St. Paul daily globe., 1893-01-29
BOTH BOND AND LICENSE.
The Employment Agencies Call
Down Rev. David Morgan.

Inc Employ fnenG agencies CalE
Down Rev. David Morgan.
G. S. Richards, manager of the Ma
tional Employment company, said yes
terday that Rev. David Morgan does
not seem TO. be familiar with the facts
when he stated before the committee on
licenses that the employment agents
in st. Paul are not under bond and pay
no llCenSe'for doing business. Manager
Richards asserted that his company had
given bond for $4,000 in st. Paul and
pays license OF $3.50 besides giving
in both Minneapolis and Duluth. Mr..
Richards proceeded to discuss the sub
ject further and said:
There is no business in the state
held under more strict ordinances and
laws than the employment business at
the present time, thus protecting the
labOrer in every way; and to abolish
these Offices (as the bill now before the
legislature proposes to dO) would be a
greater hardship on the laborer than
any one else. AS matters now stand we
are held liable for the small fee charged;
also 81 per day expenses. and fare both
ways, i'll case men TO not receive the
work as stated by us. The only trouble
there has been in st. Paul is that they
have never had a city ordinance that
was lawful. l venture the suggestion
that the police authorities have had as
small amount OF trouble through the
transactions of employment Offices as
any other line of legitimate business i'll
the state.
There has been a constant cry for
years that the laboring men have been
defrauded. This is the most absurd
idea that could be imagined. The fact
is, the employers of labor are the ones
who need protection from the fact that
they pay fares in order to secure help on
their respective contracts, etc, but in a
great many cases tind large shortage
when crews arrive at destination, thus
pOcketing the loss Of fares so paid for
those who refuse to go to work after
fare has been paid and are under con-
tract that they shall go to work. Were
! it not for employment offices, it would
be almost impossible for laborers
to secure work without paying
their own car fare to a Station
and spend a great deal of time and eX-
pense in seeking employment, and
then, in the majority of cases, they
would be unsuccessful. it would also
be great disadvantage to responsible
| companies and farmers, who use hun
dredS of men annually. as can be Veri-
! fed by consultation with the largest
lumber and railroad companies. Our
| company sends to the DakotaS and Mill
nesOta harvest fields annually $500 har-
vest hands, rs per cent of whom are
brought here, through its efforts, from
other states and supplied direct to
farmers making application for them.
We do our utmost to supply all farmers
with the help desired, and were it not
for our efforts in their behalf there
would be thousands of bushels of grain
destroyed annually from lack of proper
care.
Offices that do legitimate business
and are responsible object decidedly to
having the business attacked as bus-
ness by parties who are seeking cheap
political capital without making specific
| charges against any one in particular.
With eleven years experience in the
| business | have not had single COM
plant, and will forfeit 500 to any one
| who can show me single man who has
not received work as stated by our COM
pany or had his office fee refunded. We
do business only with responsible par
ties, who will verify all the above state
| mentS.
Men who are idle now are idle from
their own inclination, as good men are
in great demand at high, wages. 1t has
been impossible during the past three
years, summer and winter, to secure
the help demanded, even after bringing
hundreds of men from other states.
Two thousand men can secure employ
ment in this state now at wages % per
cent above those paid in other states.
The matter of labor agencies has been
agitated at great length of late from a
one-sided standpoint, and in Justice to
ourselves and the employers of labor
we deem it only just that false impress
sions should be corrected.