The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1903-01-24

TTME HAS ARRIVED FOR REFUSING
TO LICENSE PRIVATE AGENCIES.
Secretary Marcus Able Report-617S
Persons Given Emp1Oyment-Mun-
icipaI Bureau Enjoys Confidence
OF Empl0yers-It Has Saved To
WorkinEmen the Sum of $1,000
For the Year-Secretary's Log
zeal Conclusion.

The annual report Of the Municipal
Employment Bureau is exciting the
the widest attention among all obser-
vers Of the evils OF employment agen-
cies. Just this week a clerk in priv g.
ate office was arrested for obtain =
ing money from three poor 1aboring
men under false pretenses., ...-
In the report of the free bureau Sec
rotary Marcus states SITS persons Sc
cured employment during the. year.
The Report says:
Comparing the business done by
this office with, that Of the bureaus at
Milwaukee and West Superior, Wis,
for the first 81 weeks Of their exis-
tence, it is found that this bureau leads
Milwaukee by % per cent and West
Superior by 1913 per cent. It also COM
pares favorably with the five state
employment bureaus of Ohio, located
at Cleveland, Columbus, c incinnati,
Dayton and Toledo.
The volume Of business is $50 per
cent greater than the weekly average
Of these cities during the nine months
ending September 80, 1902.
It may be expected that the business
will be greatly increased during the
true If q more favorable location could
be secured. While the present Local
ton is much better than the former
one in the Ar1nory building, there are
still better ones in the city. The Com
m1ssioners have had one under con-
sideration but SO far have been un-
able to secure it,
The average number of persons en-
ployed per week was 1854. 60.14 per
cent of the people employed reside in
the city, 9.47 per cent in the state OF
Minnesota outside OF Duluth and 1898
per cent In other states.
The entire expense to the city for
the maintenance of the bureau was
$1,707.04, as set forth in the annexed
statement.
An assistant will doubtless be neces-
sary after the spring business opens.
The work has been quite arduous at
! times and the office has frequently
been kept open from eleven to twelve
hours daily.
Great pains have been taken to ac-
commodate employers and it has al
ways been kept in mind that the en-
ployers' good will must be retained lf
the success of the bureau is. desired.
A large number of those that favor
this office with their orders. have ex
u, pressed their appreciation T Of at The #ef-
forts made to please them, while others
shave shown by continuance of their
patronage that they are satisfied.
An employer seldom uses advertis
Ing columns to state his needs for labor
but places his orders with some en-
ployment agency and the labor is there
! fore practically compelled to seek the
assistance of employment agents if he
wishes to secure a situation without
lthe loss of considerable time while
searching for it. This means the pay
ment of one dollar or more if he is
compelled to apply to private agents.
No complaint of failure to secure
employment by mon sent out of the
city has been made. Those seeking
employment express great satisfaction
In being able to come to place where
they can rely on fair treatment and
the payment Of fee is not required.
The expenses of the office have beer
kept at as low a figure as is consis
tent with good business Judgment The
cost Of each position was thirty-three
cents. The positions furnished if Sc
cured from the bureaus would have
cost the applicants an average of $1.2:
each, Or a total of $6,468.75 Thi;
bureau has therefore been the mean:
of saving to the working man the sun
of $4,761.71.
IT the complaints that are heard IL
this office concerning some of the EN-
ployment agencies in the city arr
founded on facts, the average cost O
positions actually obtained from privat
agents would be largely in excess O
the sum stated. 1t is not the intention
to cast any reflections on employment
agencies not under municipal suner