Denver labor bulletin., 1916-07-22
$500, 900 WORKERS GET
$300,000,00O WAGE BOOST
DURING THE PRESENT YEAR

two wage increases reaching 10000
workers in each case.
There are l30 wage increase reports
for New Jersey, covering bakers, build
ing trades, clothing, foundry and ma
chine shops, iron and steel, miners, mu-
nitions, printers, railroads, teamsters,
textiles and common labor. Bakers got
raises of 81 to 50 per week; building
trades, 40 cents to so cents per day.
There were sixteen foundry and machine
shop raises of l2 per cent to 80 per cent
and nine textile mill raises of 10 to 25
per cent.
Over $50 wage raises were listed for
New York One clothing case added so
cents to $3.50 per week to 10000 wage
earners. Three building trade raise.
from 25 cents TO s. per day for 26,OO0
mechanics. Fifty foundry and machine
shop raises touched 100 to 5000 men
each, and one common labor settlement
placed 10000 men on basis OF 50 to
s275 per day. There were seven wage
jumps for street railway operators, and
fifteen for printers, in each case affect
ing thousands OF pay envelopes
Builders and Printers Gain.
1t takes about 200 wage articles to
cover Ohio, and about the same for
L
reached every line OF industry. Even
water transportation raised wages in
Ohio, and two iron and steel raises of
10 per cent each affected 10000 men,
while nine cases involving thousands
raised Ohio street railway wages.
Oklahoma bakers, builders, printers
and stone cutters got busy with the pay
envelope; and out in Oregon the same
industries plus railroads and miscel-
laneous took wage liberties, in one case
adding 81 per week TO 1900 pockets.
Pennsylvania, which used to think that
high tariff was necessary to high wages,
gives eighty wage increase settlements
in the iron and steel industries and the
foundry and machine shops-thirty-
eight OF these wage increases being from
10 to 80 per cent, and nine of them af-
fecting 5000 to 24OOO men each. Al
tho, without a tariff, Pennsylvania
raised the wages OF coal miners as fol-
lows: In two cases. 10000 each. one
case 10000. one case 10000, and another
10000.
Rhode Island presents thirty-five
good cases. in which textile workers take
the lead with an average OF about 10
per cent wage increase; SIX cases in
volying 2+.oOO wage eauers.
Southern Workers Are Benefited.
Most OF the Southern states are like
wise on the honor roll OF increased
wages; the big empire of Texas showing
strong Maryland and West Virginia
make showings similar to those of Ohio
and Pennsylvania.
Wisconsin furnishes one case of l2,-
COO wage earners getting an increase OF
10 to - per cent.
Utah and Vermont. which endorsed
Taft and the Payne tariff, are some
what more modest in presenting wage
increases. tho Utah boasts one case
where 5000 miners were benefited
Then there are thirty-three wage re-
ports on interstate corporations. such as
the big steel corporations, and some of
the textiles. one textile raise affected
forty -four establishments and $4,000
hands One 10 per cent steel raise went
to l62, 900 men. and another to $50, 1000.
Average Increase II Per Cent.
BY reason of the great variety of ways
in which wages have been raised thru
out the United States-sometimes by
the day or week, and again by hori-
zontal percentage or by the piece-the
labor department has not attempted 20
strike an average rate of increase.
II Is quite probable that the average
raise thruout the United States this
year will approximate l2 per cent. But,
to be conservative. let us call II 10 per
cent
The average annual wage will approx
innate. say, $500 year. This would
make 500 a year as the average increase
per hand. This increase. it has been
shown, would certainly affect 500, 600
wage earners. But apply this oonserv.
ative estimate to an army OF even 5.oOo,-
600 wage earners, and YOU have $780,
O0n.OnO as the volume of increase in the
pay rolls of American labor during re
cent months. as approximately reported
to the American press. Doubtless this
is only small part OF the big story
Of this high wage erS, Tor the tidal