WESTINGHOUSE ELECTRIC AND MANUFACTURING CO.
East Pittsburgh, Pa.
Until recently we have confined our training, as such, very largely to trades apprentices. We have a four-year course for these as mechanics, electricians and patternmakers.
Until recently it has been our plan to train new employees in the section to which they were assigned, upon the machines and work with which they were to be regularly connected. The various shop departments have instructors picked from the best workmen to demonstrate machines and their operation, when necessary.
What has already been said applies to both men and women, and up to the present time we have done nothing more than this in the way of training men employees.
Recently we have inaugurated a training course for women machine operators and a department has been equipped wherein these women are instructed in the operation of machine tools, such as lathes, drill press, screw machines, grinders and milling machines. This department is also to train women who are to work on mechanical fitting.
In addition to this we have a training school for instructing women employees in electrical work, such as winding, taping, soldering, connecting and insulating.
These schools are primarily for beginners and it is the plan to obtain women for these training sections through our centralized Employment Department. Then, when any manufacturing department wishes help, it will obtain it from the training section.
The instructor from these training sections is a high-grade man assisted by women, and these instructors are carefully selected from our own best employees.
The length of the training period runs from two to three days
up to three to four weeks, depending upon the difficulty of the occupation and the adaptability of the woman being trained.
We have also recently inaugurated a training school for women clerks and we have had for some time a training school for stenographers, typists, tracers and dictaphone operators.
We believe that preliminary training is very desirable for both men and women and that if equipment and space are allowable, special training departments should be established wherever the nature of the work will permit it.
(Signed) Robt. L. Wilson,
Assistant General Superintendent.