Female Workers, the Confectionery Industry, and the London Labour Market c.1880

Abstract

This paper explores the labour conditions of a small confectionery firm, Epps and Co., in late Victorian London before the rise of New Unionism. Utilizing details of employees and disciplinary proceedings contained within a wage book uncovered in the Rowntree’s company archives, it explores how discipline was enacted in the complex world of the London labour market. The relationship between, employer, employee, and discipline placed significant emphasis on the individual rather than the group, and both employer strategy and employee resistance operated on a remarkably singular level.