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From the mid-nineteenth century, the Birmingham pen factories supplied the world with steel pens. The industry was completely reliant on the high productivity levels and compliance of its predominantly female workforce. Accounts written by nineteenth-century factory visitors lauded the clean light factories and the manufacturers’ care for their employees. However, by piecing together factory inspector reports, oral accounts and union records, a different picture emerges. The women worked under relentless pressure, pay was poor, and a culture of fines and deductions prevailed. Physical and mental health problems were also commonplace, with women suffering debilitating injuries. The pen manufacturers amassed vast fortunes, and staunchly resisted regulation and the formation of a women’s trade union in the 1890s, which threatened their lucrative business models. The reliance placed on accounts written by nineteenth-century commentators, and the image of respectability and benevolence they created has obscured the negative aspects of the women’s employment.

The Birmingham Pen Factories, and Their Female Workforce, 1850-1914