Jeanne Bouvier (11 February 1865 – 1964) is remembered as a French textile worker, feminist, and militant trade unionist.

Early life and education

Born in 1865 in

Salaise-sur-Sanne Salaise-sur-Sanne () is a commune in the Isère department in southeastern France. Population Notable people * Jeanne Bouvier See also *Communes of the Isère department The following is a list of the 512 Communes of France, communes in th ...

Isère Isère ( , ; frp, Isera; oc, Isèra, ) is a landlocked department in the southeastern French region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. Named after the river Isère, it had a population of 1,271,166 in 2019.Saint-Rambert-d'Albon Saint-Rambert-d'Albon (, literally ''Saint-Rambert of Albon''; frp, Sent-Rambèrt) is a commune in the Drôme department in southeastern France. Population Notable residents * Wilfride Piollet, ballerina International relations Saint-Rambe ...

Drôme Drôme (; Occitan: ''Droma''; Arpitan: ''Drôma'') is the southernmost department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of Southeastern France. Named after the river Drôme, it had a population of 516,762 as of 2019.

, when Bouvier was 16 months old. She had a sister and there was a brother who died of measles. As a child, Bouvier helped her mother work in the fields and guard the cows. At the age of ten years, Bouvier was sent to board at a religious school in

Épinouze Épinouze () is a commune in the Drôme department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in southeastern France. Population See also *Communes of the Drôme department The following is a list of the 363 communes of the Drôme department of Fr ...

where she was a good student.

Career

When she was eleven, the family moved again and settled in

Saint-Symphorien-d'Ozon Saint-Symphorien-d'Ozon () is a commune in the Rhône department, within the urban area of Lyon, in eastern France. Population See also *Communes of the Rhône department The following is a list of the 208 communes of the Rhône department ...

Rhône The Rhône ( , ; wae, Rotten ; frp, Rôno ; oc, Ròse ) is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and southeastern France before discharging into the Mediterranean Sea. At Ar ...

, and she became a silk factory worker. After 1840 it was illegal for French children under the age of 12 to work more than an eight-hour day, but Bouvier worked in one of the many factories that ignored the law and she would work thirteen hours. The wages were poor and she and her mother would go without food. Her mother would blame her for being so lazy that her employers did not pay her more. Bouvier changed employers to get better wages and the family moved several times, with Bouvier specializing in textile work.Jeanne Bouvier, Mes Mémoires, ou, 59 années d'activité industrielle, sociale et intellectuelle d'une ouvrière, La Découverte/Maspero, 1983 (in French) Bouvier was appointed technical advisor and served as an active delegate to the first International Congress of Workers at the first

International Labour Conference The International Labour Organization (ILO) is a United Nations agency whose mandate is to advance social and economic justice by setting international labour standards. Founded in October 1919 under the League of Nations, it is the first and ol ...

held in

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in 1919. She was a member of the Women's Employment Committee and participated in various International Congresses of Working Women, including the 1921 congress in

Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...

. From 1919 to 1935, she was a member of the Joint Committee for Unemployment Fund. In April 1922, after 27 years of affiliation, she was forced to leave the union.Bouvier, 1983

Selected works

*''Deux époques. Deux hommes. Les sauveurs de l'Économie nationale'', Paris, Radot, 1927 *''La Lingerie et les Lingères'', Paris, Gaston Doin et Cie éditeurs, 1928 *''Histoire des dames employées dans les postes, télégraphes et téléphones de 1714-1919'', Paris-Saint-Amand, les Presses universitaires de France, 1930 *''Les Femmes pendant la Révolution. Leur action politique, sociale, économique, militaire, leur courage devant l'échafaud'', Paris, Eugène Figuière, 1931 *''Mes mémoires, ou, 59 années d'activité industrielle, sociale et intellectuelle d'un ouvrière'', Poitiers, l'Action intellectuelle; 1936

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bouvier, Jeanne 1865 births 1964 deaths People from Isère French feminist writers 20th-century French writers French trade unionists French women trade unionists French socialist feminists 20th-century French women