The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1902-12-12
Will. MOVE
FOR LABOR.
Merchants Ready.
to Send in
Memorial.
EFFORTS SECURE
MANY CHANGES
Next Step Will Be to Urge En-
pIoyers to Give Advantage
to hawaiians.


rial of the Merchants Association, as
to the admission of Chinese field labor
into the Islands, is received from the
Planters Association, the paper, with
the resolutions of endorsement from the
Builders and Traders Exchange and
the sugar men, will be sent forward to i
the Senate Committee on Pacific ISL
ands and Porto Rico, as well as to the
proper body Of the House of Represen-
tatives.
The Merchants Association is now
taking the steps indicated as desirable
by the Builders and Traders, and the
prospects are that the work begun in
this way will be made effective. The
Exchange, in its letter, set forth that
there are undesirable features in the
labor situation and requested the Mer-
chants To lake steps to induce the men
responsible to alter the status. While
| these were not made conditions to the
endorsement of the labor position of the
Association, they have appealed with
| force to the Merchants, and the Of
ficials of the body are moving to Sc
cure the changes.
The first step to be taken will be a
strong presentation of the case against
the employment of Oriental labor on the
waterfront The officials of the Asso-
citation are framing correspondence
| which will have for its aim the induc-
ing of the large employers of wharf
i myers to insist that there be worked
on the ships none but Hawaiian and
Portuguese laborers. Some of the men
who have to do with the corresDon-
dence and the setting forth of the ar
guments, are those who have knowledge
of the relative capacity of the men for
performance, and they now pay 81 day
to Hawaiian anu Portuguese workers
instead of paying $3.50 to Orientals, and
are satisfied that they receive more
than their money worth by paying
higher price for the labor.
An appeal will be addressed to the
business men of the city as we'll to re-
fuse to employ Chinese or Japanese la
borers in mechanical departments. Sew
eral cases of the employment of skilled
! ,,,o,I,an;oC nv, tho y,oaYnharS of trade
. bodies, usually as the result of not
putting the anti-Oriental clause in con-
tracts. have been noted by the members
of the Builders Exchange and this mat
tons on the part of the Merchants AS
] ISOLATION committee.
The third point which will be borne
in upon the employers of labor is the
request of the Builders that the en-
ployment of mechanics on the planta-
lions be confined to white and Hawai-
ian workmen. This will include the en-
gineers, carpenters and mill workers on
the plantations, and will have for its
purpose the combining of field labor
proper to the outside work of the es-
tates. This point has been dwelt upon
fully in the reports of the employers
of labor, and is the one feature which
has been found to be of the greatest
moment with the workmen.
While the Trades Council the body OF
{ the organized laborers of the city, has
( decided that it cannot endorse the
} memorial of the Merchants Associa
s ton, it is understood that there will b'
I no fight made against the proposals o.
J the trade bodies that field labor shall b.
brought into the Territory. The actor
was taken after long discussion ant
| there were many of the skilled mechan
s les who were in favor of taking N
( action whatever. but of permitting tn
request of the Merchants Association
s to stand as if unreceived. The commu
nication of the Trades Council was re
ceived at the last meeting of the Asso
citation and placed on file, the secretar!
merely acknowledging its receipt AM
not in any way making any contes
over the decision of the council
1t is the expectation of the official
of the Association that they will be abb
to have the memorial in the hands o
the members of the commission whic
lcame out to investigate conditions i
Hawaii before they have complete
their report upon the state of affairs i
:, the Territory.