VSE026 Marjorie Collins, Hitachi, Hirwaun;Lines (Triang), Merthyr;General Electric Company, Merthyr

Her family background. Marjorie went to Technical college and left at 15 (1943) and worked in the Rediffusion office before going to Lines for three months before getting pregnant (1949). Dirty work but enjoyed company. Xmas fun. Returned there (1951). Welding and riveting toy push-chairs. Doing up their home. Told to take it easy in work – spoiling the rate for the men. Men teasing her. Factory (Triang) also made full size prams etc. Singing. Worked in a garage for years then. Then to GEC in Merthyr (?when she was 49 -1977) and then to spotlessly clean Hitachi factory, Hirwaun – full-time. In Merthyr making circuit boards – and likewise in Hitachi but also other jobs there. Japanese boys not allowed to fraternise with local workers. In the beginning Japanese said there were too many ‘white-heads’ there – then realised they were good workers. Younger workers spent time in toilets. Describes the solder bath at GEC. In those days if you didn’t work you were existing not living. She finished when she was 60 (1988).

VSW032 Jenny Sabine, Prestcold Fridges, Jersey Marine;Penn Elastic, Fforestfach

Jenny describes Swansea after the bombing during the war. She decided to become a secretary and worked at the Prestcold Fridges factory for 4 months in 1961. She describes the journey to work, and clocking out. There wasn’t a lot to do there but she was asked, as a woman, to do sound trials on washing machines. She had little contact with the factory floor. She moved to Penn Elastic which made elastic net for corsetry, 1961. Men did the managerial jobs and there was some verbal and sexual harassment. She left to work at the university library.

VSE048 Mary Brice, Guest, Keen and Nettlefold (GKN);Silouette Underwear, Cardiff

After leaving school at 14 Mary had several jobs (café, David Morgan’s, Welsh Mills etc) before getting married and staying home with the children for ten years. Then she did agency work before joining the wages department at Silhouette’s. The factory girls were very sociable and included her. The factory made lingerie and swim wear. There was a nurse there who dealt with personal problems and minor injuries. The wages were basic + piece work. The factory was run from Shrewsbury. She remembers the huge support the factory girls gave to an unmarried mother. There were special buses from Barry. She organised chocolates for the workers at Christmas. She moved to work for the Electricity Board after four years.

VSE041 Janet Taylor, Distillers, Barry;Guest, Keen and Nettlefold (GKN)

Janet left grammar school at 16-7 (1958) and went to work in the Laboratory in Nettlefolds. She had passed 8 O Levels. She was measuring the different elements in the steel. She did a day release course in Chemistry. Boys on apprenticeships but girls had to do the donkey work. Routine analysis. Different canteens for different levels of staff. Working on samples of steel shavings- c. 60 at a time. She names elements. White coats often full of holes. Sandals because of the heat and no underwear. Describes process. Rubber gloves – she got dermatitis from them. Dangerous because of sulphuric acid burns. One man very badly burned. Boys paid more. No union. Cleaning everything in factory during annual holiday. In very hot weather they sunbathed on the factory roof – in the muck from the steel works! Women in the offices too – but not on factory floor where the furnaces were and the roll mill. Social and sports club. Playing skittles. Staff dances and dinners. Party at Xmas in lab. Separate dos for staff and works. She worked there for 5 years, then a break and to Distillers - in lab. for a couple of years. . Making PVC – testing it and finding a use for it. Paid monthly – posh. She was working there in 1963. Returned to the steel works for a couple of years then to the Ministry of Agric. for 21 years. Then the Welsh Office in finance for 10 years.

VSW008 Sally Cybluski, Parsons Pickles, Burry Port;The Optical, Kidwelly

Sally left school in 1935 aged 14. When she was 18 she was called up and worked on a farm – selling milk in Carmarthen. She fell and broke her back. Then she worked in a wool shop. She talks about her husband who was a prisoner with the Gemans – came to Wales. They got married in 1946. She worked in a pickle factory – awful place. She packed mussels. She saw a piece of paper written by Parsons saying that all the factory girls were lazy. She complained and was sacked. She worked at a cleaners for 10 years, then at the Optical factory, where her husband worked. Describes process of making lenses. The cold – the lenses were kept in a large freezer. They had to do 11 trolley loads a day. It was heavy work; her shoulders and legs have been affected. It was also very noisy and she’s deaf now. They had to buy Swarfega to clean their hands from the company – she tells the story of an Italian stealing it. She tells the story of Wadic, her husband’s illness.

VSW011 Augusta Davies, Cardwells, Lampeter;Slimma-Dewhirst, Lampeter

Augusta left school at 16 (1961), worked as a cleaner, married and had a child before starting in Cardwells' in 1965. She was there for 2 years before having another child and returning to Slimma’s (1976-2002). She missed the girls when she finished. In Slimma's they all had targets and they checked on them every two hours. No union in Cardwells' but there was one in Slimma's. Towards the end lots of young lads from school worked as machinists too – pulling their legs. They sang to the music on the radio. No time to talk. She discusses the change from cash payment to paying through the bank. They had trips from both factories, a Xmas part with a turkey and wine as a bonus in Slimma's. Buying seconds. There was a creche in Slimma's – bussing children to Cardigan (c.1990??). She also worked in the Llandovery and Swansea factories. She left because of her arthritis.

VSW010 Phyllis Eldrige & Olga Thomas, Cardwells, Lampeter;Cardwells, Machynlleth

Phyllis left school at 16 (c.1959) and stayed home on the farm for 3 years before replying to an advert in the paper for a machinist at Cardwells'. A bus took them to Machynlleth. Stayed in lodgings. Olga left school at 15 years (1959), worked in an egg packing factory and then in Cardwells' Machynlleth. They also travelled by train. They earned £4 a week + lodging + travelling. Stayed there one year, until the Lampeter factory was ready. The factory was closed for weeks in 1963 - snow but no pay. Girls came from the outlying villages. They made women's dresses mainly. Can't remember a union - just 'grin and bear it'. They had the off-cuts. Needles through fingers. Sewing was skilled work V ironing. They spoke Welsh mainly. They left when expecting baby. Phyllis bought a machine and worked from home. It gave them satisfaction to see women out in clothes they had made.

VSW011 Augusta Davies, Cardwells, Lampeter;Slimma-Dewhirst, Lampeter

Augusta left school at 16 (1961), worked as a cleaner, married and had a child before starting in Cardwells' in 1965. She was there for 2 years before having another child and returning to Slimma’s (1976-2002). She missed the girls when she finished. In Slimma's they all had targets and they checked on them every two hours. No union in Cardwells' but there was one in Slimma's. Towards the end lots of young lads from school worked as machinists too – pulling their legs. They sang to the music on the radio. No time to talk. She discusses the change from cash payment to paying through the bank. They had trips from both factories, a Xmas part with a turkey and wine as a bonus in Slimma's. Buying seconds. There was a creche in Slimma's – bussing children to Cardigan (c.1990??). She also worked in the Llandovery and Swansea factories. She left because of her arthritis.

VSW009 Helena Gregson, Slimma-Dewhirst, Lampeter

Helena left school at 15 in 1970. She used to sew for the family. She went straight to Slimma's and stayed 32 years (2002). She had a machine test. She earned £10 a week. She remembers the noise of the machines, piece-work, targets and tickets, the clothes went to M&S. It was a ‘good school’- she was flexible as a floater. There was a Social Club there. She left to have her first child (1982) and returned part time. She went to London to train as supervisor. She became a shop steward. Some girls wore rollers to work. Accidents with the needles. One girl's hair went into the machine. Guessing the names of songs on the radio - Golden Oldies. At Xmas there was turkey and champagne as bonus. They had seconds. Some of the women played football and they had a Slimma Queen. She set up her own sewing business after leaving. The factory moved to Morocco. There was great sadness at this.

VSW026 Eileen Davies, Slimma-Dewhirst, Llandovery

Eileen left school at 15 (1969) after doing her A Level in sewing and taught in night school etc, until she had her daughter and then she started in Slimma’s, Llandovery. The factory produced elasticated waist trousers for M&S. There were no cutters there and each one sewed a different part of the garment. Eileem feels that farm girls are used to hard work. They had detailed instructions (e.g. how many stitches an inch) from M&S. Eileen did some checking of goods, then became a floater. She wasn’t fast enough to be on the line. She also worked making jeans in the Lampeter factory. After leaving college she worked for a while in a small factory in Kenfig Hill making clothes from Welsh flannel. When checking in Slimma’s it was difficult to tell a worker to re-do the work. She became a supervisor. Dispute would arise when machines broke and the work was on stop. The girls had no ambition. Not a union member. The heaps of trousers absorbed the noise. Health and Safety – carrying heavy weight. Some of the girls went to the pub after pay on Fridays. They had a turkey each at Xmas. She left to get married.