A Crowd of Unemployed Seek Jobs at a New Store, Edmonton, 1931.
Jobs were in desperately short supply in the thirties and, despite the generally low wage levels, were much in demand. The demand, despite the pay and the working conditions, seems to have stemmed from three sources. First, there was a widespread desire to begin building some sort of future. Second, there was still a highly developed sense of individual responsibility for employment. And third, relief was provided at subsistence levels and made no provision for luxuries like the celebration of Christmas and birthdays, entertainment, tobacco, liquor, or romantic indulgences. This retail store had advertised for clerks, an occupation that paid low wages and demanded long hours. Security was minimal. When workers were so easily hired, they were easily fired. There were few benefit plans and little protection. Even illness could mean the loss of a job. Employees who missed work, whatever the reason, could be, and often were, promptly replaced. Even lateness could result in the loss of a job. Men on relief waited at the doors of some businesses for casual employment and also waited to replace the man who failed to show up for work.
