Fitzgerald leader enterprise and press. (Fitzgerald, Ben Hill County, Ga.) 1921-1964, 1921-03-21
Receiver of A. B. & A. Goes into
National Law Concerned in
Rail Wage Fight
Again Cites Instances Of Good
Wages Paid to Men Who
Operate His Trains
(By Col. B. L. Buggj

/ ATLANTA, March, 21-What is {
| Just and reasonable wage? THAI
in all lines of industry and one thai
has been brought prominently to pub
| lie attention in all lines OF industry ane
one that has been brought prominent,
| " to attention in iAtional way, as il
relates to our RAILROADS.
When the railroads were released
| from control of thee United State.
Railroad Administration, on March l
1920, it was under a law enacted by
the Congress and approved by The
| President of the Unitel States
/, Among many other provisions this
law undertook to provide a tribunal
to which should be referred disputes
between railway companies and their
Semployees regard ing question Of
wages and working conditions. The
act provided, among other things, that
in deciding what is just and reason
able wage, the board designated as the
Railroad Labor Board, whose head
quarters were fixed in the City oil
/ Chicago, should, so far as applicable
take into consideration, among other
revelant circumstances:
/. The scale of wages paid for SINH
lar kinds of work in other industries
II. The relations between wages and
the cost of living;
5. The hazards of the employment;
4. The training and skill required;
5. The degree of responsibility;
9. The character and regularity OF
the employment;
z. Inequalities in increases of wages
or treatment, the result of previous
wage orders or adjustments.
-lns the wage questions that have
arisen and gone before the Labor
Board, the main issue has centerec
/ around not the seven relevant circum-
stances named that should be consid-
cred, but the other reve1ant circum-
stances not specifically mentioned
and the point around which most oil
the controversy has revofved as 'other
revelant circumstances is the ability
to pay--many cases having arisen in
| which it was shown beyond the ques-
ton of doubt, and, in fact, not con-
| troverted, that there are many roads
which are unable to earn the money
with which to pay the wages that
were declared by the Railroad Labor
Board, in decision handed down in
:. July, 1920, to be just and reasonable,
based upon the conditions existing at
that time and for some months prior
| thereto.
The A. B. and A. Railway, which
always earned operating costs before
the World War, is one of the roads
which could not pay the Governments
fixed wartime wage which may or
may not be just to the more prosper
Gus systems which operate in the older
and more highly developed commun-
tiles, and has been forced into receiv-
ership.
The unionized employees of the A.
B. and A. struck at noon on March S,
because the United States Court had
ordered Receiver B. L. Bugg to re-
duce wages by one half of the increas-
es which had been authorized by Gov
eminent authorities since the begin
ming of Government control of rail
roads on January /, 1918. Let us con-
slider whether or not the new wage
scale offered the employees is reas-
enable and just.
By way of illustration: A locomotive
engineer on the A. B. and A. Railway
!, running between Atlanta and Fitz-
gerald in the month of January was
on duty 161 hours and earned $3001o
but at the raees which have beer
made effective March he would
have earned $247.33 for the same SER
vice. There is no overtime involved
in this case.
! A conductor on passenger trair
running between Birmingham ant
Manchester was on duty ESQ hour,
and earned $287.30 in January. A
At the rates in effect in December
1917, he would have earned $1o7. AZ
under the rate proposed he woulc
earned $232.87. There was only A!
minutes overtime in this instance.
1t will be remembered that as re-
suit of the passage of the Adamsor
Law, local freight trains, which hac
until that time run on the basis Of :
ten hour day were put on the basis O
an eight hour day. In January con
ductor on local freight train run
ming between Birmingham and Line
vile, Ala, was on duty 300 hours ant
earned $4,000 In December, lol.
i he would have earned $l75.O4, work
| ing the same number Of hours, not
withstanding the Adamson Law wa,
| then in effect; but under the proposed
rate effective March !, he would hav,
earned $247.67 for his service.
H A conductor running on through
freight between Manchester and Biz