Interviews and Project Findings:
Work in Darlington

"In past decades Darlington was mostly a heavy engineering industrial town, but with the arrival of the microchip in the past decade things have changed in the work place with industry being more computer orientated. At the present time Darlington's biggest employer is the Orange Phone Company, whose workforce mostly consist of women."


" I wanted to try and find out how Darlington has changed throughout the years. I wanted to know how traffic has changed, if it was busier or quieter then. I also wanted to know how things like entertainment, shopping facilities; jobs and neighbours have changed.

During the last 50 to 60 years a lot of events have taken place. These include the Second World War. I wondered whether those events would have made a difference to the way some things have changed.

I decided to interview my Grandad. His name is Andrew Gunnell and he is 67 years of age. He has lived in Darlington all his life. 1 asked him a number of different questions to try and fmd out how Darlington has changed throughout the years.

Jobs have changed quite a lot because there used to be very big factories like Paton and Baldwin (wool factory) which employed thousands of people at one time. At this present there are smaller factories that only employ a few hundred people at a time. One of the biggest factories today in Darlington is Rothmans (tobacco factory). This is because years ago there used to be lots of factories making steam engines and railway tracks but there isn't as much need for those today so the factories were demolished."


"Glaxo provied many jobs for people both living in Barbard Castle and out of town at the moment and has done for over fifty years although some people chose to work at Darlington or as shopowners, managers etc. 50 years ago. Jobs were not as much in demand because of less population and the war."


"In that time lots of people worked as miners. Women didn't really work then. Most women stayed at home to clean and look after children. Work was harder, because there weren't any machines or computers etc. to help people."


"Many new jobs have been created in Darlington and the younger generation are getting more jobs than the older.As new buildings and sports complexes have been built there has been a greater demand for younger people to get involved in employment."


"There has been a change of job prospects in Darlington over the years. Many of the large factory complexes are now no longer predominant in the town. Whessoe, Cummins, Tinsley's, William Press, Cleveland Bridge etc. have all seen a decline in their work force over the last decade. The thriving industrial companies of Darlington have either ceased or are almost very close to closure. The Whessoe factory no longer exists and the land where it once stood is now home to new housing. William Press, Valley Street where my mom used to work as a shorthand typist has moved to smaller offices in Haughton road and now comes under the name of AMEC."


"Many jobs were on the trains and in wool mills. Also you could get jobs being maids for the well-off people. There was a lot of jobs and it was easy to get one. Not a lot of people were unemployed. These days there is many variations of jobs, such as electrician and businessman, but also many people are unemployed."


"I have noticed that in the recent years there has been a large change in the number, variety and types of jobs. I asked a worker from Comet how he thought jobs in Darlington had changed.

Q: Do you think that there are more jobs available for people just leaving education than before?
A: Yes, when I left school there was only a few companies willing to take me on, not because of my qualifications but because l was too inexperienced to work for them. Now, most places I go to have young people working for them, as they have realised that they still have the ability required and will learn extra skills quickly.
Q: Do you think that better education has lead in an increase in young people employed? A: Maybe, but l still think that the major factor deciding this is the change in attitude from employers.
Q: As the unemployment rate increases, do you think that Darlington will be able to cope with the large demand for extra work places?
A: No, l think that no matter what the Council or Government decide to do l think that there is no way that we could put an end to unemployment."


"Jobs have been changed in Darlington over the years. Factories and industrial places of work have mostly closed. New call centres have now been built."