The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1909-09-27
WHY MECHANICS ARE LEAVING
 BRIDGEPORT
Reasons Advanced By For mer Bridgeporter Now Located in the West.
Detroit. Mich, Sept. 24,

Detroit, Mich., Sept. 24, 1909.
 To the Editor of the Bridgeport, Far
 mer.
 Dear Sir:-I am in receipt of copy
 of the Farmer of recent date in which
 appeared an article relative to the
 scarcity of skilled mechanics in Bridgeport, members of the Manu-
 facturers' association quoting them
 selves as being entirely ignorant of
 the cause and apparently surprised at
 the conditions. Being a native of Con- Lnecticut and having worked at tool
 and die making for the past 27 years,
 the greater part of the time in that
 state, feel that I can give the man
 ufacturers of your city some valuable Information.
 In their eagerness to undersell their
 competitor they have filled their fac tories with the very cheapest Of
 foreign labor dispensing with American
 labor, wherever possible until they
 commenced to consider the tool maker luxury and to reduce his expense they decided it could only be done by an organized effort to destroy his in- dependence. This they started to do some five years ago by establishing Manufacturers Employment Bureau in Bridgeport extensively to boycott
 the skilled mechanic by securing his complete history, as we'll as that of his antecedents; the last three shops he | had worked in; why he had left or was discharged; the rate of wages he had received; Union or Non-Union etc., etc. If he was so unfortunate as to have 1 incurred the dislike of his foreman or | professed his independence his record l on file in the office showed it and work | was refused him as he would go from | door to door.
 l This system made it impossible for
 a mechanic to better his condition fi- | nancially without leaving the city
 which a great many have done and
 will continue to do so long as the 1 Manufacturers Association is at the
 a large family four years ago having | had my expenses paid and received
 s1 1.50 more a day and haven't worked since for less than soc more a day then
 I could get in Bridgeport and as fo1 a city to live in Detroit can not be beat.
 l While there is an Employers Asso- ciation here they are not power as l most of the manufacturers prefer to | run their own business their own way | and also realize that to rob mechanic of his independence is destroying his efficiency.
 | As is pretty well known this is an Automobile city with 2S auto shops
 and more than a hundred accessory o | shops employing approximately S5,00e
 people nearly as much as the popula- l tion of Bridgeport and I take great pride in saying that great many of | the men from presidents Of large con- cerns down, were at one time ma- l chinists in the east In fact they
 have made the industries of this part | of the country. In years past when a boy was taught the trade thoroughly the East supplied the West with me- chanics, the supply being in excess to 1 the demand; but with the increased | demand of recent years especially in Ohio and Michigan for first class all | around men the supply in the east has | graGually fallen off as they are not | making any more all around men ow- | ing to the piece-work premium and | specialist systems.
 | The time is coming and not far of | when the employers Of the east vii! 1 be sending agents out here offering l inducements to get skilled mechanics 1 This is a progressive country out 1 here and things are always moving i Capital is invested freely while Con- necticut is apparently slow and is | fast losing it's reputation as the lead ing industrial center of the United
 States. Your fire chief Edward Moo- ney was right when after his recent | trip to Minnesota he said that the | cities out here had those in the east | beat everyway excepting with saloons Connecticut can expect a permanent | remedy for the scarcity of skilled me | chanics is to run their business them | selves; pay more money for No. l men and push the apprentice boy all 1 around the shop. It is a mistaken l idea that technically educated me- l chanics are a successful production | As experience is the only teacher | Trusting that you will find space ir
 your valuable paper for this article | I remain
 l Yours very truly.
 l IAN EASTERN MECHANIC" | Colored embroidery will be much l i,,uf rcsfr acclcxx IT.