Telegram-herald., 1886-04-28
EIGHT HOURS A DAY
Granted, But No Increase IA
Present Scale of Wages.
FURNITURE COMMITTEES CONFER
the Result Partially Satisfactory
Shop Meetings VIII be Calico g.
osy 10 Accept OF keleci the
Proposition Who Were
Present.

The COMMITTEES appointed as ghe fnfni-
ture manufacturers oi tiis tils - we'll a.
tbe ons appointed os ile faFniisre workers.
nst lssi evening a. ihe oftiee oi Henry tIa-
lick, 10 the rear ii liss o-ana Aepids IA
tionai Bank MesnbeTs oi lhe press weFe
carefully excluded, and ioT tso hous and
s.hat TIE propositions sareseni we've die
cUss ed The members oi ihe furnGare
mani uiaciurers ooniIuitioe presented xeIe
Mm Widdicons A b. Wofden lanss q
MacBrids. Of the firm O Nelson Matter A
Co.. nd r. " Merrill. Of lhs phmna 4
g. Moore wss Tie ony absent mem.
ber. The enune COMMITTEES of fhf tunlure
workers were present ~ foilo~s Louis 4.
Lsaniere. Nelson. MaiieI A 90 ]. J.. Diiloa,
Oriel cabinet company james bnees. fho'.
max ianlfufe company. A e. Morreil. Grand
Rapids furniture company Hansen, bel-
keY a cav furniture company. Thomas
McMullen. N. A Borkey faunlure com
psny, n Murray, New England furniture
company, Thomas Benjamin. Sigh manu-
featuring company; ~ T. Wright Grand
Rapids chair company \ Loct Middlcomh
furniture company. " III. tolycf. Norien
furniture company Louis Oakland. Kent
furniture company. James Cove NeNaygo
furniture company
Louis I. IAuuiere, chairman ~ tue Fur.
uigure Workers committee reported o.
those present that their COMMITTEES had
been empowered 20 place before tie f0rni-
tuFe uufa etuTers demand iof Tie adop-
nUn - eight hOurs n Il uaN Nprk, az in-
crease 81 10 per cent ln waees tht wages %
all men receiving less than ! - per DAY.
not 10 he affected ~ the reduction -f heun.
This sei Tie machine in operation and
Mm. Niddiconib stated thai while
they did not deem the demands
81 the men in ihe leasi unreasonable. Set
they were unable 10 aoccde 60 their entins
.cQuest Furniture business Nas not a.
profitable a. in former xcars hen the
dividends were l5 of 30 pef cenl -snc the
manufacturers were now simply skeinR out
a miserable existence.
A T.. W0rien endorsed all that was sald
by Mr.. N.ddioomo and expressed ihs gruai-
est regard for ihe hard-wofking laboriug
men.
X ". Merrill 81 the Phoenix. detailed
briefly Toe experience oi the delegates al ths
recent Western Convention and stated that
is Wa only through tht persisieuc} of ae
Grand Rapids men that tbe eight hour sfs-
lem was endorsed bv tie Assyciat~n.
After d great deaI 81 talk ihe Mauufactur-
ef's Committee announced that they would
aaopI TIE eiEhl lo-f system commencing
May Isl, bat a. present. al least could s0i
grant he ten per cent increase in wages &c
manded, bat would pay simply for fhe
eight h0urs work on pro rais bass viii
present scale Oi wages ID was hapea that
the ten per cent inoreh> a. prices ulatir By
The manufacturers could be secured nhie4.
being TIE case. tbc WAGE ti fatlr cmpiuaes
would be- increased ia might De- oniy
week or ID might oe s'a months before fnls
result could he brought about
A. committee fhtY could gte
| nothing more. but ~ individuals u4ey
w0uld promise uot CD cut tbs wagfs of the
men receiving g. snt - ~ o daf
The meeting terminated 81 this point and
tbc committee Of the workers viIi rcpor. a.
their constituents io daf ihe decision ~
/ the manuit .tCner-. Shop meetings viI be-
, called al tbe several tiaclores and tle uliim-
I atum II tho employers aceepei ur rejected.
/ Should the conclusions arrived ai hf gnsaf
/ isiact0TF % the men q geuerr- meeting .iil
/ be ca lei to take further acfion. Among the
/ committee there was diversity uf 0Ianieu
a. - fh. general result apd few
of them expressed tbemsClfes 81 dissatisfied
1 with the result