Abstract. The article is devoted to the analysis of one of the areas of activity of women’s organizations in the Russian Empire of the late 19th and early 20th c., which was called “employee assistance”. In terms of the forms and content of social support for women, it went beyond the scope of generally accepted charity. This was not financial assistance. To implement their charitable projects, activists of women’s organizations used the involvement of women in entrepreneurial activities, involving thousands of low-income women. Thanks to employee assistance, activists of the women’s movement helped women become economically independent and acquire a profession. Self-reliance and mutual support in the activities of women’s organizations do not lose their relevance in the modern women’s movement.
