| Discrete Collections | The Women's Library |
| Title | Strand 6: Women's Employment Organisations |
| Ref No | Strand/06 |
| Date | 1901-1999 |
| Extent | 30 archives (958 A boxes) |
| Admin Biographical History | This is a heterogeneous grouping of women's organisations, many of which had nothing at all to do with each other, although they are all connected to issues around the workplace and women's working and professional life. Some, such as the women's civil service unions, and later campaigning bodies, were/are concerned with improving the lot of their members. Others were/are women-centred arts, media or business ventures with a feminist aim. |
| Description | The Women's Library Archives Strand 6: Women's Employment Organisations consists of the papers and memorabilia of organisations campaigning to improve women's status in the workplace; the papers and memorabilia of women-centred business and arts ventures. Please see individual collection descriptions for more detail.
Please note that there is some cross-over with Strand 5 (Campaigning Organisations), check both strands for material of interest.
Material is predominantly in English, though other languages (mostly European) are also represented.
This Strand consists of organisations all connected to women, the workplace, their employment, careers and professional life. Some, such as the women's civil service unions, and later campaigning bodies, were concerned with improving the lot of their members. Others were women-centred arts, media or business ventures with a feminist aim. There are close links to Strands 5 and 7, as well as to the Museum Collection and Printed Collection. The earliest archive is that of the Writer's Club (6WCW) (c.1891-1900) whose membership requirement was to have published at least one book. Its members included Flora Shaw of 'The Times'. This 'networking' type of organisation has been of great importance to women and similar groups are represented in this strand. However, such organisations also campaigned for effective changes in their particular sector such as the Association of Women Clerks & Secretaries (6AWC), the Women's Engineering Society, the British Federation of Business & Professional Women or Women in Media. The Women's Library also hold the archives of actual businesses such as The Onlywomen Press (6TWP) or Sheba Feminist Press (6SFP) whose archives reflect their belief that change in their sector would only be effected by having women-only input. Successful campaigns, for example, the Equal Pay Campaign Committee (6EPC) are represented, as well as more recent concepts in changing work patterns, such as the archives of New Ways to Work (6NWW) and Parents at Work (6PAW). Formal national bodies such as National Advisory Centre on Careers for Women (6WEF) sit alongside more 'radical' feminist groups such as Fanny Adams (6FYA) (a 1990s anonymous feminist pressure group of women artists).
As at 2008 The Strand comprised the following archives:
6APC Records of the Association of Post Office Women Clerks and its Successors (1901-1932)
6AWC Records of the Association of Women Clerks and Secretaries (1920-1936)
6BFB Records of the British Federation of Business & Professional Women (1933-1972)
6CCS Records of the Council of Women Civil Servants (1920-1959)
6CFW Records of Careers for Women (1960-1993)
6CWT Records of The Standing Conference of Women Theatre Directors and Administrators (1980-1986)
6EPC Records of the Equal Pay Campaign Committee (1943-1956)
6FCS Records of the Federation of Women Civil Servants (1915-1942)
6FYA Fanny Adams (1992-1993)
6IHE Records of the Institute of Home Economics (1954-1999)
6JCS Records of the Joint Committee on Women in the Civil Service (1919-1954)
6MOW Movement for the Ordination of Women
6NCS National Association of Women Civil Servants (1931-1959)
6NOW Records of the National Organisation for Women's Management Education (1981-1990)
6NWW Records of New Ways to Work (c.1980-2002)
6OWP Records of The Onlywomen Press, Ltd. (1972-1999)
6PAW Records of Parents at Work (c.1980-2002)
6SFP Records of Sheba Feminist Press (1981-1994)
6TWP Records of The Women's Press (1970s-2003)
6WCW Records of the Writer's Club (c.1891-1900)
6WEF Records of the National Advisory Centre on Careers for Women (1910-1980)
6WEP Records of the Women's Employment Publishing Company (1932-1946)
6WES Records of the Women's Engineering Society: papers of Ira Rischowski (1939-1988)
6WIE Women in Entertainment (1980-1988)
6WIG Records of Women in Gynaecology & Obstetrics (1982-1997)
6WIL Women in Libraries (1973-1987)
6WIM Records of Women in Media (1967-1999)
6WIP Records of Women in Publishing (c.1980-c.1990) |
| Related Material | Within the Women's Library there are close links to
Archive Strands 2: Women's Suffrage Societies,
Strand 5: Women's Campaigning Organisations and
Strand 7: Personal Papers.
The Women's Library Museum Collection includes objects created by these organisations. The Women's Library Printed Collections holds a range of publications by these organisations, in particular the newsletters and journals - this can include years before and after the archive. |
| Access Status | Open |
| Access Conditions | Readers are advised to contact The Women's Library @ LSE in advance of their first visit.
Uncatalogued archives are not currently available for consultation, but access status is under review; please contact us for further information.
A number of catalogued files are closed in accordance with the Data Protection Act.
A number of items in the archives will require remedial conservation work before they can be accessed by the public - these are indicated on the catalogue.
Please see individual catalogues for further information
Items are sometimes in exhibitions, on site or externally - these are indicated on the catalogue |