New-York tribune., 1920-02-18
So Millions to
Better Service.
Says Phone Co.
More Than Two-Thirds of
Amount To Be Spent on
Expansion of System in
New York City District
Adequate Dividends Vital
Answers Service Boards
Criticism of Wages With
List of Five Increases

The New York Telephone Company
issued reply yesterday dissenting from
the report filed by the Public Service
Commission with the Legislature in
which the commission stated that the
telephone service has broken down and
that there was no hope of immediate
improvement. Basing his action on the
report, Assemblyman Louis Cuvillier,
it was announced from Albany, intends
to introduce legislation to penalize the
company for failure in duty.
In its reply made through ]. S. Nc
Culloh, vice president, the telephone
company asserts that it is doing all
in its power to bring the service back
to normal. The corporation declares
that it is cooperating with the Public
Service Commission and that it must
spend S3S,0000 600 this year alone to
remedy the situation. The company
nsufficiency of wages was responsible
for '+he lack of operators, to have
granted increases in wages to operators
amounting to $5,000,000.
Company Tells of Years Plans
'S CoHtpduS > StdCcIuenC IOllOWSs
I'VE are fully cooperating with the
Public Service Commission in restoring
the telephone service in greater New
York to its former high standard. We
have faith in the future of the tele-
phone business. In 1919 we expended
$l9 100000 for extensions and additions
to the telephone plant in New York.
To meet the unprecedented demand for
additional service with which the COM
pany is faced to-day, we must expend
$4,000 900 in 1920 in further expansion
Of telephone plant. Of this $30,000,-
900 must be expended in New York City
alone.
''To induce investors to put their
money in the telephone business in
the past has required the maintenance
OF an adequate dividend and it is vital
to continue such dividend in order to
obtain the further large amount of
new capital essential to meet the in
creasng needs of the public. The main
taining of an adequate dividend is in
the interest of the public and of good
telephone service.
New Capital Essential
! unlike many other industries, unless
there be a sufficient and continuing
Investment of new capital the service
must inevitably be curtailed and it's
H1diAtN seriously IMPAIRED. Inc Work
of extensions and additions is being
pushed as rapidly as possible.
As 20 the pay of telephone operators
II may be SAID that operators in New
York City receive higher wages than
are paid fol similar work in any other
place in the United States. We have
made five separate distinct increases
in the operators wage schedules since
January l, 1919 and, although this has
caused an increase in annual expenses
Of over S3,0o0,000 for operators wages
alone, we have not permitted that fact
20 stand in the way of our paying
proper and adequate wages.
Although our experience in obtain
ing q sufficient force is no different
from that of every other employer to-
day. VIC have been and still are making
substantial gains in this respect.
"We fully realize that our first and
greatest obligation is to restore the
service 20 a high standard of efficiency
and all other considerations and in
terests have been treated as secondary
to the restoration of the service"