The New York herald., 1920-01-27
GARMENT WORKERS
GET WAGE INCREASE
Governor Smith Denounces
Strikes and LockoutS as Com
mission Tells of It's Award.


Neither strikes nor lockouts are war
ranted today. according to the statement
of Governor Alfred T.. Smith to the rep
resentatives of the manufacturers and
workers in the dress and suit trade of New
York yesterday morning, when the deci-
sion Of the special commission named by |
the Governor on January to settle the
controversy which had arisen in the gar
ment industry was made public.
The commission, which consisted Of Ed
ward Il. Boyle. chairman State Industrial
Commission: Charles w. Berry. Adjutant
General of New York State: Hugh Frayne, !
general organizer of the American Fedora !
tion OF Labor j.. Feinberg, chairman Of
the Joint Board of the Cloak Makers
Union William ID. Baldwin. chairman Otis
Elevator Company; Saul Singer. member
Executive Board OF the Cloak, Suit and
Skirt Manufacturers Association, and
Frances Perkins, OF the Industrial Com
mission. granted an Increase in wages. |
retroactive TO january 3. The average raise
granted was between s4 and S. a week.
Operators received an increase of Sc, while
skirt finishers received the least raise, $3.50
Button-hole makers will receive twenty
cents for each one hundred button holes.
Public Must Not Suffer.
The Governor made it plain that these
raises must not be saddled on the public
when he said
"There must be no putting the burden
OF these increases on the public 1t must
be understood that In all cases of this
kind there are three parties. all having
equal rights, to be heard. The employers
and employees are not the only ones inter
ested in a decision. The general public,
those who buy the goods manufactured
are as much interested as either laborer
or employer. The men must not soldier
on their Jobs, and 1t is expected that the
manufacturers, by their own economies.
will absorb the increased costs. The pub
lie will not be the sufferer"
Governor Smith said that, though such
things were not a part of his official duty,
he would always be glad to look into the
causes affecting such controversies. He
said that most of the i'll effects from the
long period of war are due chiefly to-
under production.
Must All Go to Work.
"If we are to find cure for present con-
ditions. then we must go to work." he said.
Everybody must get to work and every
body must do all his part Such things
can not be cured by legislation or by de-
cisions of courts. 1t Is up to the people
themselves to see that all needs are pro-
vided and at the least possible cost. u
again extend to you and all others an in
yitation to come to me in case troubles
arise. We have established today a prece-
dent which l believe will be of great
value The time to stop strike is before
II begins and firmly believe that II the
parties to such differences VIII consioer
the third party, the public, and submit
their grievances. any Impending s'rihc
will be stopped before IL begins.
| u,l
"The contentious presented to the board
embodied the claim by the manufacturers
that shop strikes. forty-six in NUMBER III
the shops OF the Cloak, Suit and Garmeht
Manufacturers Protective Association. anu
rea ching a much larger total throughout
the industry. expressly forbidden by
Article IA Of the agreement. constituted
n violation of the contract. They aiso
contended that the wage scheduies u
articles OF the agreement were intehoeo as
minimum scales binding throughout tIs
life of the agreement three years. an'i
that any rates paid above these scales OF
increase obtained must be based on ~,
diyiduaI productivity. They contenoeo
fiat the union had no basis in the contract
| for asking general increase or wages
since the general rates are fixed oy tne
minimum scale.
1.-The union reiterated the oemano ior a
general horizontal wage increase or thirty
per cent.
OnIv Minimum Wage Specified.
"Our findings are necessarily based on
facts and circumstances neither clearly
EXPRESSED nor fairly implied in the writ
ten agreement. The only perfectly clear
Inference 10 be derived from the minimum
schedule is that wages should be not iess
than those written in the contract. except
in cases of proven dellclehCy oh ''0 P'>
of tn worker.
| "Whether there was an implied under-
standing that the wage scale 1ixed I'M
mediately after the adoption or the agree
ment dealing with wages ABOVE the inh'-
mum should be continued for three-sear
period.-the life of the agreeInene
lcontended by the manufacturers, must
remain unanswered. because the agree
ment itself fails to set up, and apparently
neither side provided machinery OF stalio-
ards whereby TO rate productivity Aor
wage making purposes.
THE board registers its disapproval OF
all shop strikes, or general or paruai
stonnares OF work, as they constitute
violation OF the essence OF the agreement
II is equally opposed to any form OF
lockout We believe that both sides have
In this instance in their appeal TO the
public found a resource which may es-
tablsh a useful precedent. Every means
to the peaceful settlement of controver-
sy has not been exhausted until the Is
sues involved have been acted upon Inn
partially, when both sides, after honest
effort. have failed to agree.
"a collective bargaining agreement calls
for the utmost good faith on both sides.
to perform, both in letter and in spirit.
every term and condition thereof, whether
II refers TO shop strikes on the part of the
workers. lockouts on the part of the en-
ployers, or the maintenance of It's terms
as TO wages and hours. This board de-
sircs to emphasize this point as funda-
mental In any contractual relationship,
and has endeavored to hold the existing
contract violate in any adjustment II has
made Of in the present difficulty"
! Both sides TO the controversy announced
they would abide by the decision of the
commission.