Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1920-07-31
STRIKE WILL FAIL
TO CRIPPLE WATER
OR SEWER SYSTEM
Commissioners Sure of 0per-
ton in Case City EN-
pIoyes Quit.
WALKOUT VOTE PLANNED
AT MEETING TONIGHT
Decision Up to Per Diem Workers
Effect of Threatened Trouble
Problematical.

1IOUiCIudtlCdl.
Washington will suffer no Gripping
of its water supply or sewage-dis-
poSaI system in event of a strike by
city employees. threatened today by
the refusal of the District Commits
sioners TO grant increased pay de-
mands.
The District Commissioners today
authorized the following statement:
There is no danger that either the
water department or sewer depart
ment operation will be suspended or
interfered with
Twenty-four hundred per diem en-
ployeS. constituting the working
force of the garbage and sewage dis
poSal systems, the water supply. sur
face and other municipal departments.
will vote to go out on strike at a
meeting of the City Employees Asso-
citation tonight, President Joseph H.
Hurley of that organization has
stated. unless the navy yard scale.
bringing them an increase of 40 cents
d day. is allowed.
There are approximately 500 men in
The trash. garbage, street cleaning
and kindred departments: more than
zoe in the water departments; approx
mately 500 in the surface, highways
and kindred departments. and 400 gen. =
eral laborers on miscellaneous assign
ments, who. it is claimed, are mem
bers of the association.
Commissioners Keep Moves Secret.
The Commissioners have adopted a
policy of secrecy concerning new de-
velopments. Beyond assuring the pub
lie of its safety with regard to water
and sewage disposal. they declined
TO make a statement today.
While the Commissioners were issuing
the statement concerning. the continu-
ance of service. and comforting upon
their stand regarding the proposed
strike at the District building, Concilia-
tors Mahany, Colpoys and Davidge of
the Labor Department, were interview
ing President Hurley of the City En-
ployes' Association, who is admitted to
hold the reins'' regarding the calling
of strike.
As to the breadth of effect of strike,
various opinions exist among officials.
The prevailing one is that the employees
association does not control the number
claimed by il. and that. in the event
of a strike, enough laborers and workers
of the District government will remain
at work to prevent the paralysis of any
health protective agency of the city
government
Garbage Collection May Suffer.
1t is probable the city garbage collec-
ton and disposal system and the
highways department will be hit harder
by Il strike than will other departments
No statement regarding the plans of
handling these departments in event of
a serious exigency has been made pub
lie.
In summarizing the situation the MIL
mcipai wage board, the scale-making
agency for per diem employees, stated:
recent ruling affecting navy yard
employees gives the bonus to all whose
"a far rxlTN.-,
month They are therefore, as to the
bonus. on exactly the same status as
ristr1ct employees. except for the first
month of employment, and a comnarj
son between the scales is therefore more
simple than ever before Such a com
parison between the District and navy
yard employees shows differential in
IaVor OF the navy yard employees amount
ing fairly uniformly to 40 cents per
TINS is contained in the wage boards
report On the situation and agreed in
py all concerned, including F. j. Bresna-
ban, representing the City EMPLOYEES
association. 1t places the basis of the
strike uDon 40-cents-per-daya average
increase.
Com missiOner's Statement.
The District Commissioners outlined
their stand in the controversy in the
following public statement.
After careful consideration of the
matter of the wages of the laborers
and mechanics employed by the Dis
trict of Columbia. the Commissioners
have decided to adhere to the scale
OF wages which became effective July
j. 1920, and which authorized in
creases in the maximum rates of pay
averaging 32 cents a day
hen the bonus of 76 cents a day
was added on July l to the wages of
those of the navy yard employees who
har
Commissioners were loath to grant
any increase to their own per diem
employees because they were without
authority to increase at the same
time the pay of their supervisory en-
ployes- The matter, however, was re-
ferred without instruction or sugges-
tion to the wage board, which was
reconstructed last year so as to give
the employees representation upon it.
The wage board recommended a
halfway compromise between the
rates existing prior to July 1 and
those adopted for the navy yard sub
sequent to July l. AS originally sub
mitted. this report was unanimous,
but later IL was sent back for re-
consideration after one of it's mem =
berS, the employe nominated by the
city Employees Association. stated
last Saturday night that he had act
cd without full information The wage
board now recommends adherence to
us IOTUtE dCtlOH, tilt IcpOIt Is
dissented to by one member and is
not concurred in. in part, by another.
Most Equitable solution.
I'm the opinion of the Commits
sioners the compromise recommended
by the wage board is the best and
most equitable solution of a difficult
problem. The Commissioners wish
they could see their way clear to
meet in every detail the standard of
wages adopted at the navy yard; and
they would unquestionably meet this
standard if they felt that they or
their predecessors had~assumed any
such obligation. They believe, how =
ever. that the present conditions
amply justify a departure from the
navy yard standard, as even under
present rates the employees affected
by the wage scale are relatively bet
ter paid than any other class OF Dis
trict employees.
The Navy Department has con-
vened a wage board to fix wages for
the several navy yards. which board
is to report by August 20. The Com
missioners, sdhering to their custom
OF considering the navy yard scale
as g guide, but being bound by no
agreement, express or implied. to
make that scale the sole standard Of
District wages, will. when the Navy
Department board makes its report
take up for further consideration the
request of its employees for increased
compensation Until that time they
-