Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1912-03-30
Anthracite Miners Will
Suspend Operation, April |.
Mine Owners and Workers Fail
To Reach Agreement.
Number of Miners Who Will Quit in
Pennsylvania, 10000.

L
| orders for a suspension of all opera
! lions in the anthracite mines, begin
| ming April i. We're issued by the
! United Mine Workers of America,
| this afternoon. President White said
! that the suspension would be equal to
| strike. except that the men at the
pumps and other necessary positions
| to protect mine property would be
| kept at work
| The order for the anthracite miners
| TO quit was as follows:
Suspension order. To all anthra-
| cite mine workers:
| Your committee to whom was DEL
egated authority by the PottsviIle
| convention to negotiate a wage con-
/ tract on the basis of the demands of
said convention have up to this time
/ been unable to do so and inasmuch
as the present wage agreement ex-'
! pires March 81. after which no con-
! tract is provided for governing wages
/ and conditions of employment, there
! fore all mine workers except engi-
neers, pump men, firemcn, stable
men, watchmen and such other men
rs are absolutely necessary for the
+ proper protection of property. are
/ hereby instructed to suspend work be-
+ ginning April l and remain idle un-
| I'll further notice.
| Summarized, the facts about the an
| thracite miners are:
Number of miners to quit 10000 In
! Pennsylvania, as follows:
Laekawanna and wyoming Valley.
'o'ooa: Hazleton and Panther Creek
Valley, 10000; Pottsville and Likens
| Valley, 60 600
demands: Twenty per cent, I'm.
! erase in pay; eight hours Gay in
stead OF nine; complete recognition of
the union; adoption of system
whereby the operators would deduct
/ from the pay the union dues each.
month and give it direct to the ma
tlenal union; modification Of the con-
citation board created in 1902 to en-
able employees to direct more directly
I with employers; one year instead of
! three year contracts
! Demands rejected by the operators
| in New York. March IS.
Offer of the operatives to continue
! the present scale rejected by the
| miners.
| The suspension order was signed
| by the presidents of the three anthra-
cite districts and the executive board
of the United Mine Workers of Ameri-
ca after they had decided that the
lack of wage agreement within two
! days of the expiration of the present
j one made it imperative that the men
be officially informed whether they
! Were to continue work.
Hope Of an early resumption of the
/ anthracite business after short sus-
/ pension, however, was not entirely
abandoned. 1t was said the definite
situation brought about by the sus-
! pension order might help in determine
ing what steps may be taken to bring
| both sides together. John T.. Demp-
| sy of Scranton, Thomas Kennedy of
| HaZelton and John Fahey of Shamo-
| kin, presidents of the union anthra-
cite districts sent a telegram to
George F. Baer of Philadelphia, rail-
road president and operator, propos-
ing the terms upon which the miners
We're willing to resume negotiations
, The reply from Mr.. Baer was eagerly
awaited
If the plan is adopted there won't
be any necessity of a third party
/ bringing us together" said Mr..
! Dempsey.
All of the anthracite union men took
the position that any offer of reconsider
ing the differences should come from th,
operators. When the last conference was
adjourned in New York. on March 10,
the miners say, the operators made it i'm
possible to continue because it was con-
/ tended that "the miners should first
abandon their demands and then nego-
tate"
What we want is to go into conference
without any restrictions having first beer
ITfI
A report from New York that the on
orators Were not disposed absolutely 10
refuse all the demands. but were will
ing perhaps to grant a slight increase
! in pay was thought to have done much
j toward creating a desire among the min
ers to make the suspension as short as
possible. As sustaining their demands
for increased pay, the union gave out
| this statement
! Our desire for a 20 per cent increase
in pay Will not seem unreasonable whea
it is learned that most of the 10000 an
/ thracite miners work only about two
thirds of the time. The average work.
| ing time for each man, last year, was
! $40 days, and the average salary earned
by each man for the year was about $500.
or less TIM $40 a week.
our men take greater risks than they
! do in other countries. The total number
of men killed in mines for the last 10
years was 2i0S7. The yearly record Of
deaths in mines is now about 2soo. In
the United States the death rate for 1000
men is S.91 as compared with l.43 in
Great Britain. and it is more than double
that of any other coal producing country
in Europe.
Continued on Page Twelve.)