Mexborough & Swinton Times – Friday 11 May 1894

Eight Hours Mines Bill

Every year the Eight Hours Mines Bill meets with more supporters, and during the present session it has for the first time since the agitation in its favour commenced, passed the second reading in the House of Commons with a majority of 87 votes.

The Bill, if it becomes a Legislative enactment, will enforce an eight hours day from bank to bank, and being curious to discover what this will mean for the men at local collieries, I have been hunting up statistics bearing on the question.

I find that at Denaby Main at present there are 1,000 men employed who have to travel a distance of about a mile each way to and from the coal face. This occupies about forty minutes, and the men get just eight hours work at the coal face. An eight hours bank to bank day would mean just a little over seven hours work.

At Manvers No. 1 there are 600 persons employed who work seven-and-a-half hours on the coal face, the distance from the pit bottom averaging one-and-a-half miles, the travelling time being 60 minutes. Here again, the eight hours bank to bank arrangement would reduce the actual working to seven hours.

At Manvers Main No. 2 pit where 600 men work the conditions are precisely the same, both as regards travelling distance and present actual working hours, while of course the proposed alteration would have the same effect in decreasing the wage-earning chances of the men employed.