The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1900-02-19
PLUMBERS STRIKE ORDERED.
ALL BUILDING WORK IN SAVANNAH
WILL SHUT DOWN TO-DAY.

Journeymen Plumbers Decide to Go
Out and Members of Building Elk
change VIII Lay on All Union La
bor-Their Action the Result of
Resolution Adopted by the Elk
change When the strike Was
Observation-Disclosures Plumbers Say
They VIII Have Non-UniOn Men Mt
work In u Few Days-The situa-
lion Not n Pleasant One for House
Owners.
All building work in Savannah will be
suspended from to-day indefinitely until
the settlement of the differences between
the Plumbers Union and the master
plumbers who are members of the Build
ers Exchange.
AS predicted in the Morning News, the
conference between the committees from
the Builders Exchange and the Plumbers
Union which met Saturday night, resulted
in an agreement to disagree.
At the meeting of the Plumbers Union
held yesterday morning, and which last
ed for nearly six hours, the committee
that had been in conference with that of
the Builders Exchange reported the re-
suit of the meeting and 1t was settled
that the journeymen plumbers would go
out in a body.
This determination will affect every
member of the union, whether working
for an employer who has conceded the
scale of wages and time demanded or not.
The journeymen say they deplore the fact
that their action will seriously inconven-
fence such employers, whom they class as
their friends, but claim their action is
necessary in order to force the other men
in line.
The master plumbers have not been noti-
fed officially of the action of the union,
and their only knowledge of its decision
will be had from this account and the fail
ure of the journeymen plumbers to show
up for work this morning.
As the action on the part of the union is
the contingency that was anticipated when
the Builders Exchange passed the resolu-
ton to shut down all building operations
as soon as the strike should be made in
a body, that resolution will be put into ef-
feet after the meeting of the exchange
which takes place at IL o'clock.
This means that hundreds of men will be
thrown out of employment, for not only
will the plumbers be affected, but every
union workman in the trades of carpenter.
briek-layer, timer, plasterer, and painter.
Such repair work. as is necessary and
work on unfinished contract jobs will be
done by non-union men IL they can be
found in the city, or will go undone until
they can be secured from other places.
This plan will be pursued by the master
plumbers in particular, and one of them
has already made arrangements to get
from Baltimore such men as he needs
to carry on the work Others, 1t is said,
will follow the same plan. Until the ar
rival of the non union men The masters
will go to work themselves. One master
stated his intention of going to his shop
this morning prepared to put in good
days work, and was certain that he had
not forgotten the use of his tools.
1t is conceded that the many bursted
water pipes resulting from the freeze OF
the last two days are potent factors in
favor of the journeymen, and will serious
ly Inconvenience the master plumbers who
will be unable to attend to the wants of
their patrons. A master plumber who was
asked about 1t last night said that it
would be very inconvenient no doubt but
there is no remedy for it, and household
ers will have to bide their time until the
work can be done by the depleted force OF
men who are willing TO work.
The journeymen say that they are in
the fight to stay and that they are wei
fixed for it, that the majority of the men
in the union have some money ahead, and
there is more in the treasury of the union.
Besides this they have already received
from the National Order of Plumbers of
the United States and Canada 800 with
which to carry on the fight, and are enti-
tied to 81 a day apiece from the National
Federation of Unions.