LEFT:
"Situations Wanted”, Portsmouth Evening News, Thursday 19 April, 1951, page 10
“Domestic Help”, Portsmouth Evening News, Wednesday 13 May 1953, page 18
Source for both: British Newspaper Archives
Images © Johnston Press plc. Image created courtesy of THE BRITISH LIBRARY BOARD.
Much of the work undertaken by Italian migrants upon their arrival in England was based on the skills they had acquired at home in Italy. "Situations Wanted" implies a determination to find work, offering whatever skills the individual had. (In this case, cooking, customer service, and mechanics.) Similarly, the extract from "Domestic Help" advertises a number of migrants from various backgrounds, including an Italian cook-general. In the immediate post-War years, the labour shortage saw many migrants filling in the gaps left by British domestic workers, who had sought better opportunities in other occupations.
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LEFT: “Short Time For Laundry Workers”, Sussex Agricultural Press, Friday 18 November 1955, page 14
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Source: British Newspaper Archives
Image © Johnston Press plc. Image created courtesy of THE BRITISH LIBRARY BOARD.
Relations between migrant and non-migrant workers were not always straightforward. By 1955, the immediate post-war labour shortages had been replaced by concerns about rising unemployment levels. The extract above discusses a dispute at a Sussex laundry in which non-migrant workers had had their contracted hours reduced, whilst Italian workers were able to keep their full-time contracts. Similar disputes were not uncommon at this time and often arose from employers' obligations to fulfil their international contracts. Whilst many migrant workers had more positive experiences of the workplace, it is also important to address that it was not always plain sailing for them.
WORK
What jobs did Italian migrants do? What was the work like?
Italian migrants who came to the South Coast worked in a variety of occupations, mostly in outdoor work, manual labour, customer service, and domestic service. Others worked within the family business or set up their own.
The type of work undertaken included:
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Farming, particularly growing and harvesting mushroom and tomato crops in Sussex.
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Retail or service-based work, such as waiting at tables in cafés and restaurants.
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Domestic service, particularly cooking and housekeeping jobs in hospitals and care homes.
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Other 'outside' jobs such as: bricklaying, road building, and plumbing.
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As with many skilled and semi-skilled jobs, the work was difficult, whether indoors or outdoors. A couple of those who recalled their earlier working days in England spoke of the difficulty, or even inability, to get sick pay despite doing the same work as those who were entitled to it. In turn, this lead to mounting pressure to save money in case of hard times and constant feelings of financial insecurity.
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On the other hand however, despite these hardships, finding work in England meant that many Italian migrants were afforded the opportunity to build and live a better life, one which may not have been possible had they remained in Italy. Not only was the work more stable, but there was also more variety to choose from.