Old Sugar Mill of Koloa - Labor Disputes

Labor Disputes

Managers of the sugar plantation expressed significant frustration with the Hawaiian laborers suggesting they have shown "complete worthlessness ... as laborers". The Hawaiian people are described as being so strongly rooted in their cultural heritage that "centuries, at least, will intervene ere they will understand that it is a part of their duty to serve their masters faithfully". The plantation manager goes on to state that the work of 10 white men was equivalent to that of 400 Hawaiians.

Plantation owners paid workers $2 per month using "Kauai Currency" which could only be redeemed at plantation stores for goods (marked up no more than 2% over market). They were provided furnished houses but had to pay 1 cent per day for them. In an 1841 revolt against these conditions, Hawaiian workers commenced an unsuccessful strike for higher wages. A review of Kōloa history and working conditions reveals the motivations of plantation owners to import labor resulting in a massive wave of globalization for the islands.

Kōloa plantation used a contract system that gave laborers an interest in the crop, but prevented them from finding other employment without penalties. These methods were later adopted by other planters in the Territory of Hawaii that became to be known as the "Big Five".