Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1904-08-30
cosT or sTRIKE CROWS.
Union Men and Packers Havc Lost Vast

l
Sims.
The labor struggle involving Chi
easo's greatest industry-fhat center
ing in the meat packing plants at the
stock yards-has cost both the union
men and the packers a vast sum- A
statistical comparison shows the effects
of the strike. The strikers have lost,
each week. $315.000 in wages. making
total of $1,S90,O00 thus sacrificed.
What the losses of the packers have
been is problematical That they have
been immense is admitted, but no esti-
mates have been furnished by those in
position to tell
The effect on the Chica 30 live stock
market has been great. During the
first weeks of the struggle the receipts
were so small! that the city became one
of the smaller centers instead of the
chief market of the world The big
packers, who had bought the most and
the best consgnments. were practical
~ out of the market. As the struggle
dragged along however, they began to
gather working forces large enough to
run their plants on II considerable
scale \ marked improvement was
noted early in August
The packers in the last two weeks
have gained in the number of men en-
ployed in the number of animals
slaughtered and in the shipments to
outside cities From the first the en-
ployers found the least difficulty in Sc
curing men to run their hog slaughter
ing departments Less skill was re-
quired to XIII and cut ND hogs than
cattle and sheep. and the packers cen
tered their energies on efforts to bring
the department up to normal. Two
weeks ago they were fairly successful
and now they declare they have no
more to ask
The most skilled butchers were re-
quired in the cattle slaughtering de
partment Another fact led the en-
ployers to so slow with this part of
their plants Each of tile big Chicago
houses has bra inches in western cities
These distant plants, not so seriously
affected by the strike, were able to
handle cattle enough to keep the COM
panies running without the necessity
of putting excessive prsssure on the
Chicago establishments
Fort Worth Texas, was especially
relied on by two of the companies.
The plants in that city kill practically
no animals but cattle. They were and
are now run overtime, and they make
up any deficiency arising from the
short output of the Chicago PLANTS
The volume OF output the packers
say, is hot wholly dependent on the
number of men on the pay rolls. Last
year there were many workers in the
employ of the companies who put in
little more than half time each week.
Now all the employees work full time.
The owners of the plants say that
the actual number of hours work a
week of the present force is not much
less than the number of hours of work
a week of the former larger crews.
Consumers of meat have felt the eff
fects of the strike in the advanced
prices charged The dealers have rails
ed their figures in accordance with the
credulity of their patrons the packers
declare. The marketmen. however. say
they have been forced to pay more for
their goods.
The big packing companies, their
managers maintain, have not material
~ raised prices since tie beginning of
the strike. An advance was made
when the struggle was few days old.
This. it is asserted, has not been con
tinued The sympathetic strike of, the
teamsters cut the big companies off
from the Chicago trade and threw it
to the independent concerns The pack
ers quote figures to prove that these
smaller companies have taken advan-
tage Of their increased trade and have
charged greatly augmented prices.
While there mas been much com
plant from the live stock producers,
the statistics indicate that they have
suffered little in the stock yards mar
ket Prices have remained fairly
steady. although there were some days
early in the struggle when large re-
ceipts caused disastrous slumps. The
loss of the farmer has been chiefly at
home He has been obliged to hold
back and feed cattle, hogs and sheep
already fattened for the market