The Detroit times. [volume] (Detroit, Mich.) 1903-1920, 1912-02-29
DETROIT HAS FEWER IDLE
MEN THAN OTHER LARGE
CITIES, SAYS JOHN ]. WH|Rl
Bad Weather Chief Cause of
Keeping Those in Building
Trades Out of Work
SPRING TO BRING REMEDY
There'll Be No Lack of Employ
ment When Building
Season Opens Up
Bad Weather Chief Cause of
SPRING TO BRING REMEDY

The best evidence that | can give
you TO show that there is no army OF
unemployed in Detroit is the fact
that We are writing no discouraging
letters TO the hundreds OF men who
write to us from all over the country
asking about work in Detroit" said
John j. Whirl, secretary of the EN-
ployers' association six weeks ago
we were writing telling men who In
CURED to walt for 90 days and write
us again, but we are not doing tnat
now. We have always made II il
practice, too. never TO tell man to
come to Detroit unless we thought We
could find place for him.
There are, OF course, several thou.
sand idle men in Detroit. The bad
weather has kept large number OF
workmen In the building trades idle
because work on many OF the build
ings under construction has been sus-
pended! There are perhaps 5000 men
idle In these trades, but this is not
unusual for this time OF the year.
There are perhaps a few more than
there were year ago, but weather
conditions will account for the in
crease
Detroit Is the exception among the
cities in this part OF the country. You
will find conditions very much differ-
ent in Cleveland or Pittsburgh or Chi
cago, or any Of the manufacturing
cities around here. There are some
men who went to those cities from De-
troit who are coming back, and these,
of course, sometimes find 1t difficult
to get employment at once, but on the
whole Detroit workmen are being well
taken care OF.
The Detroit labor marke: is in A
good healthy condition because 1t has
been possible for us to foresee coll
ditions 10 a certain extent and take
measures to meet them. Last year
there were probably about 10000 men
who came TO Detroit from out of the
city-only about half the number that
came the year before. The natural
additions from the city were probably
5000 men. BY anticipating labor
wants In this way il has been possible
to prevent an over-supply OF labor now
that things are little less active than
they were.
I'VE have steady demand for men
and we are able to place from 10 TO
20 percent OF those who apply TO US
from day to day. We strive to put the
man where he will At, We had calls
for about 1000 men Tuesday, but we
were able to fill only. about 120 places.
There are, OF course. skilled mechan-
les who do not care to take laborers'
positions. and we cannot find places
for everybody, but N general We Eayc
taken care of the men pretty well.
Men who come to Detroit from out
OF town are greatly surprised at the
general activities of the city as COM
pared with the cities from which they
come. With the opening up of The
building season there should be no
complaint about lack Of employment
in Detroit"
Reports from Chicago have stated
that there were 1850 men out of
work there and similar reports have
been received from several other
cities. Detroit, which has been the
one good business city on the map
eyer since the panic OF 1907. continues
to be in the healthiest condition so
far as labor conditions are concerned.