United labor bulletin. (Denver, Colo.) 19??-1915, 1910-06-30
PRISON CONTRACTS
RUNNING UNION
Prison-made osods Sold So Extensive
That Business Men Are Ruined and
the Garment Workers Organization
Threatened With Depletion.

Thomas F. Tracy, secretary-treasurer
of the Union Label Department OF the
American Federation of Labor. in cir
cular letter to the labor press and CEN
trai bodies of the country, is calling at
tention to the tremendous inroads that
the prison contract system is making
into the ranks of the Garment Workers
union. The letters says:
Your attention is called 10 a bill now
pending before congress dealing with the
subject of prison labor. During the
hearings held on Bill II. r. 1900 It was
brought out in the evidence that while
the evils OF the prison contract labor
system extended in many directions that
no industry was SO menaced by this
system as. is the industry coming under
the Jurisdiction of the United Garment
Workers. In the testimony given this
fact was clearly brought out. that the
manufacturing OF shirts and oyeralls
had, to a large degree. been given over
10 the prison labor contract system.
Testimony proved conelusively that
two firms working under different
names. but the officers OF both firms be
ing the same. have contracts in fourteen
different prisons or reformatories. en-
ploying large number OF prisoners. and
each particular place engaged in the
manufacture of shirts and oyerails. The
contract price paid for the labor OF these
prisoners varies from 35 TO Go cents per
day. Millions OF shirts are produced
yearly by this one combination alone,
and there are a number OF other In
divldual contractors who are operating
under this prison labor contract system
.The class of shirts manufactured are
TO large degree known as working
shirts and are sold TO merchants all
over the country as the product of free
or fair labor.
Your attention is called to this mat
ter because of the fact that after ali
there is but one way for organized
labor and its friends to remember that
when purchasing shirts, or in fact any
other commodity. the only means OF
knowing that the article purchased was
made under clean and healthy condi-
tions. n decent rate of wages paid, and n
short-hour work-day obtained In the
manufacturing OF the product. is having
attached to the purchase that is made
the union label issued by the respective
organizations in interest.
ITO prevent n further extension of this
prison labor contract system in.the man
ufacture of shirts. overalls, etc, II is
the bounden duty OF members of organ
ized labor and their friends, when max
ing purchases of goods of this character,
to see that the union label of the United
Garment Workers appears upon the
same.
Your local union is urgently request
ed to appoint committee to wait upon
the dealers in your locality who are
handling goods of this character. and
urge them to insist that when placing
orders in the future for shirts that the
union label OF the United Garment Work
ers shall appear upon the same. and you
are also requested to refuse In the
future to purchase any article of this
or any other character unless the union
label of the organization in interest is
attached thereto.
Bear in mind that when insisting
upon being furnished with goods bear
ing the union label you are not only as
sisting your fellow workers In that In
dustry. but you are also assisting your
self, for 1t has been truthfully said that
the member of a union who would pur-
chase non-union made article is not
doing his full duty to himself or to his
fellow trade unionist. Insist upon the
union label at all times. Give your full
patronage to such places as display
union store cards and handle union-madc
commodities"