Chinese Railroad Workers
Many workers were also white, and they were given benefits, as opposed to the Chinese workers. White workers were given lodging, food, and tools with no docking from their pay, but Chinese workers had to pay their superiors for places to live and food to eat. Further examination at the payroll of the Great American Railroad workers shows that white workers were paid more than non-white workers, and men were paid more than women. The Chinese laborers were all from around the same rural areas in China and were, as a result, illiterate, and employment in any industry apart from farming or physical labor was doubtful, so they many had to deal with the danger and the low pay.
With the negatives of the job came a few positives, though. The Chinese workers insisted on eating only Chinese food, sourced from California farms and stores. Because of this, there was also a job position as a Chinese cook, which was a higher paid position than any person laying down the track. Small cars called “China Stores” would follow the workers own the tracks. They were filled with Chinese grocery items for purchase. The way the Chinese ate actually reduced the ubiquity of dysentery in the pool of workers. Each sector of workers also had a Chinese physician following at all times, in case anything happened and they needed to speak to someone who understood their language (“FAQs). After the completion of the continental railroad, these workers either returned back to their provinces in China or they entered into other industries around the United States.