Retail staff countered that white workers would not be able to handle the demands of the Retail unit. A black officer in retail noted:
If they put all of [External Deposits] down here [in Retail] for a week they would be really whipped and surprised, and they would probably run back to their department and never look back because that’s an all white department, and they wouldn’t know what to do with people in this neighborhood.
When Wilkins raised the idea with Thomas of cross-over career tracks for employees across the Sales Division, the discussion turned quickly to race. Thomas spoke plainly: “If you’re black, and you want to become an officer, you come over to Retail.” The pronouncement rang true; there had never been a single black officer in External Deposits. When one of the few African Americans who worked in External Deposits was due for a promotion to an officer position, he was invited to the Retail side to take up that role.