Bill Reid
1999/152 Bill Reid interviewed at his home by Dr Heather Holmes in 1999
000 Starting at Nelsons; date; reasons for going into printing trade; examination; entry into industry
045 Starting the apprenticeship; mailroom jobs; wage as hall boy
065 Application procedure
077 Reputation of Nelsons; interest in Nelsons
084 Importance of getting a trade
088 Length of apprenticeship; national service and impact on apprenticeship; examination structure
112 Day release at Heriot-Watt; duration; location
118 Attendance at Heriot-Watt; promotion opportunities
143 Activities during first year apprenticeship; jobs; range of machines; jobs printed
206 Nelson bed; description; problems with working with Nelson bed
231 Work; printing of signatures; running speeds; folding
255 Printing of educational books; printing; range of books
268 Printing of Bibles; different Bibles printed
278 Difficulties of printing Bibles; paper; paper types; working with paper types
306 Ronnie Nelson’s interest in trains; printing train pictures
318 Range of printing; working atmosphere; continuity of employment; relation of Nelsons to other printing firms in Edinburgh; women layers on
339 Laying on; technique; working with women layers on; inter-marriage in Nelsons
359 Summer trip; stopping of trip; locations
365 Location of summer trip; social activities; welfare provision
382 Camaraderie in nelsons; hierarchy between departments; clothing worn
392 Expression of difference; reprographic workers; hierarchy
411 Strike in 1959; weather; wage rates during strike; strike meetings
431 Cause of strike; extent of strike; result of strike on overtime working
442 Impact of strike on work and work patterns; sickness as a result of long working hours; extent of overtime
452 Saturday morning work
455 Sunday working; work on some firms; overtime rates; rates; rates in relation to other trades; union rates
472 Other periods of unrest; amalgamation of unions
481 Father of Chapel; length of election
483 Work of Father of Chapel; level of unrest; election
489 Rota for appointment of Father of Chapel
492 Levels of unrest; reputation of bosses
500 Strictness; strictness with apprentices
502 Work rules; tea making
519 Culture of apprentices
522 Initiations and jokes with new apprentices; pranks
530 Status of being in the football team; recreation facilities; groundsmen; strictness of employment hierarchy
542 Work hours; start of work; Christmas day working; holiday at New Year
550 Christmas day working; Christmas dinners
557 Holidays; spring and September; trades fortnight
559 Preparation of trades fortnight; rules for turning off machines; starting work; rules for switching on machines; tea break routines in other factories
618 Strictness; work atmosphere
627 Impact of 1959 strike; impact of Roy Thomson; technology levels
639 Introduction of new machines; types and speeds; modernisation of processes; noise of machines
662 Relationship between technology levels and work; skill levels in industry today; comparison of Nelson and other forms in introduction of new technology; reasons for technology levels; The Shetland Bus
710 High prestige jobs
717 Classics; reinvention of Classics; cartography work
726 Nelson factory location; books for Africa
732 Printing books in Swahili
739 Size and length of runs
763 Dilutees; date of employment; status
771 Bible wall pictures; examples of pictures; printing; national service apprenticeship; one apprentice killed
800 Number of dilutees in letterpress area
804 Time of employment of dilutees
812 Training of dilutees
818 Union standing today
827 Shortages of materials in post Second War period; connection with James Brown, papermakers at Penicuik
841 Paper; range of paper used
853 Making ready; shortening of time; nicknames of Jock the Horse; friction in upsetting work practices
870 Nicknames; nature of names; size of printing department
889 Size of printing department; physical size
896 Working with paper types; Bible papers; loose fibre papers for children’s books; preferred types of papers; run of the mill jobs; nature of work in letterpress section
925 Mechanical breakdowns; level of technical problems; slowness of machines
935 Number of apprentices in letterpress; apprentices ratio
944 Training methods; teaching by journeymen; fourth year work and level; apprentices keeping up with journeymen
960 Management structure of letterpress department
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