The Memphis appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1886-1890, 1886-03-20
LABOR IN NEW YORK.
Plans 20 Raise Wages and Reduce
working Hours.


New York Post: Tha officers OF the
local branches OF the Knights OF Labor
in New York say that they know
rothing about the railroad strike IN
the Southwest. II called upon to aid
tbs strikers they will do everything
that is ordered; 80 far, nothing has
been said about Eastern cooperation.
The officers q the New York Central
Labof Union, who are all oil them
Knights Of Labor, believe that they
will have enough to do in this neigh
borhood without concerning them
selves actively elsewhere. The sum.
mer's programme OF work Is believed
TO include determined effolt TO es'
tablish better rate Of pay in certain
trades whole workmen aud work
women are now miserably treated by
employers; the eight-hour advocates,
who are preparing for general en-
forcement OF tie eight.hour law in
New York after the LIST OF next May,
are also working hard TO induce the
unions to strike together for shorter
hours. One OF the leaders in both these
movements bhlu tO-uhy.
"Any one who goes among the poor
workers Of New Yo'k, especially in
the tenement-hou g diftlicts, knows
thst there must b aehsuge fone day.
You will fnd thousands Of men,
women and children wearing their
lives out by the most incestant toll,
for which they Toc3ive just enough
pay TO keep body and soul together.
II Is an existence which offers no hope
t. the workman or his family, and or
ganiK ID labor must come to the help
OF these people too weak and ignorant
to help themselves. For instance, |
know that women who work sixteen
hours a day upon cheap clothes get
~ 80 a week, and have TO pay their
own rent and provide thsir own ma
chimes. They work harder than any
animals can be made to work, and
live in horrible ttnements; decent
living Is out OF the question. Now
the Central Labo- UniOn finds this
cond ton OF things, and no matte
how little rich people may tympRthizs
with the unions, they viii admit that
/ hNulOh OukhN NV w hu NNAuUNAAN w
work In vile tenemen,-hous,s, sixteen
hours a day, in order to earn 81 so a
week There is som thing wrong, and
Wa intend - make experiments to-
ward finding remedy,
First Of all, 1t may be said that in
every class OF labor certain sum OF
money is necessary to enable the Ia
borer to live dscently; Whist that
amount may be can easily be ascer.
tanned. Let us say, for argument's
sake, that q woman who sews on
clothes ought 10 have s. week in
order b. enable her 10 live in reasonR
BILE comfort; IL that is fixed upon a
the minimum rate for sewing women
l believe that the unions ought to in
sist that no employer shall pay womer
less than S. a week Under the pres
ent system, by which people Sofk il
their tauemsnts, 1t IL not possible III
the uAions - control or even to kaos
what an employer pays his people
but If all labor was done in larg,
shops we could say TO the employer
You must pay this woman 50 a weel
or you must not employ her at Rll
Otherwise the whole power Of organ
ICED labor in this county will be ex
erted to break mp your business
The same argument may be used will
r regard to hours. A woman ought no
3 in decency to work more than twelv
/. hours day, and eight hours woul,
5 be better. We can say to the EN-
. poyer that his people must nut be a
! lowed TO work beyond cgr.ain nun
7 Der Of hours a day. II he canno
: tr at bis workpe1ple, so fira pay an
J. hours are concerned, in a m snne
o Which we consider decent, lot him "
4 ont Of the business
y Under the tenement-house SISTER
q we can do nothing for these poe
+ wretches. Therefore, We prop 50 {
Z break up the tenemeut-bouse ~ I II
e Upon the same ground that the S,a
II has a light 70 prevent a man frol
+ poisoning himsel', we believe that "
2 ave the light 10 prevent these peopl
]. from working, even IT they wish Z,
II under conditions preiudiCia 10 healtl
e morals aud posterity. The compel
ton Of tenement-house labor keel
3 wages down; that Is gnolher reasc
u why We propose to put an end to Il