The arrogance started from Chinatown

Chapter 127 Labor Service Company, Changes

At ten o'clock in the morning, a middle-aged man wearing a cowboy hat, tanned skin, shirt and vest rode up to Portsmouth Square on horseback.

The man was a little surprised to see the sparse crowds in the square.

Why are there so few people in Portsmouth Square?

He remembered that it was not like this the last time he came.

Although he saw a lot of people gathered at one end of the square, he did not go over.

After tying the horse to one side, the man walked to the square and shouted, "The farm is hiring! Anyone want to work?"

Although his voice attracted the attention of others, they just looked at him from a distance.

"Damn it, don't these Chinese guys even want to work?" He remembered that last time he just shouted, several brokers came around. In order to let him use their people, they would even lower the price to each other.

"Does anyone speak English? I need help on my farm!"

"Sir, do you need anyone?" several Irishmen came over and asked.

"No, I can't afford you!" The man rejected them directly.

"We are much stronger than those bastards! Each of us can do more!" Several Irishmen surrounded him unwillingly and said.

"50 cents a day, do you accept it?" the man asked directly.

"FUCK!" Several Irishmen walked away cursing.

The man shouted twice more, and finally a broker got the message and ran over: "Sir, do you need anyone?"

Seeing that someone finally paid attention to him, the man finally breathed a sigh of relief and gestured with his fingers:
"My orchard needs 30 workers to pick the fruit, and it will take half a month! Each person will get cents a day. Of course, if you can find all the workers for me, I can give you five dollars!"

"Sir, this way. All companies and farms that need to hire people must register with the labor service company..."

"Labor service company? What is this? Is this something you Chinese guys came up with?" The man frowned.

"It's the same as what we did before, but everything has to be formalized... That's what Mr. Chen said!" the broker explained with a smile.

"Besides, you can't hire anyone for 50 cents now. You need 70 cents per person per day!"

Hearing this, the man stopped walking and frowned: "Are you crazy? The most I can give you is 55 cents, and I'll give you two meals a day!"

"If you don't agree, I'll find someone else!"

"The situation in the square is different now, sir. We all work for Mr. Chen! Even if someone else comes, they will tell you the same thing! 70 cents per person, and three meals a day!"

"Don't try to play tricks on you bastards. 55 cents. Otherwise I might as well go find the Irish!" The man had a hint of anger on his face.

"To leave home and work on the farm, the Irish have to pay at least $1 a day. But we only need 10 cents, and we Chinese work harder! We are the best choice, sir!" the broker shrugged.

This is not the first time this has happened in the past two days.

"No way. Do you hear me? Get out of here!" The man pushed the broker.

In the past, it would be no big deal to push a broker, or even beat him up.

However, this time it was different. Seeing this scene, several young men in black gentleman suits walked over to the edge of the square and asked, "What happened?"

"He is not satisfied with our price!" the broker explained nonchalantly.

"Don't make trouble here!" Several young men walked up to the man and warned him in broken English, which they had learned in the past two days.

"Are you threatening me? This is not your place! Go back to your hometown!" The man pulled out a gun from his waist, trying to scare these Chinese guys.

However, the young men quickly pulled out their guns from their waists and pointed them at him, saying fiercely, "Want to see who has more guns? If you make trouble again, we will shoot you into a sieve!"

"Translate it for him!" The last sentence was addressed to the broker.

The broker stood aside and translated. The man became even angrier when he heard it, but he did not act rashly even though he was pointed at by several guns.

Fortunately, the patrolman, Copper Button, came quickly, blowing the whistle as he rushed over.

"Put down your guns. None of you want to go to jail, right?" Copper Buttons warned, pulling out his gun from a distance, but his eyes were always on the foreign farmer.

After all, the white farmer came to recruit workers, not to risk his life.

Although they were angry, both sides quickly put away their guns after Copper Button intervened.

The white farmer stood in the distance for a moment and began to feel that something was wrong. These Chinese seemed different from before!
After thinking for a while, he went to a nearby restaurant, ordered a lunch, and casually asked about the situation in the square. "What's wrong with those bastards? Why do I feel different this time?"

"Who cares about those bastards? They have been acting a little weird lately though!" The people in the restaurant shrugged.

Like they said, they don't give a shit about the Chinamen.

Not getting an answer, the man asked for paper and pen and calculated for a long time.

It cost at least $1 to employ an Irishman, which was 10 cents more per person. For thirty workers, the difference in wages was $40, or $12 for half a month.

"Damn it! Those damn bastards!" the man cursed angrily.

He felt offended by the attitude and offers of the Chinamen.

But 180 yuan is not a small number.

After drinking half a glass of whiskey, he decided with some resentment to agree to the Chinaman's request.

In the afternoon, he came to the square again and shouted for recruitment again. A moment later, another broker came.

"Sir, each worker gets 70 cents a day, and is provided with three meals a day, at least one of which must have broth."

"Damn it, I agree to your offer, now bring the person over here!" The man looked unhappy.

"Sir, you need to register with the labor company and state the location of the farm... Don't worry, we will help you with these!"

"Also, all the Chinese workers come to work on your farm through a labor service company, so if they do something wrong or steal something and you need compensation, you can come to us!"

After hearing this, the man's mood finally improved a little.

However, the other party's next sentence made him feel bad again.

"Similarly, if the workers were harmed in some way, we would hold you responsible. I don't think that would happen, sir!"

While working, Chinese workers often encountered employers who did not regard their lives as human lives.

Just like when the railway was built before, many dangerous sections were filled with the lives of Chinese workers, and there was no compensation at all.

On farms and in factories, Chinese workers were often whipped or even killed.

The man followed the broker with a sullen face to the labor company, which was the place where many people gathered at the edge of the square he had seen before.

Many workers sit on the roadside waiting for labor companies to assign them work.

Whenever they saw a white person coming, many people's eyes lit up and they subconsciously wanted to stand up and surround them, but they soon remembered that the situation was different now, and then they sat back down.

When the two men walked to the door of the labor service company, two white men were walking out of the company angrily. One of them turned around and cursed: "I will never agree to your unreasonable demands! I will never be threatened by you! You have offended me, and you will regret it!"

After cursing, the two left angrily.

The white man understood their behavior, after all, he also felt offended.

If his orchard had not reached harvest time and was in urgent need of temporary workers to pick the fruits, and if his financial situation had not been somewhat average, he would never have agreed to these Chinese guys.

A moment later, a young man from a labor company came out and shouted, "No. 356 to 386. Picking in the orchard for half a month. The daily wage is 70 cents, a total of 15 dollars for 10 days, three meals a day, one of which has broth. If anyone doesn't want to go, please line up in order..."

"Go, I'll go!" Some Chinese workers sitting on the roadside quickly stood up.

The others who didn't get their turn showed a bit of envy and anticipation on their faces.

When they registered, they just thought they could get their previous wages.

I didn't expect that my salary actually increased.

For this kind of work, they could previously get a maximum of 50 cents, and that was for two meals.

Now, after deducting the labor company's commission, it is still 63 cents, and that includes three meals.

It is said that if wages are withheld, the labor service company will also collect the debts on their behalf.

Of course, everyone still has some doubts about this.

After all, those gangs don’t dare to provoke the foreigners.

(End of this chapter)