MigrationMigration

Post EmancipationPost Emancipation

Reasons for Labour Problems:

Many ex- slaves refused to enter into an employment relationship with their former enslavers.

Ex-slaves could now move around and choose employers, as well as where and when and on what terms they should work.

In the larger islands such as Jamaica ex-slaves left the plantations and settled on empty land and formed “free villages”.

Development of peasantry - this was small scale farmers who owned their land and produced most of their food and items for sale.

Trinidad and British Guyana (had a large amount of unused land) were relatively new British colonies and suffered from a shortage of labour.

Many skilled workers took up jobs in the town such as : shopkeepers, carpenters fishermen etc.

There was also a strong desire for education as a means of escape from agriculture or manual labour.

Many planters believed that their labour problem was because of a scarcity of cheap, reliable estate labour caused by the flight from the estates.

SolutionsSolutions to the Labour to the Labour

ProblemProblem

Planters solutions to the labour Planters solutions to the labour problem were:problem were:

Migration Migration

Importing Indentured labour Importing Indentured labour through various Immigration through various Immigration schemes.schemes.

What is Indenture Labour?What is Indenture Labour?

This is where a labourer is under contract to an employer for a particular period of time.

What is Immigration?What is Immigration?

This is the migration of a person or group of people into a country where they were not born in order to settle there

The Aims of ImmigrationThe Aims of Immigration

To provide the planters with a steady supply of labour.

To balance the Black- White ratio, if they could encourage white immigration.

To encourage competition for jobs (immigrants and ex- slaves) thereby

lowers wages. To maintain the sugar economy or even

expand and increase its production. To provide labour in colonies where

there was unused land

Black Migration Black Migration

Inter- Island MigrationInter- Island Migration

Reasons for inter- island migration: Better wages-Some Caribbean islands

offered higher wages than others eg.Trinidad and Guyana offered between 24 and 32 cents a day as compared with 12 and 13 cents offered in the Leeward Islands.

Easy Assess – Many moved because of the how close the islands were located in relation to their home island.

Availability of land-Many moved to islands where there was land available to establish residence.

Problems with Inter- Island MigrationProblems with Inter- Island Migration

Like the ex-slaves the immigrants preferred to be peasant farmers or settle in towns and did so as soon as they could.

Planters complained that immigrants were disobedient, rude and disrespectful.

Many countries did not want to lose their labourers and passes laws opposing labourers from migrating e.g.. The British Virgin Islands passed a law banning all recruiting agents from Trinidad and Guyana who were trying to recruit their islanders.

North American MigrationNorth American Migration

Reasons for MigrationReasons for Migration Many blacks escaped from the south

American plantations and moved to the north were they were free.

They were attracted to the warm climate of the Caribbean.

Approximately over 1000 black Americans came to the Caribbean most of them became craftsmen and did not work on the estates.

North American Migration was not successful

African ImmigrationAfrican Immigration 1838-68 1838-68 After the abolition of the slave trade in

1807 British warships patrolled the sea looking for foreign boats carrying slaves.

After the ships were captured they took the slaves to two British colonies St. Helena in the Atlantic or Sierra Leone in Africa. These colonies were becoming overcrowded and the government was encouraging them to migrate to the Caribbean

Problems with African immigrationProblems with African immigration

Many Africans were not willing to make the journey back to the Caribbean.

News about bad conditions and obstacles in becoming an independent farmer traveled quickly back to those in Africa.

Many were not used to the European ways and had not been seasoned to plantation labour.

Many left plantations as soon as they could.

During the 30 years a total of 31,130 migrated to the Caribbean, most of which were men.

Indentured LabourIndentured Labour

ChineseChinese ImmigrationImmigration

In 1806, 192 Chinese from Malaya migrated to Trinidad

Reason for migration: Most hoped for better living as

shopkeepers or petty traders. They were promised small plots

of land after 5 years.

Problems with Chinese Problems with Chinese ImmigrationImmigration Many were unprepared for the

hardship of plantation life. In 1807 61 Chinese immigrants

returned to Malaya.

Madeiran ImmigrationMadeiran Immigration In Madeira, workers were paid only one

third of what they could earn in the islands per day, so they were attracted by the higher wages being offered in the Caribbean, especially British Guiana.

Many went to Trinidad and a few to the Windward Islands. They were brought in by government bounty. Most came during periods of famine in Madeira (1846-1847). Their numbers decreased after 1847 until the scheme ended in 1882.

Problems with Madeiran immigrationProblems with Madeiran immigration The Madeirans died in large numbers.

They suffered severely from yellow fever, malaria, overwork and inadequate food.

The scheme was very irregular and most of them went into trading as soon as their contracts ended. In addition, the Madeiran Government objected to the scheme, since so many of its citizens were leaving, and implemented measures making it difficult for their recruitment

Indian ImmigrationIndian ImmigrationReasons for Migration: Many craftsmen had lost their jobs due to

competition from mechanized factories and mills of England.

India was becoming overpopulated and there was not enough land to divide among the younger generation.

Wages in India had fallen to 1/2d per day and there was a series of famine during the period 1857-1877 that led to an increase in food prices.

Those escaping the police and the caste system were also willing to migrate.

East Indian labourers were recruited from the British colony of Mauritius.

The first Indians arrived in May 1838 on Gladstone's Estate in British Guiana.

The British Government stopped the scheme because of evidence of ill-treatment and the high death rate among the immigrant in Mauritius.

Planters were satisfied with the Indians because they were hardworking, accustomed to tropical agriculture and re-indentured themselves.

European ImmigrantsEuropean ImmigrantsJamaican planters recruited

European immigrants. New immigrants were paid a bounty of 12 pounds, if they stayed for at least 6 months. They were promised land if they stayed for 5 years.

Trinidad and British Guyana followed and imported European immigrants.

Problems with European Problems with European Immigration Immigration The best land was already occupiedThey were not provided with housing

and medical careThey were not accustom to the

climateThey lacked the farming skills to clear

the interior landsThose that came advised others not to

followBy 1843 the colonies had abandoned

all schemes for European Immigration.