The Topeka state journal., 1918-09-18
VIII Be No Blanket Exemptions
for Railroad Men.
No General Glass Exemptions
for Amy Industry.
M'ADOo APPEALS TO BOARDS
Says Every Railroad Man Is
Absolutely Essential.
Not Enough Men Now for Eli
cient Operation.

employees like all other workers must
prove thier services are essential to
avoid the draft. Provost Marshal
General Crowder has ruled that there
can be no blanket class exemptions of
any kind.
Director General McAdoo. who
sought such blanket exemptions, today
directed regional chiefs to ask defer
employe. His directions follow:
"Since the railroads are indispensa-
Bile and the branches of the service to
which employees belong are indis-
pensable, understand the remaining
questions for consideration by the dis
trict boards are whether a. particular
empIoye can be dispensed with % on
the ground that the railroad has more
of such employees than it needs, or (2)
upon the ground that it can readily
replace such employees with others.
Mc.Adoo Says All Are Necessary.
please state to the district board
with my full authority that, after
eight and a half months of a thoro
and continuous study of this subject,
being constantly in touch with en-
ployers of railroad labor, the repre-
sentatives of the railroad employees
and the representatives of the labor
situation, generally for the whole
country. there is no surplus supply of
drawn to replace those who may be
taken for military service. Any
competent railroad employe taken
from an indispensable branch of the
railroad service will be subtracted
from a force which is already too
| ,I,;A T. k11~
replenished. The taking of any such
employs by any district board would
be a step tending to inture the war
operations of some railroads. The
taking Of such steps by numerous dis
trict boards would in the aggregate
constitute a cumulative and a far
reaching injury to the United Safes
railroad administration and would de-
stroy the purpose for which the gov
ernment took possession of such con-
troll of the roads.
Furnished Men for Special Service.
1.-THE scarcity of skilled railroad en-
ployes is due partly to the fact that up
to the present time, the railroads of
the country, in addition to meeting
their full share of the demands of men
for general military service, have been
subjected to the peculiar disability
that they alone, out of all the indus
tries of the country have had to
cia1 military service.
"Hundreds of miles of military rail-
roads in France are being operated
for the military forces of the United
States by men who have been drawn
from the ranks of the skilled officers
and employees of railroads in this
country. In this way the drain upon
| skilled railroad labor has already been
proportionately greater than the drain
upon skilled labor of other industries.
nj ,ses ~, ~ 20
ceptional shortage Of skilled labor
! which confronts the United States
/ railroad administration.
Women Can't Take Places.
''It must also be clear that employees
| in these classes cannot be supplied by
| the employment and training of new
employees. Practically without excep-
| TO woman, but able bodied and vigor-
Gus men are needed for the discharge
of the duties. These men are not
available in adequate numbers and will
i become less and less available as the
war progresses. Besides, unframed
if skilled railroad employees are taken
| for military service. the substitution OF
unframed employees, even If availa BILE
Y. ,uld prove destructive to efficient
railroad operation.
| Boards Should Not Take Them.
+, 1T is desired that the understand
/ ing and sympathetic cooperation OF
the district boards shall be sought in
all instances. To the extent that rail
i road men can be spared from railroad
| service for military service, we ought
| to spare them. But to the extent tina
! they are needed for railroad service
| the district boards should not attemp,
! to take them for military service.
| THE United. States railroad admin
istration intends to ask for deferred
classification only when the men on
whose behalf the request is made, are
! needed in public interest for the con-
/ tinued performance of their duties
and when experienced substitutes can
| not be found. And. the district
boards. upon whom rests the respon-
sibility for preserving the necessary
labor supply for essential occupations
should be urged to grant, in the in
! terest of the national needs and with
a nationwide view Of the controlling
factors. the applications for deferred
classification which are supported by
the United States railroad administra-
ton.
instructions have been issued thru
the regional director to all officers un-
applications are made for deferred
classification of all railroad empIoye:
and to support such applications Wig
orously and at the same time to avoid
mailing applications wherever reas-
T, onably practicable.
Duty to Make Claim.
1T is the patriotic duty of the mer
who are considered necessary for the
operation of the railroads to claim
deferred classification and to furnish
the district boards with the necessar,
information in their answers to ques
Gonnafres to show the basis for sucf
classification. Every man who Il
helping in these necessary occupation;
to operate the railroads in this coun
try is rendering not only service in
dispenss Bile to the war. but a servic,
that is as praiseworthv and creditabl
as any war service could be-"