Three Votes Kill Washington's Eight-Hour Day for Women—Then a Fight Nearly Breaks Out
A bill to shorten women's workdays from ten hours to eight died in the Olympia house after a cannery exemption and a corridor confrontation between two lawmakers.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
OLYMPIA, Feb. 16.—In the house this morning the bill designed to change the hours of employment of women to eight instead of ten, as the law now reads, was defeated, 42 to 45. The debate over this bill aroused considerable ill-feeling. Hanson charged that the bill, originally passed by the house by a large vote, was brought up again simply to make amendments eliminating canneries from the provision. When this had been done, those who had agreed to support the bill violated their pledge and were now preparing to throttle it. Following the session Hanson met Representative Jackson of King in the corridors and accused Jackson of sidestepping the vote on this bill. Jackson grabbed Hanson by the coat and for a moment it looked like there would be a lively personal encounter. Jackson said: "No scurrilous motives actuate my conduct, though they do yours." Hanson then struck Jackson in the breast. The men were separated by their friends before any damage had been done.
“"No scurrilous motives actuate my conduct, though they do yours."”
Washington's 1909 fight over women's hours echoes today's debates over overtime, predictive scheduling and paid leave. The bill failed by three votes after canneries were carved out—a reminder that exemptions and procedural amendments still decide who gets labor protections.
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