Wigan Album

I don’t know where this is but you can bet those workers were on piecework. eg. The more they sewed the more they earned. I did a stint after leaving school at a sewing factory off Darlington St. ( Can’t think of the name) the work was candlewick bedspreads, I pretended to myself it was more like embroidery! It was following lines on the spreads with various coloured threads which came out on the ‘right’ side as tufted. The bedspreads had various names such as ‘Solero’ ….if the work ran out for any reason we didn’t get paid. I think I did about 18 months. I moved on then to Turners at Hindley Green. The exact opposite of what I had been doing in sewing! You could walk into a job anytime in the sixties. ( without experience!).

Do you think the young woman at the front left of the pic has been posed ? Long legs in nylons, necklace, nice hair style etc...she doesnt look like the women working at the sewing machines. A publicity pic ?

Perhaps she’s the owner’s daughter Helen - pretending to check the work, as she does look well dressed compared to the poor workforce…..