Semi-weekly herald., 1917-03-22
MEN WIN STRIKE-ADAMSON
LAW CONSTITUTIONAL


LAW CONSTITUTIONAL
NEW YORK, March l9.-The rail-
road companies have averted strike
by agreeing to meet the fullest de
mands of the Adamson law, in view
of the serious international situation
Mediators have issued statement at
six o'clock this morning expressing
The railroad managers
have placed the entire matter in the
hands of the mediators for settle
ment.
NEW YORK, March 10. = The
brotherhood chiefs and the managers
have signed formal agreement |
granting all the demands of the
former, and the same is to become
effective regardless of the Adamson
law.
Overtime viii be paid at the rate
of not less than eight per cent daily
per hour The roads will maintain
the present mileage basis, paying
overtime on passenger runs. Neces-
sary readjustment will be made if
the law is declared unconstitutional
The mediators addressed note of
thanks to the managers, stating they
hoped the beginning was near of a
'Iong period of cooperation of man.
ayers with their employees"
Granting all the demands of the
Brotherhoods means an addition of
81 100000 a week to the pay roll OF
the roads and S13 100000 back pay
dating from January lst.
WASHINGTON, March 10. - The
Adamson law was held constitutional
by a vote of four to five by the Su-
preme court. Chief Justice White
read the decision and Justice Day the
dissenting opinion. Justice Mercy
nolds was among those dissenting.
The Supreme court also held that
congress is authorized to legislate
wages.
Railroads attacked the Adamson
measure as mot a regulation of COM
merce," not the result of Legislative
judgment but an experiment whose
success would be determined by fu-
ture Investigations. and as depriving
the railroad of its liberty to make
contracts and confiscating its proper
ty without due process of law" The.
held it to be wage measure which
Congress chad not right TO enact" un-
der the Constitution.
The government contended the law
was not wage law but an hours-of-
service act; and that, even if it was
a wage measure Congress had the
right to pass it under the commerce
clause of the Constitution.
The case had its inception when
Congress passed law late last
August, when railroad brotherhoods
threatened to tie UP the nations rail-
roads, declaring eight hours to be a
standard days work and providing
hat pro rata overtime should be paid
-or work done after the first eight
hours. This section formed the real
basis of attack for the railroads.
On March 30, 1916, the four rail
road brotherhoods-the Brotherhood
If Locomotive Engineers, the Order
IF Railway Conductors, the Brother
hood of Locomotive Firemen and the
Brotherhood of Railroad Trainmen--
demanded of the railroads of the
sountry an eight hour day with time
and-a-haf overtime, overtime to be
computed on the minute basis and
regular time to begin when a rail-
road man was required to report for
duty. This was to replace the old
mileage basis. by which the men
were paid for a trip-100 miles con-
stituting days run, usually of ten
hours.
Railroads refused this and other
concessions, and in return asked 3rbi-
tration by the federal board of med
iation or the Interstate Commerce
commission. This the Brotherhocds
refused flstly. The Brotherhoods held
ont for the eight-hour day and the
time-and-a-half overtime, the rail-
roads contended granting these would
have meant material increases in pay
and should be arbitrated.
Little attention was paid to the dis
pute until, late in the spring, it be-
came apparent neither side would
yield without struggle. Both sides
claimed the other was bluffing. When
neither side would concede anything
and the negotiations at New York
seemed about to end in strike, Pres
ident Wilson asked leaders for the
Nole le -. ~,