The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1914-11-02
PRoUTY AND LABOR
Newport Man Replies to Charge OF
Low WAGES and Iona Hours

Newport Man Replies to Charge OF
Low Wages and Long Hours
At White River Junction Octobe.
2sth Mr. Prouty speaking of the
Methods OF the opposition said:
Since morning my attention has
been called to another advertisement
/ headed "Prouty and Labor" in which
reference is made to the treatment of
its employees by the Bradford Elcc-
trio Light company which I control,
While these facts might have been
stated at any time the subject is
bought before the public at the last
moment when it is too late to present
my side to more than a limited num-
Der The facts are these:
The Bradford plant is very small
concern. Before ! bought ii some
half dozen years ago it gave only an
all night service and one man did the
work at all time. ! remcdelled the
plant and put in a 24-hour service.
This plant is operated by water
power and is equipped with modern
appliances When everything goes
right the station runs Itself. | have
sat on the lawn in front of the station
talking with the station man an en-
tire evening. when he did not find it
necessary to go inside once. There
u.s. under ordinary conditions, nothing
to do, and no machine or instrument
10 watch; it is only necessary to re-
main in hearing and seeing distance.
| employ in the operation of this
plant three men. not two as stated.
The two station men are ordinary la
borers, although one of the present
men has developed into an expert.
The third man is in general charge of
the plant and must be of higher
g-ade. The wages of the cheapest
man is ten dollars week. of the sec
ond man twelve dollars. | do not re-
member the exact weekly stipend of
the third man; it is materially more,
and he receives in addition a percen-
tage OF the gross receipts above
certain amount. which is also sub
stantial. The above amounts are
base salaries. and to them is added
twenty-five cents per week for each
year of service that is. if man has
been in service four years his com,
pensation has been increased by one
dollar per week.
These men have a vacation of two
weeks with pay. In case of sickness
my instructions are to pay them for
two weeks and then call the matter
to my attention. am confident that
the Bradford Co., paid each of these
men between July /. 1913 and July
1914 more money than lie had ever
received for his services during any
year of his whole life.
My Instructions TO the head men
are that he shall run the station him
self and give the station men time off
as they may desire and as he may be
able to give il. equivalent to one day
q week
So far as | know the men are con
tented. One of them has been there
five years. another four and one half
years. The boy who filed the Ten
Dollar place recently left to. enter a
business school and we received num-
erous applications for the place all
from residents of Bradford who knew
the duties Of the position and the
Since my opponents have made this
ISSUE ! may properly add The follow
ny statement:
Seven or eight years ago | had oc
,asion to employ al Newport a gang
IF unskilled laborers. The ten-hour
lay was then universally applied with |
abor OF that class in that vicinity.
When work began I went onto the job |
myself for three or four days. At |
he end of that time | told my fore |
nan that in my opinion when those |
men had actually wo ked for nine |
hours they had done enough for one \
lay and that he might knock off at |
i've o'clock This was done and that |
gang worked all summer on nine |
hour schedule while all other labor
FRS of the same class in that vicinity |
worked ten hours.
/ may still further add that I paid |
hose men twenty-five cents day |
more than the going price fof simi
ar labor in that section and that
other employers Of labor demonstrate