In November 1941, the Germans announced to the Jewish Council that unemployed Jews would have to work in labour camps in the Netherlands. On 10 January 1942, 1400 unemployed Jews were supposed to report at the Amsterdam train station for work. Attendance was low. The Jewish Council urged people to go ‘in order to prevent things from getting worse'. This encouragement had some effect. In March, employed Jews were also called up. In September, more than 7000 Jews had already been summoned. In the night of 2 to 3 October 1942, the labour camps in the northeast part of the country were emptied and all the men were deported to Westerbork. Their wives and children were taken from their homes by the Dutch police and also brought to Westerbork.