Smyrna times., 1910-07-13
TRAINMEN MAY
GO ON STRIKE
Pennsylvania Men Want More
Than New York Central or
B. and 0. TTainman.
COMPANY MAKES STATEMENT


because the company has refused to
comply with demands for further i'll
creases in the wages of tranmen and
yGrdmen. The statement of facts in
the ballot is eminently fair. but GER
tain matters should be explained and
others ampified.
A criticism of the cOmpanyS action
is made that an increase of per cent
was granted to the employees regard
less Of the expressed desires of the
committees
The company has Il duty to all of its
employees as great as to its conductors
and trainmen. 1t has been the we'll
established policy Of the company to
meet changed conditions promptly, so
that the employees in all departments
may at once receive wages as high as
| or higher than employees in CORE
spending service of other railroads.
The determination to take strike
vote was reached after Il conference
on Tuesday with General Manager w
| ii. Myers. who informed the commit
| tees that the company would accept
| the arbitration award of the New York
Central; that it would adopt all that
! embodies the principles for which they
contend and the rates that have been
| put into effect on the New York Cen
trai, leaving the cOmpany's high rate
| stand, but moi increasing them by max
! Ing a ten h ur day apply tO the rates
| which were made to fit an eleven and
| twelve hour day, OF that the company
would try t" meet these conditions by
adjustment. fitting its rates of pay and
conditions of work to the New York
| Central award as near as possible. as
has been dove in the rates that have
been posted recently"
With reference to this declaration
made by General Manager Myers the
! company hlS called t. the attention OF
the trainmea the following quotation
from the strike ballot which is to he
circulated among the employees:
THE specific offer made by the com
pany was that it was willing to apply
the New York Central award, putting
in the mileage system i'm its entirety
with the minimum day. provided the
men would accept Herewith the New
| York Central rates. As the rates that
now obtain on this property are and
have been for a large portion of the
service materially higher than the New
York Central rates this offer was nat
urally rejected.
Generally speaking, yard rates put
into effect 10y your company compare
favorably with rates paid by other
companies in he territory. but we con
tend that both road and yard rates
should be higher on our line than paid
by other companies for similar service.
because the policy Of the Pennsylva-
MIA has always seemingly been to edu-
cate their employees in the belief that
certain Of such employees were enti-
tied to from to 20 per cent more than
paid by other companies for similar
service. We feel we are entitled to a
continuation Of the practice accompa-
MED by standard condition of pay
ment"
Ninety-five per cent Of the gross earn
ings of the Pennsylvania railroad are
based on transportation rates, which
are made as Il result of competition in
the north with the New York Central
and in the south with the Baltimore
and Ohio The company has to com
pete with these railroads, and although
its rates Of pay have been higher and
working conditions better than those
of the former roads, as the rates of pay
Of these railroads approach those Of
the company the latter cannot main
tain the same difference between the
rates of pay which must of necessity
In the natural course of events reacl
a common basis. 1t is true that tn,
other railroads in this territory have
made increases, but they have no
reached the rates generally paid b!
the Pennsylvania railroad.
That the company's employees ma,
appreciate the seriousness of this stu
alton and that they may realize tn
effect of voting yes" to this ballot
they should bear in mind that the rate
which were adopted on the Baltimor
and Ohio am on the New York Cen
tral-rates which they do not want (
accept from the Pennsylvania-wer
arrived at after arbitration, Judg
Knapp of the interstate cOmmerc
commission and Mr.. Neill, commits
: siOner of labor, being the arbitrator
in one case and Mr.. e. e. Clark, men
ber of the interstate commerce con
mission and formerly president of tn
Order Of Railway Conductors, and Nj
] p. H. Morrissey, formerly president G
the Brotherhood of Railroad Trainme
and now president of the Railwa
Employees Investors association,
the other.
In a statement posted on bulleti
boards all over the lines east of Pitt
burg and Erie the company says tha
1.-The committee of trainmen particula
ly called attention to the fact that eaC
/. member should vote with full know
edge that II the necessary majority {