Typists And Typewriters

1. How did American corporations change in the last decades of the nineteenth century? Why did these changes entail the introduction of more and more typists and typewriters? At the end of the 19th century US corporations underwent rapid growth and consolidation with the rise of modern industrial capitalism. Business operations became more complex, which required an increase in correspondence, record keeping, and office work within and between firms and, thus more clerical workers. This growth encouraged the introduction of typewriters and typists, because they allowed for a more efficient office, because it enabled faster writing, during a time in which office took on more and greater tasks.

2. What were some of the factors that facilitated the entry of large numbers of women into the clerical labor force at the end of the nineteenth century?
-US corporations underwent rapid growth and consolidation that required the introduction of more clerical workers, but there were not enough men to fill these jobs.
- The ‘sex-neutral’ nature of the new typist job meant that women were not excluded from these jobs strictly based on sex.
-Women could be paid have the salary of males so, for employers, they were a financially appealing workforce.

3. Why did women at this time want clerical jobs? -Prior to the rise in clerical work, women had few professional opportunities outside of the elementary and secondary school system, despite this levels of education and literacy. -Clerical work paid a lot more than other traditional female jobs like housekeepers. -There was an economic necessity. Women either had to support their families or they had to support themselves. -The job was a high status symbol.

4. Why did men believe that women made good office