The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1919-06-28
Driven to 1t by the High
Cost of Living and Low
Salaries Received
NEWS WRITER'S
ARE ORGANIZING
Newspaper Stats Now Composed of Re
liable Men Who Can Make Stable Or
ors Also Forming Unions.

BOSTON, June 28.-Organzation of sal
aried workers in the United States is pro
ceedng more rapidly, according to trade
union officials here, than at any prior
time in history Teachers, actors, and
news writer's are among the latest groups
to organize, and the pressure Of living
costs is making recruiting into the unions
task which presents little difficulty toI
the organizer.
Throughout the war, industrial work
ers were able to force increases in wages
corresponding at least in some degree to
the increased cost of living, largely be-
cause of the stress of war conditions. The
salaried worker, however, was in most
instances unable to resort to collective
bargaining, and was dependent almost
wholly upon the good will of his employ
er for any improvement of conditions.
A few New York banking institutions
took the lead in an investigation of liv-
ing conditions of salaried men, and vol
unfairly granted increased pay. This
practice was followed to some extent
throughout the country, but i'll general
tho salaried worker was forced continual
~ to lower his standard of living in or
der to live within his income.
News writer's employed by daily news,
papers have been among the last to or
game, though efforts were made to form
unions among them fully quarter of a
century ago, but with little success, fol
the reason that news writers, who al
that time received, on the whole, good
pay and good treatment, considered them
selves socially superior to the working
men who were organizing.
A few decades ago, when news writer:
received comparatively better salaries thar
at present, the composing room was al
ways ready to receive the tramp print
err" Organization of the printers. pu
an end to that, for the union was abb
to regulate standards of admission to the
composing room. Meanwhile, the stand
ard salary of the unorganzcd reporter
was being beaten down steadily by colcg,
boys, who would work for little or moth
ing during the summer Moreover, it be
came the fashion for publishers, whel
expenses mounted or income diminished
to slash the editorial staff, because tn
reporters were helpless. One large news
paper chain has been notorious for its ii
security in employment
These facts have been recognized by II
porters, whom war prices have driven t
measures OF protection. As a result, new
writer's unions, where dormant, have tai
en- on new life and elsewhere are sprinl
ing up almost over night. Boston, NVasl
ington, and New York city are anon
the large cities of the east now organizin
militant unions.
"There is little difficulty in organizin
the men, said William f. O'Connor. pre-
ident of the Boston local, News Writer
union.
The News Writer'S union has obtaine
its charter through the International Tyl
ographica union and is supported by Il
l. r. L. and by the Boston Central |
Dor union The publishers evidently wal
to retain the present situation wherel
the news staff is a buffer when expens
must be cut Since September we .ha1
had open meetings in behalf of the unto
and our mmbcrship now approXimates
per cent. We presented demands for
minimum wage, but made no suggestion
in regard to hours, though the nev
writer's hours are commonly long and
regular We made no suggestions as
overtime but we did ask a 25 per ce
increase for everyone now receiving mo
than the minimum of our scale
Within the past week there have be-
some astonishing Increases in pay on o.
Of the Boston papers, and we understal
that two other papers are to follow t
lead within short tine.
In the past it has been difficult to
game newspaper men because of tho
instability. Until comparatively rece
years drinking men were common
newspapers everywhere. Now the new
papers viii not have them. As a resu
newspaper stats are made up Of men
education and ability, and also of CHI