Omaha daily bee., 1889-02-17
OUR BRAIN and MUSCLE.
What They Are Doing and Propose
to Do the Present Year.
JouRNEYMEN's AGREEMENT
An Attempt to Unity Labor Organi-
nations Next Seasons Wages
Millions 70 New Structures
Local Labor Associations.
Master and Journeyman.

night of the Builders and Traders exchange
said a member yesterday, but it will be 9
meeting solely for the transaction of our owl
business. because we are a private organiza
ton as well as any other in the city. o
course there are some things we do which
Will be OF interest ts the community, aut
these things will be given in proper time t
the public. At our last meeting there was
quite a large attendance of ali the elements
OF cur organization and IL was decided that
no wages other than those paid last yeal
would be paid the present season. The brick
contractors were well represented and
said that they proposed to pay A.jC
for ninc hours work per day, including
nine hours also on saturday. The other
industries gave EXPRESSION through their rep.
resentatives, and held that they were pleased
to pay also the ruling wages of last year.
There will be no mistake this year. Every
body, master and journeymen, is bent upon
putting shoulder to shoulder and labOring
Tor Omaha's prosperity, and the contentinent
and success of its citizens.
The leading trades organizations of this
city are as follows; Carpenters and join
crs' union, brotherhood of Locomotive En-
gincers, Brotherhood of Railroad Brakcmen.
Builders, Contractors and Material Furn-
ishers' Protective association. C~igarmakcrs'
union, Custom Tailors' union, Horscshocrs'
union. lrCn Moulders' union, Master Paint
ers' association, Omaha Clothing Salesmcn's
association, Omaha Lathcrs' union. Omaha
Typographical union, Pressmcn's, Ste
reotypcrs' and E~lectrotypers union,
Sheet Metalworkers' union, Switch
mems Mutual Aid association. Timers
union and the Helpers association.
News relating to these organizations and of
interest to the laboring men and mechanics
of Omaha, will appear in this column every
Sunday, Officers and members of the nssp.
Citations arc respectfully requested to aid in
| tho ,pl1nat inn al tii- ,,N,.r ,,,l tI,,,. ntyApt,
will be greatly appreciated.
Work on public improvements has now
practically closed, the last job, Il ewc on
Thirty-second street by j. Ryan * Co., hav-
ing been completed IA few days ago. The
contractors kept their men at work during
the changing weather OF the past five
months.
Major McAulcy, the veteran contractor.
has returned from Chicago and set a few
men mt work on II small Job, which will keep
them engaged until the opening of spciag.
1t seemed that spring had come, until the
black flag went up Friday night. Every.
body seemed to feel the effects of the awak-
ing OF the year aud 1t looked as though build
ing operations would be resumed immeGi.
ately. But a cold wave destroys many
hopes.
There has been less suffering in this city
by unemployed and poor people the present
winter than there has been any year, the
population being relatively considered, in a
preceding year in the history of Omaha.
The BEE reporters have made u partial
canvass of the work outlined by Omaha ar
chitectS for this year and thus far have as
certained that buildings have already been
ordered which will cost So, 900, 0OO.
The past week a number of leaders oflabor
organizations in the country met in Philadel-
phia to bring about an am!cable understand
ing between all national and international
organizations. 1t is said that POwderly and
Mcclure were brought together BY mutual
friends. 1T is also stated that the undertake
inu a hann fn,-nr,I Inv II NJ Autumn nf
the Brotherhood of Engineers;
Grad Chief Wheaton, of the Order of Rail.
way Conductors; Grand Master Sergeant, of
the brotherhood of t'iremen:
grand master of the railroad brakeman, $. Il.
Wllkcnseu; Samuel Gompers, president of
of the Amalgamatcd Federation of Labor,
and other labor leaders.
''There is one thing" said an L.. p. en-
ploye, 'Cushing won't play any favorites
around the shops, and he has put an end to
all over time. The men all fare alike now
and work nine hours a day with five on Sat
urday. but before there used to be II few men
i won't say they were favoritcs, but it
looked that way-who were continually
putting in over time. They would work I'M
til q o'clock instead of quitting at 5, and
could always find something to do on Satur-
day afternoons. 1t was the same in all de-
partmentS and some of the men who worked
were old enough and rich enough to know
better. Now, that is all stopped and they
have to quit with the rest. or course, if an
engine comes in and is wanted out in a hurry
some men will be put on to see that she gets
out, but 1T will be in Il case of emergency,
and not an every day occurrence"
81 don't think there will be any eight-hour
demonstration in this city," saida prominent
union man, although they is going to be one
in Chicago on the .2nd of this month. |
haven't heard OF any more being made in
that direction by any of the Omaha unions.
But there is one thing you can say, that, as
far as our union (thc plasterersD is con-
enrpnl and 1 think ito tho anna with all
other, everything points to a better seasons
work than ever before. We have no
trouble ahead, and are not expecting any.
The bosses and men understand each other
better now, ana are working more in har-
mony than ever, with Il little give and take
thrown in. our men have done more work
this winter than ever, rs the weather was
mild and a lot of large buildings were being
finished. The regular season Will open about
the LIST of April, and, as said before, the
prospects were never brighter
Friday night the stationary engineers met
in their room in the ShGely block, AS u rule
the members thoroughly indorse the action of
Boiler Inspector Standcven. What we want
and what he is trying to get" said one of
them, us u thoroughly competent class of
men. Our union is for that purpose. We
don't advocate strikes, but anything that
will raise the standard and the interests of
the engineer. II wants just as good "A man
to attend a boiler Tor heating purposes as it
does to run an engine, and yet half the bust
ness men III town Lllnk Jnat any SCRUB can
make a fire and steam up There ought TO
be a heavy penalty attached to the man
guilty of putting those thoughts into pruc-
tice, because, as IA general thing, there is
more life at stake in an Office building or res
idcnce fats than there is around a planning
mill or factory. | know of one hotel man
who has only one boiler and refuses to let it
be blown out lest the house may get cold;
and yet, that boiler must be half full of mud.
Now that boiler is going TO scale some day,
and II the scales crack and drop of, the cold
water will hit the hot iron and there will be
trouble. If the inspector can make the eX-
animation more rigid, and the penalty for
employing an incompetent man a heavy one,
he will be doing n good thing not only for us
but for citizens generally.
South Omaha workingmen believe in edu-
eating the masses, and the local assembly,
X. of L., and the Brotherhood Of Carpenters
and Joiners have appointed a joint commit
tee to arrange a series of meetings for the
discussion of questions bearing on the sub
ject of labor. The members selected for the
work are w. III. NJ. Collester, l.. Z. Dole
and NJ. Smith, of Union liz, and Alfred An
derson, Edward Elster and William Hughes,
Of local assembly S6l6.
Denver has been selected as the meeting
place for the annual convention of the Inter
national Typographical union, and the first
week in June will find the delegates from all
parts of Canada aud the United States as
sembling there. Omaha typos will send two
representatives, and are already beginning
IN mnVa i'm the matter Five candidates ara