The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1903-07-04
PREPARING FOR
LONG LABOR WAR
Contractors and Union Men Are
Determined.
THOUSANDS OUT OF WORK
EMPLOYERS MAKE THE THREAT
TO IMPORT MEN.

III HEN their days work had been
w completed yesterday, the con-
tractors employees on almost
every building in the city packed their
tools and walked away from the scene
of their labors. TO return no more un-
I'll some settlement is effected between
the contractors and the unions.
This marked the beginning of a Ia
Dor war that is to determine whether
Salt Lake shall be a strictly union or
non union town. The union men say
their cause is just and, although they
may have TO walk the streets for a
while, they say they are sure TO win
in the end. The contractors. on the
other hand, assert that if the unions
insist upon holding out. they will flood
the city with nOn-union labor and
force a victory. How the fight viii
end remains TO be seen.
A thousand men who had work yes
terday are today without a job. Two
thousand more are affected to the ex-
tent of losing much work that they
might have had but for the lockout.
Al brick and stone work and carpen-
tering has ceased with the exception
of that upon the federal building. The
contracting plumbers and heaters have
laid their men off and work is at
standstill. Today being the Fourth,
there would naturally be no work done.
Tomorrow there will be no building
done except upon the federal build
ing, the city jail and the isolation hos
pital In the first two instances the
contractors are outside men. With
Representative Hamlin on the hospi-
tai, his men, he says, are from the out
side and will. not quit work.
Contractors Serve Notice.
Yesterday morning the contractors
gave notice TO their men that they
might expect 10 be laid off at the close
of the day and that there would be
nothing more doing until the unions
came 10 terms. Accordingly the entire
day was spent by the wOrkmen in COW
ering all half-fnished walls and other
work, 10 protect them from possible
rainstorms. They were covered just
as they would be if work were being
suspended for winter time, and this is
taken as an indication that both sides
are preparing for the war to last that
length Of time. At o'clock ali work.
men packed their tools together and
went home.
The lockout has not yet caused the
brick yards and stone quarries TO close
down. because there is considera BILE
work being done in the city by pri-
Vate individuals not connected with the
contractors But it is expected that
as soon as this work is completed there
will be a general close-down of these
places.
There are practically only three
buildings in the city that are not af-
fected by the labor war. The first Of
these is the federal building. Super
intendent Dorsey Ash stated yesterday
that it did not affect them because
Stone Contractor Fendheisen was not
connected with the contractors here,
and. besides that. he could not enter
into such an agreement with the con-
tractors. because the government holds
him responsible for the completion Ot
the work as soon as possible.
Workingmen Were Surprised.
City Building Inspector F. NJ. Timer
stated that the city buildings the Jail
and isolation hospital. would not be
affected. because the contract work
was about completed. Aside from
these buildings, though, everything
else is closed down.
The laboring men thrown out of en-
ployment by the lockout are consid-
erably surprised by the action of the
contractors. but they assert it as their
belief that the war viii be Of short
duration.
The contra ctors have work on hand
that must be completed by a certain
time and unless il is they will lose
money" said one Of the labOrers.
Now. the contractors are not looking
for chances to lose money and you
can depend upon it that when they see