9to5
9to5, National Association of Working Women is an organization established in 1973 that is dedicated to improving working conditions and ensuring the rights of women and families in the United States. The organization strove to close both the wage and opportunity gaps between men and women and sought to mend workplace relationships between males and females, fostering an environment focused on coexistence rather than one dominated by men. The 9to5 movement worked both locally and nationally during its prime years, and later the struggles and stories of those involved were made into a documentary that raised even more awareness nationwide. The 9to5 movement could be considered as a part of the feminist movement; however, many women preferred not being called feminists since women of color have already fought against racial disparities for centuries. The 9to5 movement also helped Black women in Cleveland, Ohio to gain nationwide awareness about racial disparities in various factories.
History
The roots of the 9to5 movement can be traced to the lived experiences and activism of its eventual founders, Karen Nussbaum and Ellen Cassedy. Before forming 9to5, Nussbaum and Cassedy were not focused on creating a labor organization. Instead, they were involved in broader social struggles, including women's rights activism and antiwar movements. While working on these causes, they ran low on money and took jobs as secretaries, where they observed firsthand the mistreatment and inequities faced by women in office work. These experiences inspired them to develop the concept of a labor organization specifically for women office workers, leading to the formation of the Women Office Workers at Harvard, which later became the foundation for the 9to5 movement.Even before 9to5 began to take shape, several laws had already been passed to address sex-based discrimination in the workplace, including the Equal Pay Act of 1963 and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The Equal Pay Act aimed to abolish wage disparities between men and women performing the same work. Meanwhile, Title VII established the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which enforces laws prohibiting workplace discrimination based on sex or sexual orientation. Additionally, it allowed women to file complaints and pursue legal action against their employers if they believed they were being discriminated against. Despite these advances, women in the workplace continued to feel underrepresented and underappreciated.
The first concrete step toward building the movement came in December 1972 with the publication of 9to5: Newsletter for Boston Area Office Workers. The goal of the newsletter was to reach all clerical workers, not just women. About a year later, the newsletter's publishers announced the formation of Boston 9to5, a grassroots collective for women office workers that addressed issues such as low pay, limited advancement opportunities, workplace sexual harassment, and the lack of professional respect.
Women who joined the 9to5 movement started as women who were first hand witnesses of the misogyny and mistreatment of women in the workplace. Secretaries like Fran Cicchetti, a Boston insurance secretary, were made false promises by their bosses leading them to expect training for new tasks in their jobs and possible promotions. When Cicchetti asked her boss about the promise he had made, her boss promoted a male to the new title. This brought new ideas that women should not get treated like this in the workplace and Cicchetti became an activist. As one of the earliest 9to5 activists, she helped join forces with other women fighting the same issues and created the "organization for women office workers." Eventually this turned into the 9to5 movement where Fran became the head of the finance committee and lobbied with the insurance commissioner to create new standards on job postings and promotions.
The national organization has buildings in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and Atlanta, Georgia, as well as appearing in states including Colorado and California. The organization had as many as 12,000 members.
The terms "office wife" and "office maid" were also very common within the work place. Both of these terms made women feel disrespected and blurred the line between professional and inappropriate relationships of boss and secretary.
Hearing on Working Conditions of Women Office Workers
Members of 9to5 would hold meetings to discuss their goals as an organization and movement. One goal they discussed was the creation of a Bill of Rights for Women Office Workers. African American women wanted this bill to prioritize providing childcare during the workday; however, founders chose to exclude this provision from their list of conditions because they believed it would jeopardize the bill passing. In April 1974, hundreds of women attended the "Hearing on the Working Conditions of Women Office Workers" in Boston, where the group testified. As a result, the bill was signed and secured important rights such as written job descriptions, salary reviews, workplace respect, and equal benefits regardless of gender. This win helped lay the groundwork for further campaigns demanding equal pay.One of the organization's earliest victories included a class-action lawsuit against several Boston publishing companies that resulted in $1.5 million back pay for the female plaintiffs. In 1975, 9to5's founders partnered with the Service Employees International Union to form Local 925 in Boston, providing office workers access to collective bargaining rights.
National Secretaries Day
The 9to5 movement was instrumental in addressing the grievances of women and their relationships with their male counterparts in the workplace. National Secretaries Day was a topic brought up in their movement because it was a day for male bosses to take their female secretaries out for the day. The women would be given roses by their bosses as well as a meal. The male interpretation of this day was that bosses were adequately recognizing their secretaries. On the contrary, female secretaries felt as though they were treated adequately for one day, but the rest of their working hours consisted of unfair and inappropriate boss and secretary relationships. The members of 9to5 eventually coined phrases such as "raises not roses" in order to combat National Secretaries Day and create a call to action.Development and Influence
In 1977, 9to5 Boston merged with Cleveland Women Working to create the Cleveland-based Working Women Organizing Project. Based in Cleveland from 1977 to 1993, the national organization was a coalition of like-minded associations and was headed by Karen Nussbaum, one of Boston 9to5's founders. Nussbaum was the executive director of 9to5 while also being the president of Local 925 until 1993. Nussbaum's involvement in the organization began with her friend Ellen Cassedy, whom she met at Harvard University, while they were working as secretaries. Together, they founded the Boston 9to5 after several years of recruitment and the formation of smaller like-minded groups.Cassedy held the role of recruiting, organizing, and contacting potential members, as well as handling relations with bosses and CEOs of other organizations. She trained at the Midwest Academy serving as a scout to learn the basics of union organization. While working for 9to5, Cassedy advocated that "9to5 attempted to challenge 'what was in the culture – that office work wasn't really work, office workers were not true workers, women's work was not that important.'"
Debbie Schneider worked for the women's organization of office workers in New York City and eventually joined 9to5 in Cincinnati, Ohio. Before either of those placements, though, she was originally denied access to the group right off the bat. She kept trying, went to the recruitment lunches, and eventually gained her status in the movement. While a part of the organization, she was in charge of organizing university clericals.
The group was later known as the National Association of Working Women. Members of this group met with Jane Fonda and served as an inspiration for the smash-hit comedy, 9 to 5, featuring Fonda, Dolly Parton, and Dabney Coleman, among others. The film focuses on clerical working women, their experiences at work, and the overall activism of the 9 to 5 women during the 1970s, and the unionizing of the 1980s.
Julia Reichert and Steven Bognar filmed a documentary about the 9to5 movement that was released in 2021.
Tactics
The members of the 9to5 Movement often used unorthodox tactics to carry out their efforts. Along with lawsuits and petitions, public relations efforts were some of the most influential aspects of the entire movement. There were demands for an office "Bill of Rights" when attention was heavily focused on the National Secretaries Day debate. Additionally, members of the 9to5 Movement also conducted "worst boss contests." The contests told stories of secretaries who were mistreated by their bosses in an unprofessional manner. Karen Nussbaum used these "worst boss contests" to spread stories of secretaries who were fired due to boss outbursts rather than work ethic complications.9to5 also held workshops on issues such as sexual harassment, workplace safety, and pay equity, aiming to reach more office workers, educate them about their rights, and legitimize organizing as a means of workplace improvement. Equally central to 9to5’s strategy was leadership development. Clerical workers were trained to represent the organization publicly and guide its activities, which ensured that the movement was led by those it served. Additionally, the group often paired Black and white members for public appearances to highlight its commitment to racial inclusion. Together, these strategies aimed to broaden participation among women office workers and strengthen their ability to advocate for improved working conditions.