71-83 74.81 93.66 "5-59 Percentage of income. 21.56 20.51 15.16 14.88 13.06 TABLE 3. — Extent of Suburban Residence, by Occupation. Occupation. Number reporting place of residence. Nimiber living in city. Number living in suburbs. Professional .... Clerical Sales Factory Waitresses Kitchen workers Total 22 61 60 71 7 12 15 36 44 43 5 8 233 151 7 25 16 28 82 6o The Living Wage of Women Workers TABLE 4. — Extent op Suburban Residence, by Wage Groups. Wage. Number reporting place of residence. Number living in city. Number living in suburbs. $3.00 4.00 5-00 . 6.00 7.00 8.00, 9.00 18 77 IS 9 II 76 43 8 7 7 49 34 7 11.00 , 12 .00 ■ 13.00 14.00 . 15.00 over Tc tal 244 145 99 TABLE 5 — Number op Roommates, by Occupation. Occupation. Total number reporting number room- mates. Number reporting I room- mate. Number reporting 2 or more room- mates. Number reporting no room- mate. Number reporting room- mate relative. Number reporting room- mate not a relative. Professional Clerical 28 62 52 57 4 12 II 3° 16 25 2 S I 19 s IS 2 3 16 13 31 17 4 4 14 10 I 4 8 38 Sales Factory Waitresses Kitchen workers . . . 3 4 Total 215 89 45 81 43 64 Rent TABLE 6. — NuMBSiR OP Roommates, by Wage Groups. 6i Wage. Total number reporting number of room- mates. Niimber reporting I room- mate. Number reporting 2 or more room- mates. Number reporting no room- mate. Number reporting room- mate a relative. Number reporting room- mate not a relative. $3-oo 4.00 S-°0 : 6.00 7.00 8.00 ^ 9.00 1- 18 106 62 IS 13 12 42 22 9 5 4 20 5 2 44 35 6 8 10 28 15 2 6 34 11.00 , 12.00 13.00 14.00 . 15.00 and 7 5 over Tc tal 214 90 29 95 55 64 TABLE 7. — Size of Room and Exterior Light, by Occupation. Occupation. Size of room. Windows. SunUght." Large. Small. One. Two or more. None. Yes. No. II 22 16 25 4 6 18 39 39 39 I 6 16 32 27 32 2 6 II 22 23 19 3 4 2 8 4 6 2 21 40 32 35 6 Clerical Sales 19 15 Waitresses Kitchen workers 4 Total 84 142 "5 82 22 139 65 (>2 The Living Wage of Women Workers TABLE 8. — Size op Room and Exterior Light, by Wage Groups. Wage. Size of room. Large. Small, Windows. One. Two or None. Sunlight. Yes. No. 34 19 S 8 4S 13 14 S3 33 7 9 4S 69 44 72 164 109 89 142 s 30 16 3 8 62 TABLE 9. — Artificial Light and Heat, by Occupation. Light. Heat. Occupation. Gas. Elec- tricity. Kero- sene. Furnace. Coal stove. Oil stove. No heat. Professional Clerical 18 34 39 39 4 2 13 2 I 10 15 14 23 9 13 25 20 18 2 2 4 3 3 2 I 4 6 I I 6 12 Sales ... 23 39 I Factory W^aitresses Kitchen workers Total s 136 16 71 80 17 8 86 Rent 63 TABLE 10. — Artificial Light and Heat, by Wage Groups. Light. Heat. Wage. Gas. Elec- tricity. Kero- sene. Furnace. Coal stove. Oil stove. No heat. $3 . 00 4.00 5-0° . 6.00 ' 7.00 8.00 ^ 9.00 7 74 38 14 II I 3 2 9 32 21 S 3 3 40 24 10 10 I I 5 I I 2 I I 12 S7 16 11.00 . 12.00 13.00 14.00 , 15.00 and I over , Tc tal 144 6 70 87 8 s 86 TABLE II. — House Privileges , BY Occupation. Use of bathroom. Use of parlor. Laundry privileges. Occupation. Yes. No. Yes. No. Yes. No. Professional 17 46 34 21 S 7 12 18 21 40 s 18 SO 21 31 3 4 10 19 34 29 2 8 19 SI 36 49 4 9 9 16 Clerical Sales 19 16 Waitresses I ICitclieii workers 3 Total 130 96 127 102 168 64 64 The Living Wage of Women Workers TABLE 12. — House Privileges, by Wage Groups. Wage. Use of bathroom. Yes. No. Use of parlor. Yes. No. Laundry privileges. Yes. No. $3-oo ■ 4.00 5-00 . 6.00 7.00 8.00 9.00 10.00 11.00 12.00 13.00 14.00 . 15-00 and;{ over Total. 69 33 16 47 28 58 32 6 S6 33 5 S 130 80 124 los IS 80 43 161 3 31 21 4 S 64 TABLE 13. — Contributions to Support of Living at Home Family by Women Workers Average amount paid per week. Percentage of income. Number pay for Pay for laundry. Pay for clothes. Pay tor mending. Wage. n 1 Yes. No. Yes. No. Yes. No. $3.00 4.00 5-00 ^ 6.00 7 -op 8.00 ^ 9.00 ' 10.00 II .00 12.00 ■ 13.00 14.00 . 15.00 ' ;and '_over| , $3-06 4-45 6.43 4-33 4.01 68.78 66.08 67-75 35-78 23-55 10 41 17 7 4 11 44 17 7 3 5 31 15 7 I 3 7 2 2 4 13 7 C 4 22 11 6 3 6 23 13 3 I 2 10 S 3 I To tal 79 82 59 14 24 46 46 21 CHAPTER VI CLOTHING There is a widespread notion that the working girl spends her money largely on clothes. A group of shop girls was heard dis- cussing their reputation for extravagance in this respect with a certain amount of indignation. "I know why people think that of us," said one. "It is because the less money you have to spend on clothes the less you can afford 'plain' things. In underclothes, for instance, the very cheapest things are loaded with ugly coarse lace, and this is true of hats, suits and all kinds of clothes, so we often look as if we were extravagant and trying to be showy when really we haven't the money to buy something a little better in quality, much better in taste, and a lot more durable. These people who make that criticism only see that the plain things which they look at are cheaper than the trimmed. They don't know that there are still cheaper things, which they don't even see, that we have to buy, whether they offend our taste or not." There is doubtless some truth in this statement, and there is also an element of human nature, a longing for something bright and pretty at the expense of wise selection. A newspaper account of one shop girl's experience contains a story in point: "And for a best waist," said the girl, "I just went and got what I wanted. It was pink silk with black buttons on it. I felt as if I couldn't live without it, and I paid $5. It didn't last but four or five times' wear, and then it began to crack. I could just have cried when I saw that crack, for I knew I wouldn't get another nice waist for one while, and I was so afraid I would have to wear those awful black things to church. But I don't think I could have stood it not to get that pink waist." The next year, having learned wisdom with experience, she bought four yards of white Danish cloth for sixty cents, made a waist herself, and trimmed it with red French knots which cost five cents. The results of this investigation certainly do riot support the common opinion regarding the working girl's extravagance in the matter of dress. On the contrary, it appears that, as a rule, in the long year-in-year-out run, with the individual and with the group, (65) 66 The Living Wage of Women Workers only so much of the weekly earnings as is left after almost everything else is bought goes for really necessary clothing. Of course, there are cases of unwise and ill-judged purchases. But the woman worker on low wages, while she may sacrifice comfort to appearance occa- sionally, has not so many comforts that she can easily dispense with any of them. It is true that, with an increase in earnings, money which might possibly be saved may often be spent on extending the wardrobe — "improving the standard of dress." This tendency is not, however, necessarily culpable. To any one who has been in contact with many working women the state- ment that "it pays to dress well" must have a familiar sound. It is, indeed, so universally accepted a conclusion that one is forced to believe that there must be at least some truth in it. Many women affirm that good clothes are absolutely necessary in getting a posi- tion, useful in holding it, and valuable in securing promotion; and many in unquestionable sincerity devote capital or credit to the purchase of "something decent" when they go the rounds of the employment bureaus. In a discussion of wise principles of living in one of the working girls' clubs of Boston one of the points empha- sized was this : "The necessity of considering dress first, because your position depends on dress." One woman earning $8 a week as saleswoman writes on her schedule: "Every cent aside from my living expenses has been invested in clothes. A poorly clad sales- woman draws a small salary and often finds it hard to obtain a position. I have proved to my own satisfaction that an up-to-date toilet goes a great way in securing and holding a position. A girl must be well and stylishly dressed, and, consequently, she has to scrimp on other things." And then she adds: "Clothes seem to 'make the man' in the drygoods business, certainly." This woman's schedule, however, shows that she does not "scrimp" to the extent of denying herself many things necessary for health or reasonable comfort. She lives in a suburb where pleasant rooms are to be had for comparatively little. The cost of rent is $1.50 per week, and she describes her room as large, with two windows, lighted with gas, furnished with a couch, chiffonier, reading table, Morris chair, rocker, window seat and four rugs. Her car fares cost sixty cents per week to and from work; her lunches, twenty-five cents per day. She is fortunate in having very good breakfasts and suppers with her mother, who lives near, at Clothing 67 the cost merely of butter, eggs and fruit, which amounts to $1 per weels. Her mother also does her laundry for her. For illness she has the "store doctor" of the department store where she works with no charge. Medicine cost $3 and dentistry $35. She spent $10 for pleasure, $2.60 for insurance, $5 for support of others and $10 for gifts. Incidentals amounted to $9 and she saved $14.50. What remained for clothes after these expenses were paid was less than $90 — certainly no extravagant sum. The woman notes that without help from her mother she could not have lived on her salary. Doubtless she would have lived on it, but at the sacrifice of some of the expenditures that she now considers necessary. Concerning installment buying, opinions are many and various. The majority of the women condemn it as a bad plan, but recognize it as a necessity for some people under certain conditions. One woman, for example, states that she has a young son to provide for and that she is obliged to resort to installment buying very often. She knows a firm on whose credit she can buy at all the stores, paying them the per cent, on the amount of her purchases for the credit. Consequently she is almost never out of debt. Most working women see clearly the lack of economy of credit buying as well as the danger to morals. Very few would resort to this practice from choice. In general, it is regarded as a necessary hardship, forced upon the poor in all kinds of buying, in the case of provisions, fuel, furniture, even insurance, as well as clothing. The cause back of it all is insufficient capital. It is difficult, if not impossible, to fix upon any common standard of clothing for women workers. The various occupations involve very different requirements as regards dress. Individual taste also varies widely. The faculty of economy or "managing" ability is equally variable. Personal differences in respect to taste and economy are evident in all expenditures, but nowhere perhaps to a greater extent than in the outlay for clothing. One woman, for example, lived for seventeen weeks while out of work on $47, and bought at the same time her entire winter wardrobe for $7.56. The latter consisted of the following articles : I blue serge suit — coat and skirt $2.00 I black cloth skirt 1.43 I wool dress 2.50 I warm winter jacket 75 68 The Living Wage of Women Workers 1 hat 05 3 belts 03 2 yards of veiling 05 I pair of shoes S" I pair of rubbers 25 Total $7.56 Of course, the woman made all these things herself, mostly by hand, since she had no machine and could only borrow the use of one occasionally. Training as lady's maid and seamstress, which she had had in her younger days, stood her in good stead, and bits of material bought at bargain sales went a long way under her contriving fingers. A bunch of wire for two cents, and a large bunch of old-fashioned chenille for three cents were worked up into a really presentable hat. A bit of heavy material here, and a shop-worn or damaged remnant there, made her a coat, a suit and a dress. No woman in a regular position would be able thus to work for her clothes. The case is an extreme example of that pos- sibility of getting much for little money by adding to cash, time, work and cleverness, which makes expenditures for clothes so variable. One woman says that she seldom buys anything, because her old clothes can be made over and over and with care practically never wear out. Another woman states her problem simply: "I buy what I can, and go without what I need." One young girl, who has been on her own resources since childhood and never earned over $5, when asked how she could dress for a year on $10, replied that when her clothes were worn out she simply had to hold on to them and make them last longer. Many exhibit their wardrobes with much pride as they tell of various methods of economizing. Buying out of season and watching for bargain sales are the chiefiest of these. Shop girls have the advantage here, since they are on the "inside track." In some stores the girls are allowed a certain amount of time away from their counters for shopping in the store during the part, of the day when there are not many customers. One saleswoman bought a very good heavy coat, when the store was anxious to get the winter stock cleaned out in the spring, for 98 cents. She bought a rain coat for $1.98 from stock which she her- self had sold for $8. A neat gray skirt, which she wore all summer, cost her 98 cents. Many stores give a discount to their employes. Clothing 69 This discount is usually from 5 to 10 per cent., and is sometimes greater for goods to be worn in the store, on the principle possibly that a certain rather high standard of dress is required of the sales girl. Credit is allowed by some stores for a limited time, two weeks or a month. The penalty for not paying up on time is forfeiture of the privilege of buying on credit. In shoe factories and rubber factories the girls often can buy "at cost." While there are possibilities of economy for sales girls, there are, on the other hand, rather high requirements and a tendency to even higher ambitions for good dressing. Sometimes white waists are required, sometimes black. Even when no definite require- ments are laid down, a neat and attractive appearance is demanded. It is almost a superstition with the sales girl that the greatest show of up-to-dateness makes the largest number of sales, and hence is the making of a valuable saleswoman. Whether this be true or not, need not be discussed here. Its effect on the account book is seen in the many entries for the latest novelty in neckwear or in coiffure, as well as for skirts and shirt waists. Clerical and professional women, for the most part, also recog- nize the necessity of good clothes and attractive appearance. Wait- resses usually have to provide themselves with a definite uniform, which, however, does not vary so much from place to place that new outfits have to be purchased at every change. It merely re- quires a small investment to begin with. The investigator's position in a good summer hotel called for black dresses with small aprons for breakfast and lunch, and white dresses with bib aprons for dinner. The aprons had to be absolutely uniform and were sold to the girls by the hotel "at cost"; that is, seventy-five cents each for the large and fifty cents for the small aprons. Waitresses were required also to do their own laundry. The writer's own outfit cost fifteen dollars. Probably most girls would have at least some of the articles already in her wardrobe, so that the cost would not be so great. But those whose wardrobes are the barest are the very ones who would find it most difficult to raise this amount. Unless it be scrubwomen and cleaners, factory girls have the least required of them in the matter of dress. The work is often- times so dirty that the girls cannot wear street clothes to work in, but keep cast-off clothing at the factory and change before and after work. In a box factory the girls are so completely smeared with 70 The Living Wage of Women Workers paste and whatever adheres to it that it is frequently hard to make any guess as to the fabric underneath. Since those who do the dirtier part of the work cannot dress up to a standard, those having cleaner work do not feel obliged to wear good clothes. In general, then, higher standards of dress are maintained by workers in occupations that bring them into direct contact with the public ; and this either voluntarily or by order of the employer. The lower standard of dress prevails among those who work behind "no admittance" signs. A further generalization, not without its excep- tions, is that the higher dress requirements are found in the occu- pations that pay the higher rates of wages. The matter of laundry is a hard problem for the working woman. A girl who worked her way through college by all kinds of outside work once called it the last straw. "I don't mind waiting on table," she said, "or doing copying, or other people's mending, or collecting bills, but that everlasting drawer of laundry to be done which never stays done wears me out." Many women spend their evenings, holidays and even Sundays over the tub and ironing board. On the whole, laundry is an expen- sive item — expensive either of time and strength or of money. It means at least two evenings a week, or, at most, every evening when done at home. When it cannot be done at home, either because the rules of the house forbid it, or because of lack of facilities, the cost can hardly be kept below fifty cents a week by the greatest care, and very easily increases to double or several times that amount. Only 39 women report doing none of their own laundry; 127 report doing part or all. Clerical women, waitresses and factory workers pay about the same yearly amount. Kitchen workers pay the highest amount, partly, perhaps, because they are frequently required to wear a washable uniform, but chiefly, doubtless, because they pay the laundry bills of those dependent on them at home together with their own, so that part of their laundry bill, if it were possible to separate it, belongs under expenses for the support of others. Professional women pay almost as much as kitchen workers; sales girls pay the least. Also the largest percentage of sales girls and the smallest percentage of waitresses do their own laundry. Sales girls and clerical women pay the smallest per- centage of income for laundry, kitchen workers the highest, other classes about the same proportion of income. Clothing 71 In general, the management of the clothing problem is, for the low-paid woman, a severe tax on her physical or financial resource. Either she must spend much ill-spared energy in hunting marked- down goods that will serve her purpose and in making them up, or she must resort to the extravagant method of buying on the installment plan or the equally extravagant course of buying very cheap clothes which do not last. Of course, the woman who is exceptionally clever in remodeling old clothes and making them last, and the woman who is in a position that affords unusual oppor- tunities of buying goods at a reduction, find this problem less troublesome. But the average working girl on low wages is hard pressed to keep up appearances. The only saving feature of the situation is the fact that the need of new clothing is not so impera- tive as that of food or lodging. It is, fortunately, a demand that can be postponed under pressure. A theoretical ranking of the occupations in respect to expendi- ture for clothing, as determined by their respective requirements in the matter of dress, has been suggested in the foregoing discussion. At one extreme of this scale stands the sales girl, with high occu- pational standards; at the other, the factory worker, with compara- tively low requirements. The facts regarding the expenditure for clothing, as set forth in the tables embodying the results of this investigation, show, however, a striking departure from this hypothetical order in the case of the factory worker.^ Her actual expenditure for clothing is larger than that of any other class of workers, except professional women. The latter pay by far the largest amount for clothing. Clerical workers come next, closely followed by sales girls. Waitresses spend about four-fifths as much as clerical workers and sales girls, while kitchen workers spend only two-fifths of that amount. The factory worker spends a little more for clothes than does the clerical worker, although her income is about 23 per cent. less. A striking fact is that the actual amount expended for clothing by all classes below the professional worker is practically the same, with the exception of the sheltered workers, the waitresses and kitchen workers. In the proportion of income expended for clothes, the order is different. The sales girl spends the largest proportion — 19.14 per cent. The fact that the sales girl has the greatest opportunity for buying her wardrobe at a reduction gives to this large percentage ^See Table 1, p. 74. 72 The Living Wage of Women Workers added significance. The factory worker is not far behind, with 18.49 P^r cent. The waitress, with 15.87 per cent., stands sHghtly ahead of the clerical woman, with 14.10 per cent. The kitchen worker is far in the rear of all, with only 8.24 per cent. These figures show conclusively that there are other factors besides the requirements of the trade that determine the amount spent for clothes. It is possible that the fact that sales, clerical and professional women, and often waitresses usually work eight hours or less a day, while the factory women more often than not work the full fifty-six hours per week permitted by law, may cause the difference. Not only have those working a shorter day more time to shop and purchase carefully, but they have likewise more time, and very likely also strength and ability to do part of their own sewing, thus cutting down the expense. The returns support this inference.^ Fewer kitchen workers do part of their own sewing than factory women, but, as has been noted, the former are, as a rule, older women with families and homes to keep up. Other demands on their time would preclude very much attention to the making of clothing, as, indeed, the heavy drain on a small income prevents the buying. About the same proportion of professional women report making clothes for themselves, but this is explained by the fact of the comparatively high incomes. The small proportion of factory workers who do their own sewing at home appears the more striking when it is added that this class includes employes in dressmaking and tailoring establishments, who sew for their living, and might be supposed because of their skill with the needle to sew also for themselves. Of the 19 per cent, of factory workers who do their own sewing, about two-thirds are employed in such shops, leaving a possible 6 per cent, of factory workers employed in other classes of establishments who do some of their own sewing. This fact doubtless accounts in part of the factory woman's large clothing expenses. There is another possible factor in the situation which may be important. Sales and clerical women and waitresses have working conditions which perhaps supply them with much of what we may call the "social" need. They come in contact with many people every day ; sales girls in particular have much variety of intercourse in their calling. The factory worker, however, is shut up with her >See Table 3, p. 76. Clothing 73 machine, in a dingy shop, with the same group of associates day after day, and a group as busy as she. There is usually little or no variation of employment; close attention to the same operation on the same machine fills the daily ten hours of probably the majority of factory workers. This monotony of occupation natu- rally stimulates a craving for outside relaxation and indulgence. Thus, while factory employment itself makes small demands on the workers as regards clothing, the reaction against the dreary monotony of the daily toil tends to promote extravagance in clothing as well as is amusement. So, if the statement that those varieties of work which lead to direct contact with the public demand the largest expenditure for clothing seems to find an exception in the factory worker it is not difficult to understand the reason. The factory worker has a longer day, has less time for making her own clothes, and has greater monotony of work, and so has greater need of social diversion. The average cost of clothing by wage groups advances regularly from slightly less than $i per week, for the lowest wage group, those earning $3 to $5, to slightly over $2 per week for those earn- ing $12 to $14.^ For the highest wage group, those earning $15 and over, the amount is not much greater, being only $2.08 per week. The proportion of income expended for clothing declines pretty steadily from 21.80 per cent, for the lowest group to 12.24 per cent, for the highest. Thus, through the whole range of earn- ings the average cost of clothing varies only between one and two dollars a week approximately. Evidently, then, the working woman, with only ordinary ability to manage her wardrobe economically, with the usual trade demands on it, and the average amount of time for sewing and mending, cannot dress on less than $1 per week as a minimum, and does not need as a dress allowance more than $2 per week. Dressing on an allowance within these limits means, as a rule, doing some sewing and laundry out of working hours. About five-sixths of the women regularly do a part of their own dressmaking, in addition to mending, and over three- fourths regularly do a part or all of their laundry. As to the ade- quacy of clothing provided for one or two dollars a week, it is possible to judge this ojily by examining a wardrobe kept replenished and in order on this amount. The investigator examined many wardrobes of many degrees of adequacy, and could only conclude 'See Tables 2 and 4, pp. 74, 75. 74 The Living Wage of Women Workers that more than in any other part of a working woman's expenses, the matter of clothing depends on the taste and cleverness of the individual. The figures of expenditure here tabulated may be taken to represent a fair average of these supplementary qualities which have to do with economical buying. TABLE I. — ^Average Annual Expenditures for Clothing, by Occupation. Occupation. Average income Expenditure for clothing. Amount. Percentage of income. Professional .... Clerical Sales Factory Waitresses Kitchen workers $695.41 499-59 357-34 382.37 364.42 342-3° $112.27 7° -43 68.41 70.71 57.82 28.22 16. 14 14. 10 19.14 18.49 15-87 8.24 TABLE 2. — ^Average Annual Expenditures for Clothing, by Wage Groups. Average income. Expenditure for clothing. Number buying clothes. Wage. Amount. Percentage of income. By cash or employees' store credit. By install, ment. $3.00 ■ 4.00 S-OO : 6.00 7.00 8.00 . 9.00 $231.36 350-15 493-54 629. 28 885.31 $50.41 66.44 88.99 105.87 108.40 21.80 18.97 18.03 16.82 12.24 14 54 28 5 9 6 4 4 11 .00 . 12 .00 13.00 14.00 ^ 2 over , To tal no 17 Clothing 75 TABLE 3. — Home Dressmaking and Laundry Work, by Occupation. Cost of laundry per year. Nimiber doing part or aUof laundry. Number doing no laundry. Number who part or all of clothes. Number Occupation. Amount. Percentage of income. make no clothes. Professional $22 .26 14.26 10.37 14.84 14.03 23.90 3.20 2.8s i! .90 3.88 3-8s 6.98 14 19 39 45 3 7 4 13 8 13 I 7 41 17 17 16 I I 9 3 I Sales Factory AATaitresses 3 3 Kitchen workers Total 127 39 99 20 TABLE 4. — Cost op JAUNDRY AND CLOTHING, BY WaGE GrOUPS. Cost of laundry per year. Number doing part or aUof laundry. Number doing no laundry. Yearly cost of clothes and laundry combined. Wage. Amount. Percent- age of income. Amoimt. Percent- age of income. $3 . 00 ■ 4.00 S-oo , 6.00 7.00 8.00 , 9.00 10 00 y . . $2.42 12.22 18.32 14.71 22.48 I. OS 3-49 371 2.34 ^•54 II 78 30 3 S 2 18 9 S 5 $52-83 78.66 107.31 120.58 130.88 22.84 22 .46 21.74 19. 16 14.78 II . 00 . 12.00" 13.00 14.00 15.00 " and over , Tc tal 127 39 CHAPTER VII HEALTH Expenditure for health varies considerably for different occu- pations and wage groups, both in respect to amount of outlay and its proportion to income. It is not possible, however, to draw definite conclusions from the figures as to the effect on health of workers in the various occupations and wage groups. Workers receiving low wages are often obliged to do without needed medical treatment, although by reason of small earnings and consequent hardship they may need it the more. On the other hand, free treatment is frequently received by working women of all classes. The tables show that the professional woman pays the largest annual amount for health, $26.38; and the factory worker the next, $23.96.^ The professional woman may be supposed to work under the best sanitary conditions, with the least exacting hours; the factory woman under possibly the worst conditions, for the longest hours. Yet the actual money spent for health in these two groups is almost equal. Obviously, therefore, it is no index of actual con- ditions in the occupations. The professional woman may be edu- cated up to a higher sense of responsibility for her own physical well being, or she may demand a higher grade of medical attention, or she may accept less free treatment. Certainly her income is much higher than the factory worker's. Twenty-six dollars and thirty-eight cents represents 3.79 per cent, of her income, while $23.96 is 6.27 per cent, of the income of the factory worker. It is significant, furthermore, that the factory worker, with an income averaging only a few dollars more than that of saleswomen and kitchen workers, spends a much larger amount for health. Sales- women spend $19.05 per year, and kitchen workers $8.64. Wait- resses, with a somewhat smaller income than factory workers, spend $11.45. '^^^ percentage of income expended for health by the factory woman is also the highest, 6.27 per cent. The percentages for other classes are: Saleswomen, 5.33; professional, 3.79; waitress, 3.14; kitchen, 2.52. It may be concluded, therefore, that factory women as a class have a comparatively heavy burden in caring for their health. *See Table 1, p. 78. (76) Health 77 Sales girls stand next to factory workers in the scale of health expenditures. Much was formerly written and said of the injury to the health of shop women through constant standing at their work, and the law requiring seats behind the counter was the result. It is doubtful, however, whether these seats are a sufficient remedy, for during the later hours of the day, when weariness increases, the rush of customers also increases and there is little chance for sitting. Very few report availing themselves of the seats. Some report that the seats are there in compliance to law, but that they are repri- manded by the floor walker for sitting. There is still much com- plaint of the results of prolonged standing, which very often takes the form of pronated ankles and "flat foot," a painful trouble. Waitresses and clerical women spend almost the same amount on health. The hours of the waitress are long, but her busy time is frequently short. There is change of air, and certainly exercise in plenty. The clerical woman has usually very reasonable hours and good general working conditions. The small expenditure for health recorded in the case of the kitchen worker, only 2.52 per cent, of her income, may be due to the fact that her occupation supplies her with food in sufficient quantity and involves no injurious degree of physical strain. The classification of health expenditures by wage groups shows, first, a marked increase in amount up to the $9 to $12 group ; second, a practically stationary expenditure for the next group, of $12 to $14 workers ; and, third, a great decrease for the highest group, of $15 and over.* This showing indicates that insufficient wages do not permit of essential medical treatment, and that high wages tend to diminish the need of such treatment. The percentage of the income spent for the maintenance of health steadily decreases with the in- crease of wages, from 5.80 down to 1.89, showing the gradual lessening of this burden with the expansion of earnings. The use of free beds in hospitals or dispensaries is reported frequently on the schedules. The testimony of the women con- cerning their treatment in these institutions is interesting in view of the criticism often heard regarding neglect and abuse of charity cases. In every case in which experience in a free bed was reported the investigator questioned the person at some length on the kind of treatment received. The women were usually enthusiastic over the iSee Table 2, p. 78. 78 The Living Wage of Women Workers treatment and the kindness which they met on every hand while in the hospital. A few complained of neglect and careless treatment. The investigator, however, has happened upon sufficient evidence of like neglect in more or less expensive private hospitals to lead to the conclusion that such treatment is an occasional incident of hos- pital experience in general, and is not a distinguishing feature of charity cases. TABLE I. — ^Average Annual Expenditures for Health, by Occupation. Average income.' Expenditure for health. Occupation. Amount. Percentage of income. $695.41 499-59 357-34 382-37 364.42 342-30 $26.38 12.44 19-05 23.96 11-45 8.64 3-79 2.49 5-33 6.27 3-14 2.52 Clerical Sales Factory "Waitresses TABLE 2. — ^Average Annual Expenditures for Health, by Wage Groups. Average income. Expenditure for health. Wage. Amount Percentage of income. $3 • 00 ' 4.00 S-oo, 6.00 7.00 8.00 ^ 9.00 ' $231.36 350.15 493-54 629.28 885.31 $13-43 18.81 22.09 22.91 16-75 5 -So 5-37 4.48 3-64 1.89 11.00 , 12.00 13.00 14.00 , 15.00 and over CHAPTER VIII SAVINGS AND DEBTS Information on this subject was obtained with the greatest difficulty. In fact, this was the only variety of information that the investigator found impossible to get from the majority of women. Probably the greater number carrying the burden of debt absolutely denied the existence of anything of the sort. The general attitude was that of "not talking too much," on the principle which rules working women as a whole that the less said about private affairs the less there may be to regret. The figures concerning debt are, consequently, very incomplete. Information about savings was more easily secured, although here, too, it was difficult to push in- quiries beyond broad generalities. Increasing suspicion was aroused at once by any interest in the details of the subject. It was fre- quently difficult, furthermore, to differentiate between temporary and permanent savings. A statement by an eight-dollar-a-week woman that she saves regularly three dollars a week may sound well; but such "regular" savings are frequently regular for only a few weeks at a time and are made for the express purpose of a new spring suit or the winter's supply of clothing. The problem of thrift in general is a very different one among women from what it is among men. The whole attitude of women toward saving for the future is peculiarly discouraging. There is, first of all, a general apathy, the result of generations of accustomed reliance on man as the provider. Even in the case of women who have been forced out into industrial life and who are self-supporting this inherent sense of dependence is seldom outgrown. It is always there, acting, consciously or unconsciously, as a dead weight which prevents any real initiative in saving for the future. With younger wage-earning women there is always the expectation of marriage. Work is merely a makeshift until marriage comes. Moreover, in the case of women in industry where the wage is comparatively small and the demands of living and the craving for small extrava- gances far greater with women than with men, the possibility and the duty of putting aside a part of the income for the future seem less urgent to the individual. (79) 8o The Living Wage of Women Workers It is true that many women who are now carrying economic burdens for others ought to be expected to develop a certain sense of foresight for the future. But the fact that such women look forward to less responsibility as the years go on, because these burdens usually mean the care of parents or of other older relations, brings in a new element not conducive to saving for the future. On the other hand, men who have persons dependent upon them must expect the economic responsibilities of later life to become more and more exacting. That is to say, man's burden is going to grow, while woman's decreases. In one case there is the imperativeness of saving for the future, in the other there is the utmost present tax on the income with hope of abatement in later years. A report of the Women's Committee on Savings Bank Insur- ance of Boston, March, 1910, sets forth some significant facts con- cerning the extent of saving among women workers. The study is based on interviews with over 1300 women. According to this report, "17 per cent, of working women may be said to have a satisfactory amount of savings." Further, it appears that 11 per cent, of the women interviewed carry two insurance policies, and 47 per cent, carry one policy, while 38 per cent, have savings in some form other than insurance. Regarding the relation between savings and earnings, the report states : "The most important result of this section of discussion is the light received on the wage question. It is not the earner of a wage under six dollars — ^whether living at home or not — ^who is saving; we do find the six dollar to nine dollar, or nine dollar to twelve dollar wage-eamer saving, according to the type of work or worker ; and we find both the woman twenty to twenty-five years of age and the woman under twenty years of age saving. But it is only' when the highly skilled worker is receiving the twelve to twenty dollar wage that sufficient saving becomes more common, 29 per cent., and that an attempt at saving is seen among half or more than half of the workers." The committee concludes that "saving among wage-earning women is proportionately small," and suggests the following reasons for their general unwillingness to save : (a) The lack of responsibility, due to the fact that so many women turn all the earnings into the family exchequer, and thus no sense of self-depetidence is developed. Savings and Debts 81 (&) This is accompanied by the low wage at the beginning and continued for a longer time than a proper apprenticeship, due to the early age of entering industry and the lack of training for the industry. (c) The seasonal character of much of the work in which women are employed, and the ignorance in the younger years as to supplementary occupation, or the lack of certainty as to permanence of position, and hence uncertainty of ability to make payments. (d) The fact that such a large number have one or more insur- ance policies, although usually carried by parents, creating a feeling of satisfaction or at any rate an aversion to an investment-carrying insurance. (e) The unfamihar idea of deciding for oneself as to any investment. The continued custom of economic dependence in judg- ment upon the opinions of the men, the family or acquaintances ; and the fact that men do not regard the girls of the family as either competent to decide or likely to be compelled to carry the burden of economic independence. (/) The greater acquaintance with co-operative banks and savings banks for investment, and the unattractiveness of the idea of insurance. (ff) The fact that so very large a number live at home, and have therefore the feeling of dependence in judgment, and the lack of the necessity of being self-supporting, although actually, perhaps, contributing more to the family than the equivalent of their own expenses. The tables at the end of this chapter show that the professional woman saves the most and has the highest average debt.'- The latter may be explained by the fact that several from this group have borrowed money for their education, expecting to pay it off little by little from their own earnings. The next highest average of savings is that of the clerical woman, who also has the highest average surplus remaining after the average debt is subtracted. The next highest surplus is that of the kitchen workers, who stand third in the savings column and last in the debt column. This is possibly because the greater age and heavier responsibilities of this class make them more cautious of incurring debts which they may have great difficulty in paying off. Waitresses and factory women save »See TaWe 1, p. 83. 82 The Living Wage of Women Workers about the same amount and carry about an equal burden of average indebtedness. Saleswomen save the least, are less in debt than any- other group, excepting kitchen workers, and have the smallest surplus. The classification by wage groups shows that savings, as nfight be expected, increase pretty regularly from an average of $8.96 a year in the lowest division to $135.91 a year in the highest.^ The figures for debt exhibit no tendency to rise or fall with any regu- larity and cannot be made the basis for any deductions, as the returns on which they were based, as already noted, were incom- plete and untrustworthy. The form of saving differs widely. A popular form among working women is the co-operative savings bank. Investing money in this way necessitates regular saving, as one dollar must be de- posited monthly for each share that is taken. Fines are levied for failure to deposit the regular amount, and borrowing on amounts previously deposited is discouraged by charging a rate of interest slightly above that paid by the bank. The plan of stamp savings has been developed to a certain extent, chiefly through, the volunteer efforts of the settlement workers. It is to be doubted, however, whether stamp saving really encourages the starting of bank accounts, as is the purpose. This agency is used rather, it would seem, as a convenient sort of "stocking" in which to accumulate money toward the new suit or hat, or the Christmas gifts. Firms employing large numbers of workers frequently have savings organizations for their employes. Probably the most common method of saving among working women is insurance in some form." Among employes' asso- ciations this is usually in the form of sickness or death benefit; in other cases the common form is endowment or death policy. The greater number report death policies. Illness and endowment policies are about even in number. Over 40 per cent, of those reporting carry no insurance. The only permanent saving among working women appears to be that which takes the form of insurance. Savings deposited in banks are usually drawn out to meet the needs of a less prosperous time, and do not accumulate long, while payments toward an endow- ment policy or other benefit are made, if possible, even while debts iSee Table 2, p. 88. 'See Table 8, p. 84. Savings and Debts 83 are accumulating. Next to insurance in permanence comes saving through the co-operative banks, in which shareholders are fined for not depositing the regular amount. Lowest in respect to permanence, rank stamp savings, these being used up within a few months, as a general thing. On the whole, savings on any wage below $15 are largely a fictitious, temporary surplus of income over expenses. TABLE I. — Average Annual Savings and Debts, by Occupation. Occupation. Savings. Debts. Surplus of savings over debts. Amount. Percentage of income. Amount. Percentage of income. Amount. Percentage of income. Professional Clerical $130.41 88.65 38. 55 51.20 54-55 61.67 18.7s 17-74 10.79 13-39 14.97 18.02 «9S-54 27-39 17.91 29-36 30.28 17.07 13-74 5-48 S-oi 7.68 8-31 4-99 $34.87 61 . 26 20.64 21.84 24.27 44.60 S-OI 12 . 26 Sales S-78 5-71 6.66 13-03 Waitresses Kitchen workers. . TABLE 2. — Average Annual Savings and Debts, by. Wage Groups. Savings. Debts. yearly. Surplus of savings over debts. Deficit Wage. Amount. Percent- age of Amount. Percent- age of Amount. Per- centage of debts over savings. income. mcome. come. $3 . 00 4.00 $8.96 3-87 $29.09 12-57 $5-73 2.48 $20.13 5.00 6.00 7.00 7.64 2.18 II. 80 3-37 , 10.65 3-04 $35-84 8.00 9.00 10.00 ' . . . . 31-63 6.41 38.99 7.90 12.82 2.60 7-36 11.00 . 12.00 13.00 84.72 13-46 9-75 i-SS 18.96 3-01 74-97 14.00 J 15.00 and ■ . . .. 135-91 15-35 104.54 II. 81 21.25 Z.40 31-37 over J 84 The Living Wage of Women Workers TABLE 3. — ^Average Amount op Insurance, by Wage Groups. Wage. Savings. Insurance. Percentage of savings in insurance. $3.00 4.00 S-oo . 6.00 7.00 8.00 ^ 9.00 ' $8.96 47.64 31-63 84.72 135.91 $5-73 10.65 12.82 18.96 21 . 25 63-95 22.36 40.53 22;38 15-64 II .00 . 12.00 ■ 13.00 14.00 , 1 5 . 00 and over , CHAPTER IX MISCELLANEOUS EXPENDITURES INCLUDING RECREATION AND EDUCATION Expenditure for recreation covers a wide range — ^theaters and picture shows, excursions and outings, books and magazines, clubs and societies, and innumerable forms of amusement and indulgence. The line between recreation and other kinds of miscellaneous expen- diture is hard to draw. In particular, recreational and educational expenditures are often so intimately related as to be practically inseparable, as, for example, in the case of concerts and lectures. Any separate classification here is of necessity more or less arbitrary. It may be noted that there are many opportunities for recrea- tion and education open to women workers in Boston without charge. Free lectures, Lowell Institute courses, public concerts, municipal gymnasiums, working girls' clubs, and social settlements offer enter- tainment and instruction in abundance to all who care to avail themselves of these advantages. The investigator was impressed, however, with the fact that these clubs, classes, lectures and other opportunities of diversion and development demand a freshness of mind and body that but few women after the day's work have left to give. The opportunities are there, but the strength to grasp them is not. Long hours and low wages do not supply the surplus vitality demanded for the proper enjoyment of these eve- ning privileges. If the wages were sufficient to provide nourishing food and generally comfortable living conditions, and if the working day were short enough to allow more time for recuperation, the working girl might make good use of these chances for intellectual, physical and social development. But, under existing conditions, it is only those whose work makes light demands on their strength, or who are exceptionally vigorous, who can earn their own living, and at the same time spend their evenings profitably in the pursuit of pleasure or improvement. As in other forms of expenditures, the professional woman pays the most for recreation, car fares and incidental expenses, and gives the most to church, charity, and the support of others.^ •See Table 1, p. 8S. (8S? 86 The Living Wage of Women Workers On the other hand, she spends little for education, this, presumably, having been acquired and paid for in the past. Clerical women spend the next largest amount for recreation, for car fare and for church, charity and gifts. They also spend the largest amount for education. Sales girls spend for education almost as much as clerical women; they stand third in expenditure for recreation and the support of others. Their incidental expenses are the smallest. Factory women rank third in most branches of miscellaneous expen- diture, but fall back to fourth place in recreation. Waitresses spend less than factory women on recreation, almost nothing on education, less than any but kitchen workers on church, charity and gifts, and less than any but clerical women on the support of others. The percentage tables show sales girls spending the largest pro- portions for education and recreation. Professional and fac- tory women give away the largest percentages of their income. There are many among clerical and factory workers who regularly give the Biblical tithe, and at each rise in salary conscientiously increase their contributions to a tenth of their income. "I put one- tenth into a box I keep for that purpose," said one woman, "and when a collection is taken at the factory for some one, or when I am asked to contribute to something, I just take it out of that box. When it is gone I haven't any more to give until next salary day, but one-tenth always goes into it whether it is empty or full." Working women as a class are astonishingly generous. Probably the correct reason is the one so often given, that one must have experience in order to sympathize, and must have felt the need, to realize what it means to some one else. They are many of them near to want themselves, and this very fact makes them quick to give help to those a little nearer than themselves. It will be seen from the tables that working women, as a whole, spend more of the total amount that goes for miscellaneous expen- ditures on others than on themselves.^ In only two occupations is this not the case. Clerical women spend about a third of this allow- ance on others and saleswomen almost one-half ; the others spend less than one-half on themselves. Kitchen workers spend the bulk of their surplus money on others. The expenditure for recreation shows no regularity of increase with increasing wages, as do most miscellaneous expenses.^ This igee Tables 3 and 4, p. 90. i'See Tatle 2, p. 89. Miscellaneoiis Expenditures — Recreation, Education 87 is due to the difficulty of classifying expenditures for recreation, already mentioned. Doubtless, if all items that really belong under education were included in this class, the figures would show the usual upward tendency. Education expenses increase up to the $9 to $12 group, then decrease. The amount given to church and charity, to clubs, and as gifts increases steadily from $7.58 up to $42.62; that for the support of others also increases from $21.25 ^^P to $193.78. Car fares on the whole increase steadily. Incidental expenses fluctuate. The amounts spent on others increase from $28.83 to $236.40. On the whole, these figures increase with the rising wage up to the $9 to $11 group. The irregularities come in the groups beyond this. There are a comparatively small number of cases in the two highest wage groups so that the individual irregularities of spending per- haps have a greater effect here than in the preceding groups. How- ever, these individual irregularities certainly tend markedly down- ward, to bring the average of the $12 group so far below the $9 group. And the average beneficence of the highest wage group, it may be noted, is not materially higher than the $9 group. Evidently the pleasure wants are practically satisfied, then, in the $9 group. It is possible, of course, that what may be called a state of equilibrium is reached at this point. That is, the necessary comforts of living have risen to a sufficiently adequate point at this wage group to ren- der less effective the call of the theatre and the amusement park away from the sordidness of everyday life, and at the same time the amount which may be spent for amusements is large enough to per- mit of a reasonable quantity. The "for others" column shows a quite different result. In the lowest wage group, the amount spent on others is much smaller than the amount spent on self. In the next two groups, the expenditures are about evenly divided between others and self. In the fourth group the amount spent for others becomes much the larger. And in the highest group, the great bulk goes to others. According to these figures, then, the average working woman does not squander her income above the necessities of life on frivolity and pleasure, as is frequently assumed, but, beyond a reasonable amount spent on herself, devotes a much larger sum to the welfare of others. 88 The Living Wage of Women Workers X H o a !S •< ^ o < o a (4 '£ o i-i H < Bi O H Pi O g " « S. &t cq < o 1 Per- income. 3.17 2.64 .99 3.65 3.99 1.63 +s r- r» CO t^ lo o» a 1 S " " - a> .9 O O U3 CD t- Oa TlJ CO C^ <* 00 CO it o 1 CO CO S ^ M S "S iii°i U ^ ^ ^ 5 g ex's •g s t^ B g if CO o 3 ^ ai; II ili^i U3 3 CO "S .3 Hj § 00 OS s r- oc U3 s "* ? e4 I.i ' ^ 3i -* ec L« "• d ■| ^ g c I g O 1 1 I 1 1 1 i Miscellaneous Expenditures — Recreation, Education 89 O Q Z o Z o o « Q m is S Mo >j •«! z z < < Bi >• 1 15 -Se 1 a 1 !3 ss 53- s ^ (D III Dl eo c4 43 1 1 g S s So s 1 SS t^ e» s ^ ^-^ sss S3S S33 sss ill eo'-^'iQ cdf^OD oao^* Ncd-^i 90 The Living Wage of Women Workers TABLE 3. — Average Annual Expenditures por Self and for Others, by Occupation. Occupation. Professional Clerical , Sales , Factory Waitresses Kitchen workers Spent on self. Spent on others. (Church, charity. (Incidentals, recrea- tion, education. dubs, gifts, and SUD- and car fares.) port of others.) $107 IS $240 20 1 10 16 68 95 92 76 88 74 74 99 87 23 60 S6 61 64 34 14 112 57 TABLE 4. — ^Average Annual Expenditures for Self and for Others, by Wage Groups. Wage. Spent on self. (Incidentals, recrea- tion, education and car fares.) Spent on others. (CJhurch, charity, clubs, gifts, and support of others.) $3-oo ' 4.00 S-OO : 6.00 7.00 8.00 , 9.00 $44 -8S 57-48 94-86 69.82 96.59 $28.83 53-38 93.61 91-85 236.40 I I . 00 . 12.00 13.00 14.00 , 15.00 ' and over . . ,-^-— Date Due U^p^^-^^'^^ _^ -DjZiiUff K C—-:;^ ?5ifir" li-wwtru Q jy/3 JU^ r^S*^ .---^^ ^^^|b ^^^ -^'' y y^' / 1 Remington Rand nc. Cat. no. 1139. •ilKiitef. ■(,;■„. HD 6061.87™""'"™™"*'-"'"^ ^''^IIIHIIl'llSlIiiiuS? °' *"'"'*" workers; a study 3 1924 002 303 737 PROPERTY OF LIBRARY MEW YORK STATE SCHOOL INDUSTRIAL AHO LABOR RELATIONS CORNELL UNIVERStTY LoU