Whitehall and the Labour Problem in late-Victorian and Edwardian Britain - A Study in Official Statistics and Social Control

Most interpretations of late-Victorian and Edwardian social and economic trends have relied heavily upon the industrial labour statistics published by Whitehall. This book, originally published in 1985 incorporates a critical examination of the human resources, motivation and statistical techniques which generate that data base. It focuses on the production, structure, and output of the official statistics relating to a range of imperfections in the labour market and industrial relations, characterised by contemporary social observers, administrator and policy makers as -the labour problem.- This study makes a significant contribution to the recent debate over the nature and motivation of late-Victorian and Edwardian social policy. It provides a case study with which to assess the hypotheses put forward by social scientists as to the relationship between social statistics and policy. Thirdly, in examining the motivation of official statisticians, the book will illuminate the changin