Description
This collection consists of letters and documents that form a portion of the
Business Women's Legislative Council of California's records and chiefly document the organization, maintenance and activities
of the Council from 1929-1936 and 1938-1943.
Notable correspondence includes letters from elected officials as well as candidates in California and the governors of
nearly all states in response to questions about their positions on "equal rights for women wage-earners."
Background
Founded in 1927 under the leadership of Sue Brobst, the Business Women's Legislative
Council of California worked to bring about and maintain equal rights for women in
the workplace until the group folded in the mid 1940s. In its own words, the BWLCC’s
purpose was to bring about and maintain equal opportunity under the law for men and
women in the business world; and to oppose discriminatory legislation against women
engaged in gainful occupations." At its start, the organization principally
advocated against "protective laws" limiting women’s work hours to the daytime and a
maximum of eight hours per day. Passed to help wage workers, the BWLCC took offense
on principal to the law’s apparently unequal treatment of women and men. They also
argued that the law prevented women engaged in business and the professions from
putting in the long hours required for success. Like their counterparts nationally,
they received support from business interests like the Los Angeles Chamber of
Commerce and Merchants and Manufacturers Association and eventually the Republican
Party. Opposition came from those in the "labor-liberal" and "social feminist" camp
such as Franklin Roosevelt, his wife Eleanor Roosevelt, and his Secretary of Labor
Frances Perkins, who saw protective legislation for women as a key stepping stone to
legislation protecting all laborers.
Extent
339 items in 1 box
Restrictions
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the researcher.
Availability
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