New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-04-24
Gain Advance of 10 to IL Per
Cent in Arbitration Boards
Award Against Fifty
four Railroads.
LINES ARE FAVORED, TOO
Demands for Better Working
Conditions Are Not Conceded
and the Wage Increase of
Several Millions Annual
ly Is Not Retroactive.

Thxty-fve thousand firemen win Il
victory in the award of the arbitration
board selected under the Erdman act
to settle the controversy over wages
and working conditions with the fifty
four Eastern railroads. The award was
filed in the Office Of the clerk Of the
United states District Court shortly
after 6 o'clock last night by Judge
William l. Chambers, chairman Of the
hoard The office of the clerk of the
court was kept open especially TO re-
ceive IT, The extension of time allowed
the board I'm which 10 file its finding
would have expired at midnight.
The award is essentially in favor Of
the fremen who set an average in
crease of 10 10 u per cent in wages.
Estimated on the basis of the present
annual payroll OF the fremen Of the
ffty-four roads. which is S29.000,00o,
the increase in wages will mean an
additional outlay To the Eastern roads
Of from S2,SOO0OO to $3.4S0. 900 a year.
Advance Takes Effect in Ten Days.
The demands for better working con-
dtions. as made by the iircmen, in gen
eral. are not conceded by the board OF
arbitration. and remain pretty much
the same as they were heretofore. In
this respect the railroads won several
important points for which they con-
tended during the hearings before the
board. \ large item of saving to the
railroads under the award lies in the
fact that il is not made retroactive, but
goes into effect ten days after it was
filed.
The fremeD contended that it should
cate from July l. 1872, when the first
negotiations with the railroads were
begun. If this had been allowed it
would have cost TIE railroads almost
another years outlay Of The increase in
wages. or about S3,o0O.O00. When the
arbitration award was made 10 the
engineers of the same roads last sum-
mer they were allowed seven months
Increase in back pay, but the percent
age of increase was much smaller,
being about > per cent.
In presenting their demands the fire.
men figured that the increase asked in
wages would amount to II per cent.
The railroad managers contended that
the demands. if granted in toto. would
mean a much larger increase-about %
per cent. This would mean an in
creased expense TO the roads concerned
II S11.OOO.OOO. they contended. The
railroads reached this estimate on
basis Of In actual work done by the
fremen for the year prior TO the con-
'roversy. as figured by their experts.
Roads Are Standardized.
The award standardizes the roads. as
the firemen requested. by basing the
paw Of the fremen on the weight of
locomotives on drivers and by speci-
fying that ten hours or less. or one
hundred miles or less. shall constitute
a days work In all classes OF service.
Prior TO the award there had been no
Standardization Of wages, some Of the
roads computing them on a mileage
basis and some on the weight Of loco
motives
The application Of the firemen for
two fremen on all the larger freight
locomotives was denied. but provision
was made so that in case OF necessity
a second fireman can be used. This
was one OF the demands most bitterly
Continued on second page. third column.