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Blue plaque for east London match workers who stood up for their rights

English Heritage plaqueEnglish Heritage

A group of women and girls who went on strike at a match factory in 1888 have been recognised with an English Heritage blue plaque.

The Bryant & May walkout in Bow, east London, was about the poor pay and dangerous conditions, which had been highlighted in a weekly newspaper.

The 1,400 employees refused to deny the accuracy of the report, so managers sacked a woman.

It triggered an immediate mass downing of tools, until bosses gave in.

Getty Images Women and girls and a young boy at work in Bryant & May's match factoryGetty Images
Women, girls and a young boy at work in Bryant & May's match factory
Lucy Millson-Watkins Anita DobsonLucy Millson-Watkins
The plaque was unveiled by former EastEnders actress, Anita Dobson
Getty Images match girlsGetty Images
Workers in the match factories were at risk of "phossy jaw", which killed the bones in the jaw and was caused by breathing phosphorus particles
Wellcome Collection MatchboxesWellcome Collection
Many women who made safety matches were overworked and underpaid

The "Match Girls" worked 14-hour days in appalling conditions for a low wage, which was cut even further for workers who spoke or went to the lavatory.

Another hazard was a necrosis known as "phossy jaw" caused by the phosphorus used in matchmaking.

To the surprise of the company's management, the public was enormously supportive of the industrial action. A few weeks after walking out, the workforce returned to improved pay and conditions.

A dozen years later the use of the lethal form of phosphorus was discontinued.

Getty Images Match Tax protest towards House of Commons, Westminster, 24 April 1871. Protest following Chancellor of the Exchequer, Robert Lowe s half penny tax on matches. Crowd included hundreds of boys and girls employed at the sprawling Bryant & May matchworks in the East End. (Photo by Culture Club/Getty Images)Getty Images
Workers, overwhelmingly women and girls, faced long hours in poor conditions for low pay
Getty Images match girlsGetty Images
The mass walkout of 1,400 workers forced factory bosses to improve pay and conditions
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How to get a blue plaque

Jim Osley/David Anstiss The old match factoryJim Osley/David Anstiss
The former match factory site on Fairfield Road in Bow has been redeveloped into flats

The scheme celebrates the link between significant figures of the past and the buildings in which they lived and worked.

Here are the criteria:

  • They should be regarded as eminent within their own profession or calling
  • Their achievements should have made an exceptional impact in terms of public recognition or their achievements deserve national recognition
  • They must have been dead for 20 years
  • They should have lived in London for a significant period
  • The London building in which they lived or worked should still survive and must not have a significantly altered exterior
  • The building must be within Greater London but outside the City of London, which has its own scheme
  • Buildings with many personal associations, such as churches, schools and theatres, are not normally considered for plaques
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Universal History Archive Match profiteersUniversal History Archive
The public was largely in support of the matchgirls' strike. This illustration shows businessmen profiting while matchgirls waste away

The event, according to English Heritage, is widely recognised as a trigger to the New Unionism movement, which saw moves to develop the trade union agenda.

An English Heritage blue plaque is already on the building to commemorate social reformer Annie Besant, whose article in The Link newspaper became the catalyst for the industrial action.

The roundel was unveiled at the site on Fairfield Road by former EastEnders actress Anita Dobson, a patron of the Matchgirls Memorial Campaign.

She said: "These girls and women fought hard for their rights. They worked in appalling conditions and their lives were tough and the worst imaginable.

"Many of them died an early death due to the phosphorous fumes in the factory.

"They deserve to be honoured and remembered, and now they will be."

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