It can also describe someone who works for a firm but who does the work at their own home.
This being England not Scotland,so possibly different as I have seen the term "outdoor worker" meaning an Ag Lab.
My G.Grandma was an" outworker"( 1891census).,working for Affleck`s and Brown`s on Oldham St. Manchester.
She lived in Reather St. just up Oldham Rd.
She would ,in this case collect fine garments the from the posh shop and her job was to do the "fine finishing" .She did it at her home.
This was stitching beads and braid, ribbons ,frogging(looped braid in whorls like on uniforms of the time but on ladies garments too.)Lace and buttons.When finished she would put the clothes back in the big bag they had been carried in and delivered them back to the shop.
My dad often went with her and remembered the Commissioner( I always thought that was spelled differently as we said COMMISSIONAIRE-someone in a uniform who meets and greets,opens vehicle doors etc. for clients of a shop or hotel) on the door always opened it for her and raised his hat even though she was just an outworker. Why she went in that way I am not sure ,you would have expected her to use the tradesman`s entrance round the back in Tib St.
I know they were very poor and lived in what was not a very salubrious area and had the posh women who wore those clothes seen the conditions where the beads etc were applied to their garments they would have been in deep shock!!!!
/There are photographs of women and children in Angel Meadow M/C making brushes in their homes ,late 1800`s.there ,also outworkers.
My dad was born 1897and his Grandma live to 1910 as far as I remember.
So late Victorian/Edwardian days.
Viktoria
