Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1916-08-28
NEGRO LABOR SHORTAGE
THREATENED IN RICHMOND
Attracted by Oncrs OF Higher Wages,
Hundreds Arc Emigrating
to North.
SITUATION CAUSES CONCERN
Large Local Employers Warn Col
ored Men Against Blind Accept
ancc of Jobs In Distant and I'm
Congcnial Sections.

| Attracted by offers OF higher wages
and free transportation. hundreds Of
aole-bodied colored laborers have been
DESERVING Richmond to take cmplov-
! ment with Northern railroads and in
Still under way and has reached such
proportions as TO give large EMPLOYERS
I'm this city reason for grave concern.
For some time the PENNSYLVANIA
Railroad has maintained in Richmond
regular recruiting office, making n
special bid for negro laborcrs at $3.50
day and offering free Transports
ton. shipments of men have been
| made from this agency three times a
week. Other Northern corporations
nave hecn conducting their recruiting
campaicns through private employment
agencies here. and the emigration OF
coioFed labor has continued brisk all
| summer.
Director wortlcy Dickie. OF tho
Richmond Municipal Employment Ru-
reau said Yesterday that he had So
cured places for about l25 negroes in
| the North during the month OF July.
Most OF these places were in Ralti-
more. although some were further
North. y majority OF these men had
been In Richmond only n short time
when they moved
SINGLE RAILROAD CALLS
FOR 500 WHITE MEN
Indicative of tho shortage Of labor
Mt the present is the fact that one rail-
road has called on Mr.. Dickic for 500
white men to work in shops Very
few OF the men placed by the Munich
pal Employment Bureau have become
section hands
The common Iaborer is VIGOROUSLY
transient" said AIR. Dickic "He Is
always shifting from place to place
looking for higher wages There is
plenty OF work to be done In Richmond
Jas there is everywhere else. bat il Is
etrue that higher wages arc paid else
where. II tho Richmond employers
want 70 keep the laborinE mon here.
they must pay for their services"
Doubt Is Expressed by some Rich
mond business mon as to the wisdom
OF the negro going North to work. It
is we'll known that in many instances
negroes find the section unconEenial
70 them and find themselves unsuitcd
70 the country. More than one negro
who has left home ,ured by the pros
2eci OF high WAGES has wished in vain
to return.
TRtISI.otDS PASS ACCA
BOUND FOR THE NORTH
William r. Williams. vice president
q: the Richmond Fo-rings Company,
burEh last week he had noticed q large
number OF negroes who had been just
broush; from tho South. Trainloads
Of them. also, had passed his office in
Acca or the way TO work in other
States.
The negroes ought TO be warned
arainst going said Mr. williams
They have their way paid up there.
find they don't suit. and arc discharged.
Then they wish they were back home.
The people Of that section as class
don't know how Il deal with negroes
The negro rarely knows what is com
ing 10 him, and is easily persuaded TO
change.
We use a good many colorcd men
in our plant continued Mr. Williams,
and we arc beginning TO feel the
shortage of labor. We hnvo trouble
getting the kind or men We want"
PENNSYLVANIA RAILROAD
IMPORTING LARGE NUMBERS
States further South than Virginia
have supplied even more negroes to
Northern employers The rcunsylva-
MIA brought 1000 negroes from Gcor-
gia 10 Philadelphia last week, making
a total of 400 during the summer, il
IS said. Some Of the mon will be
sent further on, as far. perhaps. as
Buffalo, y. Y.
Vigorous, but unsuccessful. efforts
were mad" in Savannah. ia. to pre-
vent the negroes from going North.
More shan 1000 laborcrs were shipped
from that port To work for Northern
| railroads within the last few weeks.
With foreign labor scarce hcraus"
| OF tho war. there has been great in
crease in tho demand for native work
! crs aud consequent rise in the wages
! offered. Northern employers arc turn
| ing more and more to the South TO sup
| ply their needs.
Several Northern railroads have been
! short handed for some time it is un-
| dcrstood. Al the first of the year Tho
| Pennsylvania Railroad needed 5000
! men 10 work In section gangs. Both
! the Pennsylvania and the Baltimore
! and ohio Railroads now have repre-
| scntatives securing the South for col
| orcd workers.