Cooks and Waiters on the Move: the World and International Exhibition in Ghent, 1913, as a Destination for Hospitality Workers

In 1913 the city of Ghent hosted the World and International Exhibition. By exploring population registers, dossiers of the Police des étrangers, files of the labour court and letters written by hospitality workers applying for a job, the article tries to find out who were the hospitality workers (gender, nationality) attracted by the World Exhibition in this Belgian provincial city, and how their trip to Ghent fitted into their labour migration itinerary. The article also deals with the intermediaries (bureaux de placement, the local labour exchange, workers' organisations, personal networks), which informed hospitality workers of the Ghent job opportunities, and discusses the segmentation of the labour market in the hospitality trade.

Jaar van publicatie:2013

Trefwoorden:cooks, waiters, labour market, migration, world exhibitions, labour exchange, unions