New Britain herald., 1920-01-14
MINERS EXPLAIN HIGHER PAY DEMAND Inability to Get Regular Work
 One Reason NEED 30 HOUR WEEK BASIS
Not Too Much Work, But Too Little,
 Says Lewis in Telling of Why Men Ask for Better Working Condi
 tiOnS.


 Washington, Jan. 14-Miners con- tinued today their arguments for wage advances and shorter hours before the presidents coal commission ad- justing the causes Of the recent strike.
 Tt is the inability of the miners to get regular work that makes them require 60 per cent increase in wages,'' said John Moore, president of the Ohio district. No coal miner can tell whether the mine is going to work the next day or not
 John L. Lewis, acting president of the mine workers gave out a state ment reiterating that the miners de- mand for a 30-hour week only asked assurance that they will have not less than 30 hours Of steady work each week in the year.
 Wrong Impression.
 The public has the wrong impress sion on that subject" Lewis said. "be- cause they were led to believe that the miners were opposed to working more than 30 hours a week. The fact is the coal miner cannot earn a living for the whole year by work ing only a part of the time, no mat ter how many hours a day he may work But if he can be assured of
 
 throughout the year at a reasonable and fair wage he can make a living for himself and his family"
 Lewis said the miners could pro- duce all the coal the country needed on a 30-hour week basis.
 Asks Rcadjustmcnts.
 Ed. Stewart. president Of the In- diana district asked the commission to adjust wage differences in that territory.
 The agreement provides for time and d half flor overtime after eight hours applying to all employees ex- cept certain workers whose employ ment is light or intermittent and for one days rest each week except where operation of the individual railroads would be affected.
 Brotherhood officials requested a national agreement last summer and the subject has been under consider = ation since then. first by the region al directors and later by the board of railway wages and working con ditionS.
 Frank Farrin gton, president of the Illirois mine workers in closing the preliminary argument for the men, read a series of wage summaries for Illinois fields which he said ran from s7O4 for 1913 to s1,39O for 1918. The last he said, had been the peak earn ings of miners during q rush period and could not be looked for normally. Reciting that in 1914 the Illinois union paid out S50O,0G0 in unemplOy- ment benefits, he said this indicated d need for the 30 hour week.
 The ruling of former Fuel Admin istrator Garfield giving the men a II per cent. increase resulted from aca- demic theories, MT. Harrington said, adding that Illinois union had gath cred statistics from half dozen mining camps which showed that the actual increase in living costs since 1914 had ranged from 110 per cent. to ITS per cent.
 Harrington told the commission that one of it's newly employed assist ants had been responsible for circu- lating stories that the miners de- manG were made solely through the influence of the union officials. President Robinson promptly ask ed for the name of the man and said Farrin gton would be asked to discuss the matter at an executive session la ter.