Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1890-08-05
PECK ON STRIKES.
Annual Report of New York's
Labor Commissioner.
A FEW FACTS AND SOME FIGURES

A FEW FACTS AND SOME FIGURES,
Together with Conclusions Drawn There
from-Proft and Loss Account. show
ing. on the Whole, That Striking Pays
the striker-An Argument Against the
Arbitration Idea-Ehect OF Strikes ON
Hours of Labor and on EMPLOYERS
Plants.
NEW YORK, Aug. 5-A summary oil the
seventh annual report of the state bureau
of statistics of labor, covering the year
1880, has just appeared in print 1t is OF
unusual importance because it is devoted
to a resume and tabulation of the strikes,
lockouts and boycotts for the five years,
1859, their various forms or manifesta
ton, with causes, results and costs tol
both employers and employed. The inves-
tigation of strikes, as summarized In the
report, has covered S34 distipct trades ana
industries, and the number OF establish
ments which have been visited or adj
dressed has covered total of II, 05s.
The Money Value of Strikes.
Having given survey of the methods
employed in gathering labor statistics ana
a lengthy dissertation upon the nature
of strikes, as well as extracts OF the strike
rules of various trades, Commissioners Peck
says: 1.-THE strikes in all trades and for all
causes in the five years, 1888 80, as respec-
lively detailed in reports of this bureau,
include 1854 reported on strike; OF these,
4, 432 were successful, 1.4S4 compromised,
making 3, 1866 to be classed as successful,
8 46s unsuccessful; strikes were pending
in fifty establishments at the close OF the
report The persons engaged numbered
83S, 926. The reported losses in wages were
IS, 600 COL 80; expenses in conducting
strikes, 81, 1872, 6644i The estimated gains
for one working year were IS, $50, 337 and
for the five years they were 1888 $50. Y.
Peck Concludes That t hey Pay.
"This does not include the piece trades,
such as printers, shoemakers and cigar
makers, in which large gains were made
but could not be estimated. Loss to en-
ployes from all causes. s., llS,6 500. Is. From
this return it will be seen that the gains
go near to balance tho actual cost of
strikes and loss TO employees, SC, 305, 957.
The loss of wages, over %, 000, 900, is only
estimated, not actual, and so is uncertain
and may be to large amount only .
workers displacement with employment
elsewhere. If, however, the S. 600, 900 was a
positive loss, the gain in wages would be a
strong offset On the whole the strike
pays, for in three years the sum of all
losses would be recovered and the advance
rates maintained"
Settlement of w age Disputes.
Concerning the mode of settlement of
strikes, Commissioner Peck advances the
foil . 81
by arbitration is not new idea; it is as
old as society The French have had their
conseils des' prudhommes for over a CEN
tury. Whether differences over so vitality
pressing a matter as wages can be settled
satisfactorily by the fiat of a third party
is open to question and can only be de-
cided by trial and experience. How can
one compromise on a family's stint Of
food or fire and clothingp If it were only
a question of bargain and sale, the prices
on either side being Si.50 or g.. it would
be easy to settle at s1.75. But between
the employer and employe there is some
thing more than dollars and cents.
Arbitration Not Satisfactory.
Arbitration proceeds on a theoretical
basis of equipoise each party being pre-
sumed to be anxious for equity In re-
allty the disputants are anxious each for
HlInstii, each CldlfUS FlkntS- Ia
Dor has been the draft horse of capital
has done the pulling, while capital has
done the anxious duty of driving, will
ing to bear the responsibility and take the
profit, after paying for the teams keep.
With this in view mediation or arbitra-
ton, though a moral agent. is scarcely
able to reach higher than compromise.
The laborer is expected to do his duty and
abridge his needs, while the capitalist is
asked to be merciful in his exactions The
Office of the person intervening is to me
diatiZe between unequal disputants, one
of whom must work to live, while the
other is in no danger of starving"
The Hours of Labor.
In regard to the hours of labor before
and after strikes, the report says that
under this head :, 1896 cases were reported
in which /, 255 have decreased working
hours, while there was an increase in
ninety eight cases; in 6, SIS cases there was
no change. The number of persons re-
FUSED work after strikes was 81, ia in four
years. The number of strikers involved 10
the 1884 strikes was 3SS, 926 and Commits
sioner Peck finds it source of congratu-
lation that the number of police arrests |!
was only $50. The number of female EN- |
pioyes engaged in strikes was compare
lively small, because they were not or
ganiZed. The return for the five years !
shows As, Si5 going on strike.
Losses to Goods and Machinery.
From other portions of the report il ap- |
pears that during the strike period theI
losses from injury to goods and machinery
amounted to S373, 900. OF 1913 employers |
to whom the question was put, whether
they had made any discrimination between
union and non-union employees, 2 935 re. |
turned 10 answer, 5g7 replied in the af. |
armatiee, 2.Sll in the negative, and $50
firms had no strike,