Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1918-02-01
NEWS OF OLYMPIA LABOR ORGANIZATIONS =


Article 5. This agreement shall
be in force when signed and remain
in force until change is desired by
either party, in which event the
party so desiring the change shall
give thirty days notice in writing Of
such desired change.
The party of the second part agrees
to give it's moral support in every
possible way to aid and assist the
party of the first part.
Wage Scale and Working Rules.
Laundry Workers. - The wage
scale and working rules shall be
taken up by conference at such time
as there is an active organization and
a charter for this branch. At such
time as the wage scale and working
rules shall be settled they shall be-
come a part of this agreement.
Transfers and Auto Drivers.-The
wage scale shall be 81 per day. Time
and one-half for all overtime. Double
time for all legal holidays.
Engineers.-The wage scale shall
be 81 per day. All overtime to paid
at the rate of time and one-half. All
over eight hours. Sundays and legal
holidays, to be considered overtime.
The minimum wage regulations of
the State Welfare Board are as fol-
lows:
% No person, firm, association
or corporation shall employ any fe-
male over the age of eighteen years
| In any laundry or dye works estab-
, lishment, at weekly wage rate OF
less than nine dollars $4,000, any
lesser wage being hereby declared
inadequate as to such employee to
supply the necessary cost of living
and maintain them In health.
It is true that Tacoma superior
court judge rendered a decision that
under this regulation a laundry could
work its employees any kind of hours
not in excess of eight at an hourly
wage based on the 50 minimum. We
will leave to the reader to decide
whether such an Interpretation of the
law is stupid.
This decision has been corrected
by the workers themselves in the
cities of Tacoma and Seattle, through
organization and with the support OF
union labor.
The practice of the laundries under
this decision had been to compel the
employees to appear for work early in
the morning and wait throughout the
day, doing the work cs it came in.
sacrificing the entire day for perhaps
a few hours work and being paid at
the end of the week for actual time
on the machine at the rate of 50 a
week.
The assertion that any less sum
than 50 a week is inadequate to
supply the necessary cost Of living
apparently was considered by the
learned judge as an off-hand expires.
sion of opinion, with no bearing on
the amount to be paid.
The laundry trust in Seattle and
Tacoma, one of the most contempt
ible combinations of business inter
ests Of record, because 1t exploited
weak and defenseless women and
girls, was attacked by organized
labor. whipped, and wages and con-
ditions of labor within reason estab.
lished.
It Is apparent that the local laun-
dry owners, members of the Laun.
drymen's Association, are acting
upon the advice of that association
and hope through their monopoly to
enforce their cavemen principles
upon the local situation.
That the local laundries are get
ting all the business and more than
they can handle is proven by the fact
that one of the local laundries, this
week and last, was compelled to turn
away offers of laundry work from the
army post at Camp Lewis.
Union labor is determined that de-
testable conditions of employment
in the laundries of Olympia shall be
corrected. If employers of free white
labor insist upon conditions of work
and pay akin to that observed In
/ Chink laundries, there is no good
reason why they should not be
placed upon plane with the Orient
| ais.
The Trades Council will no doubt
| name q permanent committee to push
to a conclusion the question of con-
Quoting the laundry business Of the
city on a spending money" basis.