The Knoxville independent. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1894-current, 1917-03-17
Increase of Wages Granted by
Indiana Company Without
Strife or III Feeling.
Shorter Hours for Woman Workers
Made Satisfactory Gen.
erai Increase of Wages Marked
End of Year-News of In
terest to Labor.

ceiye an increase In wages of cents
on the hour effective April l. The
advance effects 300 trainmen and ct..oe
unsolicited. The present wage scale
of from - to 80 cents an hour will be
increased from "a TO "a cents.
The number of general wage in
creaSeS in November and December,
1916, was SIG, of which PIT report
more than 100000 employees in
volyed. Nearly half of the increases
noted were voluntary and the other
half were divided about equally L~i
tween increases forced by strikes anc
those reached through agreements be-
tween employers and employees.
There seems to be no limit to the
class of work women can do. AT hrst
1t seemed strange in England to see
girl conductors on the buses, girl win
dow-cleaners, van drivers, and mes
sengers. But as the war progressed
the field broadened, and now even IN
building, mining and quarrylng scores
VI NOhlCu art
To help toward meeting the ever
increasing demand for munitions oil
war, numerous groups of young stu
dents belonging to more than two hun
dred Italian state universities have
signifed their willingness to quit the
lecture halls for the workshops.
e Dol nd (fnn-
fectonery Workers union, in their re-
port of the last year show that they
have total membership Of 22,25o.
For sickness and disabled members
they have paid out $4,443. They have
POS local unions.
Woman pOrters are to take the place
of men eligible for military service on
the Great Western railway. They are
TO be put in uniform The goods por-
ters are to get the highest wages, as
their work is the roughest-23s
| t$5.T5) a.-week
1t is estimated that between six
and eight million persons now en-
ployed by the British government, rep
reSenting half the wage-earning pop
uIation of the United Kingdom, will
have 10 be discharged at the end of
| the war.
According to Canadian census sta
tistics, there are 2,1S6,000 women be-
tween the ages Of fifteen and eighty
in the dominion. OF these 1,251, 1S2
were married ana 364821 were Occu-
plying paid positions in stores.
: An effort will also be made to OBJ
tain the passage of law abolishing
all employment agencies in California
operated for profit thus diverting the
business to the free employment office
operated by the state.
| Missouri uniOliStS are making q
third attempt to secure 81 compensa
ton law. and there have been three
commissions appointed by the gov
ernor and the state legislature TO in
vestigate the question.
England has now about three and
0ne-quarter million woman workers
and of these nearly three-fOurths of &
million are said to be filling places va
Gated by men. who have gone to thu
front.
Owing TO the shortage OF help, :
number of Belfast (Ireland) shops ant
warehouses have closed between tn
hours of one and two o'clock each da,
since the first Of the year.
Wyoming labor unions will introduce
al amended compensation law, eight
hour day for woman workers and a Ia
} Dor commission bill In the present leg
iSlature.
The Ohio Bar association has re,
} commended that the legislature OF the
state allow women to become nOtarie
public.
Slender girls are given the prefe
} ence when applying for positions {
3 conductors on the Vienna street raj
ways,
The International Machinists mac
an average gain in wages during Il
last year of 30 cents per day per ma
The White Rats Actors union VI
. hold in allegiance its demand for uni(
a shop conditions in vaudeville theater
A general organizer for the She
Metal Workers union win tour easter
. Canada in the interests of his trade.
t Plans are complete for a special ne
e course for women in the Royal COllel
of Dental Surgeons in Toronto.
Nearly 10000 British women ha
2 registered with the board of agricl
l. ture for working on the land.
l. In 1897 Electrical Workers Intern
8 tional had only LOO members. 1t ne
has in excess Of 10000.
international holders union pa
t out sos, i29 for death benefits the Ia
{ year.
q Police will proceed against mira
tions of half-holiday act at Vancouv'
+. G.
5 San Francisco coopers nave secur
: the eight-hour day.
: Mtcnigan legislature has five uni'
members.