Attempts to induce free labour
Uploaded by billybig on Sep 30, 2004
How effective were the attempts to induce free labourers to continue to work on sugar plantations after 1838?
After Emancipation in 1833 and the end of Apprenticeship in 1838, the slaves were completely free, but the planters were upset. The planters needed labour to work on the sugarcane estates. They had to develop a scheme to get labour and not to force the ex-slaves too much at the same time. This essay will show the attempts made to induce free labourers to continue to work on the estates after 1838 and how effective was it.
The planters started by offering competitive wages for the ex-slaves. This attracted a number of them to work for only a certain amount of hours which will not show as hard labour. The ex-slaves needed the money to take care of their families. The wages was paid for only a limited amount of labourers.
The planters introduced allowances to ex-slaves who might work in part-time jobs on the plantations. This allows the ex-slaves in this scheme to come completely to the plantations or work as they were working. This gives them time to grow their own crops on the provision grounds they have.
The planters charged exorbitant rents on ex-slaves to where they were staying or living at first. This made the ex-slaves to live in the huts in the plantations. In order to live in these huts they have to work on the plantations. This helped some of them to come early to work. This made the ex-slaves save money in the process while staying on the plantation so later on they can buy their own land to live on.
The planters also entered agreements with ex-slaves to help out in the plantations for a price. Like almost all agreements the planters may have to agree also to meet all demands of the ex-slaves. If this was so the ex-slaves would work on the plantations.
The planters brought, at this time, development of incentives. This is the introduction of ideas on how to work on the plantations at this time. They used machinery in the plantations to make work easier for the ex-slaves. This helped the ex-slaves to work in the fields of transport and refining to make sugar. This made productivity easier and produce sugar more efficiently.
Later on, the planters went out doing more cruel schemes to obtain the ex-slaves to work on the plantations. When the ex-slaves had...