The Labor enquirer., 1883-06-30

e nhn
4 The severity of our work CO uses 49, -.
wear and tear of clothing and demands
wholesome and sufficient food, wbile
the destruction and loss Of tools cost us
many dollar in the year. And for al
this what is our pay-Are we properlv
recompensed for our skill and toll f.,
the long and weary wears we have snant
to learn our trade? Shame on ourselves
if we arenot! -. ~ af><f
1t therefore becomes our dutv 70 oa,-
ourselves: Are we willing by our own
| indifference to allow our craft to sink
1 lower and lower, until we are completeIv
enslaved? Must we be forever in nov.
& erty and want, without sufficient to
maintain ourselves and our families, and
. educate our children? Shall we be
forced by division among ourselves to
allow our trade to fall into the hands Of
unfair and unscrupulous bosses, and to
be swarmed with botches to our de.
triment and injury?
! Without unity among ourselves, the
1000 carpenters Of this country are at
the mercy of a few thousand contractors
and boss builders. And wherever We
are not banded in trades union we find
piece work instituted, wages low, and
the working hours long and severe,
while ill-treatment prevails and the
workmen are often defrauded of their
wages. In unorganized cities carpenters
are getting only ST. per day and less,
while in organized cities union men are
getting from $3.50 to So per day and
more, and are treated as men. Hence il
pays to be union man.
Every trade has its union in each city,
and these local unions are connected
with each other in national or inter.
national unions of their trade. The
bricklaYers, granite cutters, iron mould.
ers cigar makers, printers, and a score
of others have their International
Unions, and official trade journals. The
bosses have. their Mechanics and
Builders Exchanges, the professional
classes have their associations. Then
why should not the iourneymen carpen.
ters have their own trade unions?
If the men OF money-the capitalists
find it necessary to organize, then
have not the men of labor-the workers
even more reason to do SO? All we
have to support us is our labor, and
hence we should combine to protect it.
Therefore it follows that every carpenter
should be a union man. If you are
union man, you should stand by your
union, attend the meeting, and pay your
dues promptly.
If you are not a.union man, then you
should Join the union and help on its
good work.
There is NO hope for us only in a
thorough unity and organization OF all
carpenters in the United States and
Canada. A general organization of
carpenters under one head leads to a
better understanding all over the coun-
try, and just as it makes one carpenter
interested in the other, so it leads one
union to assist the other. Thus we can
sustain wages and make them more
uniform; we can pay higher benefits
and accomplish more than if simply
organized in local unions independent
of each other. For this purpose the
Brotherhood. of Carpenters and Joiners
of America was founded
It was formed in convention Of Car
penters' unions, held in Chicago
scarcely two years ago. 1t now stretches
from Boston to San Francisco, and from
Toronto to New Orleans, and numbers
many local unions and thousands Of
members. Its objects, as stated in the
preamble are:
''To protect our trade, to assist each
other, to secure employment to furnish
aid in case Of death or permanent dis.
ability, and for mutual relief and other
benevolent purposes"
The Brotherhood pays death benefit
and disability benefit of one hundred
dollars. And these benefits are secured
in an Endowment Fund without any
extra tax or assessment, only by setting
aside ten cents per month from each
members dues. In case of strike or any
difficulty, the Brotherhood pays SIS per
week to married men, and 81 per week
to single men. And all these benefits
are made possible and sustained by the
cooperation Of all carpenters unions
Under our jurisdiction. Our local unions
are incorporated under the laws Of each
state, so that every dollar of funds and
benefits are legally secured.
Our local unions assist members in
distress and to- obtain work, and pay
benefits in case of sickness and other
mishap.- They also sue for wages wi her,
ever any boss attempts to defraud
workman. And in travelling, member
of one union is member of all other
unions wherever he goes, without tur'
i ther initiation or fees.
i We are not secret orgnization, only