Question 2 Because of the building of the Canadian Pacific Railway during the 1870s and 1880s, Chinese immigrant workers were eagerly welcomed and given equal treatment with their co-workers. False. From 1870 to 1885, 15,000 Chinese labourers completed the British Columbia section of the Canadian Pacific Railway. Their meager pay of $1 a day was half the wage that white labourers received. This saved the CPR an estimated $3-5 million in construction costs. Next Top of Page