Class and Gender in British Labour History: Renewing the Debate (or starting it?)Edited by Mary Davis (Merlin Press, 2011)

“Historians have a lot to answer for: our knowledge of the past is filtered through their collective lens” (Mary Davis, p14)

Davis argues that despite the enormous contributions made by marxist historians to our understanding of class, the failure of labour and marxist historians to acknowledge the role women and black workers have played in class formation, trade union struggle and political action, has resulted in an incomplete and gender-blind analysis of class and capitalism. This collection of essays seeks to rectify this omission and document the valuable role played by women in the UK as workers, trade unionists and political activists.

Women and children were among the first factory workers, occupying unskilled factory roles as industrialisation developed, particularly within the textile and clothing industries, and there are several chapters documenting these women workers, the effect of their work on their communities, the development of their class-consciousness, and women’s perceptions of themselves as workers and organisers. The income brought in to families by women’s work in factories and sweatshops was valued by their menfolk during harsh economic times, yet they reacted against women working and the imposition of industrial capitalist labour processes onthem, viewing the necessity of women working outside the home as subversive to existing social and sexual relations and the exercise of male power.

Women workers organised autonomously for better working conditions, joined trade unions and supported male workers’ struggles, however many of the trade unions did not support women’s rights to a decent wage, and treated women with suspicion. Female labour was viewed as undermining man’s right to be the main breadwinner, and it was felt that campaigning for higher wages for women would reduce male workers right to higher wages. The Trade Union movement failed to realise the importance of a decent wage for all, and frequently campaigned for a segregated workforce, with women occupying the lower paid, lower prestige jobs, therefore maintaining the status quo and male workers rights to a superior wage.

I found the chapter on the exclusion of women from the building trade particularly interesting. The authors traced the fallacy of “skill” and “skilled work” as being an essentially male trait, and it’s use by male workers, trade unions and the capitalists, as a way of deliberating denying women workers to training, apprenticeships and jobs. The result of this is felt even today, with women depressingly under-represented in the construction industry.

This book is a very in-depth examination of the history of women, work and trade unionism in the UK. Although some of the chapters felt quite academic, because so much of the material was totally new to me, I found it an enjoyable and very interesting read. It enlightened me on my own position as a worker, trade unionist and political activist, and on the impact of the historic sidelining of women on my own perception of class identity. A must read for all those interested in labour and women’s history, women’s liberation and the class struggle.

Reviewed by Una Byrne