When the First
World War was declared, large numbers of men joined the services.
By 1916 over 3,000,000 men had joined the army. In February 1916,
all single men and childless widowers aged 18 to 41 were compulsory
conscripted into the armed forces. The country was no desperately
short of labour. The Government decided that more women would have
to become more involved in producing food and goods to support their
war effort. It was suggested that as a reward for their effort, women
would be given he right to vote after the war. Over a 250,000 women
became farm labourers during the war. However, in some areas, farmers
were unwilling to employ women. In 1916 the Board of Trade began sending
agricultural organising officers around the country in an effort to
persuade farmers to accept women workers.
In June 1916, East
Grinstead had a visit from Miss Bradley, Agricultural Organising
Officer for the Board of Trade. She criticised local farmers for being
prejudiced against women workers and warned that there would be food
shortages if they did not employ more women.
Bethaney
Bostock (Sackville School, East Grinstead)
(1)
The East Grinstead Observer (17th June, 1916)
At
St. Michael's Parish Hall, Miss Bradley, agricultural organising officer
for the Board of Trade, said that Sussex had been one of the best
countries for recruiting for the army and navy, and she hoped that
with the co-operation of the farmers it would occupy a similar position
with regard to women working on the land and filling the places of
the men who had gone to fight for their country. She knew that in
Sussex there was a strong feeling against "foreigners",
and therefore it was all the more necessary that women of Sussex should
help in this movement, so that it would not be necessary to import
female labour from other counties. She believed that the home grown
food supply would be a quarter below the average that year. Women
generally had responded splendidly to this call for service. The same
could not hardly be said of the farmers, but she realised that there
were difficulties and prejudices were being gradually overcome and
that when farmers realised that women could do useful work they would
accept their service more and more readily. Women were proving in
many directions that they could perform useful work - in offices,
in munition works, and she had even seen them assisting in tarring
and repairing roads. On farms, too, they could be of great assistance
they could do valuable work with weeding. Three pence an hour was
the minimum wage for untrained helpers.
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