The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1907-06-18
VOTE TO SUPPORT
STRIKE MEASURES
Chicago Telegraphers Set Apart
$4,000 for Strike
Fund.
COMPANIES MUST MEET
THEM OR BEAR RESULTS
Roosevelt Refers Appeals for
Strike Intervention to
Charles p. NeilI,

hundred telegraphers. members of the
Comm ercial Telegraphers union, at
meeting here this afternoon, voted ia
support the president and executive
committee OF their organization in any
measures they deem necessary TO bring
about an adjustment of the operators
grievances. Those present were chiefly
employees of the Western Union and
Postal Telegraph companies. Separate
resolutions were passed by each group
of employees, the Postal men advocating
drastic measures to enforce their de-
mands and the Western Union operators
serving ten days notice on the officials
of the company in New York that they
must meet the employees committee
as represented by the Commercial Tel
egraphers' union of America for dis
cussion and adjustment of grievances or
bear the responsibility for interference
with public business which would fol
low action that will be incumbent upon
the Chicago local union
GA $4,000 strike fund was voted.
Representatives, of the Order Of Railway
TeleRraphers assured the commercial OPP
orators Of the support and sympathy Of
union, but took no official action.
At a meeting in San Francisco on
Sunday 200 members Of local No.
81 of the Commercial Telegraph
ers Union A resolution was passed
leaving the matter of securing an ad
instment of grievances in the hands
of the national president and executive
committee.
Word Gets Here Early.
Word of the action of the Chicago
meeting reached telegraphers here as
early as clock Sunday evening. only
An hour or so after its close. Local
operators say it means a strike all over
the country unless the mon S demands
are met. One local operator said the
strike, if there is one, will not last three
hours. He does not believe there will
be a strike, for he thinks the com.
psnies will grant the demands.
If strike is called, between 10000
and 25,O00 men will he involved, it is
said. Aside from the Order of Railway
Telegraphers and possibly the Associ
ated Press operators, every branch of
telegraphy will be affected. Associated
Press operators will not be involved, it
is thought, from the fact that they re-
ceive higher wages than the other tel
egraphers. The railway telegraphers
are barred from handling only company
business by the action of their union in
giving moral. and likely financial. sup
port TO the Commercial Telegraphers
UNION. The tie.up in the telegraph bus.
ness VIII bs complete extending from
the smallest Office of the hamlets to the
largest cities in the country, in the
event of a strike.
The operators are demanding the re-
instatemept of nine men. discharged by
the New York offices for wearing the
union button, shorter workday and
the readjustment Of overtime. For day
men the operators ask n short sning uf
the day from nine to eight hours, and
the workday from seven and one half
hours to seven hours. 1t is further asked
that seven hours overtime work CON
stitute day instead Of nine
Al the Postal Telegraph and West
ern Union Offices word of the action
Of the Chicago meeting had come at a
late hour Sunday night. w. P S. Hawk
of the Postal Telegraph said his com
pany may be able to operate if strike
is called by using the chief operator and
the managers of the departments. About
ten operators are employed there. AL
the Western Union in the neighborhood
of fifty are employed
Union in Good Shape.
The union is in excellent shape 70 put
the strike through to successful ter
mination, is the claim of local operators.
Behind the Commercial Telegraphers
union is the Order Of Railway Teleg.
raphers with about $4,000 members and
something like 100000 in the treasury.
An Associated Preess dispatch from
Oyster Bay Sunday night says thaS
Charles p. Neill, Commissioner Of La
Dor, without comment, the various ap-
peals which have been made TO him by
wire and mail to intervene to prevent
the threatened telegraphcrs strike. The
position is taken that no emergency eX.
lists such as obtained at the time the
President interveued in the anthracite
coal strike, but on the contrary the
situation presented is one where action
by the Government, If taken at all
may properly be initiated and directed
By the bureau of labor, Of which Mr..
Neill is the head,
Attention is called to the fact that
Mr.. Neill has on his OVID motion acted
with more or less success in several re-
cent strikes, simply by making an in
vestigation and bringing TO light the
salient facts i'll the controversies, his
reports being the basis on which a got
Element was later reached. Whether no
will feel justified in pursuing the same
course in the present instance is not
commented on, as the President has
given Mr.. Neill no intimation of any
Kind.
Locals Want to Strike,
An Associated Press dispatch from
New York at ] o'clock Sunday night
said: "Tbe Commercial Telegraphers'
union has not yet received an answer to
the demands on the Western Union
Telegraph company, according TO Pres-
dent s. j, Small of the union. After
meeting OF the executive committee to-
night both President Small and Secre-
tary- Treasurer Russell left the city, Mr..
Russell returning TO Chicago
president Small notified all the
unions today that the statement that
the adjustment of grievances had been
postponed was untrue, and directed
them to hold themselves in readiness
for important information.
'fPrcsident Small also issued a state
ment in which he said that local
uninns nll nver the cnmntry arc cla n, or.