The Fire Within

During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, young women and girls known as "matchstick girls," or "match girls," worked in match factories, mostly in industrial hubs like London, England. Their story, which emphasizes poverty, hazardous working conditions, and the growing struggle for labor rights, is a moving illustration of the hard reality that the working class endured during this time.

The Work They Did:

The matchstick girls' main responsibility was to produce matches, a relatively new but increasingly necessary good. There were multiple steps in the procedure, which was frequently carried out in small, poorly ventilated factories. The raw materials were cut into splints, usually made of pine or aspen wood. Following that, these splints were submerged in a flammable chemical solution, usually white phosphorus. After drying, the splint's opposite end was dipped into a visually arresting mixture, typically made up of potassium chlorate and additional ingredients. Packing the completed matches into tiny wooden boxes or paper sleeves was the last stage.

This method engaged the matchstick females in different ways. Younger kids, often as young as five or six, may be used to put the matchboxes together or sort the wood splints. The more dangerous jobs, including dipping the splints into the phosphorous solution and packing the completed matches, were usually left to older girls and young women. Dexterity and speed were required for this task, and employees frequently faced pressure to reach quotas and keep up a fast pace for extended workdays (usually ten to fourteen hours each day, six days a week).

How They Got Their Name:

The term "matchstick girls" is a simple way to describe what they do. They were the young ladies and girls whose work was essential to the matchstick manufacturing process. The phrase was frequently used to describe this particular group of female manufacturing workers in reporting from the present day, social commentary, and eventually historical narratives. It provided a straightforward and easy means of recognizing them in the public eye and connecting them to the final product they labored to produce.

Hazards of the Job:

The most well-known health and safety risk associated with the matchstick girls' job was "phossy jaw," also known as phosphorous necrosis. The chemical that was frequently used to make matches because it ignited easily, white phosphorus, was extremely poisonous. Employees were exposed to its dust and fumes by direct skin contact and breathing. This exposure may eventually result in a debilitating severe deformity that affects the jaw bones.

The onset of phossy jaw was accompanied by gum swelling and toothache. The jawbone would progressively get inflamed and infected before dying and decomposing. Extremely painful, this procedure frequently led to tooth loss, significant deformity, and an unpleasant discharge. As eating became more difficult, the disease could possibly be fatal owing to malnutrition or secondary infections, and in severe cases, sections of the jawbone had to be surgically removed.

The matchstick girls were at serious danger for additional serious health issues in addition to phossy jaw. Due to the companies' frequent lack of ventilation, workers were exposed to wood dust and other chemicals' fumes. Due to substandard living circumstances, respiratory issues like bronchitis and TB were already common among the working class and were exacerbated by this. Additionally, accidents were frequent. In addition to cuts and injuries from using sharp equipment and machinery, burns from the flammable chemicals were common.

The actual workplace was frequently depressing. Generally speaking, factories were congested, dimly lit, and devoid of basic sanitary facilities. Employees were required to perform repeated jobs in uncomfortable conditions while standing for extended periods of time. The risk of consuming dangerous substances was further increased by the fact that meals, if any, were frequently had in the dusty, fume-filled workrooms during the lengthy workweek.

In addition, the matchstick girls received meager pay—often just enough to make ends meet. For small transgressions or alleged mistakes, they were always under danger of fines and deductions from their meager income. Young females were paid much less than their adult colleagues, and child labor was common. Due to their financial precarity, families were compelled to send their kids to work in these hazardous factories.

What Led to Their Demise:

A number of elements came together to eventually lessen the matchstick girls' predicament and phase out the hazardous circumstances they faced, chief among them being their own campaigning, rising public awareness, and legislative improvements.

The Matchgirls' Strike of 1888, which occurred at the Bryant & May match factory in Bow, London, was the most important event in their campaign. A worker's unjust firing and the publication of a stinging article in The Link, a socialist weekly, about the appalling working conditions and exploitative practices in the factory—including the widespread use of phossy jaw—were the catalysts for this historic strike.

Brave young women led the strike, which received a lot of support and public attention. Prominent labor leaders and social reformers rallied to their cause, and public gatherings were conducted. The matchgirls called for safer working conditions, such as separate dining places and the prohibition of white phosphorous, as well as more pay, less hours worked, and the elimination of unjust fines.

Following weeks of intense negotiation and public pressure, Bryant & May agreed to the majority of the strikers' demands. This triumph was a turning point in the labor movement and showed the strength of group action, especially by female employees who were previously thought to be less able to organize and defend their rights.

In addition to enhancing working-class conditions at Bryant & May, the 1888 strike sparked comparable protests in other sectors of the economy and increased public awareness of the mistreatment of working-class women and children. It raised awareness of the phossy jaw problem and stoked the push for safer substitutes for white phosphorus.

In the years that followed, medical experts and social reformers pushed for a ban on white phosphorus as part of ongoing public pressure. Match factories came under more scrutiny as a result of worries about the sickness and the suffering it caused. Support for the development of safer, non-toxic substitutes, including red phosphorus, also grew.

Last but not least, legislation was essential in putting an end to the matchstick girls' era and the risks they faced. The British White Phosphorus Matches Prohibition Act of 1908 essentially outlawed the production, distribution, and importation of matches containing white phosphorus. Years of advocacy and public pressure resulted in this legislation, which was a major win for public health and labor rights.

Match producers switched to safer substitutes after the ban, mostly red phosphorus, which did not carry the same phossy jaw risk. Together with further advancements in labor legislation and factory controls, this change eventually resulted in the end of the particular struggles endured by the "matchstick girls."

Even though the phrase "matchstick girls" is no longer widely used, their tale serves as a potent reminder of the hazardous working conditions and social inequities that defined the Industrial Revolution. Their valiant strike and the ensuing anti-white phosphorus movement are proof of the strength of group effort and the significance of standing up for safe working conditions and fair labor practices. Around the world, initiatives to safeguard vulnerable employees and maintain safe and healthy working conditions are still motivated by the matchstick girls' legacy.