The labor standard., 1918-05-01
UNION TELEGRAPH
 OPERATORS FIRED

UlVlUlN lELEUNAT III
 OPERATORS FIRED
 Western Union Telegraph Com
 pany, Always Anti-Union,
 Opposed to\ Its Employees
 Joining Labor Organization
 Case For Government
 HARTFORD - Seven telegraph
 operators have been discharged by
 Traffic Supervisor Lever of New
 York at the local office of the Vest
 efn Union Telegraph company. The
 men were discharged, they claim, for belonging to the Commercial Teleg-
 raphers Union. The discharged men
 are James R. George, Frank K.
 Smith, Frank R. Tracy, Oliver P.
 Thompson, I. G. Rumfelt, Louis
 Silverman, Max Rosenberg.
 State President O'Connell of the
 Photographers union has taken the
 matter up with International Presi-
 dent Konenkamp of Chicago, Secre-
 tary of Labor Wilson, and United
 States Prosecuting Attorney Spellacy
 of this city. s.
 This attitude on the part of the Western Union company is contrary to Secretary Wilson's labor program,
 which recognizes the right of work
 CTS to organize in labor unions, and that the eompany's action is a viola 1 ton of the state law.
 Meetings of the Commercial Teleg- raphers' union were held all over the ! country Sunday, and on call of Presi- dent O'Connell, Hartord district council held meeting and adopted a resolution that it's members would openly proclaim their membership in 1 the union.
 O'Connelps View President O'Connell said the men had no desire topwalk out and tie up
 the telegraph service, thereby hin- l dering the government in carrying out it's war program. "The Western Union has main tained it's policy of .discharging union telegraphers for years," he said, "and have continued to do so despite l the fact that there is great short age of telegraphers and each discharge means greater delay to both public and government telegrams. Ask No Increase "The union .telegraphers are asking no increase in wages, no change in working hours. What they are striv- ing for is liberty-the right to organ ize, the privilege to be represented in our national conventions just the same as the telegraphers of Canada. The telegraphers in Canada have agreements with both telegraph companies and also with the Canadian government, and, through the CO., operation of the union and the tele- graph companies, everything runs along smoothly. Here things are different The men are working in constant dread of being discharged; they are not sure of their jobs from one day to the other; eloquent evi-I dence of this is shown by the contin- l ued discharge of union men by the Western Union. Of the telegraphers who are now organized, over 90 per cent. will declare their independence. What the Western Union will do is problematical. In my opinion it will be emancipation day for the 30,0O0 commercial telegraphers in the United States"
 Opposes War Boards Suggestion Newcomb Carlton, president of the Western Union Telegraph Company yesterday sent word to the national war board that the company could not see it's way clear to agree to the boards suggestion that the Western
 Union do not discharge employees on account of their membership in tele- graphers' unions pending discussion of the controversy The reason behind the company's policy opposing the unions, Mir. Carlton said, he
 would be pleased to present to the 1 board on May 8.
 Always Anti Union The Western Union Telegraph com pany has always fought the Teleg- | raphers Union, and has been one of l the poorest wage-paying corporations l in the country, compelling it's em- ployes to work long hours, etc. It is
 about time that the government took over the telegraph and telephone lines as well as the railroads. John Paul Jones Was Scotch. John Paul Jones was Scotch by birth
 and very enterprising person. Dur ing the Revolutionary war he com manded an American privateer and
 made successful attacks on British commerce. In 1779 the Dutch permit
 ted him to enter their ports with two l ra- . S<.I> H..<H taken and which the local authorities
 hatly refused to deliver up. He died
 at Paris in 1792, and his remains were
 brought to this country few years ago for burial.
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