The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1901-04-05
TWENTY-FIVE men
ARE DISMISSED
ALL LAID OFF IN DELAWARE
AND HUDSON SHOPS.
For Refusing to Work Overtime
without Extra Pay, Machinists in
the Locomotive Department Are
Summarily Discharged-A Strike
Will Probably Be Ordered Today.
Grievance of Long Standing.

4 wholesale discharge of machinists
took place last evening at quitting time
in the locomotive shops of the Della
ware and Hudson railroad in this CITY.
As a result the rest of the men cln-
ployod there will, in all likelihood, re-
fuse to work this morning unless the
discharged men are reinstatcd. 1t TINS
is not done. q general strike of the
lnachinsts. perhaps extending tn othcr
parts of the road, may be the result.
For some tine the machinists nave
been complaining because they could
not secure extra pay tor overtime
working OH Sundays and because OBJ
noXiors rules have been in force.
Two weeks aGo the men notified Mas
ter Mechanic Rennie that they would
not work any more extra time unless
they were paid time and quarter Tor
it, This. they urged, was less than was
Paid in other shops, notably Dickson
and the Delaware Lackawanna and
Western III Scranton, and no more
than was paid at the other end OF the
line. The machinists in the local rail-
road shops are thoroughly organized.
Last night, just before time to quit
work for the day, a shafting broke in
detailed IL number of men to stay over
time and fix it. The men refused to do
this work outside of their regular
hours unless they received extra pay
for it. Mr.. Rennie, it is said, immedi-
ately discharged twenty-five Of the
men.
Word was ut once tolegraphcd of the
occurrence To the national headquar-
,i la n
and it was the belief in this city last
night that a strike will be ordered this
morning.
Mr.. Renne was interviewed by a
Tribune reporter last evening. When
asked the reason for the discharge of
the men, he at first pretended to he
greatly surprised at the news that Suci:
an event had taken place. When the
reporter pressed him to state his side
of the case, he said he had nothing to
say for publication.
1T is a matter between the Delaware
and Hudson company" he said. land
their men. | have nothing to do with
it, and l prefer not to say anything
for publication
Some of the machinists, however.
were more ready to talk They said
been m;rdc by Mr.. Rennie since his adj
vent here as master mechanic a few
months ago. He succeeded Il very
popular man, w. Il. Johnson, of this
city, who is now with the International
Correspondence Schools of Scranton as
travelling lecturer on mechanical work.
The men who We're DISCHARGED were
nearly all the best wOrkmen in the
shops and most of them have been in
the employ of the company for many
years. One of them said last night:
I'VE don't want to cause a strike,
nor be unfair to the company i'm any
way. We dO not wish to put the road
to any Inconvenience. We have worked
too many years in the shops to do that.
our only object in refusing to work
overtime is to get what all other ma
chnlSts in this part of the country are
getting, extra pay for extra work. We
feel We are right Never in the his
tory OF the shops in this city have the
men been treated as they are now. In
o'icr places they get time and a half
70! overtime. double time for Sunday
work and extra pay for holidays. We
get only single pay, no matter how
much extra time we put in."
There are from 100 to 100 men en-
ployed in the Delaware and Hudson
machine shops here, and if they all go
a serious aspect.
Before Mr.. Rennic assumed charge
or the locomotive shops the men en-
ploycd there always got time and "A
quarter Tor the extra hours they put in. |