KJELDSBERG, Betzy
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2005-04-04 10:09 AM
Noors inspectrice, feministe (1866-1950)
She was the first female factory inspector in Norway, feminist and radical leftist. The portrait on the stamp is from a photo from about 1920. In the background we can see a welder of our time in a modern protective outfit. Typical conditions for workers in her time were child labour, unprotected machinery, bad ventilation, no heating, poor lighting, unhygienic environment and long working days. As a factory inspector during 25 years she made a great effort to improve these conditions in the factories. She was also early interested in the feminist movement and became the founder of several women's clubs. From the year 1926 she was vice-chairman of the International Council of Women. Even in politics she was active, and was the first member of the executive committee of the Norwegian liberal party.
