St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1894-04-22
WAGES OF WORKMEN.
Official Statement Made by the
Great Northern.
THE SCALE now IN EFFECT.
Schedules Which Do Not Point
to Starvation.
POSITION OF THE COMPANY
POSITION OF THE COMPANY
Placed Before the Public by
the Management.
LOCAL DEVELOPMENTS or A DAY.

From the Great Northern general Of
fees came last night an Official state
ment of the strike situation from the
company's standpoint. 1t gives the
agreement entered into April /, 1894,
and states that the wages paid are high
er than those generally prevailing in
the Northwest. 1t closes with the state.
ment that the company ''is determin ed
to exercise its proper control over Its
own business and affairs" The state
ment entire follows:
The scale of wages in effect April 1,
1894, and still in effect, is as follows:
Locomotive engineers, under an agree
menJ approved by the officers of the
brotherhoods of locomotive engineers
and firemen, and by an authorized COM
mltteG of the men themselves, receive
from 1878 to 81 per day: fremen, from
81. Is to 2.35 per day, for road engines.
Under schedule Of wages and ru les
adopted by the company and approved
by its trainmen and conductors,
Passenger conductors receive, per
month, S125.
Passenger brakemen, first year, per
month, $55.
Experienced men, per month. $50.
Baggagemen, per month, $40.
Freight conductors, 3 cents per mile
run, but not less than So per day.
Freight brakemen, 2 cents per mile
run, but not less than 81 per day.
Conductors Of mixed trains, from S65
to S110 per month.
Brakemen of mixed trains, from $50
to SO per month.
Under the schedule of wages agreed
upon between the yardmen and SWITCH
men and the company:
Day fOremen receive, per hour, 27
cents.
Night foremen receive, per h ur. 20
cents.
Day helpers receive, per hour. 25
cents.
Night helpers receive, per hour, 27
cents.
The following is statement of wages
paid in the mechanical department.:
Machin SITS, per day.. 81 90 to So 25
Machlnists' helpers. per
day, 15Oto 800
B!acksmths. per day. 2 90 TO s IS
Blackslniths' helpers,
per cay. y............... Is to Q 90
Car inspectors, per
month. h................ 3S 25 to IS 25
Car repairers, per month S5 10 to 81 90
Coal men. per month";. 80 90 to AZ 50
Painters, per day. 70 to 2 so
Road Department.
RoadmastelS, per month $50 90 toS105 90
Assistant rOadmasters,
per month. ........... 63 rs to 81 90
Section foremen. per
month";. ........... 40 90 to As 90
Section laborers. per day l 90 to 25
Carpenters, per day. 7Oto 255
Without notice from any of its EN-.
ployes that change was demanded in
any OF the schedules of wages, or that
strike was intended, the present strike
was ordered. The first notice the com.
pany had was in the form OF telegram
which was received about O'clock on
the morning of April Is by General
Manager Case, as follows:
BUTTE. April &c W. Case, General Man
ager: am instructed by your employees to
say that unless the wage schedules and rules
OF all classes OF employees that were in effect
prior to the first cut made in August, 1892,
are restored. and sw1tchmen at Helena and
Great Falls receive the same pay and sched-
ules as at Butte. and that the management
agree to meet representatives of the employees
at Minot not later than ten days hence and
formulate schedules accordingly, all classes
Will quit work at II oclock noon this 18th
day of April. JAMES HOGAN.
James Hogan was not an employe of
the company. There was nothing to
Show whom he claimed to represent, or
by what authority he claimed to act.
About noon OF that day General Man
ager Chase received copy of an order
addressed to conductors. engineers,
firemen, brakeTen, switchmen, opera.
tors, agents, clerks, shopmen. section
men and all employees, and which stated
that it had been ascertalned that the
management of the Great Northern sys-
tenn was arranging to run in a lot of
departments on account OF employees
belonging to the A. r. u, and that
every man in every department.. from
Butte to Havre, and from st. Paul to
the coast, including all branches.
would quit work and not return to work
until they received word from
James Hogan and r. M. Good
win. That afternoon the wires were
cut between Minot and Spokane,
aud Hayre and Butte. Many of the EN-.
ployes quit work. The company had
no opportunity to move its passenger
and freight trains to destination. Many
passengers were left at long distances
from home and at remote places. Per-
ishable freight was left to waste. Fol-
loving this trains were seized at diyis-
ion points, mail trains obs tructed and
side-tracked. and the conseQ uence has
been great loss to the employees of the
company and TO large and important
business interests served by it along it's
lines; and all this is Dy the terms of the
notice served upon the company to con-
tiIne until the company shall meet
James Hogan and r. Nd. Goodwin at
Minot. n. D., and agree to sign sched-
nles restoring all rates of wages and all
salaries to what they were prior to the
1st of August, 1898.
A comparison of the foregoing list of
wages with the wages usually paid for
like service on railways aud in other
industries will SHOW that these rates
are higher than the rates generally pre-
vailing il: the Northwest. Common
labor Is hired by farmers, lumbermen.
and others, at from $40 to S12 per month,
with board. and withou any question
as to the number of hours the men
work. The action of the men who have |
been actively concerned in the strike is |
dlsoWned and unquali6edly condemned |
by the chiefs Of the brotherhoods repre- |
senting the different classes of en-
ployes, and they have stated that by |
their acts these men have put them |
selves outside OF the power of their |
respective ORGANIZATIONS for any help or |
aid they might otherwise have been |
entitled to receive.
Representations have been buslly cir |
cu!ated that the company has employed |
men to take the places of its old men.