The evening world., 1911-04-29
ONE REASOfWHy
!. IT'S HARD TOF|ND
i. SERVANT GIRLS
Head Of License Bureau Says
Employers Make Them Feel
L. They Are Mental.
NEW REMEDY
Says They Should Be Put OF,
Same Plane as the En-
ployeeS of Stores.
NEW REMEDY

In a report sent TO Mayor Gaynor to-
day Herman Robinson, Commissioner Of
Licenses. discusses the servant problem
at considerable length. The Commits
sioner, whose department licenses and
regulates employment agencies. lnclud-
Ing those which furnish domestic ser
wants, ha. been making a study O. the
problem.
Mr.. liobinson says that fewer SER
wants are sought this year than last. al
though the rate OF wages is higher and
the demand Tor servants is as great.
in Cauada the demand for household
servants is greater now than In New
York, The Canadians are trying the
experiment Of employing negresses
from the South to do their household
work.
Commissioner Robinson also observes
that while the number OF young women
seeking employment as stenogra pliers
n typis;g at ss and s. a week N New
York city is far IN excess o. the
demand, the number NJ domestic sea
wants Is rapidly diminishing.
He Suggests a Remedy.
"rhe dependent status OF the house
10 servant is responsible" says the
Commissioner. and until employers %
s%eryauts place them on tho same footing
as working women in other walks Of
life. such a. ofnce assistants and ga Ies-
women in stores. the scarcity " DO
mestic servants will continue.
'11e servant question II agitated per-
slstcntly and from various viewpoints
The employment agents seem 80 think
: that the nearest tho heads Of house .
holds can come to solving the problem
for themselves is not to try 20 show
the servant that She Is n mental. but to
freely conccde that she has rights
which should he respected.
Employers OF servants are finding Il
60 their advantage to lift the household
worker out OF tho dependent class and
make her status more like that Of en-
rloyecs In stores and offices with def
nitcly understood hours OF labor. The
Increase In the number OF day workers,
or servants Who work by the day and
return 20 tllelr homes AZ might. Is indt-
cativc OF tho tendency In this dire ton.
But II is clear that the working hours
Of servants as we'll as their periods OF
recreation must be better systematized
than at present II the difficulties OF the
problem are 10 he l~essencd."
Tho Commissioner Export SAYS that
IN the east side Intelligence Offices.
where foreign-spoakiug help is princi-
pally supplied, tive prevailing rate OF
wages is as follows. Cooks. $3.50 a
month, mattresses. SO n month general
workers.. Rs ~ a month.
Outlook for Labor Is Bad
II ls also set forth that the conditions
Of tho unskillcd labor market denote
hard times. Railroads are not making
the Improvements and extensions they
had contemplated. and the wages of
lahoTCrs have fallen below the prevail
ing rate last wear. Many lBhorers are
idle. hut although the farmers are more
IN need of men than over. the class of
workers out nf obs IN the city will not
accept or are unable to do farm work.
Labor agencies report conditions
worse than llst year" the report
declares. THE present spring was
not nearly So good ~ the spring
~ 1910. T'- ruir, demand for nm
skilled labor comes 20 'he enploymen,
agencies from uounty and village ON
Gals who a., pus hin public works and
building ro1 -. II the railroad men are
backward in making improvements, tho
growing pppuldritN OF the motor caI
and the corresponding demand for bette,
roads mas to some extent compensated
the labor market,
"Thc tp'H number OF men sent out
OF tho ,I.y 10y employment agents as
contract luporers during the ! 'orse yelI
ending Npr. 80 '"ll, was 81, 80, % Whon
S.ej7 were s"ut ON transatlantic SHIPS
as cattle attendants. These figures 4,
,.t tttT..I. fH. p..tURv ~ F.tp, hands