Excuse me, I must go refresh my lipstick...

One of my former colleagues sent me an article excerpted from the July 1943 issue of Transportation magazine - tips to male supervisors hiring women for the first time during WWII. The following is what she sent me...

11 Tips on Getting More Efficiency Out of Women Employees:

There's no longer any question whether transit companies should hire women for jobs formerly held by men. The draft and man power shortage has settled that point. The important things now are to select the most efficient women available and how to use them to the best advantage. (ED. Does this not sound like they're looking at livestock or something?)

1. Pick young married women. They usually have more of a sense of responsibility than their unmarried sisters, they're less likely to be flirtatious, they need the work or they wouldn't be doing it, they still have the pep and interest to work hard and deal with the public efficiently. (ED. Ha! Yeah, right. They're married, not dead, and their husbands are off to war! Less likely to be flirtatious, me arse!)

2. When you have to use older women, try to get ones who have worked outside the home at some time in their lives. Older women who have never contacted the public have a hard time adapting themselves and are inclined to be cantankerous and fussy. It's always well to impress upon older women the importance of friendliness and courtesy. (ED. 'Cantankerous and fussy' - I love it!)

3. General experience indicates that "husky" girls - those who are just a little on the heavy side - are more even tempered and efficient than their underweight sisters. (ED. Damn! This explains why I'm so bad-tempered and inefficient...)

4. Retain a physician to give each woman you hire a special physical examination - one covering female conditions. This step not only protects the property against the possibilities of lawsuit, byt reveals whether the employee-to-be has any female weaknesses which would make her mentally or physically unfit for the job. (ED. You totally know a man wrote this. I can just see him cringing over the phrase "female conditions.")

5. Stress at the outset the importance of time the fact that a minute or two lost here and there makes serious inroads on schedules. Until this point is gotten across, service is likely to be slowed up. (ED. Oh, yes. These women just sit around all day eating bon-bons. Running a household has nothing to do with timing or coordinating schedules. Silly girls...)

6. Give the female employee a definite day-long schedule of duties so that they'll keep busy without bothering the management for instructions every few minutes. Numerous properties say that women make excellent workers when they have their jobs cut out for them, but that they lack initiative in finding work for themselves. (ED. I don't even know what to say to this one. I mean, to think that these young, married girls wouldn't have the initiative to create work for themselves in an industrial setting where clearly, they are so comfortable and familiar.)

7. Whenever possible, let the inside employee change from one job to another at some time during the day. Women are inclined to be less nervous and happier with change. (ED. Oh, Mr. Transit. You're so adorably clueless. 'Less nervous and happier with change'? Does that make any sense at all? I don't know anyone who gets less nervous from things changing. So wrong again, bossman. We just get BORED easily. Doing the same thing every minute of every day for like 14 hours is BORING. Capisce?)

8. Give every girl an adequate number of rest periods during the day. You have to make some allowances for feminine psychology. A girl has more confidence and is more efficient if she can keep her hair tidied, apply fresh lipstick and wash her hands several times a day. (ED. Does anyone think this is going to go well for either these working women or this factory?)

9. Be tactful when issuing instructions or in making criticisms. Women are often sensitive; they can't shrug off harsh words the way men do. Never ridicule a women - it breaks her spirit and cuts off her efficiency. (ED. Oh hang on, I have to crawl under my desk and cry now.)

10. Be reasonably considerate about using strong language around women. Even though a girl's father or husband may swear vociferously, she'll grow to dislike a place of business where she hears too much of this.

11. Get enough size variety in operator's uniforms so that each girl can have a proper fit. This point can't be stressed too much in keeping women happy. (ED. Yes, that's right. Clothes that fit are very important in making us happy.)