United labor bulletin., 1913-06-14

branches the need of a union paper
was felt, and it was decided to pub
lish monthly periodical. With a
membership of less than a thousand,
this was hazardous step. However,
at the beginning of 1908, The Clerk
was launched, George Bernard Shaw
being good enough to insure it wide
recognition by writing an article on
clerks for its first number. From then
until now the paper has kept going,
though at various times, owing to the
heavy Indebtedness to the printers, its
existence hung by a very slender
thread. 1t is edited by clerk, writ
ten by clerks, with the object OF
promoting the interests of clerks.
Naturally the contributors to the pa
per are all unpaid, and even the
editor, until very recently, received
rothing for his services
The chief plank in the N. U. C.
platform is the establishment of d
minimum weekly wage of 35 shillings
(sS75) for all adult workers, malo
even when the comparative cost OF
living is borne in mind, this wage OF
SS.75 may appear ridiculously low as
minimum to be fought for, but it is
nothing of the kind to English office
workers. AS matter of fact, when
the figure WIS first put forward con-
siderable number of the union mem
bers objected to it as something i'm
possible of attainment even for the
/ Ia ,;t In rfc n
the provinces the minimum is set at
80 shillings (s7.50). The explanation
of all this lies in the fact that office
workers in England are paid wretch
edly low wages. Apart from the agri-
cultural laborer, the clerk is probably
the worst paid worker in Great Britain,
There are large numbers of perfectly
competent clerks even in London.
where the cost of living is highest,
working for miserable wage of s5.25
a week.
Plowed Lonely Furrow.
Yet in spite of this appalling rate
of pay the N U. C. found the average
office worker in Great Britain a snob.
Getting infinitely less to live upon
than the artisan, existing in state OF
semi-starvation, he still clung to the
old notion that his ''respectability'
would not permit him to join trade
union. He had seen almost every
other class of workers, like the brick
layers, the carpenters, the dockers,
and even the teachers driven by sheer
necessity to combine for the better
ment of their conditions, but heTwas
not impressed. Their ways were not
his ways He refused obstinately to
consider himself a member OF the
working class and adopt such means
as they had found necessary. He
pIowed his lonely snobbish furrow,
and, of course. he paid the price.
An important part OF the unions
work has been in the direction of OBJ
tanning more healthy office conditions
for workers. A higher percentage OF
office workers die of consumption than
of any other class of wage earners.
The union has made strong efforts to
have conditions improved in many
individual cases and has now succeed
ed in laying before parliament bill
to bring all offices under the inspec-
tion of government officials. This bill
also prescribes certain minimum CON
ditions as to air, space, light and venti-
lation.
The methods employed to obtain
rev members were many and varied.
The motive power of them all was in
dividual effort. Members made point
of endeavoring to get all the other
office workers with whom they came
in contact to become members. Leaf
lets were left in railway trains, street
cars and restaurants. Enthusiasts
would distribute leaflets to neighbor-
ing offices in their lunch time. All
sorts of meetings where office work
sers might be found were attended.
Dockers Take a Hand.
Coming back to history again, two
years ago, when the big dock strike
was on, the lockers refused to make
any settlement with the Port of Lon
don authority until 1000 clerical work
ers employed by that body could show
trade union cards. The dockers feared
that these workers might, in time of
stress, be induced to scab on them.
The result was that after negotiations
these 1000 workers became members
of the N U. G.
A year later another strike oc-
CURED and the lockers found that
their fears of the year before were
well founded. About 400 of the ruen
who had joined the union were asked
to act as scabs. Instead, they came
out on strike and the union paid them
strike pay. A special levy was made
to meet the financial situation. and /.
was responded to loyalty by the mem
bership. In this way the union was
] ira,.olIc In, its.f firat I:oal OF tr.iIro