The San Francisco call., 1907-02-12
CARMEN GAIN BUT
LITTLE THROUGH
ARBITRATION
Award Gives Them Twenty
Per Cent More Wages, but
Not an Eight-Hour Day
DISSENTING VIEW
BY FATHER YORKE

remains to formulate the terms of the
award"
This statement was made by Judge
Beatty yesterday afternoon at the
close of the session of the board.
which is TO render the award in the
arbitration Of the differences between
the United Railroads and its employees.
Father Yorke was under the i'm
preston that the question of the
wages and hours of the carmen was
stin open for discussion at today's
meeting of the board
IF the Chief Justice says ii is de-
cided, ] suppose that settles it." he
said. He returned to Oakland to be-
gin the preparation OF a dissenting
opinion. which. il is understood will
be 2 strong statement Of what the
minority arbitrator considers the JUS
tice Of the carmen's claims.
The terms of the decision as it will
be signed by Major Frank McLaugh-
lin. the arbitrator for the company.
and Chief Justice Beatty. virtually
award 10 the construction workers and
electricians all that they asked. They
are granted an eight-hour day and a
substantial increase in wages. while
the carmen, whose case had been con-
sidered the strongest. must continue
on the ten-hour schedule and will re-
ceive an increase of only 20 per cent
CORNELIUS DISAPPOINTED
When Richard Cornelius. the presi-
dent of the Garments Union. was in
formed what the terms of the award
were to be he expressed great dis
appointment.
This is death blow TO arbitration .
he exclaimed, adding that he was
greatly surprised that the board should
have granted the demands of the other
IL -.
men an eight-hour day.
As the decision now stands, it gives
the linemen an increase from $3.50 to
81 a day and reduces their hours from
ten TO eight The trackworkers or
laborers employed in construction work
receive an increase from 81 to $3.50 and
also get an eight-hour day. The sta
tionary firemens demands are granted
in full Save a few instances. the
award Of the eight-hour day is to be
granted 10 all but the carmen.
While their wages are increased the
carmen get much less than they had
sought. Formerly. they had been paid
%. 26h and y cents an hour. They
viii receive hereafter. unless a change
be made today, so, 80 and 3S cents an
hour, according 10 the number of years
they have served in the companys en-
plOv The recent increase in the wages
gave the carmen on the other side of
the bay. where there are no hills and no
congestion Of traffic, from so TO 40 cents
an hour.
BETTER PAY IN OAKLAND
This viii mean that Oakland will
get the best motormen and conductors, .
is the opinion expressed by Cornelius.
1T viii have the pick of the men. Good
men are not going TO work here, where
the conditions are harder. when they
can get more in Oakland, where the
work is more pleasant"
Albert Johnson. the attorney for the
carmen. refused to discuss the award
until its terms were made public by the
board
1t is a remarkable decision he said
It is known that before Saturday
Chief Justice Beatty had not been will
ing TO consider a greater increase than
10 per cent for the carmen. At that
time the arbitrator for the railroad
gave way from his original position
and on the same morning TREY Ford is
reported TO have said to some of his
friends that the award would grant
the carmen an increase Of 20 per cent,
but that there--would be no change in
the hours of the working day.
The argument advanced by Beatty in
refusing TO agree to the lesser number
Of hours is said to have been that ii
would involve great cost to the com
pany.
What the men ask would mean an
outlay Of 100000 year by the COM
pany. or, in other words, it would be
equivalent TO the necessity of setting
aside a fund of $4,000. .0oO,' he is re-
ported 10 have urged during the course
Of the arbitration II is evident that
TO the mind Of the jurist the property
rights involved were a stronger con-
sideration than the personal rights of
the workmen-
DISSENTING OPINION
Father Yorke. in his dissenting opin-
ion. will take the ground that motor
men and conductors as class are un-
derpaid throughout the country. and
that they are suffering from the evil
Inheritance Of the days when street
cars were operated by horsepower and
drivers were obtainable at niggardIy
wage for sixteen hours work.
During the taking of testimony il
had been repeatedly urged by the at
torney for the railroads that the oues-
tion Of the company's ability to nav
the increase demanded was not before
the court, and on its side the company
had refrained from introducing any
testimony on this point. This silence.
would have been construed as an ad-
mission, but il appears that the oues-
tion of the expense involved weighed
most strongly with the umpirinR ar
bitrator, who had the deciding vote.
The question of the greater cost Of
living was passed over in the concl,,d
ing argument of the attorney for the
carmen. IT was believed that II wouId
not have great weight, as the com
pany could not be held responsible for
prevailing high prices. Greater stress
was laid upon the harder. conditions
under which the men had been Obliged
TO work since the fire. 1t is under
stood. however. that in granting tbe
increase in wages the Chief Justice ex-
pressed himself as having been IN
fiuenced by the greater cost of LIVING
rather than by the harder condition.
Of labor which, he held, were inappre-
ciable and temporary.
The decision would have been sfsnea
yesterday had IL not been for the fact
that the increase in the wages paid
by the Oakland Traction Company. as
il was alluded TO in yesterdays Call
was brought before the board. and an
argument upon it was made. which. IL
was hoped. would be of avail. Th.s
board was in session until a late hour
in the afternoon, and many interlinea
tions were made in the fexf ~ ~.