The Connecticut labor press. (New Haven, Conn.) 191?-1921, 1920-05-01
CARPENTERS CALL
MASS MEETING TO
CONSIDER STRIKE
Music Hall Scene of Important
Session at 4 O'clock
This Afternoon.
CUERIN TO REPORT
international Officer to Put Con
ference With Bosses
Up to Men.

Final and decisive action on the car
penters strike which started in this city
a month ago. will be taken at specially
called mass meeting of all the carpen-
ters in the New Haven District Council
to be held this afternoon at a o'clock IN
Music Hall. Thomas M. Guerin of
indianapolis, member of the Carpen-
ters General Executive Board, who has
been here in an effort to adjust the
trouble, will make report of his con-
ference with the contractors and the
men as whole will bs asked to act on
it.
Except for the tying up of the big
Jobs held by the master contractors
association about town, the strike is
causing very little trouble. The NUM-
Der of men now out of work has
dwindled from 800 to less than SO and
MANY of these have already got jobs to
90 to next week. which will keep them
busy for the summer at least, or until
the strike is settled here and the big
jobs now tied up again started. The
Carpenters union is amply able to carry
these on indefinitely SO the men have
no cause for worry.
The action of the contractors IN de-
claring for the "open shop following
long conference with Mr.. Guerin put a
finishing touch to the strike. The car
penters organization was holding a
large number of its men here awaiting
a settlement, so that the work could be
speedily resumed but when the con-
tractors made their stand, the line was
dropped and the men sent out of town
in punches.
If the strike was to be settled this
afternoon therefore, it is doubtful
whether enough men could be secured
to start the Jobs now idle, so many have
gone elsewhere. In many places where
Jobs have been secured, the scale is
even higher than the 81 an hour asked
here and many of the unmarried men
who have taken these jobs will not
readily throw them up and return.
Neither would they feel like leaving in
the lurch, the contractors who put them
on when the strike was called here,
while these contractors jobs are untln-
ished.
No matter what the meetings this
afternoon may do therefore, even as is
doubtful accepting compromise offer,
it will be some time before the local
contractors can get enough men to carry
on their work Another proposition
from the contractors may be submitted
to the meeting at Music Hall and it is
therefore imperative that every carpen-
ter whether among those who went on
strike or not, be present at the meeting.
Not only will the strikers be affected by
any action that may be taken at the
meeting but the whole craft will be at
fected. The officers urge full attend
ance SO that thorough discussion and
understanding may be had.
Several attempts have been made
during the week to put non-union men
on the jobs but met defeat. Other union
men employed simply quit until the non
union men were called off and they
eventually were. One amusing incident
occurred with an electrician during the
week. On reporting for work on his
job he found some non-lnion carpen-
tiers there too. He rolled up his kit
and walked off, He was later in the
day sent to another job and had just
about got busy when in. walked some
more non-urion carpenters. He quit
again and called it days work. The
non-union men were off both jobs next
morning.