Arizona republican., 1920-04-20
EMPLOYMENT SERVICE ORGANIZES ID MEET SHORTAGE OF LABOR
Is Reorganized on the Zone System; Plan May Be of Great Value in Cotton Season

In order to be able to cope with | labor shortage, the employment service l of the United States department. ot
 labor has been reorganized. and a zone system of operation adopted, which ir 1 Arizona and adjoining territory has
 been divided on the same lines as those
 covered in the divisions of the Twelfth l Federal Reserve district, which takes | in Arizona, California and the south
 western section of Navada.
 According to this new plan, when
 a shortage of man power is felt in any part of the zone, such as might take place in Arizona, application will be made to district headquarters, which will be San Francisco, and efforts will be made there to make up the shortage, and if this is not possible and help is not forthcoming in sections of the zone, application will be made to Washing
 ton and help taken from other states and sent 10 the point where it is needed.
 It is expected that this system will
 be invaluable in the approaching cot
 ton picking season, when it is esti-
 mated that some 54 ,00o cotton piclxers
 will be needed to work the 2S5,000 acres
 of cotton land in Arizona, and 10000
 acres in the Imperial valley
 From an estimate made by the local
 office of the department of labor, there are about 9973 Mexican cotton pickers
 in the state of Arizona. Figures re-
 gently compiled by F. W Berkshire,
 supervising inspector of the depart
 ment of labor, show that of the 6S03 laborerS imported to Arizona up to June 30, 1919. there were 97e admitted exclusively for maintenance of way
 work on the railroads. The latter num- Der includes all track Iaborers who were admitted to Arizona under the departmental exceptions subsequent to January 15, 1919.
 Inspector Berkshire reported that out of the 979 railroad Iaborers imported, ' died, 336 returned to Mexico and 556 deserted, leaving balance of so prob ably still working on railroad mainten- ance of way.
 There were imported into Arizona for agricultural work up to June 30, 1919. 5S24 laborers and since that time 7269 have been admitted making a total number of 13,093 admitted for work in agriculture. Nearly all of these were used in cotton picking. Of this num- Der 62 have since died.\ 1527 have de- serted their work. and 305S have gone back to Mexico, leaving a probable bal ance of S446 still in employment.
 The inspector says that the above figures show the exact numbers of the excepted laborers admitted to Arizona as shown by the records of his office lL tue enQ or l9ZO-
 Importers are looked to, says Inspec- tor Berkshire, for reports of assertions and deaths among the laborers. No positive information is at hand as to whether those reported deserted are still in Arizona
 Mexican 1aborers are now being paid $2.50 day by the farmers. according to the department of labor. plus board for ten hours work. the allowance for board being SIPS day, a total of s375 a day- Track 1aborerS get from 35 to 40 cents an hour, for an eight hour day. with time and half for overtime.
 Just at present there is no great de- mand for farm labor, but that is ex- pected very shortly. and the experience of the federal employment bureau is that there is considerable difficulty in getting laborers to go to work on the farms because of the lack of sleeping and housing accommodate ton, in almost 1 every case 1}le laborers having to carry their own bed5 with them.
 While the United States Land service | Tn the east is recruiting women and | girls for harvesting the crops, to be | housed in camps with shower baths and | electric lanndries and electric dish- | washing machines. No such help is lvailable in this section of the country. however, il is pointed out by the en- ,loyment office Of the labor depart. nent. conditions being vastly different. md While the girls who go out in the ,ast, do so for the sake of the fresh lir, city girls would be like fishes out of water in the Arizona cotton fields The ,erry- pickers in the east are paid three ents for, every quart of berries they 'ick and it is estimated that rapid ticker can earn on an average of three ollars a day.
 Twenty-four thousand disabled sold- ars. sailors and marines are being re- aimed in q wide variety of vocational 
 resolution to give veterans of the , -orld war all preference and privileges nder the civil service law in New York { tate was approved by the assembly at lbany. Il The United States had the second { rgest allied army on the western ( ont. in ration strength. when the ar ( listice was signed France headed the !! St with 2.559.0o0 men. The A. F., r. I ,talpa 910 0fiD