Work and jobs

Both Issei and Nisei took jobs within the camps, at wages set not to exceed soldiers' pay: $12 per month for unskilled labor, $16 for skilled labor, and $19 for professional employees. WRA staff was paid much more for the same jobs. Though public opinion mandated such low pay, dissatisfied Japanese Americans objected to losing their right to make a decent living. They had to use their sparse income for necessities, such as warm clothing and shoes.

World War II (231)
Concentration camps (1638)
Work and jobs (1406)

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1406 items
Akio Hoshino Segment 9 (ddr-densho-1000-26-9)
vh Akio Hoshino Segment 9 (ddr-densho-1000-26-9)
Minidoka concentration camp: social life, work, impact of incarceration on families
Marianne West Interview Segment 5 (ddr-densho-1000-120-5)
vh Marianne West Interview Segment 5 (ddr-densho-1000-120-5)
Life in the Tule Lake concentration camp, working as a "block mother"

This interview took place at the 2000 Tule Lake Pilgrimage in Klamath Falls, Oregon.

Jim Akutsu Segment 26 (ddr-densho-1000-2-26)
vh Jim Akutsu Segment 26 (ddr-densho-1000-2-26)
Working on the border post crew and as an engineer in Minidoka concentration camp

Interview was conducted over two days because of delays caused by technical difficulties.

Jim Akutsu Segment 27 (ddr-densho-1000-2-27)
vh Jim Akutsu Segment 27 (ddr-densho-1000-2-27)
Jobs in Minidoka concentration camp: border post crew, engineer; being stop-listed by camp administrators

Interview was conducted over two days because of delays caused by technical difficulties.

June Takahashi Segment 23 (ddr-densho-1000-88-23)
vh June Takahashi Segment 23 (ddr-densho-1000-88-23)
Memories of "Camp Minidoka" as a teenager: school and work
Sue K. Embrey Segment 3 (ddr-densho-1000-6-3)
vh Sue K. Embrey Segment 3 (ddr-densho-1000-6-3)
Work in Manzanar concentration camp: making camouflage nets, writing for the Free Press

This interview was conducted at the Voices of Japanese American Redress Conference, held on the UCLA campus and sponsored by the UCLA Asian American Studies Center and the UCLA School of Public Policy and Social Research. Because of the full conference schedule, our …

May Y. Namba Interview Segment 18 (ddr-densho-1000-171-18)
vh May Y. Namba Interview Segment 18 (ddr-densho-1000-171-18)
Finding work in camp: teacher's assistant, administration office
Mitsuko Hashiguchi Segment 49 (ddr-densho-1000-12-49)
vh Mitsuko Hashiguchi Segment 49 (ddr-densho-1000-12-49)
Daily life in Tule Lake concentration camp: housework, social visits, jobs
Roy H. Matsumoto Interview Segment 45 (ddr-densho-1000-153-45)
vh Roy H. Matsumoto Interview Segment 45 (ddr-densho-1000-153-45)
Moving to permanent camp in Jerome, Arkansas; working as the storekeeper for the food warehouse

Although Mr. Matsumoto does not identify himself as a Kibei (American-born person of Japanese ancestry sent to Japan for formal education and socialization when young and later returned to the U.S.), some of his life experiences are similar to those who …

Kay Matsuoka Segment 34 (ddr-densho-1000-48-34)
vh Kay Matsuoka Segment 34 (ddr-densho-1000-48-34)
Staying busy in camp, carpentry, gardening, and teaching dressmaking
Tosh Yasutake Interview Segment 7 (ddr-densho-1000-138-7)
vh Tosh Yasutake Interview Segment 7 (ddr-densho-1000-138-7)
Gaining valuable experience working as a male attendant in the camp hospital

William Toshio Yasutake was interviewed together with his sister Mitsuye (Yasutake) Yamada and surviving brother, Joseph Yasutake, in group sessions on October 8-9, 2002. He was interviewed individually on November 14, 2002.

Before being contacted by Densho, the Yasutake siblings had planned to conduct …

Jimi Yamaichi Segment 9 (ddr-densho-1000-106-9)
vh Jimi Yamaichi Segment 9 (ddr-densho-1000-106-9)
Running into German POWs in Grand Junction, Colorado while on work crew
Rudy Tokiwa Interview II Segment 18 (ddr-densho-1000-92-18)
vh Rudy Tokiwa Interview II Segment 18 (ddr-densho-1000-92-18)
Recruited to become a mess hall cook at fourteen years old in Poston concentration camp

This interview was conducted at the 1998 Americans of Japanese Ancestry Veterans National Convention, held in Honolulu, Hawaii.

Rudy Tokiwa Interview II Segment 20 (ddr-densho-1000-92-20)
vh Rudy Tokiwa Interview II Segment 20 (ddr-densho-1000-92-20)
Working as a warehouse foreman, accused of selling goods on the black-market

This interview was conducted at the 1998 Americans of Japanese Ancestry Veterans National Convention, held in Honolulu, Hawaii.

Rudy Tokiwa Interview II Segment 19 (ddr-densho-1000-92-19)
vh Rudy Tokiwa Interview II Segment 19 (ddr-densho-1000-92-19)
An accident while working in the camp mess hall

This interview was conducted at the 1998 Americans of Japanese Ancestry Veterans National Convention, held in Honolulu, Hawaii.

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