Employment of Refugees in Siberian Cities during the First World War

Based on a wide range of sources, the article examines the process of employment of refugees in the cities of Siberia during the First World War. The massive influx of forced migrants which included mostly women, children, and people who lost their ability to work (the elderly and the disabled) to the Siberian region began at the end of the summer of 1915. Refugee families preferred to settle in cities and on rare occasions moved to the countryside. The main source of income for forced migrants was benefits from the state. In the cities, there were Committees for Assistance to Refugees, as well as various public organizations that provided assistance to forced migrants, provided them with employment. One of the most demanded urban occupations were laborers and servants. Under the Committees for Assistance to Refugees, there were labor offices, whose employees were involved in looking for vacancies. Employment of refugees was hampered by difficulties associated with poor knowledge of the Russian language, difficult natural conditions, unwillingness to work for low wages, general psychological stress against the background of past events, etc. In the labor market, the main competitors for forced migrants were prisoners of war, whose work was valued much lower. Local departments of national public organizations took part in the employment of forced migrants. They organized special workshops (mainly shoemakers and sewing), in which they provided jobs to needy tribesmen. Despite a number of ongoing activities, the problem of employment of forced migrants in Siberian cities was not fully resolved.