Under this traditional labor system, a skilled miner takes on a specific section of the mine and hires their own small crew of laborers to do the heavy digging and hauling. The contractor is paid solely based on the weighed output of the team, out of which they must pay their crew and sometimes purchase their own timber and explosives.
Heard on the job
The butty in the lower seam is complaining about the poor ventilation slowing down his men.