The Birmingham age-herald., 1918-05-29
RAILROAD WORKERS ARE DISSATISFIED AT SMALL INCREASES GIVEN BY M'ADOO Southern Railway Shopmen at Alexandria, Va, Strike
 in Protest Against
 Order
 THE DIRECTOR SAYS COMPLAINTS MUST
 BE MADE FORMALLY Man at Head of Transporta- ton Has Promised Hear
 ing to All Classes of
 Employees

Washington, May 2S.-Scorcs of pro- tests reached the railroad ndministrn- ton headqunrters today against small wage increases granted by Director General McAdoo's recent order. Word came from Alexandria, va-, that be- tween 800 and 400 shop employees of the Southern railway had auit work for the day to emphasize their dissa tisfnc- ton over the new scale.
 Notice of the demonstration at Alex andria was greeted at the railroad ad- ministration with the comment that all protests and suggestions for modification of the wage order should be presented formally to the director general for con sideration by the board of railroad wages and working conditions, which will meet here within a week to take tip just such questions. Officials said strikes will avail nothing at this time except to htn- der railroads and cause public i'll feeling toward the strikers
 OTHER WALKOUTS PLANNED
 Reports came that other union organ planning walkouts, but these were not credited by labor directors of tho raii- road administration
 It has been conceded by some officials that higher wages than those allowed by the director generals order might have been paid shop men, including machin- ists, sheet metal workers. blacksmiths. electricians. boilermakers and car men, owing to the high scale of wages in ship ya rf1S un nd nth i'm utria rlr rvt e large numbers of these workmen. The new wage order established a minimum of 5 cents an hour for machinists, black smiths, boilermakers and other shop me- chanics who have been receiving the same hourly rate, Confusion has been created over the interpretation Of this provision, since the hourly rate varies greatly in different shops and parts of the country.
 MAINTENANCE EMPLOYEES
 Another class of employees who may nave to be paid more are the maintenance of way laborers, who are being lured with higher pay to other work. For several weeks reports have been reach ing Washington that track laborers were planning to remain with the railroads only until given their back pay under the retroactive increases, and then to go to other employment. Some of these reports proved unfounded on investiga- tion, but officials are not overlooking the danger of losing employees to other in Gustries.
 WILL MAKE HASTE
 For this reason the new board of rail- road wages will be instructed to make all possible haste to consider wage adjust ments called to it's attention by the di- rector general on complaint from em- ployes, and to recommend notifications from time to time It is probable the board will take up the grievances of ma chinist5 and other shop men first. Many of these have complained that they get not a cent increase under the new order, owing to the fact that the advances pro- posed hv the scale have been more than taken up by increases during the past two years
 Several thousand Complaints and sug- gestIons were received by the director general after the report of the railroad wage commission, recommending the scale which the oirector general finally adopted in substance Indications are that near
 Few protests have come from the tour leading railway brotherhoods, although committee of local organizations have sent some informal suggestions for mod ific:ttion.