Denver labor bulletin., 1917-12-22
BY LAURENCE TODD
Especial Representative The Denver Labor
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WASHINGTON, Dec. 1T-COn-
gresham Borland of Kansas City,
whose hobby is the compelling of gov
ernment clerks to work longer hours.
brought up his favorite amendment in
the house last week when the postof-
fee appropriation was under debate.
Chairman Moon of the Committee on
PostofiCes and Post Roads, who had
the appropriation bill in charge. de-
clared that Borland's amendment
ought to be rejected. 1t was.
On the other hand, all attempts to
get general permanent increase in
the pay of postal employees, as part of
this bill. were defeated by Moon and
the administration leaders. They said
that special legislation on higher paw
for the employees ought to be brought
in.
The National Federation of Postal
Employees is asking that bill intro
duced by Representative Clyde Kelly
OF PlttSburg, calling for a general in
crease of pay amounting to 25 per
cent. be adopted Some of the postal
clerks and letter carriers, on the
other hand. insist upon the Madden
bill, which applies only to those two
branches of the service but reorganiz-
ing the standard of wages, be put
through. 1t is likely that Madden
will rewrite his bill, so as to take in
the railway mail clerks and the rural
carriers along with the city clerks
and carriers, and to ask for a bigger
increase in nay than his bill of last
year proposed.
For General Salary Bill
Government clerks in the other de-
partments, organized as the National
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trying to get a general salary in
crease, their demands ranging from
per cent. raise for the best paid men
to 20 per cent raise for the men and
women in the less responsible Jobs.
They will secure a list of the mem
bers of the house and senate who ia
vor. and those who oppose giving the
employees living wage. Like the pos
tai workers. they are anxious that
their case shall not be put off by leg
islative tricks until the end of the ses-
sion. so as to permit the members to
escape vote before the next election.
Attack the Seamen's Union.
Washington standpatters of all
kinds are cursing the Seamen's
Union. just now. because the Ship
ping Board has refused to believe all
the rumors set afioat in interested
that union sailors are endangering the
safety of food and munition cargoes
sent TO Europe. In the work of try
ing to paint the Seamen's Union as an
arch-enemy of the United States in
the war the anti-labor press here. and
people connected with the Navy
League management, have been es-
pecially active. This is the same Navy
League which failed to destroy Secre-
tary of the Nav Daniels when he be-
gan to deal with organized labor in
the navy yards.
Among the stories that are kept in
circulation around the national capi-
tai are reports that men with union
cards are being shipped as able sea-
men from New York. when they are
drunk. unskilled. incompetent and dan
gerous to the ship. Loud demands are
made that the naval reserves be put
in charge of all American vessels, and
that able seamen be employed only
under the direction of these reserves.
One local press attack was to the eff
feet that the Shipping Board had kept
its agreement with the International
Seamen's Union because of the per-
sstent influence of William Denman
former head of the board, and once
attorney for the union.
Thus far the President and the
Shipping Board seem to find nothing
in the situation to alarm them.
Shipbuilding Now Progresses.
Settlement of the wage dispute in
the Pacific coast shipyards by an up
ward revision of the scale awarded by
the United States Industrial Adjust
ment Commission two months ago, has
been reached after weeks of continu-
Gus conference. The $4,000 skilled
men in the yards in Seattle, San
Francisco, Portland, Oakland and San
Pedro will get minimum wage of
$3.50 in place of the $5.25 that was
first awarded. This increase is the
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