2.8) The Self-Service Revolution
The self-service revolution reached Britain in the forties.
This latest 'import' from America subsequently led to the growth of the large supermarket chains we know today. The number and variety of products available to an increasingly affluent public grew enormously.
The Co-operative Societies pioneered the way and, because the shops were staffed by Usdaw members, the Union had the opportunity to monitor developments. Each converted shop was visited, facts and figures checked with managers and discussions held with the staff.
There were initial fears that self-service would lead to a loss of jobs. However, in 1950, Usdaw's Executive Council declared that with appropriate safeguards it was able to advise members to 'welcome and co-operate in the development of self-service'.
An Usdaw survey, in 1954, concluded that those who worked in self-service stores generally preferred it to traditional shop work.
Self-service spread rapidly into the private sector - though initially it was not always well received. Lord Sainsbury is said to have had a wire basket thrown at him by one irate customer, while another swore at him for expecting customers to do assistants' work! The growth of large supermarkets had a great advantage for Usdaw - they were easier to organise than small shops.
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