The Caucasian. (Shreveport, La.) 1900-192?, 1905-03-05
SHREVEPORT
TELEPHONE
THE YOUNG LADY OPERATORS
AND THEIR PROTEST.
THE NEW MANAGER
The Patrons Are Interested in Having
Service and the Company Must
Give It-Details of the
Disagreement.

Until recently peace, love and har-
mony have held full sway in the Office
of the Shreveport Telephone Company.
Miss Edna Williams was at the head, a
charming and accomplished young lady.
painstaking and in every respect giving
satisfactory service.
On or about March I, Mr.. O'Rourke
of Indiana succeeded Mr. Rappley as
manager of the Shreveport Office. He
was held in the highest esteem by all
the employees of the company. Mr..
O'Rourke is from Indiana. He was well
coined heartily until he named Miss FL
lis of Indiana to superceie Miss Will
liams. Then followed protest, ces-
sation of work, which. however, was
brief. as Miss Williams was reinstated.
1t was believed that the office would be
operated without friction. but the diff
ferences have become aggravated.
The situation is best explained by the
publication of the following:
ARTICLES OF AGREEMENT BE-
TWEEN THE SHREVEPORT
TELEPHONE COMPANY AND
SWITCH BOARD OPERATORS
OF SAID COMPANY.
Art. Sec. I: The Shreveport Tele-
phone Company and the switch board
operators of said company hereby enter
into an agreement for period of one
year commencing from date of the sig
nature of these agreements.
Sec. e. The Shreveport Telephone
Company during its operation under the
former managers found it necessary to
adopt scale for switch board operators
as stated in article below, and inasmuch
as the plant is increasing and not di-
minishing the switch board operators
deem it necessary that they should up
hold the service Of the company for
which they are responsible. @ss
Sec.s3. The switch board operators
are. residents of the city of Shreveport.
and who are obliged to work for a liv-
ing. insist that residents of the city Of
Shreveport. be given preference over op-
orators who have been imported, or who
may hereafter be imported for. the serv-
ice of the Shreveport Telephone Com
pany. If they continue to work or here
after 60 to work after the signing Of
this agreement it will be considered a
violation of same. ri
Sec. 4. The switch board operators
agree to give their best service and live
up to the rules as adopted by previous
managers, and any violations of these
rules the company reseres the right to
place their other operators in their
places. The switch board operators
agree to furnish as many additional
operators as the company may desire.
Art. Sec. I: The scale through the
life of this agreement shall be as fol-
lows, viz. j: For regular operators( eight
hours per day, SIS per month; for re-
lief operators, seven hours per day, ST.;
| per month and 10 per hour overtime
for both regular and relief operators.
| To the faithful performance of this
agreement we hereby attach our sigma
tures. this 4tl1 day OF March, 1905.
Will you agree not to take Miss Ellis
| in this Office?
/ fSigned)
II appears that Mr.. O'Rourke declined
| to sign this agreement. which left the
young ladies their only alternative
which was to quit.
The young ladies of the Shreveport
company hold that they should be re.
lcognized before strangers, imported te
take their places; that having rendered
good and efficient service, they shoule
be held in line of promotion, and tha,
preference should always be given ths
home girl, who is equally as competent
as the girl imported.
This is sound logic, but the compan,
have very little Southern or sentimental
sympathy about them. With few ex.
lceptions the company is composed OF
Ohio people who have invested theil
money in the telephone enterprise te
make money and only to make money.
| It will be conceded that these gentle.
men have the right to operate thei'
h.,c ,,,ecc .,ocSrdsr,<r ~ ftfafr rtrffrrfS M
making money, and they expect theii
manager to be the head of their concern
| in Shreveport. but besides the one idea
Iof money y-nakiflg there are some con,
sideratiol1s which may be of general in
fterest to the public, and particularly te
the patrons Of the company, who are,
with few exceptions, Southern people,
and the few excepted are in full sym