Seattle's 1896 Freeholders' City Charter created the position of Labor Commissioner in the Civil Service Department and established the Public Employment Office. The Labor Commissioner, who also served as Chief Examiner and secretary of the Civil Service Commission, received and responded to applications both from job seekers and from businesses seeking employees; the Commissioner also maintained records of applicants' names, addresses, and type of position requested. The Labor Commissioner managed the Public Employment Office and maintained labor statistics for the City. The Public Employment Office was abolished in 1942.
Two volumes of outgoing correspondence from the Labor Commissioner include replies to businesses seeking temporary and permanent laborers, individuals requesting employment, and persons from out of the area gathering information about employment possibilities in Seattle. Letters include information regarding the availability of positions in various lines of work, as well as wage information. When positions in the requested line of work were unavailable or scarce, the letters often suggested "domestic help" positions as an alternative, particularly for women.
Other documents include statistics and expense reports of the department. Of particular interest is a 1902 letter to the State Labor Commissioner making recommendations for changes in legislation.
A front-of-the-book index contains the names of addressees of correspondence.
Correspondence is arranged chronologically in two volumes.
Records are open to the public.
[Item and date], Labor Commissioner Correspondence, Record Series 6005-01. Volume [number]. Seattle Municipal Archives.
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The following section contains a detailed listing of the materials in the collection.