Wheeling majority. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1907-192?, 1915-09-02
Industrial Colnmiss;o
tContinued from Page &,


Including officials. necessary for III
efl1cient operation of the Nations
telephone system, to the Federal 90,
vice as far as possible. and the IN
sorptaon, as far as practicable, of al
4 employees VINO are not necessary TO
the telephone system into othe
tlDrancnes OF the Federal service
.. When such employees ar
s;transferred to the Federal service
the creation of d special commission
to establish salary ratings and othe
WorMng conditions on proper basis
o. I'm the meantime prOgisio,
Should be made by Congress for tn,
creation Of minimum wage boar,
to FIX minimum WAGE standards fo]
women employees who are engaged
I'm the transmission of messages ii
interstate commerce. The boarf
should be authorized to differentiafs
between localities in fixing minima
If on due consideration, such differ
ential rates should he deemed advis
able.
5. The creation Of minimum wage
boards in the several States to fi1
minimum wages for all women EN-
iployees engaged in service within the
Estate" 4s.
/ The Pullman Company.
THE investigations and hea ings
OF the Commission develop the follow.
ling facts: 9S
employed in the car service of the
lPullman Company are employed I'm
der conditions which seem to REQUIRE
, radical reimbursement Both classes
tof employees are admitted by officials
Lot the Company to be underpaid.
| The standard salary of the porters
t($27-5O per monthly is such that the
porters are obliged to secure tips
from the public in order to live. The
Pullman Company is admitted by the
chairman Of the Board of Directors
to be the direct beneficiary of the tips
from the public to the extent Of the
difference between a fair wage and
that which is now paid.
The hours of Service are extremely
long, the regulations of the Company
allowing porters and conductors when
in service only four hours to sleep
per might and penalizing them. Sc
verely If they sleep while on duty.
Employees of the Pullman Company
are subject to many other abuses
among which may be mentioned the
arbitrary deduction from their sal
aries for such time as they may not
he needed for the actual service of
the Company, although they are re-
quired to report at the office each
morning and are sometimes compelled
to wait the greater part of the day
without compensation; the require
ment that porters shall furnish black
Q1fhnIIph- q ro M oil
to charge passengers for the service
of shoe cleaning; the system of ar
bitrary penalties for the infraction of
multitudinous rules; the requirement
that all employees shall purchase
establishment, the owners 81 which
are largely Interested in the Pullman
'Company; and the lac kof proper pro-
vision of sleeping quarters for en-
ployees when away from their home
stations.
2. The Pullman Company has a.
bonus system. by which employees
who have a "clean record" for the
year receive an extra months salary.
This system serves to increase the
earnings of those who receive the
bonus, and is Enthusiastically appre-
ciated by them. Nevertheless, it is in
equitable in penalizing with extra Sc
verify any infraction of the rules
which occur during the latter half of
the year, and puts into the hands of
officials and Inspectors means of
discrimination which @adA tsbe arbi-
erarily exercised. ST
8. The effect Of the tipping system
.is-Ret only to degrade those who are
obliged by their econami conditions
to accept tips, but to promote dis
elimination in the service of the pub
lie
4. The employees of the Pullman
company are unable to improve their
condition through organization, as
employees known to be members of
labor unions are discharged and
through the means of an effective syS-
tenn of espionage employees are de-
tered from afiliating with labor
unions.
s The Company is tremendously
oVer-capitalized, having increased its
capitalization from $36, O00, 900 in 1893
to $120, 1000, 900 in 1915, without the
investment of single dollar on the
part of the stockholders Upon the
basis of actual cash paid in, the an
nIal dividends of the Company, are
not less than twenty-nine per cent.
During the history of the Company
the stockholders have received cash
dividends amounting to at least $167,
100000 and special stock dividends
of $64, 00O, 900, making a total of 1921,
100000 on anactual investment of
SS2 500 ,Re8.
6. The Company enjoys a practical
monopoly of the sleeping car service.
ut is suggested that the Commits
sion recommend:
4 q The enactent by Congress of a
statute prohibiting prohibiting the
tipping Of any employee Of public
service corporation engaged in inter
state commerce, and providing a pro-
per fine for both the giver and the re-
Ecipient of the tip.
2 The amendment OF the existing
law regulating the hours of service.
of train employees to include the en-
pIoyees engaged in the Pullman ser
vice.
8. The extension Of the Newlands
Act, as already suggested, to cover
the Pullman Company
Railroads.
A..