Name: Domestic service
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Domestic service

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CHAPTER I Introduction
Frequency of discussion of domestic service	1
Personal character of the discussion	2
Omission of the subject from economic discussion	2
General reasons for this omission	2
Specific reasons for this omission	4
Fundamental reason for this omission	5
Can this omission be justified?	6
CHAPTER II Historical Aspects of Domestic Employments
Condition of industries in the eighteenth century	7
Inventions of the latter part of the century	7
Immediate result of these inventions	8
Co-operating influences	8
Effect of inventions on household employments	9
Release of work from the household	9
Diversion of labor from the household to other places	10
Results of this diversion to other places	11
Diversion of labor from the household into other channels	11
Household labor becomes idle labor	12
Outlets for idle labor	12
General result of change of work in the household	13
Division of labor in the household only partial	13
Interdependence of all industries	15
CHAPTER III Domestic Service during the Colonial Period
Domestic service has a history	16
Three periods of this history	16
The colonial period	16
Classes of servants during this period	17
Early reasons for colonizing America	17
Advantage to England of disposing of her undesirable population	17
Protests against this method of settlement	18
The freewillers	19
Proportion of redemptioners	20
Place of birth of redemptioners	20
Social condition of redemptioners	21
Methods of securing redemptioners	22
Form of indenture	22
Servants without indenture	22
Virginia law in regard to servants without indenture	23
Early condition of redemptioners	25
Subsequent improvement in condition	27
Wages of redemptioners	28
Legal regulation of wages	30
Character of service rendered by redemptioners	31
Service in Virginia	32
Service in Maine	33
Service in Massachusetts	34
Colonial legislation in regard to masters and servants	37
Laws for the protection of servants	38
Physical protection	39
Laws for the protection of masters	40
Laws in regard to runaways	40
Harboring runaways	41
Inducements to return runaways	43
Corporal punishment	44
Trading or bartering with servants	45
Miscellaneous laws protecting masters	46
Obligation of masters to community	47
Redemptioners after expiration of service	48
Indian servants	49
Negro slavery	51
General summary of character of service during the colonial period	52
CHAPTER IV Domestic Service since the Colonial Period
Second period in history of domestic service	54
Substitution for redemptioners of American “help”	54
Democratic condition of service	55
Observations of European travellers	55
Characteristics of the period	61
Third period in the history of domestic service	62
The Irish famine of 1846	62
The German revolution of 1848	63
Opening of treaty relations with China in 1844	64
Abolition of slavery in 1863	65
Effect of these movements on domestic service	65
Development of material resources	66
Effect of this on domestic service	67
Immobility of labor of women	68
Change in service indicated by history of the word “servant”	69
Early meaning of the word “servant”	69
Use of word “help”	70
Reintroduction of word “servant”	71
Impossibility of restoring previous conditions of service	72
CHAPTER V Economic Phases of Domestic Service
Domestic service amenable to economic law	74
Many domestic employees of foreign birth	74
Geographical distribution of foreign born employees	75
Concentration of foreign born women in remunerative occupations on domestic service	77
The foreign born seek the large cities	77
Foreign countries having the largest representation in large cities	78
Foreign countries having the largest representation in domestic service	78
Conclusion in regard to foreign born domestic employees	80
General distribution of domestic employees	80
Domestic employees few in agricultural states	80
The number large in states with large urban population	80
The number not affected by aggregate wealth	82
The number somewhat affected by per capita wealth	82
Domestic employees found in largest numbers in large cities	83
Proportion of domestic employees varies with geographical location and prevailing industry	84
Neither aggregate nor per capita wealth determines number of domestic employees in cities	86
Prevailing industry of city determines number of domestic servants	87
Competition for domestics between wealth and manufacturing industries	88
Wages in domestic service	88
Conformity of wages to general economic conditions	89
Skilled labor commands higher wages than unskilled labor	89
The skilled laborer a better workman than the unskilled	90
The foreign born receive higher wages than the native born	91
Men receive higher wages in domestic service than women	92
Tendency towards increase in wages	93
Comparison of wages in domestic service with wages of women in other occupations	93
High wages in domestic service do not counterbalance advantages in other occupations	103
Domestic service offers few opportunities for promotion	103
Time unemployed in domestic service	104
High wages maintained without strikes	105
Conclusions in regard to wages in domestic service	106
Conclusions in regard to general economic conditions	106
CHAPTER VI Difficulties in Domestic Service from the Standpoint of the Employer
Conditions of the average family	107
Difficulties in domestic service	108
Prevalence of foreign born employees	108
Restlessness among employees	109
Employment in skilled labor of unskilled laborers	112
Difficulty in changing employees	114
Recommendations of employers	114
The employment bureau	115
Indifference of employers to economic law	117
Illustrations of this indifference	117
Difference between the employers of domestic labor and other employers	121
Difficulties considered are not personal	122
Difficulties not decreasing	125
Difficulties not confined to America	127
The question in England	127
Condition of service in Germany	128
Service in France	129
Summary of difficulties	129
CHAPTER VII Advantages in Domestic Service
Personnel in domestic service	130
Reasons why women enter domestic service	131
High wages	131
Occupation healthful	132
It gives externals of home life	133
Special home privileges	133
Free time during the week	134
Annual vacations	135
Knowledge of household affairs	137
Congenial employment	137
Legal protection	138
Summary of advantages	138
CHAPTER VIII The Industrial Disadvantages of Domestic Service
Reasons why women do not choose domestic service	140
No opportunity for promotion	141
Work in itself not difficult	142
“Housework is never done”	142
Lack of organization	143
Irregularity of working hours	143
Work required evenings and Sundays	146
Competition with the foreign born and negroes	146
Lack of independence	147
Summary of industrial disadvantages	149
CHAPTER IX The Social Disadvantages of Domestic Service
Lack of home life	151
Lack of social opportunities	152
Lack of intellectual opportunities	153
Badges of social inferiority	154
Use of word “servant”	155
The Christian name in address	156
The cap and apron	157
Acknowledgment of social inferiority	158
Giving of fees	158
Objections to feeing system	159
Excuses made for it	161
Other phases of social inferiority	162
Social inferiority overbalances industrial advantages of the occupation	163
Comparison of advantages and disadvantages of the occupation	165
CHAPTER X Doubtful Remedies
Difference of opinion in regard to remedies possible	167
General principles to be applied	168
The golden rule	169
Capability and intelligence of employer	170
Receiving the employee into the family life of the employer	170
Importation of negroes from the South	172
Importation of Chinese	176
Granting of licenses	177
German service books	178
Convention of housekeepers	179
Abolishing the public school system	179
“Servant Reform Association”	179
Training schools for servants	180
Advantages of such schools	180
Practical difficulties in the way	182
Not in harmony with present conditions	184
Co-operative housekeeping	186
Advantages of the plan	187
Objections to it	188
Practical difficulties in carrying it out	190
Co-operative boarding	191
Objections to the plan	192
Mr. Bellamy’s plan	192
Reasons for considering these proposed measures impracticable	193
CHAPTER XI Possible Remedies—General Principles
Remedies must take into account past and present conditions	194
Industrial tendencies	194
Concentration of capital and labor	194
Specialization of labor	195
Associations for mutual benefit	195
Specialization of education	195
Profit sharing	196
Industrial independence of women	196
Helping persons to help themselves	196
Publicity in business affairs	197
The question at issue	198
Impossibility of finding a panacea	199
General measures	199
Truer theoretical conception of place of household employments	199
A more just estimate of their practical importance	200
Removal of prejudice against housework	201
Correction of misconceptions in regard to remuneration for women’s work	201
Summary of general principles	203
CHAPTER XII Possible Remedies—Improvement in Social Condition
Social disadvantages	204
Possibility of removing them	204
Provision for social enjoyment	205
Abolishing the word “servant”	207
Disuse of the Christian name in address	209
Regulation of use of the cap and apron	209
Abandoning of servility of manner	210
Principles involved in freeing domestic service from social objections	211
CHAPTER XIII Possible Remedies—Specialization of Household Employments
Putting household employments on a business basis	212
Articles formerly made only in the household	212
Articles in a transitional state	213
Articles now usually made in the house	213
Removal of work from the household	215
This change in line with industrial development	215
Indications of its ultimate prevalence	216
The Woman’s Exchange	217
The opening up to women of a new occupation	218
Ultimate preparation of most articles of food outside of the individual home	219
Advantages of this plan	219
Objections raised to it	221
These objections not valid	221
Laundry work done out of the house	222
Advantages of the plan	223
Possibility of having work done by the hour, day, or piece	223
Improved method of purchasing household supplies	225
Operation of unconscious business co-operation	226
General advantages of specialization of household employments	228
Objections raised to the plan	230
These objections not valid	231
Illustrations of success of the plan	233
CHAPTER XIV Possible Remedies—Profit Sharing
Industrial disadvantages of domestic service	235
Industrial difficulties in other occupations still unsettled	236
Possible relief through profit sharing	236
Definition of profit sharing	236
History of profit sharing	237
Advantages of profit sharing in other occupations	237
Lessons to be learned from profit sharing	240
Domestic service wealth consuming rather than wealth producing	240
The wage system not satisfactory in the occupation	241
Application of the principle of profit sharing to the household	242
Advantages of the plan in the household	244
Its advantages in hotels, restaurants, and railroad service	244
Substitution of profit sharing for fees	244
Objections to profit sharing in the household	245
These objections do not hold	246
Experiments in profit sharing in the household	248
CHAPTER XV Possible Remedies—Education in Household Affairs
Lack of information one obstacle in the household	251
Difference between information and education	251
What is included in information	251
Difficulty of obtaining information in regard to the household	252
Advance in other occupations through publicity of all information gained	252
What is included in education	252
Information and education necessary in the household	254
Progress hindered through lack of these	254
Cause of inactivity in household affairs	254
Assumption that knowledge of the household comes by instinct	254
Assumption that household affairs concern only women	256
Belief that all women have genius for household affairs	257
Theory that household affairs are best learned at home	258
Tendencies in the opposite direction	259
Establishment of school of investigation	259
Necessity for investigation before progress can be made	260
CHAPTER XVI Conclusion
Summary of points considered	263
Failure to recognize industrial character of domestic service	264
Conservatism of women	264
Summary of difficulties	265
Explanation of difficulties	265
Responsibility of all employers	266
Results to be expected from investigation	266
Removal of social stigma	266
Simplification of manner of life	267
Household employments on a business basis	268
Profit sharing	268
Investigation of household affairs	269
Readjustment of work of both men and women	270
Difficulty of dealing with women as an economic factor	270
Advantages of their working for remuneration	272
Division of labor in the household	272
Reform possible only through use of existing means	273
General conclusion	274
CHAPTER XVII Domestic Service in Europe
Opinion held in America	275
Ideal service not found in Europe	275
Influences that affect the question	276
External conditions that affect the question	277
Architecture a factor in the problem	277
Difficulties of the European employer	278
Advantages of service in Europe	280
Baking and laundry done out of the house	280
Legal contracts in Germany	281
The German service book	284
Employment of men	286
Wages in domestic service in Europe	288
Supplementary fees and profits	290
Allowances	292
Insurance	292
Difficulty of determining exact wages	293
Character of the service	294
Other factors affecting the question	295
Social condition of the employee	296
In England	297
In France	299
In Italy	299
Benefactions for servants in Germany	299
Conclusion	301
Appendix I. Copy of schedules distributed	305
Appendix II. List of places from which replies to schedules were received	314
Appendix III. Circular sent out by the social science section of the Civic Club of Philadelphia	315
Bibliography	317
Index	323

CONTENTS