W F Valentine
1999/101 W F Valentine interviewed in his home by Dr Heather Holmes on 1 June 1999
000 Starting in Nelsons; reasons for move to firm; work atmosphere; other printshops where employed
054 Overtime working and rates; Sunday working
063 Shift working; hours; work hours of women
083 Application to get into Nelson’s; reasons for moving to Nelsons
095 Closure of Nelsons; work paths of men after leaving Nelsons
106 Happy place to work; engineers; type of machines manufactured; workshops; level of technology
149 Work in bindery department; processes; rounding and backing
181 Workers suggesting improvements
191 Nelson’s as an institution; physical appearance of Ronnie Nelson
218 Nelson and mineral well at Dean Village; Nelson as benefactor
235 Playing of tennis in Dean Village
148 Board cutting; guillotine work; supply of raw materials; types of boards
271 Board cutting; number of men employed; manual work of board cutting; setting cutting knives; techniques of cutting boards; working with boards
307 Size of boards
314 Safety guards
319 Accidents
324 Monitoring of job; boardcutting practice
331 Timesheet and work; move of department
345 Waste disposal; method
358 Switching of jobs; range of jobs; aspects of board cutting
385 Cloth cutting techniques; cloth types; raw materials
422 Moving of men; training
438 Apprentice allowance
442 Female apprentices
449 Rules for men and women; different types of binders
460 Work activities of girls and women
468 Work for hand folding and machine folding; work of girls; work of machines
477 Types of books printed
479 Book sale
481 Board books; types of books; book storage
495 Worksheets
499 Number work system; last big order in factory
508 Closure; reactions; last work in Nelsons
527 Security in factory; damaged books
536 Time of book sale
538 Recreation facilities; use of field
551 Gala day; activities; preparations
588 Playing of sports; range of activities
601 Annual trip
612 Gala day; time
629 Christmas dance and dances
637 Chapel; FOC; becoming an FOC
668 Negotiating with the bosses
685 Strike of 1959; duration and extent; reduction in the working week
707 Strength of bindery chapel; procedures; role and work of the union
726 House agreements; changes in house agreement
758 Changing of house practices in 1960s; trends
670 Diluted labour; agreement for its introduction
767 Chapel and relations with branch; representation and structure of the branch
781 Work on the branch; relationship between workers and management in Nelsons; good representation
796 Temporary labour; paying people off
805 Women working at home
817 Chapel meetings; calling of meetings
824 Character of meetings; roles of committee in undertaking meetings
834 Location of meetings; women on chapel as Mother of the Chapel; non-union shops; work of union
869 Chapel donations to old age pensioners; bun fight; other social provisions for workers; wedding customs including chapping out and dressing up
901 Chapel subscription for marriages
908 Chapel subscriptions for workers who had been ill; amount of subscriptions; death benefit from union
924 Bereavement money organised through chapel
934 Health and safety; rules for smoking
946 Changes in health and safety; provision on guillotines; wiping of floors
961 Work of labourers and tidying up; prevention of oil spillagesEND