Missouri Department of Labor and Industrial Relations

In the early 20th century, there were few women allowed in government positions. However, Missouri was ahead of the curve. In 1921, Governor Arthur Hyde appointed the first woman, Alice Jane Curtice Moyer-Wing, to be the State Industrial Inspector and a member of his Cabinet.

Wing was born in 1867 in Du Quoin, Illinois. She held several notable political positions. She was the field secretary for the Missouri Equal Suffrage Association in 1913, a member and delegate of the Republican National Convention in 1920 and again in 1928, and a member of the Woman’s Republican County Committee. She was also a Republican U.S. Congressional Candidate in 1924. Wing had two children, Selma and Charles.

As Chief Inspector, Wing was responsible for enforcing labor laws to protect all laborers, including women and children.

Wing worked to protect employees from occupational diseases and enforced all health-protecting measures, including proper ventilation and sanitation. Under Wing’s administration, Missouri saw a significant decrease in industrial accidents and child labor, despite an increase in manufacturing. Wing’s successes led to her reappointment in 1925. In 1927, she became the Chief Clerk for the Department..

Wing was also a notable author of several well-known articles about women’s suffrage including “Men Only,” and “When a Woman is the Head.” She also wrote one book, “Romance on the Road.”

Another notable woman in Missouri is Lucile Bluford. She was known as a bold and persistent civil rights activist. Lucile Bluford moved with her family to Kansas City in 1918, when she was seven years old.  She graduated with a journalism degree from the University of Kansas in 1932, after she was unable to attend the University of Missouri because it was not admitting African Americans at the time.

Bluford continued her journalism career and worked at the Kansas City American newspaper and then at the Kansas City Call newspaper, where she eventually became its editor and publisher. Bluford’s hard work made the Call one of the leading African American newspapers in the U.S.

Bluford became involved in the Kansas City civil rights movement and was a tireless advocate for human rights in Missouri.  She was the first woman and first African American woman to be appointed to the Missouri Human Rights Commission by Governor James T. Blair, Jr. who stated in his speech before the Missouri General Assembly on January 7, 1959: “A distinguished Human Rights Commission was appointed, which will continue to pursue the state’s objective of assuring equal rights and opportunities for all our citizens…our cause for human rights is a right cause, for on our side there is justice.”

Bluford dedicated a large part of her life to breaking down racial barriers to higher education, including filing several lawsuits against the University of Missouri after being denied admission 11 times.  She received an Honor Medal for Distinguished Service in Journalism in 1984, and in 1989, the University awarded Bluford an honorary doctorate in Humanities.

To learn more about the Commission on Human Rights, visit the Commission page.

Just two years after the Department’s creation, Missouri passed the first Mine Safety statute in 1881, while the U.S. didn’t enact official mining safety regulations until the 1960s. Missouri’s statute required mine owners to provide a safe working environment for miners, created county mine inspectors, and a legal action for the death of a miner due to violations of the mining act.

However, women were not allowed to work in Missouri mines until the late 20th century. Mining officials said women working in the lead mining industry have come full circle in more than 200 years. In fact, Indian women used to scour creek beds in southeast Missouri to find unusually heavy rocks containing lead ore.

Ruth Ann Kuntz, had been working illegally under state law as possibly the first woman underground miner in Missouri for more than a year, before the state statute was repealed in 1975.

Kuntz was present as Governor Christopher Bond signed a law repealing a state statute prohibiting women from working in mines. Kuntz was working for a lead mine and mill.

Today, mining employs more than 30,000 men AND women in our state and thousands attend universities to earn degrees to enter the industry. At the Missouri University of Science and Technology in Rolla, more than 30 women are enrolled in the various mining degree programs.

Missouri leads the nation in the production of several important minerals, and is home to the only underground iron mine in the country. The state is number one in production of lead and lime, third in zinc, fifth in copper, and sixth in silver. The Department takes necessary steps to protect those working in the mining industry and has a nationally recognized Mine and Cave Safety Program.

Missouri hasn’t had a mining fatality since 2009! And the Department will continue to provide excellent training programs designed to protect Missouri’s miners.