The Connecticut labor news., June 23, 1922, Image 1

About The Connecticut labor news. (New Haven, Conn.) 1921-1925

Image provided by: Connecticut State Library, Hartford, CT

                
UNITED STATES
IBOfcTpKESS
J
TO ORGANIZED LABOR
THE LABOR NEWS is your
paper and its advertisers de
pend on your support. Tell
them you Saw It In The News
and everyone will be happy.
VOLUME IX. NUMBER 46.
NEW HAVEN ROAD MEN
FINISH STRIKE VOTE;
WILL COUNT TUESDAY
Informal Canvass
Shows Shop Crafts
Hereabouts Over
whelmingly for Re
sistance of Wage
Cuts Sop on Farm-;
ing Out Work Not
Taken Seriously.
A final meeting to canvass the vote
of the shop crafts on the New Haven
Road as to whether they desire a
strike or not to resist wage cuts and
change in working rules, will be
held by the System Federation Board
in New Haven on Tuesday next and
the retsult immediately forwarded to
the general officers at Chicago to be
added to the rest of the country. The
vote is now fully completed and prac
tically canvassed and despite reports
being spread in the daily press and
the naive warning given the employes
this week by President Pearson, is
overwhelmingly for a strine on July i
if the wage cuts go into effect..
A sop to head off the strike was
offered by the Railroad Labor Board
yesterday when it announced that it
would open hearings on Monday next
on the , workers protest against the
farming out of railroad repair work
to outside or "dummy" firms. This
is one of the big contentions of the
unions" but had been repeatedly ig
nored untl thie wage cuts and changes
in working rules so incensed the men
that a strike threatens. It is not be
lieved here that this eleventh hour
move hv the Labor Board will have
any effect on the general result of
the ballot, as it is pract.cally now all
cast the country over.
Stories have been sent out from
Chilago during the week that the
brotherhood chiefs are disappointed
with the xesult of the vote. These
are evidently to discourage the work
ers and incite the public into the be
lief that it is the leaders that desire
the strike and not the workers. The
brotherhood chiefs cannot be disap
pointed as yet because the date on
which the return of the vote was .
asked is June 25, Sunday, and there
fore hardly any of the railroad divis
ions have as yet made report to Chi
cago. One small shop near Chicago,
where the few boilermakers employ
ed voted against a strike is taken as
basis for the reports. All the other
crafts in the shop, however, were
overwhelding for the strike, accord
ing to information received by local
union chiefs.
General Manager Bardo, according
to statements attributed to him, j,s
not taking the situation seriously as
yet, and nowhere as near as danger
ous as the situation last fall when a
strike threatened. Until the result of
the strike ballot is made known, said
Mr. Bardo, he sees no need of any
action.
The state chamber of commerce
and the manufactures association do
not apparently agree with Mr. Bardo,
or at least propaganda being spread
by them does not agree. In publish
ed statemnets this week the directors
of the state chamber inform the pub
lic they are getting ready for a strike
and they guarantee that within 24
hours after a strike is called freight
will be moving in Connecticut. That's
a big order. The manufacturers
assocaitions last fall made copious
maps and plans for busting the. strike
and these will again be brought into
play and the manufacturers associa
tions will have complete charge of
the transportation problem; Governor
Lake's anti-strike organization will
also be on hand, the chamber states.
President Pearson in an open letter
to the employes this week pointed out
to the empolyes that while there were
17,000 that "are talknig strike" there
are about four million people in this
section that would be opposed to
them and therefore he warns them
of the danger of doing anything so
rash as declaring for a strike. At
the same time Ben Hooper, chairman
of the Labor Board, issued a general
warning to the railroad workers in
which hte declared a strike will prove
disastrous to the unions and then
takes a slam at them for their temer
ity in not quietly accepting the wage
board's slashes. Coming as it did an
other decision by the Labor Board
cutting off from the clerks and sta
toin empolyes of the country about
$135,000,000 in wages it didn't fit very
well. A dissenting opinion by the la
bor group on the board was overruled
as usual.
Clerks, signal men and statoinary
firemen are cut from two to six cents
an hour. Clerks were cut three and
four cents an hour, according to
Published weekly at 286-288 York St.,
New Haven, Conn.
"CRAP SHOOTING"
AT NEW LONDON'S
COUNCIL MEETING
Leave It to Luck as Who's First on
Roll Call Votes.
New London, June 23. In an age
which has produced the Hare ballot
commission government and the di
rect primary it has remained for the
city of New London to introduce
crap shooting as a feature of munic
ipal government.
The. dice were proposed by Mayor
Lucius E. Whiton, the same man who
brought home from Paris the idea
of white night sticks for the traffic
squad, and came because of the
mayor's desire to have some name
other than his own read first for all
votes by roll call in council meeting.
Mayor Whiton's first idea was to
have a number of marbles engraved
with the names of the council mem
bers. But when the purchasing de
partment was unable' to find the mar
bles anywhere in town, the engineer
ing department was instructed to
prepare the little cubes.
On each of the cubes is a member's
name. When there is to be a roll
call vote, the city clerk rolls the
cubes on the table. The one that has
fallen nearest him, is the first to
vote, the next nearest second, and so
on.
It was suggested this week that the
council seek to affiliate with the Mys
tical Seven, Wesleyan's senior honor
ary society, for there are seven coun
cil members, there were seven roll
call votes, and the significance of the
number is, of course, known to those
who do and those who do not indulge
in the ivory rolling pastime.
CARPENTERS AGAIN
RE-ELECTRICHARDS
New Haven Local Also "Enthusiasti
cally Endorses Non-Partisan
Political Work.
John L. Richards was re-elected
president and there was only one
change in the list of other officers at
the annual election of Carpenters
Local 79 of New Haven at the last
meeting. The change was in the
election of William Therrien as vice
president, John Streiter having de
clined a re-election. John Hy Smith
was re-elected secretary, John Stra
chan, financial secretary; George
West, treasurer; Paul Jackel, con
ductor; and F. A. O'Dell, re-elected
trustee for three years.
There was quite a contest for dele
gates to the Carpenters' District
Council embracing the three locals in
New Haven, the result being the
election of George F. Mordecai, John
Strachan, Henry Mayer, A. W.
Branch, D. E. Fitzgerald, J. E. Snow,
Clyde Adams, Fred Snyder, F. A.
O'Dell, William Therrien.
Delegates to the New Haven
Trades Council were elected as fol
lows: John Hy Smith, George F.
Mordecai, A. W. Branch, J. E. Snow
and D. E. Fitzgerald.
The election of business agent for
the district council will be held to
morrow and as there is no opposition
to George F. Mordecai he will be re
turned for another term.
Local 79 'enthusiastically voted to
participate in the Trades Council's
non-partisan political campaign and
to prove its interest voted $150 to
ward the campaign fund.
50,000 Clothing
Workers Strike
New York, June 23. Fifty thous
and workers in the men's clothing in
dustry left their jobs throughout the
metropolitan area Wednesday to
force manufacturers to let their work
out to registered union contractors,
ti was announced by Hyman Blum
berg ,chairman of the New York
joint board of the Amalgamated
Clothing Workers of America.
Blumberg predicted that 40 per
cent of those who walked out would
resume work within 48 hours.
classification, signalmen five cents
and firemen two cents.
Approximately 1,200,000 railway
employes wil share the total reduc
tion which has brought vigorous pro
test from every union organization
involved and is expected to result in
a strike vote of 10 railway labor
bodies. The voting already is under
way in seven unions.
NEW
PRINTERS STRIKE
NOTA FAILURE
More Bunk Spread By Anti-Unionists
Explodes When Real Facts
Are Shown Up.
Under a Chicago date line, the
New Haven Register on Wednesday
night published with a two column
head a long screed stating that the
strike of printers which started a
year ago last May 1, to enforce an
agreement for the 44 hour week had
been lost by the printers and the men
were preparing to return to work on
July 1. As a matter of fact the con
trary is true for not only is the strike
not a failure but it is now more than
three-fourths won and the workers
are winning steadily every day.
When the strike began on May I,
1921, 24,000 printers remained at
work in shops that lived up to the
agreement. That left about 9,000 in
job shops affected out on strike.
From that time on the shops all over
the country have been gradually sign
ing up with the result that todSy
there are now less than 6,000 unem
ployed the country over. For instance
in New Haven where 72 printers quit
work only 22 are still out and that
proportion prevails over the country.
So far indeed has the strike pro
gressed that a further reduction in
the assessment is being planned. The
original levy was 10 per cent, was
reduced to seven and is now five and
ample to care for those out of work.
Tn New Haven where special bene
fits of $100 a week were granted that
is cut off as not now necessary and
hereafter married men will get $22 a
week and single men $17.
PORK TO GO UP!
Washington, June 23. "Pork is
particularly well supplied with those
mysterious beneficial substances
known as. vitamins," announces the
bureau of animal industry of the
agricultural department. It is ex
pected that the. meat packers will cap
italize the discovery by boosting the
price of pork products.
SUPPRESSED NEWS!
Editor's Note: Because of suppressoin of vital news, the Inter
national Labor News is going to furnish each week for eight weeks
one story suppressed by the daily press. This newspaper will pub
lish one of these suppressed stories on its first page each week in an
effort to compel attention for vital information hitherto kept from
the people. Readers are urged to clip these stories and pass them
on to others.
Roads Evade Law;
Courts Helpless;
Men Must Strike
Washington, D. O, June 23.
A strike of a half million rail
way men threatens to tie-up our
transportation system and seri"
ously injure our national well
being. Strike ballots have gone
to members of the Railway
Employes Department of the
American Federation of Labor.
Yet the American public is en
tirely ignorant of the facts
causing this strike situation be
cause the daily press has sup
pressed the truth and is print
ing garbled information and
misleading comment.
"Shall piecework and con
tracting out of shops and em
ployes be accepted or rejected,"
is the wording of the third
strike ballot. This is the crux.
It is confidently believed wage
matters can be adjusted without
a strike, but the men are ada
mant on the question of sub
letting repair contracts. The
ultimatum served on the Labor
Board on June 7 said that the
strike ballots would go out if
the subletting of repair shops
was not stopped. The suble't
ii.v, went on. The strike bal-
: ort.
W hy are the railway em--o
concerned about the
1 - ;.-),... arrangements of the
railroads and why should the
public be informed of the facts?
Because subletting of contracts
ih a scheme for placing the shop
crafts employes beyond the jur
isdiction of the Labor Board
and then cutting their wages
below the standard fixed by the
board, because this cutting of
waees does not benefit the gen
eral public but is absorbed by
officials and insiders of the
railroad who secretly organize
the outside repair companies,
because the Labor Board has
called the practice a "palpable
subterfuge," and because a Fed
eral court has denounced it as
an evasion of the law. Those
who know what is going on are
aghast, but the public is kept in
ignorance.
More than 100 roads appeal
ing to the Labor Board for
wage cuts are guilty of this sub
HAVEN, CONN., FRIDAY,
MAYORS MEET ON
MONDAY TO TALK
ON TROLLEY FARES
Session in New Britain to Try Solv
ing Vexatious Problem
for Cities.
New Britain, June 23. Mayor
Poanessa has addressed letters to the
mayors of Waterbury, Hartford,
Bridgeport, New Haven, Meriden,
Middletown and other cities about the
state, asking their presence at a
meeting in this city on June 26.
The object of this conference is to
establish in the interests of the Con
necticut Co., an avoidance of public
criticism and a more co-operative
spirit between the Connecticut Co.
and the general public; and at the
same time to arrive at an understand
ing with the Connecticut Co., that
they, on their part will give their best
efforts to meeting the demand of the
general public in regards to better,
cheaper, and more efficient service.
New Britain City
Men Given Raise
New Britain, June 23. Chairman
Crowe reported to the public works
department this week that the matter
of wages of street and sewer depart
ment laborers had been considered,
because of the strike and offered a
recommendation to increase he
wages five cents per hour. The rec-
j ommendation was adopted. Accord
ing to the new scale, each construc
tion gang in the sewer department
will consist of two pipe layers at 50
cents per hour, two bracers at 45
' cents per hour, and all laborers in the
J bottom of the trench will rccei e 40
'cents per hour, while those working
on top will receive 30 and 35 cents
per hour, depending on their ability.
In the street department, common la
borers will be paid 35 cents per hour
and macadam cleaners will receive 30
cents per hour.
terfuge. Repair shops seem
ingly placed under the direction
of private contractors in prac
tical every instance are dum
my concerns with nominal capi
tal formed by iailroad officials.
The first act is to cut wages and
abrogate the working condi
tions established by the Labor
Board.
Lack of good faith is con
tained in every line of the typi
cal contract. It can be revoked
at any time at the discretion of
the railroad. The railroad fur
nishes money for wages and
pays cost plus percentage based
upon payroll expenditures. The
contractor is guaranteed a re
muneration of not less than
$1,000 a month.
Costs to the railroads rfor re
pairs are increasing enormous
ly in spite of the cuts in wages,
shewmg that this is merely an
other way of mulcting the pub
lic to enrich insiders.
The strike against the sub
letting of repair shops is al
ready on in the Western Mary
land Railroad where the men
have been out for 12 weeks.
The company resorted to the
injunction formula. A tempor
ary injunction was issued by
Judge Rose of the Federal
Coiirt in Baltimore. Before act
ing on the permanent injunc
tion he asked for a copy of the
contract. The railroad com
pany fought this request des
perately, but finally had to give
in. As soon as Judge Rose saw
the contract he dismissed the
injunction and denounced the
contract as an evasion of the
law. In this case, as in many
others, the railway employes
and the strike are the only
agencies capable of defendnig
the interests of the public. Gov
ernment and courts apparently
are helples to enforce the law.
The storm clouds gather.
The public remains serene be
cause ignorant, lulled to sleep
by the propaganda of the rail
road organizations which gets
plenty of space in the daily
press while the real facts are
suppressed.
Entered as second class matter at Post Office af
under Act of March 3. 1879.
JUNE 23, 1922
ENTIRE OFFICIAL BOARD RETURNED
AFTER CONTEST FOR SEVERAL PLACES
Heat of June
Changes Date of
A. F. L. Meetings
Cincinnati, O., June 23. On a
sweltering day, with delegates in
shirt sleeves, the A. F. of L. con
vention voted five to one to change
the convention time from June to
the first Monday in October. The
next convention will be held in
October, 192;.
STATE CONTROL OF
COMPENSATION BEST
CONVENTION HEARS
Ohio Plan Saves Money to State and
General Public
Yearly.
Cincinnati, O., June 23. Work
men's compensation and what insur
ance companies do when they have
their hands on its administration was
pictured to the American Federation
of Labor convention by Thomas J.
Duffy, Ohio Industrial Commission
chairman.
Duffy said that if insurance com
panies had participated in Ohio com
pensation would have cost employers
$25,000,000 more during the last year
and would have meant lawsuits and
less money for the injured.
What compensation means in one
state can be seen from Duffy's fig
ures. ;He says that compensation
paid during the year amounts to $13,
000,000. The state insurance feature
is compulsory in Ohio .though insur
ance companies keep up a steady fight
to worm their way into the business
once more.
For eight years the compulsory
feature has been in effect. In that
time the insurance fund has collected
$77,000,000. It has at present $40,
000,000. "If," said Duffy, "we were
called upon today to pay off all our
obligations we would have a net sur
plus of $4,000,000." Further he said,
"our plan is to collect enough eachj
year to take care of the industrial
accidents occuring in that year, even
though some of them will not be paid
out for eight, ten, or perhaps twenty
years. We feel that is the only sound
actuarial system upon which to con
duct a fund of that kind."
Answering the question as to why
the state took over the business Duf
fy said: "It is for the purpose of
preventing any individual or corpora
tion from making profits out of the
broken bones, the amputated limbs or
crushed out lives of the laboring peo
ple of Ohio."
Showing the lack of litigation in
volved, Duffy said: "More than 99
per cent of the claims for compensa
tion under this state insurance fea
ture are settled by the filing of the
application made out by the injured
worker and signed by the employer."
Meriden C. L. U.
Endorses Strike
Meriden, June 23. After a com
mittee had investigated the strike at
the Community Theater and been in
sulted by the manager, P. H. Mc
Mahon, the Central Labor Union at
its meeting this week unanimously
endorsed the strike of stage hands,
musicians and other employes on at
the theater. Mr. McMahon, accord
ing to the committee, became speed
ily profane, called the strikers vile
names and defied anyone to stop him
getting away with his proposed cut
in wages. He desired to cut $10 a
week from the wages and was quite
peeved when the "theater employes
wouldn't stand for it.
R. R. Clerks Will
Act Separately
Cincinnati, O., June 23. No gen
eral strike ballot will be sent out by
the Brotherhood of Railway and
Steamship Clerks, Freight Handlers
Express and Station Employes, it was
said by E. H. Fitzgerald, its presi
dent, who said no strike would de
velop among these workers of sev
eral railroad systems which have not
adopted the Rail Board's ruling.
Fitzgerald said the general commit
tee on f( ch system or road would de
termine whether to call for a strike
vote, and he added that where such
votes were taken that the men would
be bound by the result.
aven.
CONVENTION UPSETS STAMPEDE
FOR THIRD POLITICAL PARTY
AND FORMS COUNCIL OF DEFENSE
Sales Tax, Unrestricted Immigration and 'Coolie'
Labor Among Things Strenuously De
nounced Convention Dates
Changed to October.
(Special to The Labor News.)
Cincinnati, O., June 23. In a demonstration that lasted nearly
1 5 minutes Samuel Gompers, the "Grand Old Man of Labor," was
le-elected president of the American Federation of Labor, making
him continuous president except for one year since the Federation
was organized. When Mr. Gompers again took the platform and
tried to express his appreciation of the confidence felt in him, pande
monium again broke out and it was some time before he could make
himself heard. There never was a doubt of his election from the
opening of the convention, those seeking to replace him being so
few and far between as to be unnoticeable.
James Duncan was re-elected first vice-president. Joseph Valen
tine, Frank Duffy, William Green, W. D. Mahon, and T. A. Rickert
were re-elected in order, while Jacob Fisher, present seventh vice
president, defeated Thomas F. Flaherty, who was put up to oppose
him for seventh. Matthew Woll was unanimously re-elected as eighth
vice-president.
For the treasurership Daniel J. Tobin handily defeated Joseph
A. Franklin of Kansas, who was pitted against him and the opposition
to Frank Morrison as secretary disappeared and he was re-elected.
The convention yesterday unanimously kicked put an attempted
stampede of the delegates into the formation -of a third political
party, to be dominated by Labor. The stampede was attempted by
Max Hays of Cleveland who took opportunity of the convention's
adoption of the resolutions condemning recent court rulings to bring
the third party proposition to the oor. The convention promptly
squelched the movement and adopted the special committee's report
on the program for combatting adverse court decisions.
DEFENSE COUNCIL.
With the avowed purpose of meet
ing" all legal attacks aimed at labor
unions the American Federation of
Labor has added to its program for
curbing the power exercised by the
courts by directing the establishment
at Washington of a labor defense
council, composed of lawyers selected
by the federation's officers. The
council primarily will defend the
unions dtdiiui diiv suiia iiitti iiidy - lc
, , , .J . ,
cisions adverse to laDor.
The program of four constitutional
amendments, repeal of the Sherman
anti-trust law and enactment of two ,
new measures, which was adopted by i
the convention by almost a unani
mous vote, will require years of cam-
i.r J
paigmng ueiore auopuuu, spcac, s
said in urging the creation of the de -
fense council.
OFFICIAL BOARD
AGAIN ELECTED
, . . -
Samuel Gompers President
James Duncan, First Vice-President.
Joseph F. Valentine, Second Vice-
President.
Frank Duffy, Third Vice-President.
William Green, Fourth Vice-President.
W. D. Mahon, Fifth Vice-President.
T. A. Rickert, Sixth Vice-President.
Jacob Fischer, Seventh Vice-President.
Matthew Woll, Eighth Vice-President.
Daniel J. Tobin, Treasurer.
Frank Morrison, Secretary.
Machinists to Have
Monster Field Day
More Than 18,000 Will Gather at
Savin Rock July 1 for
Athletic. Events.
More than 15,000 machinists from
all parts of Connecticut and outside
will gather at Savin Rock on July I,
for what will unquestionably be the
greatest field day ever held by Labor
organizations in this section. Lodge
after lodge in the Connecticut dis
trict has voted to attend in a body
and with the non-members that will
be brought along there will be . a
great time.
The program of athletic events to
be run off on the old ball field is
now about complete and will include
every sport in the outdoor line. The
events are being arranged by M. J.
Connors, a machinist but also a w-ell-known
athlete and he has excelled
himself in the list arranged for the
field day. If the day is fine it will
be a banner one for the machinists
and all other labor of the state in
bringing the crafts together and
solidifying them after the great drive
to disrupt the unions during the past
two years.
KEuSTItMlI. nd COM-
!?at ' Paper putrtufree
Swr.( "r-Stn;uwkB
isconccdedbv k.
REDIUMiDdKWun.
ASSOCIATION
Conn.
PRICE THREE CENTS
ECTED
The amendments include a con
gressoinal veto of supreme court de
cisions, the guarantee to labor of the
right to organize, to bargain collec
tively and to strike, the prohibition
of child labor and adoption of an
easier method than the present for
amending the constitution. Enact
ment of a new federal child labor alw,
, and also a law interpreting the labor
i . . - r 4.1. ti .
.sections or the Lalvton act were m-
cluded as a part of the program.
OPPOSES SALES TAX.
The convention rolled up its sleeves
and took a wallop at the sales tax.
A unanimous voterecorded tfTe opin
ion of labor that the sales tax was
devised to soak the public and line
j the kets of a few Thjs w;n dJ
i - . -, ...u .
appoint only those who want to pick
the public pocket.
NO COOLIES; NO IMMIGRA
TION. Coolie immigration into Hawaii,
piaiiiiu an 1.1111.1111K ITLUUt ten-
era, cooIie iramigratn ws branded
, hv t, rnnvtntiJt QC Q
must not be permitted. Hawaiian
sugar barons have for months been
at work in Washington to put
through a bill for coolie immigration.
Labor has blocked it and now the
convention action adds to the force
against the iniquitous measure.
The executive council was sustain
ed in its opposition to general Euro
pean immigration and ordered all
possible resistance to a lowering of
immigration bars. This, labor says,
is necessary to preserve wage stand
ards, living standards and standards
of Americanism in American institu
tions. Government ownership and opera
tion of the railroads will not be an
issue in the threatened strike of
1,000,000 shop workers and others,
spokesmen for the rail unions told
the convention, which responded to
their request for withholding a re
affirmation of the federation's stand
in favor of the adoption of such a
policy.
O rganized labor virtually com
mitted itself to a program favoring
adoption of four constitutional
amendments.
The program of amendments in
cludes a congressional veto of su
preme court decisions, the guarantee
to workers of the right to organize,
to bargain collectively and to strike,
the prohibition of child labor and the
adoption of an easier method than the
present one for changing the federal
constitution. The new laws proposed
would interpret section of the Clay
ton Act, which the committee said
the supreme court had "manifestly
ignored or overridden," and have a
new child labor measure that would
meet objections raised by the su
preme court in setting aside former
enactments.