p. 4 - excerpt - "An Industrial Innovation

transcription of a report excerpt

An Industrial Innovation

Most notable in the line of employment is the signal success attending our efforts to place colored girls of grammar school training. In the fall of 1918 Sears, Roebuck & Company employed 600 colored girls for clerical work in their entry office. These girls were employed temporarily for the Christmas season. This year the company, foreseeing the same need, called again upon the Urban League and wished to take 575 of the 600 girls who worked last year. The success of this experiment indicates the possibilities of selection. These girls were employed only after they had passed through a very rigid selective process, passing through the hands of from three to five persons, who weeded out the incapable ones. It was significant, however, that of the 575 girls wanted, less than a half applied for work, although the wages were $2 more than the starting wage for the previous year. The majority of these girls were employed. It is a fact that the labor field for colored girls has expanded beyond calculation. During the months of November and December a total of 1,400 colored girls were placed in a special division of Sears, Roebuck and Company, at 310 West Washington street, all of whom were passed upon by the Leagues employment service before being employed.