The Republican government of Gambetta relied upon the support of working class voters, and so helped create the first Bourses du Travail under the control of newly legalised labour unions. Socialists and radicals, elected to city offices in some areas, made the funding of Bourses du Travail a priority. As the system expanded, radicals in local government extended aid. The "loi du 14 mars 1904" mandated that every city of over ten thousand inhabitants had to create a "bureau de placement", establishing job offices and undercutting employer run placement agencies. These government offices were usually placed in the local Bourses du Travail.