Peter Morrell

JOB TODAY captures Saturday Girls at work with new exhibition

First UK photography exhibition of young women on the job across Britain. Showcases how this iconic role has evolved throughout the decades

JOB TODAY, the UK’s leading mobile hiring app, is championing young females in the British workforce, by announcing the UK’s first photography exhibition that captures ‘Saturday Girls’ on the job across Britain. Acclaimed British photographer, Lewis Khan, was commissioned to travel the nation to capture women aged 16 to 29 years old, and showcase 10 girls working casual jobs in different industries, to show how this iconic role has evolved over the decades.

‘Saturday Girls’, a term coined to describe women using part-time, weekend work to enhance their lives, prospects and financial freedom, has evolved. Women are now using Saturday jobs to become more entrepreneurial and follow self-made ventures. The all new Saturday Girl has also become more tech savvy and juggles multiple jobs to enjoy more flexibility and independence.

JOB TODAY launched a search to find women who wanted to feature in the exhibition. 10 young women have been chosen as part of a collective that are an inspiration, using Saturday work to develop their skills and lead to career progression and entrepreneurial ventures.

From Glasgow down to Newcastle, Birmingham, London and beyond, the documentary style exhibition showcases Collette Conlin, an usher at the Theatre Royal in Newcastle who hopes to become a star performer herself, Suzie Hawkins, the green fingered Saturday Girl from Manchester that started as an intern and now works Saturdays to teach floristry to others, and Helen Adeyera, a weekend hairdresser that is studying Computer Science at Coventry University, just to name a few.

The Saturday Girls:

London:

  • Chantelle Caster – a waitress, cat-sitter & macramé artist from Hackney who thrives working part-time roles, rebelling against the 9-5 norm
  • Alice Davage – a chef at The Royal Albert Hall who lives in Fulham and wanted to gain a variety of skills before she starts her marketing career
  • Shana Kandola – a Foreign Office employee who dedicates her Saturdays to Bristol Hospital as a Band 2 Healthcare Assistant, alongside building a tech start-up from home
  • Sophie Condren – an emerging fashion designer and RCA graduate who works at iconic vintage shop Retro Woman in Notting Hill

Birmingham:

  • Helen Adeyera – a self-employed hairdresser & makeup artist and Computer Science student who has turned her passion and hobby into a business

Newcastle:

  • Collette Conlin – an usher at Theatre Royal in Newcastle and upcoming actress with on-screen dreams

Scotland:

  • Stephanie Bernette – a self-employed dance teacher from Glasgow who spends her weekends teaching hen and stag parties how to boogie! She started the classes after graduating to help her confidence grow before embarking on a TEFL teaching career

Scarborough:

  • Sophie Brown – a talented pianist and music graduate who runs Musical Theatre classes at her YMCA centre for local children

Manchester:

  • Suzie Hawkins – a passionate florist and floristry teacher at Manchester’s Frog who settled in the northern city after travelling the world learning new floristry skills
  • Kadija-Bhlue Wilson – a singer-songwriter who spends her weekends touring the North of England (photographed gigging at The Domino Bar in Leeds city centre) rejected the 9-5 lifestyle to focus on turning her dream job into a reality, instead picking up part-time hospitality and retail work to support her creative endeavour

Polina Montano, Co-Founder of JOB TODAY comments, “A century ago women couldn’t vote, get a loan or work in certain industries. Saturday Girl roles were incremental in helping women break down barriers and gain independence. We have now come a long way. We wanted to give a platform to showcase the all new, modern-day ‘Saturday Girl’, showing how our future female workforce are already killing it at work, doing some pretty amazing things.”

Over the past few decades, working women have been on the rise in the UK. Recent research revealed a record high of 78% of women are now working in Britain, compared with 57% in 1975. This has been a continuing rise over the past 40 years.

Free to view, to find out more about this exhibition please visit: https://jobtoday.com/saturdaygirl/

Saturday Girls Photography Exhibition 1st – 3rd November

Where: Woolff Gallery, 89 Charlotte Street, London, W1T 4PU