butty gang
Definition
Noun (countable): A "butty gang" refers to a small group of workers, typically in manual labor or mining, who collectively undertake a specific task or contract and share the wages or profits equally among themselves.
Usage Examples
- (A group of miners who work together and share pay.)
- (A team of workers who jointly accept a job.)
- (A small unit of laborers working as a cooperative.)
Advanced Usage
"to work in a butty gang": to be part of a cooperative labor group.
- They preferred to work in a butty gang rather than as individual contractors. (They chose collective work for shared benefits.)
"to form a butty gang": to organize a group for a shared task.
- The laborers decided to form a butty gang for the seasonal harvest. (They created a team to work together on a temporary job.)
Variants and Related Words
- Butty (n): a fellow worker or partner in a butty gang; also a sandwich (colloquial, British).
- He was my butty on the railway line. (He was my work partner.)
- Gang (n): a group of people working together, often for a specific purpose.
- The gang finished the road repairs ahead of schedule. (The work team completed the task.)
Synonyms
- Work gang: a group of laborers assigned to a job.
- Crew: a team of people working together, especially on a ship or in construction.
- Squad: a small organized group of workers or soldiers.
Related Idioms
- "Butty system": a historical labor practice where workers formed small groups to subcontract work, common in mining and railway construction.
- The butty system allowed miners to earn more but also increased risk. (A cooperative labor arrangement.)
Phrasal Verbs
- Gang up: to join together as a group, often against someone or for a common purpose.
- The workers ganged up to negotiate better pay. (They united as a butty gang to advocate for themselves.)