The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1899-07-10
ORGANIZATION FAILS.
Many Preferred Jobs to the
New UniOno
Kansas Being Ransacked For
New Material.

ceiVed the idea of forming a writers
union for mutual benefit and protectloh
against excessive demands for long
hours, oppression with small salaries
and such unreasonable requirements
from business offices as might tenu "
disturb the peace of mind and general
contentment of a man engaged IN TINS
line of work.
The managers of the Kansas City pa
pers did not take kindly to this new
scheme and the result is that the -FOUR
teen men who st1rted the union are
now without jobs, new faces appearing
at the desks lately occupied by them
During the session of the Missouri
legislature the idea. of a Writer'S union
was first suggested by the Kansas CITY
men who were located at Jefferson CITY.
When the legislature adjourned ana the
men resumed their former positions on
the various papers at home the Sugges-
ton was acted upon and only a few
weeks ago the plan to organize such
union was promulgated.
The Writer'S union was to be made an
adjunct to the Typographical union
The plan contemplated request TO the
Typographical union for a charter. In
this way Kansas City was to be the
foundation and national headquarters of
this new branch of organized labor. The
men who were behind the scheme IN
tended to extend the organization Of the
reporters union into every state in the
union 1t was expected that within
few years this would be one of the
most important organizations in the
country because there. is a great army
of men engaged in reporting for news
papers. The union was to be made
power as other unions are a power, in
the life and management OF newspapers.
The various papers in Kansas City
furnished the membership of the new
union as follows;
Kansas City World, seven men.
Kansas City Journal, six men.
Kansas City Times, six men.
Kansas City Star one man.
The Kansas City Journal was the first
paper to take action The managing
editor was called into a conference with
the representatives of the new union
and informed of the scope and charac-
ter of the proposed organization Mr.
Harvey Fleming who occupies that posi-
ton on the Journal was at once in
terested and he asked the committee
which waited on him if the men were
dissatisfied with their salaries or their
! positions. The reply was in the mega
tive. The explanation was made that
the men hoped to build up an organiza-
ton which would prove beneficial to the
| reporters.
do you want to keep up the salaries
/ of inferior men with those of first class
! men?'' asked Mr. Fleming.
The reply was again in the negative.
/ The committee from the union made the
additional explanation that in their
opinion it would be possible to organize
and perpetuate the union throughout
| the country.
A discussion Of the merits of the pro-
| posed organization was INDUCED in by
! the managers of the various papers and
| it was the general and unanimous opin-
| ion that this department of labor is
! not of the character which may be
| uniOniZed owing to its general character
! and the character of the men SO en-
| plOyed. There is a wide range of diff
| ference among men employed in this
! line of work and it is the opinion of
men who know most about this class of
| business that it is impossible to form
| union in which the prices of brains
! and energy are to be controlled. The
! claim is made that it is of such a char
acter that it can not be classified; that
! there is no way in which the complex
! questions may be adjusted to an even
/ balance. Business managers, manag ing
! editors and city editors, it is claimed
must be permitted to judge of the quail
I fications of the men employed as re
| pOrters. The work which is done is the
| basis for judgment and upon this judg-
ment depends the amount of salary
| which men receive. Some reporters in
! Kansas City make SO to SIS per week.
| Others make from SIS to $50 while spe-
cial assignment men often receive twice
] that latter amount per week.
The reporters claim that they pro-
posed, by the union, to improve the
standard of the profession by limiting
! the employment of men to those who
| were qualified for the work. This would
| do away with the kindergarten with
which every newspaper office is bur
| dened in training new and inexperienced
| young men to the work This the pro-
motors of the union hoped would benefit
| them and at the same time give the
| salary list a boost by providing better
men for the papers seeking the services
| Of reporters.
The managing editors claim that the
| reporters were attempting to make it
possible for a man to hold his lob with
| out doing his full share of work They
| claim that union of this class of labor
would serve to place inferior men on
| the same level with first class men.
| they claimed that within the scheme
| was plan whereby men might neglect
! their work and rely upon the union to
protect them from being compelled to
( walk the plank. The managing editors
/ the inspiring genius of the union was
/ a man who wanted more salary than he
was worth to his employers
/ Whatever may be meritorious In this
1 plan did not appeal to the mana cement
! of the Kansas City papers and an uItf-
| matum was issued. It was to the effect
i that men desiring to retain their posi-
tons should affiliate no longer with the
| union.
The one man on the Star who had
| Joined the union resigned at once and
| saved his job. The president of the un-
/ ion resigned that honor and saved his
| job on another paper. Three Of the
| seven men on the World got out Of the
| union. The four who remained were
| discharged. OF the six men from the
| Times in the union, two preferred their
jobs and four were discharged. The six
| men from the Journal who went into
| the union preferred the union and lost
their positions Saturday.
This condition made II vacancies on
| the stats of the Kansas City papers
Those papers at once began telegraph
ing for men and Kansas men for the
most part are filling the positions. One