Los Angeles herald., 1907-05-01
'yEAMSTERS
THREATEN A
BIG STRIKE
Union Drivers De-
mand an Increase
in Wages
i Employers Declare They
Will Fight for
Open Shop
Police Called on to Guard Stables, but
No Disturbance occurs-struggIe
Begins Today If Men Arc
Determined

On the eve of the Fiesta and the
meeting of the Imperial council of the
Ancient Order of the Mystic Shrine,
two events that will bring to Los An
geles thousands of visitors and make
The services of trucks, transfer wag-
ons and baggage wagons almost in
dispensable, the city is confronted with
The possibility of strike Of the team
sters and truck drivers, which, while
! the trouble is confined at the present
4 time to the drivers of heavy freight
trucks, will, in the event Of strike,
extend to all branches of the trade
affiliated with the union.
Several days ago the drivers en-
ployed by the Pioneer Truck and
Transfer company with offices ana
yards at POI North Main street. South
! ern Pacific and Santa Fe depots, and
l Alameda street, opposite Requena
( street. made a demand upon the COM
! pany for general advance in wages
for all drivers This was followed by
demands by the union upon the At
lantici Transfer company, the Call
forniarTrt.ck company, the Merchants
Transfe4 and Truck company, the
SoutheEl Pacific Transfer company,
the Los Angeles Van Van Transre5 tha Pacifie ane
Stoast Fransfer company for a similar
M mcel The companies are given un-
w CNnorrow to make an answer to
Y Amands of the union.
.N Want Immediate Answer
fH present tealnsters are paid at
~ rate Of SO day for two-horse
Aams and $3.50 a day for four-horse
4eams. The men demand $350 day
Nfor drivers of two-horse teams and "a
ber day for drivers of four-horse
teams with 80 cents an hour for all
time over. their regular hours. This
demand was made by Union No. 2O8
IF the international Brotherhood of
Teamsters and the Pioneer Truck
eompany's men insisted upon an i'm
mediate answer, 1t is aid.
Yesterday afternoon. fearing that
some of their drivers who were not at
work and who were assembled at the
Yards and stables of the company on
Alameda street might raise dis
f,1rbance Chief of Police Kern was
appealed to to send a guard to the
stables. While not believing that
guard was necessary Chief Kern de-
tailed three patrolmen to stay at the
ward and the officers were on watch
there all day. There was absolutely
no disturbance, however, and the po-
licemen were withdrawn at dark.
Declare Open Shop
The truck companies yesterday post
< ed notices announcing that the con-
tract between the employing truck
men and the teamsters'- union, which
expired Yesterday, will not be renewed
\ and that teamsters who go to work
for them this morning will do so with
the knowledge that it is an open shop.
~ The news is of interest in wholesale
H and retail circles in almost every line
of business. for the teamster plays an
important part in every branch.
Whether the announcement will be
the signal for a strike by the union
men will not be known until this
morning, but IL there is general
strike the employing. truckmen are
Xprepared to fight to the end and they
are backed by the Los Angeles job
q bers' association, as well as most of
the merchants, contractors and manu-
facturers.
When the notice was posted late yes
terday, following meeting of the
heads of the various truck companies
held in the offices of the California
#Truck company, announcement was
rnade that the wages of every man
would be increased % cents day, but
n that the companies reserved the right
to employ whoever they chose.
Defies the Union
rhe agitation was started by the
vns Angeles Jobbers' association, COM
ed of seventy members, at a meet
in& held April %. The contract be-
W8en the union and the employing
.4ickmen has existed five years and
Ift Jobbers' association passed reso-
Ittions declaring the opposition of the
a45ociatioh to the renewal or ex-
'.Ience gof any contract
PETITION signed by the merchants,
manufacturers and contractors of Los
1Bgeles followed to bear out these
solutions and all parties are await
hg the developments of this morn
ihg.
Wv. Cochran of the Citizens Trans
fer company when seen last night
said:
1--WE have determined that the agree
ment shall not be renewed. We do
not object to paying the men more
money and we have already decided
to do so, but we do desire the priyi-
Z lege of employing whom we will.
We will no longer be dictated to by
the union, and If the men come back
to work for US this morning they must
understand that 1t is an open shop.
I'VE do not know anything as to
whether there will be a strike, but We
know we are determined In our po-
sition.D
No Trouble Expected
Members of the Transfers union
held meeting at labor headquarters