New-York tribune., 1909-04-05
BACK WAGES WHITFIELD
CITY SAVES OYER 50 900, 0,o00.
Controller Settles Claims Of Nearly
$40 900. 900 for 1fbOut 500 900.

Claims against the city aEFres1tnG nearly S4c.-
oooen fled by more than eight thousand enp"yes
~ s,y,ra- e-,,Ioyes under the p-era Hing rate OF
wages decisions have been adjusted by the iaW ana
adjustment division Of the Finance Department
with the result that the city will pay ahodt . per
cent OF the face Of the claims. o about S9'h'+y-
The defensive campaign on the part Of the Con
t-olla--s Office has been Of the stubborn and
vexat.cus character, but il has resulted IN whiting
thousands Of claims from preposterous to Fea-
sonae.e proportions, and the fixing Of defini'e
raRe scale the various crafts whose ireI1lpeFs
work for the city. The net result also is SUB
,tsntial victory for the labor organizations. en-
forcing a wage scale in this city which makes the
rn,,nicipalitv pnz- probably higher wages than any
CITY in the world fo- equal grade OF work
Tfae fight incidentally las enriched seven law
firms which made speciality of bringing actions
under the prevailing rate OF wages decisions on a
contingent fee basis While the lawyers have NOT
gathered in one-fourth part what they expected in
the shape Of fees, still the aggregate sum is large
one uarrartinE the presumption that other ana
similar attempts will be made 10 force the wage
scale up facilitate the collection Of back pay
The lawyers. who together represented about Two
thirds Of the entire eight thousand claimants are
Alden s. Carpenter Robert Il Haskell. James z
Smith Hunt & Ingle. william Steele Gray, w J.
Walsh and Thomas ". Burke.
result of tie bringing Of these claims no
bureau in tie city government has been more
harassed By deludel. resentful. despairing people
than the Ia j. and adjustment division OF the Con
treiers Office. Hundreds of the claimants still are
under the impression the city has robbed them
OF their toll The corridors the fourth floor OF
The Stewart Building have been the promenade foT
rne- buoyed llTs by false hopes. broken down men
and women widows Of claimants. and men who
write Black Hand letters and then brazenly tell the
officials they sent them. and that harm will come
70. them II there immediate action Labor
leaders lead delegations this floor, and when
their request that certain claims taken up out
Of their regular order is turned down make stump
sueeches 20 their friends in the corridors This is
known as making good with the gang
EXPERTS IN THE HANDLING OF CLAIMS
The campaign has developed jeremiah Mahoney,
head of the law and adjustment division. Philip J.
NcAyoy, his chief examiner, and Peter F. Doring.
the examiner IN charge of claims. into highly
trained specialists in handling Of CITY claims
These officials have been compelled in the last two
or three years to take up every of the claims
scrEtinize verify it and prepare evidence TO fight
the collection of the claim. all with The thor
ouEhness rs If there was only hundred instead
Of eight thousand actions
a principle established a a result Of
paign is that there is such thing in law the
prevailing rate Of wages standard for the ordinary
"a bore-. AS ordinary laborer he is compelled TO
accept what he get for MS services. 1t is diff
with the trades The law passed in 1924. ant
subsequently amen5e6 TO remedy its defects.
cornpels the city or contractors working FOR the
city pay q specific for trade wages, as
follows: