The Washington herald., 1920-03-17
A,F.OFL
DRIVE STARTS
District Labor Movement
Gains Nationwide Aim
And Scope.
BY FREDERIC WILLIAM VILE.

Coincident with it's plans to infiu-
ence national politics, the Ameri-
can Federation of Labor Is UNDER
taking to organize common labor
throughout the United States on
an all-inclusive scale. No branch
of work from which either wages
or salary are derived will be over
looked. The present membership
of Mr.. Gompers' organization is
4,250,000. There are said to be IT,
900, 900 American men and women
who come within the federation's' s.
scope. The 1890 program aims in
bringing up the total number of
federationists to at least 5000, 900.
Intensive drives" to that end are
now in progress all over the coun-
try.
II the federation's ambitious
scheme materializes there will
hardly be a worker Of either sex
In any sort of employment who
henceforth will be without a union
card. The man who milks the cows
or does plain chores on a farm; the
scrubwoman: the crossing sweeper;
the window washer; the lamp light
er; the sewer digger; the chimney
sweep; the butcher boy; the nurse
maid; the road mender; everybody.
In short, that a federation Organ
izer'', can reach and persuade is to
be recruited and made to see the
benefits OF an eight-hour day and
trade union methods Of securing "a
life of reasonable comfort" That
is the definition of the federation's
main purpose supplied by its vet
eran secretary. Frank Morrison.
50 a Day for Common Labor Asked.
The movement to organize COM
mon labor has just assumed a phase
in Washington that may prove Of
nationwide significance. The Hod
Carriers. Building and Common La
borers' Union of America, which has
about 100000 members. has demand
ed that from April 1 all common
labor employed on local buildings.
with the exception of pick and
shovel workers, shall receive a min
imum wage of s6 a day. For pick
and shovel workers, IS a day is de-
manded. This class of labor in
Washington Is almost exclusively
colored. The Sc rate applies to all
and sundry employed in building
operations, regardless Of the char
acter of their work, which may con-
sist either of hod carrying or only
of sweeping up. dragging up lum-
Der, or doing kinds of odd jobs on
the premises.
The seriousness of such q wage
for common building labor, It Is
urged, lies not alone in what would
be its own costliness, but in the
inevitable impulse 1t would give to
skilled building labor, such as brick
layers, carpenters and electricians,
to demand a commensurate increase
in their already high pay. Wash
ington building authorities warn
the country to take note of what
they say is an opening wedge"
They declare that IL the demand Is
enforced, American building opera
tions must come to a standstill ow-
ing to prohibitive cost. The disas-
trous effect on housing conditions
Is Immediately apparent.
Drive for Professional Members.
Some of the classes of labor in
which the American Federation
drive will be pushed with unusual
intensity in 1920 are the fruit
pickers and fruit packers of Cali
fornia and Florida, among whom an
international organization has just
been formed; bank clerks, stenog-
raphers and office help of all kinds;
walters and mattresses; technical
engineers and draughtsmen; archi-
tects: school teachers; helpers OF all
kinds Of skilled artisans, and farm