Second World War: female staff 2

As more men left for war, staff shortages began to be felt.

In February 1942 the situation became even more serious when the call-up was extended to all single women in the twenty to twenty-one age group.

It was expected that women working in the food industry would be exempt from both conscription and war work, but this was not the case. Another drive to recruit part-time married women was set up.

As the government took control of the supply of foodstuffs, Sainsbury's competitive edge came to depend more on the skills of its staff. Female recruits received on-the-spot instruction from the men they were to replace.

This ensured that they were already known to customers and familiar with their new work when their instructors left. Some allowances were made - whereas male employees were expected to be able to add up in their heads, notepads were provided for women whose mental arithmetic was rusty.

It was recognised that working women were frequently juggling multiple demands. In a letter to staff on National Service in 1940, Alan Sainsbury wrote:

‘Many of these women have children and homes to care for and taking this in to consideration, they are doing a grand job of work’.

Staff were given 'mentors' to help them settle into the job and were paid personally by the manager so that problems could be discussed in private. A ‘shopping time' allowance of one hour a fortnight was granted in 1943. During the flying bomb raids, when many schools were closed, women were even permitted to bring their children to work.

Sainsbury's appreciated the hardships caused by wartime conditions: managers were instructed to be understanding about the effects of lost sleep during bombing raids, damage to employees' homes and particularly to bereavement. From 1942 married women were included in the Staff Welfare Scheme.