Daily Kennebec journal., 1916-09-20

Eight. Hour Day in Other Industries.
The Railway Age Gazette, in an edi-
torial in its current issue, takes issue
with President Wilson's statement in
his recent address to Congress that
the preponderant evidence Of recent
economic experience spoke for the
eight-hour day." by citing statistics to
show that the eight-hour day has by
no means been generally adopted in
other industries, even under conditions
where 1t would be physically possible
to do so, and that it does not have the
sanction Of general acceptance even in
the trade union scales.
Whatever economic justification
there may be for an eight-hour work
day in some kinds Of work." the Rail-
way Age Gazette says, "io no argument
for its introduction in railway train
service, where. as everyone knows, it
is impossible to divide the work into
fixed periods of time. Train employees
must remain with their trains from one
terminal to another; they cannot be
released wherever they may happen to
be at the expiration Of a certain num-
ber Of hours, and different kinds Of
trains naturally require different
lengths Of time to complete their runs
A local train with many stops to make
for loading or unloading freight may
take 10 or II hours to make run that
passenger train will make in three
hours and through freight train in
seven hours.
But. as matter Of fact, everyone also
knows that the eight-hour work day has
by. no means been generally adopted in
where 1t would be physically possible to
do so. A bulletin recently issued by the
United States Bureau Of Labor Statistics
gives the hours of labor per day fixed by
les located in 80 states. a total Of 554S
scales or contractors. This shows that
eight hours is the prescribed day in only
1892 or 537 per cent. of the whole number
VI cases TepOEIeQ. In IU1O cases In0 pre-
scribed working day is nine hours or over
and in Sl4 cases 1t is 10 hours or over.
This would seem to demonstrate that the
eight-hour working day does not have
the sanction of general acceptance even
in the trade union scales.
1.-The II trades mentioned are: Bakery
trade, brewery and bottling house work.
men; building trades. chauffeurs. team
sters and drivers: freight handlers,
granite and stone trades. metal trades.
mill work. printing and publishing, book
and job, and printing and publishing
newspaper, and soft drink establishment
employees.
"Other published reports Of the same
bureau show the hours of labor in eight
different industries. covering the work
of 3l7.Oo5 EMPLOYEES. for 1913 and 1914. A
of the total only s25s, or &c per cent,
worked only 4S hours or less per week;
while 36,426 or lis per cent, worked over
the 48 hours and less than 54 hours; ia,
AZ or 36.1 per cent. worked 81 hours; 81. :
222, or 2S.s per cent, worked over 81
hours and less than go hours; 46.340. or
14.6 per cent. worked 90 hours. and 20.3l6.
THE eight industries included in these
reports are cotton manufacturing, wool
manufacturing, silk nufacturing, mems
clothing, boot and shoe industries. hos
iery and underwear, iron and steel. and
building and repairing steam railroad
cars. These data are not for union labor
alone, nor for non-union labor, but apply
both union and non-union labor.
1.-THE available state reports on the
hours of labor also indicate that the
eight-hour day is by no means an estab-
lished feature Of industry. The statistics
available would seem to indicate that the