== Women's roles in telephone industry ==

== Women's roles in telephone industry ==

I thought it was neat in the first article (and the second) when men and women's abilities and skills were listed for why they'd be good for such and such a certain job, how women were good for the telegraph because they "pay more undivided attention to their duties" (234). Which I think is funny but wrong, as men can too pay undivided attention to a . . . . hey look a doggie . . . duty. -- Jeff =)

I thought it was neat in the first article (and the second) when men and women's abilities and skills were listed for why they'd be good for such and such a certain job, '''how women were good for the telegraph because they "pay more undivided attention to their duties" (234). Which I think is funny but wrong, as men can too pay undivided attention to a . . . . hey look a doggie . . . duty.''' -- Jeff =)

I found Katherine M. Schmitt's, "Memoir of a Telephone Operator, 1930," very interesting because it traces the development of the telephone as a piece of technology into an industry from the perspective of one of its earliest operators. Schmitt addresses the courtesy protocols that the New York Telephone Company enforced for its operators. I found this particularly interesting because it seems that courtesy and kindness were crucial for the adoption of the telephone over the telegram as the mainstream system of communication. Clients and operators developed personal relationships that made the technology more "user friendly" and this personal touch undoubtedly facilitated the adoption of the telephone. -Bryan Lees

I found Katherine M. Schmitt's, "Memoir of a Telephone Operator, 1930," very interesting because it traces the development of the telephone as a piece of technology into an industry from the perspective of one of its earliest operators. Schmitt addresses the courtesy protocols that the New York Telephone Company enforced for its operators. I found this particularly interesting because it seems that courtesy and kindness were crucial for the adoption of the telephone over the telegram as the mainstream system of communication. Clients and operators developed personal relationships that made the technology more "user friendly" and this personal touch undoubtedly facilitated the adoption of the telephone. -Bryan Lees

The thing I liked most about "Memoir of a Telephone Operator" was the way in which the author's friends considered the telephone a new-fangled technology. I think many of us (at least me) tends to do the same thing when some technologies first come out. 'Why do we need that' or 'what can that possibly do' are common questions people ask when faced with new technlogies, much like people in the above-mentioned article ask. -- Jeff =P

The thing I liked most about "Memoir of a Telephone Operator" was the way in which the author's friends considered the telephone a new-fangled technology. I think many of us (at least me) tends to do the same thing when some technologies first come out. 'Why do we need that' or 'what can that possibly do' are common questions people ask when faced with new technlogies, much like people in the above-mentioned article ask. -- Jeff =P

I agree with Bryan about the "Memoir of a Telephone Operator, 1930" in many ways was it interesting. This almost seems like the beginning of customer service. The special way the operator had to behave and speak was interesting, makes me think when you call a credit card company or something they all sound similar in tone, etc. Also it does seem that this was a birds eye view of how the telephone moved through its paces. The last part that was interesting and almost refreshing is that here is a job for women. Men were not the first choice and proved to be not a good fit as an operator. Showed women having a little pride being the ones needed to fill a particular role, and not just seen as an extra pair of hands for hard labor. The hours were long and sometimes you got a break, but it was like women being a major part of something new and exciting.-Aislyn

I agree with Bryan about the "Memoir of a Telephone Operator, 1930" in many ways was it interesting. '''This almost seems like the beginning of customer service.''' The special way the operator had to behave and speak was interesting, makes me think when you call a credit card company or something they all sound similar in tone, etc. Also it does seem that this was a birds eye view of how the telephone moved through its paces. The last part that was interesting and almost refreshing is that here is a job for women. Men were not the first choice and proved to be not a good fit as an operator. Showed women having a little pride being the ones needed to fill a particular role, and not just seen as an extra pair of hands for hard labor. The hours were long and sometimes you got a break, but it was like women being a major part of something new and exciting.-Aislyn

I agree, it really does seem like the beginning of customer service. Women were really the only good choice for the position of telephone operators. I think that in most cases, people, especially men, would prefer to talk to a female while trying to make a call.  A female voice is softer, making it easier to hear repeatedly (over many calls) for many men.  The telephone was definitely an exciting new development for women because it allowed them to enter an entirely new job market that was designed for them. -- Kellye Sorber

I agree, it really does seem like the beginning of customer service. Women were really the only good choice for the position of telephone operators. I think that in most cases, people, especially men, would prefer to talk to a female while trying to make a call.  A female voice is softer, making it easier to hear repeatedly (over many calls) for many men.  The telephone was definitely an exciting new development for women because it allowed them to enter an entirely new job market that was designed for them. -- Kellye Sorber

When talking about the efficiency of the phone operators, I found it surprising that there was only a margin of “irregularities” of 15%. Especially when such irregularities occur simply by forgetting to say please or by not staying 100% with what was scripted for the operators. And Sherwood compares the speed with which the telephone operators have to work as being put in the middle of a street with busy traffic and trying to avoid being run over. Given this, I would think there would be more mistakes, or at least the number of mistakes would increase as the rate of speed or efficiency increased. But, it also doesn’t give you any idea of how they measure these things, so we don’t really have a sense of where the numbers come from, just that these are the standard rates. --Jessica Kilday

When talking about the efficiency of the phone operators, I found it surprising that there was only a margin of “irregularities” of 15%. Especially when such irregularities occur simply by forgetting to say please or by not staying 100% with what was scripted for the operators. And Sherwood compares the speed with which the telephone operators have to work as being put in the middle of a street with busy traffic and trying to avoid being run over. Given this, I would think there would be more mistakes, or at least the number of mistakes would increase as the rate of speed or efficiency increased. But, it also doesn’t give you any idea of how they measure these things, so we don’t really have a sense of where the numbers come from, just that these are the standard rates. --Jessica Kilday

Virginia Penny’s “A New Employment for Women” is comparable to Virginia Penny’s previous article about watch making. Now, women are being employed as operators. It was said that women are better for the job because women have “reliable habits”, “an ability to abstract and concentrate thought upon their engagements”, and “greater patience and industry”. These reasons are comparable to the reasons that were given for women being better at watch making. Women seem to be given jobs that require patience, I guess men lack patience. - Erin Sanderson

Virginia Penny’s “A New Employment for Women” is comparable to Virginia Penny’s previous article about watch making. Now, women are being employed as operators. It was said that women are better for the job because women have “reliable habits”, “an ability to abstract and concentrate thought upon their engagements”, and “greater patience and industry”. '''These reasons are comparable to the reasons that were given for women being better at watch making. Women seem to be given jobs that require patience, I guess men lack patience.''' - Erin Sanderson

The article “Mrs. Rayne Visits Western Union” explains how being an operator is a social position for women because they are not compromised, they are able to sit, and they don’t get dirty. However, the inequality in wages is incredible between the genders. The average salary for women is $500 per year while the average salary for a male is $70 per month. It is argued that this inequality is justified based on the fact that males have greater endurance and can be called upon at night. It is also stated that women can’t handle the difficult work. They give the example of the Annual President’s Message, women are not allowed to perform this task because it takes nerve. However, the article does not ask the opinion of women and how they feel about these accusations and justifications. When I went on to read Katherine Schmitt’s “Memoir of a Telephone Operator” I still didn’t get a real opinion about wage, perhaps it didn’t occur to the women to question the inequity, perhaps it was expected. - Erin Sanderson

The article “Mrs. Rayne Visits Western Union” explains how being an operator is a social position for women because they are not compromised, they are able to sit, and they don’t get dirty. However, the inequality in wages is incredible between the genders. The average salary for women is $500 per year while the average salary for a male is $70 per month. It is argued that this inequality is justified based on the fact that males have greater endurance and can be called upon at night. It is also stated that women can’t handle the difficult work. They give the example of the Annual President’s Message, women are not allowed to perform this task because it takes nerve. However,''' the article does not ask the opinion of women and how they feel about these accusations and justifications. When I went on to read Katherine Schmitt’s “Memoir of a Telephone Operator” I still didn’t get a real opinion about wage, perhaps it didn’t occur to the women to question the inequity, perhaps it was expected.''' - Erin Sanderson

One thing that really stood out to me and also was enjoyable to read was "Memoir of a Telephone Operator". What I really enjoyed from this reading was the fact that when telephones were first invented that were sold at high prices which only allowed for the richest to buy them. But what I never thought about was if only a few could buy a telephone, what was the point in having this technology. Did they all call each other and talk about how great it was to have such a wealthy staple of technology, since not many others had a phone? :D -- Jimmy Conroy

One thing that really stood out to me and also was enjoyable to read was "Memoir of a Telephone Operator". What I really enjoyed from this reading was the fact that when telephones were first invented that were sold at high prices which only allowed for the richest to buy them. But what I never thought about was if only a few could buy a telephone, what was the point in having this technology. Did they all call each other and talk about how great it was to have such a wealthy staple of technology, since not many others had a phone? :D -- Jimmy Conroy

In "Memoir of a Telephone Operator" I also noticed that the telephone was seen as an toy when it was first invented; this is basically due to the fact that no one could afford the invention. Those people do not know how much the telephone is not only used in our lives, but how much it has changed our day to day lives, if they did I am guessing it would be seen as a toy to them. But what makes me think is how the telephone has changed, especially over the past ten years. If one thinks about it, telephones have gone from a toy to a necessity, back to being a toy. With the Apple iPhone, gadgets and games that comes with a phone these days, it is hard to find a phone that is just a phone. Did we get bored with the technology or are these improvements which can make our lives easier? Time will have to tell...--Jimmy Conroy

In "Memoir of a Telephone Operator" I also noticed that the telephone was seen as an toy when it was first invented; this is basically due to the fact that no one could afford the invention. Those people do not know how much the telephone is not only used in our lives, but how much it has changed our day to day lives, if they did I am guessing it would be seen as a toy to them. But what makes me think is how the telephone has changed, especially over the past ten years. If one thinks about it, telephones have gone from a toy to a necessity, back to being a toy. With the Apple iPhone, gadgets and games that comes with a phone these days, it is hard to find a phone that is just a phone. Did we get bored with the technology or are these improvements which can make our lives easier? Time will have to tell...--Jimmy Conroy

I find it interesting that in 1893 Mrs. Rayne describes that men in the telegraph business were paid more because they had greater endurance, had better transcribing skills, and had more “nerve” than women. Yet, Katherine Schmitt, when describing her early years in the 1880s as an operator, says that men didn’t last long working in the telephone operating business because they were rowdy and rude, leading to them being “abolished.” What made men supposedly better than women at telegraph operating, but not telephone operating? -- Taylor Brann

I find it interesting that in 1893 Mrs. Rayne describes that men in the telegraph business were paid more because they had greater endurance, had better transcribing skills, and had more “nerve” than women. Yet, Katherine Schmitt, when describing her early years in the 1880s as an operator, says that men didn’t last long working in the telephone operating business because they were rowdy and rude, leading to them being “abolished.” '''What made men supposedly better than women at telegraph operating, but not telephone operating?''' -- Taylor Brann

In response to Taylor, I think part of that goes back to what some people were talking about earlier, that it's kind of where we see customer service start to develop. Politeness is important, especially in the beginning when the subscribers and operators got to know each other more personally, to an extent. I also feel like the men may be more rude because I would imagine that it would be harder to talk with, or be the middle person, between people involved in bigger businesses. Especially since the operator position would have been inferior to those with which they would be in contact with everyday, or at least from a male perspective. --Jessica Kilday  

In response to Taylor, I think part of that goes back to what some people were talking about earlier, that it's kind of where we see customer service start to develop. Politeness is important, especially in the beginning when the subscribers and operators got to know each other more personally, to an extent. I also feel like the men may be more rude because I would imagine that it would be harder to talk with, or be the middle person, between people involved in bigger businesses. Especially since the operator position would have been inferior to those with which they would be in contact with everyday, or at least from a male perspective. --Jessica Kilday  

It’s interesting to see the telephone’s early growth into a security system, particularly how women would leave the phone off the hook while they were alone at home so an operator could hear if something happened. Or more so, how some women actually left their children at home alone with the phone as a babysitter that could contact mothers if the children started crying. Paranoid? A little bit. Irresponsible? Very much so. But I think it certainly shows a growing trust in communication technology. -- Taylor Brann

It’s interesting to see the telephone’s early growth into a security system, particularly how women would leave the phone off the hook while they were alone at home so an operator could hear if something happened. '''Or more so, how some women actually left their children at home alone with the phone as a babysitter that could contact mothers if the children started crying. Paranoid? A little bit. Irresponsible? Very much so. But I think it certainly shows a growing trust in communication technology.''' -- Taylor Brann

In "Memoir of a Telephone Operator," I found it interesting that women were not only preferred for telephone operating, but boys were actually "abolished."  In response to Taylor, I think that maybe it was not as big a deal for men to be "rowdy" while working at telegraph operating.  They were not speaking directly to people, they were sending messages over the telegraph, in other words, there was no real personal interaction.  I enjoyed this document because, as others pointed out, it led you through the development of the telephone.  Also, I agree with Jimmy that it does seem that the telephone has made a full circle and ended up as a "toy" again.  Much like only prosperous business men were able to have a telephone in the beginning, now only those who are well off are able to have the "best" phone out there - which has so many gadgets on it that it's almost hard to tell that it is even a phone anymore. -- Stefanie Holder

In "Memoir of a Telephone Operator," I found it interesting that women were not only preferred for telephone operating, but boys were actually "abolished."  In response to Taylor, I think that maybe it was not as big a deal for men to be "rowdy" while working at telegraph operating.  They were not speaking directly to people, they were sending messages over the telegraph, in other words, there was no real personal interaction.  I enjoyed this document because, as others pointed out, it led you through the development of the telephone.  Also, I agree with Jimmy that it does seem that the telephone has made a full circle and ended up as a "toy" again.  Much like only prosperous business men were able to have a telephone in the beginning, now only those who are well off are able to have the "best" phone out there - which has so many gadgets on it that it's almost hard to tell that it is even a phone anymore. -- Stefanie Holder