Twin city review. [volume] (Champaign, Ill.) 19??-1929, 1922-08-18
Speaker Explains Why
Shopmen are on Strike

ployes BY the contracting out of their
repair work TO firms which PAID less
than starvation wages and forced
| their employees 10 work long hours at
piece rates. The Labor Board de-
clared this q plain evasion OF the law,
but the railroads blIthely continued to
farm out" theig repair work. Since
the shopmen walked out the roads
have admitted their unlawful conduct
and promised to discontinue the con-
tracing out system. Apparently the
language of the strike was the only
language they could understand.
The railroad workers want national
boards of adjustment. Two years
experience demonstrates the inability
of the Labor Board TO handle all the
transportation labor problems. More
than 1000 cases are now before the
board, some of them nearly two years
old. Others have not even been listed
for hearing, and the congestion is in
|creasing. The employees have long
commended that national adjustment
boards could expeditiously and justly
hanle most of these cases. The Trans
portation act provided for the crea-
ton OF these boards, and the major
ity of the labor committee OF the As
ISOLATION of Railway Executives de-
clared itself in favor of such boards.
The banking interests 1.-TWO New York
banks hold 267 direetorships in ninety
two class l railroads) exerted their
influence TO line up the labor commit
tee against national boards, and they
have never been created. The em-
ployes have suffered irreparable losses
from long delays in obtaining de-
cisions.
That Seniority Issue. To many
newspaper readers the strike means
a hight for seniority. That is the car
riers' red herring, introduced for the
purpose Of obseuring the real issues.
They seek to make it appear that the
seniority rights are fayors which the
men should forfeit as a penalty for
exercising their admitted right to re-
fuse to work under unacceptable
conditions. The fact is that senior
ity rights are essential to the eff
cient operation of transportation
service.
Seniority rights mean the right OF
the senior employe to be the last
laid off in a reduction of forces and
the first selected for vacancies in
preferable jobs. This practice en-
courages permanent employment, the
building of homes and making of use
full citizens. To discontinue it would
imperil the homes of skilled employees
and stimulate the growth of class
of floating, homeless and unreliable
workers.
For their own good the roads wish
fA mi. .fIt mt
employees after the strike. They talk
loudly now of protecting the new
men for the purpose of diverting at
tention from the main issues. They
also hope to wipe out the principle of
seniority SO that when it suits their
purpose they can weed out those
workers most active in the protection
of rights of their fellow employees.
This would punish the more independ-
ent, forceful workers and intimidate
others.
These are but high spots in the
fight for decent conditions in the
transportation industry. They are
the accumulation of several years
bitter assault on the rights of the
workers in the hope of disrupting
their organizations. The employees
know that only by standing together
can they withstand these attacks.
They are united as never before, and
victory is certain.
The meeting was opened by prayer
by DR.. Heibert of Grace Lutheran
church, who invoked the Divine bless
ing upon the assemblage, the speak
ers, and the strikers.
George l.. Tenney, member of the
local b. of l.. E., spoke briefly, out
lining the stand taken by the four
transportation brotherhoods in the
present strike. He said the trans
portation men would adhere to their
agreements with the railroads, but
would refuse to endanger their own
and passengers lives by taking out
unsafe equipment.
Rev. Hostler of the Episcopal
church closed the meeting. He be-
lieved that if everybody could have
heard the address of Mr.. Smith, they
would have a better understanding of
the strike than that gained through
u. IL a