Internees tried to re-create a life they might have lived outside confinement, but earning money in camp was a constant struggle because bills still had to be paid on property left behind and families needed clothes, shoes, and other necessities. There were not enough jobs for all the internees. Some worked at jobs they had before internment as mechanics, butchers, radio repairmen, and assistant teachers, while others cultivated the camp's agricultural land to grow food for the kitchens. For their labor, internees earned $12 to $19 per month, less than the wages paid to no-Japanese staff, and by the end of confinement many had exhausted their life savings.