The Kimball graphic. (Kimball, Brule County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1905, 1904-07-15
HOUSE
STRIKE ORDERED
Nearly $4,000 Men Will Quit
Work Over Country Pend
ing Wage Settlement.
INVOLVES NAM CITIES
Unless Some Agreement Is Reached
Soon All the Big Plants Will Be
ldIe-Strike is General and
Men Will Obey it.
INVOLVES MANY CITIES

Chicago, July ia general strike of
NIL the employees of the big packing
plants throughout the country was or
dered by Michael j. Donneliy, president
of the Amalgamated Meat Cutters and
Butchers Workmcn of America.
Unless the packing companies offer
some sort of compromise to the de
mands the $4,000 workmen affected by
Doanelly's order will quit work today
noon.
The strike involves the following COIN
panies. which nave branches in 81. 10
Seph, Mo, South Omaha, Kansas City.
Sioux City, st. Paul. Fort Worth aad
New York city:
Armour & Co. Swift & Co, Nelson
( berger, Cudahy Packing company and
the National Packing company.
In Chicago alone these companies en-
ploN more than IA, coo men, all of whom
will quit work at the same time as do
the employees outside of Chicago.
Says Men Became Disguised.
In an interview last night Mr.. Dom
nelly said:
Fol nearly two months we have been
carrying on negotiations with the COM
mittee of superintendent representing
all the packers III order to secure agree
ments for our members, the old OIL
tracts between the union and the
packers having expired in May. Since
that time we have been working With
out any agreement, and have tried in
every way to reach a satisfactory
agreement With the packing interests,
but they have held out on every pro
posal we have submitted, refusing to
compromise in envy way. Finally, the
men became disguised, and last nights
order for a general strike is the re-
suit"
Superintendent j. ]. Conway of Ar
mour & Co. made his statement:
Neither side wants a strike: of that
there can be no doubt. While so far
as / know no arrangements have been
made for another meeting between the
representatives of II packers and OF
the unions, still ] think a further con-
ference will be held and in all p%rohabil-
tty there will be n settlement reached,
Skilled VS.. UnskilIed Labor.
The decision to call a strike was
reached at Il meeting of the Packing
Trades council called by the executive
officers of the different unions whose
members are employed in the packing
plants to decide whether the unions
would continue negotiations for the
skilled men only. as proposed by the
strike would be called to enforce the
union demands for a minimum wage
for unskilled labor. The vote in favor
of a general strike was unanimous.
The butcher workmen, at a recent
convention, decided that a minimum
wage of 20 cents an hour for common
labor should prevail in all packing
%centers. and the wages of the skilled
workers should be equalized in each
branch of the trade.
Wage scales We're arranged by the
different unions on the basis adopted
by the convention, but a number of
conferences With the packers failed of
reaching an agreement.
Later a proposal came from the
packers. proposing 171s cents an hour
for laborers and helpers to the killing.
cutting. casing and beef loading de-
partments only. n no consideration
was to be taken of the common la
borers and helpers in the many other
departments.
This proposal was also rejected by
the unions. and although several other
conferences were held no agreement
could be reached.
Referendum Vote Taken.
Finally 1t was decided by the officers
OF the unions to a a referendum vote
upon the question of calling a Strike to
order for the strike. Mr.. Donnelly
said that meetings similar to the one
held last night had been held in other
cities where the packing companies
have branches and at all those meet
ings the vote resulted in favor of a
general walkout.
In addition to the large firms already
named the following firms will be at
fected If a strike is started:
st. Louis Dressed Beef company,
East st. Louis; Fowler Packing COM
pany and Rudy Bros. Kansas City. and
a number of smaller distributing houses
throughout the east.
h men handling dressed beef for
the export trade have also been ordered
out, as the union intends to strike at
every point controlled by the so-called
beef trust.