Bryant & May controversies
Controversies tied to this brand in public sources. A listing is not a finding of fault.
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1890
Sweated domestic outwork
Bryant & May used home-based workers to assemble matchboxes under conditions associated with the sweating system. These workers received low piece rates and supplied some materials themselves, while remaining outside much factory regulation.
1888
Wage fines and the matchgirls' strike
Workers at the Bow factory faced deductions for lateness, talking, untidy workspaces and other alleged infractions. The system helped trigger the 1888 strike and generated sustained criticism of the company’s labour practices.
1880
Phossy jaw and white-phosphorus exposure
The company was implicated in the wider match-industry scandal involving workers’ exposure to white phosphorus, which could cause the severe occupational disease known as phossy jaw. The issue became central to criticism of nineteenth-century match manufacturing.