To take now groups of men in the same trade without giving the budget of each in detail will give a more general idea. Eight carmen form the first group. Their wages are extraordinarily dissimilar. They, at the time their budgets passed into the hands of the investigation, were working for private firms, for L.C.C. contractors, and Post-Office contractors on every kind of terms. Paid by the day or by the week, they were on night work or day work, driving one horse or two, continuously at work, or with long stretches of waiting in a yard with no shelter. One Postal van driver, who was a night worker, drove all Derby Day in between two of his nights, and got 1s. 6d. overtime for it. The case of the carman in a big West End private firm who got two days a week has been already mentioned.
The cases are as follows:
1. Wage, 26s. Allowance, 23s. 6d. 6 children; none dead.
Rent, 5s. 6d.—2 tiny rooms. Clothing as wanted. No burial insurance.
Average left for food on 6 weeks’ full pay—14s. 5d., or 1s. 9½d. per head a week, 3d. a day: man, 3s. 6d.; mother and children, 1s. 6¾d. a week, or 2¾d. a day.
The week that 4s. had to be spent on new boots these figures became for mother and children 11¾d. a week, or 1¾d. a day.
2. Wage, 25s. Allowance, 21s.; girl’s wage, 4s.; total, 25s. 7 children alive, 1 dead, 1 away.
Rent, 7s.—2 rooms. Clothing as wanted. No burial insurance.
Average left for food, 12s. 4½d., or 1s. 6½d. per head a week: man, 3s. 6d.; mother and children, 1s. 3¼d. a week, or 2-5/7d. a day.