The Washington herald., 1916-10-16
More About the Adamson Law.

men VINO form 90 per cent OF raiiroad employees
and who were not benefited by the act of Con-
gress
Some OF this criticism is contained in a letter
being sent to newspapers and railroad men in all
sections of the nation bearing the signatures of
two who are credited with being the repre-
sentatives' of the 80 per cent of railroad employees
not benefited by the Adamson law. The letter is
as follows:
Headquarters Railway Employees 80 Per Cent
Movement, 6o8 S. Dearborn St., Chicago Ill.
To our Friends and Associates of the Eighty
Per Cent:
AS the men who originated, circulated
and carried to Washington the petition of
the Eighty Per Cent of Railway Employees
asking for definite legislation to protect US
from destructive interruption of interstate COM
merce, and provide for fair arbitration of all diff
ferences between railways and employees, we feel
it our duty to report the in which the
petition was handled and received at the White
House. At the most strenuous solicitation of
President Wilson the Congress of the United
States, in the closing hours of the last session,
enacted what is commonly called the Adamson
law. That law designed to give and does give
wage increase of IS per cent to the engineers,
hremen, conductors and others in railway train
service, who threatened nationwide strike if
inc Id" was not passed. eHdClly dS ulCS WdHlCu
it by certain hour. These men constitute only
20 per cent of the railway employees of the coun-
try. In enacting law for their exclusive benefit
Congress ignored the interests, rights and even
the existence of the SO per cent of employees,
whose average wages are much lower than those
of the specially favored few. During the negoti-
atons following the strike threat of the $4,000
men in the four railway labor organizations, it
became apparent that President Wilson thor
oughly in sympathy with their demand for ten
hours pay for eight hours work, or less. Realiz-
ing this fact, endeavored constantly for three
weeks to place before President Wilson the
of the 80 per cent of unorganized railway en-
ployes. Either together singly, daily
at the White House during the period given over
mainly by the President to consideration of the
railway situation. President Wilson would not
receive your representatives, although fully aware
of our presence and purpose to ask for fair and
impartial treatment for all railway employees in
any legislation that might be enacted. The Pres
ident persisted in his determination to secure the
25 per cent wage increase, disguised eight
hour day. for the $4,000 brotherhood men,
bers and to give consideration to the interests
of the other 100000 railway employees. Although
the President holding lengthy conferences
daily with the brotherhood leaders, he would
not receive your representatives even for few
by 10000 railway employees, and to ask for JUS
tice for the remainder of the unorganized SO per
cent Later copies of the petition, with thou
sands of signatures which were mailed to the
President apparently received no attention from
him. From the fact that the conferences of the
President with the Board Of Mediation, the man
ayers and the brotherhoods did not consume all
of his time on any of the days during that long
period at loss to understand why he
would not even hear our side of the case.
We feel in duty bound to give you these facts
as to the Adamson law:
l. It applies only to one class of railway en-
ployes-the small class engaged in railway train
service
p 1t does not attempt to establish real eight
hour workday for this class but merely eight
hour payday.
g. 1t does not require any employe to work
eight hours day, restrain him from working
any number of hours under sixteen
L. It provides that after January the en-
ployes in train service shall receive for eight hours
work the present pay for ten hours. This means
nothing but a IS per cent increase in wages for
those working eight hours or longer
5. 1t absolutely ignores the rights, the welfare
and even the existence of the other 80 per cent of
railway employees.
e. By voting rs per cent increase of wages to
20 per cent OF railway employees, and these the
very highest paid in the service it neces-
sarily renders it more difficult or even impossible
for the railway companies to make improvements
in the wages and conditions of work of the other
80 per cent.
We do not think that the enactment of the
Adamson law, under attendant circumstances, is
in accordance with the fundamental principles of
the American nation and believe that, inasmuch
as the government has taken jurisdiction of the
L
dent and Congress at the next session of Congress
and insist that all railway employees be considered
and commission be appointed to investigate all
hours of service and wages of all such employees.
Yours truly,
ROBERT T. FRAZIER, JR.
P. w. WALDEN.
In the opinion of the authors of the foregoing
letter, the Adamson law is complete failure, and
the solution of the railroad problem has not vet