Virginia laborer earned in 50 to 54 hours of work, and many worked only 6 days per week. While there had been several sporadic strikes and attempts at largescale labor organization among mill workers in the Great Lakes region since the late 1800s, such as efforts from the Knights of Labor, the region remained relatively unorganized and with lower pay than in other regions. Organizing efforts among lumberjacks As an industrial union—as opposed to a craft union—the IWW sought to organize all workers in the area's lumber industry, which would include both the mill workers and the lumberjacks. Lumberjacks in northern Minnesota worked in poor conditions and during their employment lived in company-owned bunkhouses on logging camps. The typical bunkhouse measured by in area and housed between 60 and 90 men. Lumberjacks shared beds in these close quarters, which were often lice-infested, and in 1914, investigators for Minnesota's Department of Labor reported that "the conditions under which the men were housed ... made it impossible for men to keep their bodies free from vermin". Additionally, the houses were poorly ventilated and insulated, toilet facilities at the camps were often extremely primitive, and there were no first aid facilities despite the high injury rate among lumberjacks. In 1914, two state investigators stated in a report after visiting a camp, "Both of us regretted that we did not have the authority to order all the men out of the camp and burn the place to the ground". Men worked six- or seven-day weeks at the camps, though their isolation from many nearby towns meant that they often remained at their camps even on their days off, and the typical lumber season lasted between 3 and 6 months. Many earned between $35 and $40 per month. These camps had an extremely high turnover rate, with the Virginia and Rainy Lake Lumber Company employing a total of 22,000 people in lumberjack positions in 1916, but only ever having about 2,000 employed at one time. The average worker left after 74 days, resulting in an entirely new crew about once every month for many camps. Additionally, lumberjacks were often looked down upon by town residents and other members of society, who derogatorily called them "timber beasts". Lumberjacks were drawn to the IWW as a way to improve both their working conditions and stance in society. In many of the towns in northern Minnesota, lumberjacks were