ON Remembrance Sunday it’s only right that we remember those who fought and died in wars across the world, across the centuries. But we don’t always pay regard to the women in Scotland, the UK and abroad who brought about change with their efforts and sacrifices during the First World War.

In general, the rate of women’s employment in the UK increased dramatically during the war due to dire need. Research indicates it rose by as much as 20%. It might have been more, since “domestic workers” were not included in the statistics as they moved from “domestic/servant” into paid war work.

The fact that married women moved from the home to paid employment had long-term implications. Nearly 40% of all women workers by the end of the First World War were married. It goes without saying that women were paid less than men; one person’s inequality became another person’s financial gain. As women did essential war work for less pay, testing condenser tubes at John Brown & Co’s yard in Clydebank, they did so in front of a chalked board telling them: “When the boys come back we are not going to keep you any longer girls”.

However, government and employers were in for a wake-up call. Many newly working women recognised this inequality, and refused to accept less pay than men, a precursor of “equal pay for equal work”. Women workers went on strike in 1918 demanding the same increase in pay or war bonus as given to the men. As far as I know, this was the first equal pay strike in the UK. And they won. But the big stitch-up by government, backed by societal perceptions, (women-mothers-babies- stay-at-home) followed. In 1917, the government had set up a committee to look into women’s pay, but waited until after the war to release its final report. Sound familiar?

Guarantees were given to the trades unions that equal pay would only be paid in the war years and would not continue after the war when the men returned. Additionally the “equal” in “equal pay” was only payable if it could be demonstrated that women had “fully replaced skilled men”. What chance of previous experience? Very little and with training on the job, it was easy to dispute “fully replace” thus enabling the lower wage be paid! Despite this, women’s entry into paid employment continued.

War saw the emergence of women police officers known as Women’s Patrols. No bobby on street patrols for them. No equal pay, since they were used to maintain discipline and watch over women’s behaviour around factories and hostels.

Unbelievably, child care got a boost. There was no doubting the need for women workers, especially in munitions factories. This prompted the government to provide some funds towards the cost of day nurseries, but only for munitions workers. By 1917 there were more than 100 day nurseries across the country. But other women workers? No chance; they had to depend on family and neighbours!

You cannot consider the First World War without Glasgow and its role as the leading Scottish militant centre, and support for the anti-war movement. Yes, John Maclean, but there were also the Maxton sisters, Jessie, Annie and Ada, who along with brother James began campaigning for peace from the day war was declared. The year 1915 saw women, including Chrystal Macmillan (the first ever woman to graduate in science from the University of Edinburgh, in 1896), go to The Hague, meeting with other European activists at the Women’s Peace Congress. This included German, Austrian and Italian women and the Women’s Peace Party, formed in January 1915 in Washington DC.

So inspired by this was Helen Crawfurd (leading suffragette) that in June 1916 she launched the Women’s Peace Crusade in Glasgow. By Armistice, the crusade was probably the largest “movement” in Glasgow rooted in its working-class support. Sadly, but understandably, there had been a split in the women’s’ suffragette movement over the war: Crawfurd and the anti-war groups; and Helen Fraser leading the war support. That the crusade both survived and flourished was remarkable in view of the UK government’s anti-German propaganda, reinforced by even more pro-war propaganda in the papers, cinemas and music halls. By war end there were more than 100 crusade branches across Scotland, a tribute to the women, their families, sacrifices and determination.

This is a nothing more than a mere snapshot of the achievements of some women and their political activism and internationalism, in one small particular time period. So when we hear it said “lest we forget”, can we please start remembering the great who went before?

Selma Rahman
Edinburgh