Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1918-05-27

as white men for similar employment.
To work out a multitude of inequalt-
ties of pay among employees doing sim
liar work in different Localities and
other injustces caused by varying
rules of employment and condition OF
organization, the director general Gre
ated "A new board of railroad wages
and working conditions, consisting OK
three labor representatives. and three
railway executives, which will conduct
extensive Investigations and recon-
mend wage and other employment
changes
All increases now ordered will be
determined according to percentage
scale based on pay received in De-
cember, 1915, and any increases
which have been allowed within that
time will be deducted. In many cases
raises IN pay in the last two and u
half years are about equal 70 the in
creases now approved, and consequent
ly those employees will get little or no
more. To correct just such situations
whea injustices arc apparent will bc
one of the principal duties of the new
wage board whose creation was sus
gested by the railroad wage commits
sion.
Wages not 10 be Reduced.
I'm no cases are wages to he rc-
duccd.
Men working on the monthly.
daily, hourly piece work and train
mile basis will benefit by the new al
| lowances, and members of the four
leading railroad brotherhoods whose
/ pay was raised through operation of
! the Adamson act are TO receive from
/ 10 to 40 per cent additional. a small
| er increase than they had asked of
/ the railroads shortly before the gov
! ernment took control,
The wage order applies to all en-
! ployes of the l64 roads now under
| federal management, but not to the
so-callcd short lines unless they ara
| tcrtaincd by the government of term
! July l. II affects employees of term
! inal, union station and switching
! companies, lighters, ferries and tugs
owned by railroads, but not employees
! of railroad boat lines on the lakes.
/ rivers or coastwse traffic Although
! Pullman cars now are under govern
ment. operation, Pullman employees
will not benefit unless the railroad
administration besides eventually to
retain the management of the cars.
In announcing his decision, Mr..
/ MCAdOo appealed to railroad en-
| ployes To forget dissensons and dis
! appointments arising under present
control and to remember that the
success of the war depends largely
on their services.
TO meet the expense Of the wage
increase, tho biggest ever granted to
railroad or any other class of en-
ployes at one time. therairoad ad-
ministration has discussed raising
freight and passenger rates
Per Centages of Increase.
The per centages of wage increases
range from 43 for men who received
$40 month in December, 1915,
down to a small rate for those re-
csving just Rnder $3.50. and no mora
pay is allowed men who made $3.50
or more in 1915. The actual addi-
tions run up to s34.
With the exception of officers and
messenger boys under IS, who are
giyert smaller increases all employees
who received less than s46 month
are given a flat Increase Of SEQ, with
the provision that laborers paid by
the day shall get a minimum of i-e
cents an hour above the rate six
months ago.
An important principle contained
in the director generals order Is that
reductions in hours since 1915 are
not to be regarded as increases in
pay. This means that the employees
of the four brotherhoods affected by
the Adamson act are to receive ad-
ditions on top of the increases de-
ve1oped by that act
Train Employees Benefit.
For instance, an engineer who
made 81 a day working ten hours
in 1915, may have had his pay in
creased to IS for the sam number OF
hours under the Adamson act. But
for the purposes of applying the new
scale the IS is considered as 81 a
day of eight hours with 81 for two
hours overtime. Consequently. the
pay will be increased on the basis
of 81 a day and overtime will be
No.