The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1908-07-01
NOTES OF LABOR WORLD

Kansas City, Mo, is the headquar-
ters of six international organizations
of organized labor, having a combined
membership of nearly 100000.
The city of Vancouver, B. C, now
uses the union label on its printing.
The fair wage" clause is inserted in
the provincial government contracts.
Largely through the efforts of the
womens clubs Of Florida there is a
new child labor law there which pro-
hibits the employment of children UNI
der twelve years of age.
Conditions of organized labor in
Wyoming compares favorably with
other parts of the country. The diff
ferent international organizers arc
we'll represented. The industrial cen
ters are we'll organized. but there are
quite a number of unOr~anized work
ers at outlying places. whose wages
are very low.
Many unions have in the last year
been experimenting in the matter of
dues. In several instances unions
which have always strictly adhered
temporarily their initiation fees in an
endeavOr to decide for themselves
| just to what extent a high initiation
fee hampers growth.
From report on British trade
unions recently issued. it is shown
that this form of labor organization is
steadily increasing in membership
OFT Rot
| for 1906 from 645 unions, with
membership of 1,719,031. an increase
of 151,512 over the report of the pre-
vious year. Their income for the
same period was approximately S13,-
100000, an increase of S760,000. Their
expenditures aggregated 81, 400, 90,
| or 100000 less than the year pre-
vious. AT the present time the funds
of these unions total about $29, 900. 900.
Grand Presidtnt Frank J. McNulty,
of the International Brotherhood of
Electrical Workers, urges the creation
! of a large defense fund, one so large
| as to be useful in cases of differences
between employers and employees. He
also advocates the centralizing of sick
and death benefit funds. He holds
that if such funds were paid from the
treasury Of the international body, in
stead of being paid by the individual
unions, better results would obtain
and that it would then be possible to
raise death benefits from 500 TO $500
and sick and disability benefits from
IS to SO a week.
An experiment is being tried in
Paris looking to the abolition of the
sweatshOp conditions surrounding
many of the French working people.
| The experiment consists of the eStab-
lishment of a workshop apartment
| building, where workmen may labor
| and live under the most modern and
hygienic conditions at a minimum
cost. The building contains forty
eight workshops and apartments, and
the price a year for these cOmbina-
tons is from 500 to s14S. In the
| basement are baths and on the sew
enth floor arrangements for washing
and drying the family linen. Electric
power is supplied at a minimum cost
from a central point. Any workman
using the lights for machinery can in
stall themselves in the building. In
fact, twelve families have already
done so, finding the new. clean work
rooms a most agreeable and health
full substitute for their former dark
and ill-ventilated shops.
The subject of a State industrial
! college is being considered in Mas
sachusetts. 1t is purposed to estab-
lish the institute in Boston or vicini-
| ty, and that it shall maintain both day
and evening classes. The main OBJ
| ject of such school is to develop
men for the lower and middle super
visory positions.
The last reports presented to the
| Gas Workers Union were to the effect
that all the members of the jurisdic-
! ton. which includes the unions in
| San Francisco, Cal, San Jose, Oak
land and Sacramento, are at work,
and that this craft has been particu-
larly fortunate in having work for the