Gabriel 150 years - Flipbook - Page 37
River water was used both in the manufacturing
out any activities unrelated to their jobs. A little
process and for cleaning up after a hard day’s work.
over ±∞ years later, Zacho pointed out that the
The ±∫∂∞s.
enterprise lost large sums of money due to the
thoughtlessness of the workers.
When he expressed the opinion that it was possi-
Today, when you talk to people who worked
ble to work in the wool storeroom regardless of
in the factory in the ±∫∂∞s and ±∫∑∞s, you have
biting cold and lightweight work clothes, one
to speak up, as almost all of them have suffered
of the storeroom workers threatened to quit,
hearing loss. The looms were extremely noisy
and Zacho gave in.
in those days, and not until the end of the
The prevailing tone in the workplace was
±∫∂∞s did some of the weavers begin to protect
harsher than what we are accustomed to today,
their hearing a little with cotton wool.
and squabbles occasionally resulted in strikes
The lighting was poor as well. Lamps were
– also at Kjærs Mølle.
small and were hung at random above the looms.
The system of hierarchy sometimes gave the
These lamps were replaced by lamps with large
workers the impression that they were not ap-
shades, so-called “pig lamps”; while these pro-
preciated, and this, in turn, had a negative in-
vided better light, they cast shadows when a
fluence on morale. Former weaver, Aage Jensen,
weaver bent over the work.
has the following recollection:
No one knew that workers were inhaling
“There was certainly no interest in cooper-
poisonous fumes given off by the containers of
ating with the ordinary worker, he was just a
dye. And there were great temperature fluctua-
necessary evil that you couldn’t do without,
tions in the factory. When it was cold outside,
and, of course, this had an influence in the work-
it was sometimes so bitingly cold inside that
place, so people did what was required and no
work had to cease. And when it was hot out-
more. There was no flexibility, no one wanted
side, the heat inside was often so intense that
to be moved from the machines they were fa-
water to which ammonia had been added was
miliar with, so nobody learned anything new...”
sprinkled about to freshen the air.
Management felt that the workers showed a
Environment and working environment
lack of responsibility, and in ±∫µπ it was stres-
were unfamiliar expressions, and their time
sed that workers were not permitted to carry
would not come for a number of years.
1945-1959
38
