Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1922-05-31
The Truth About The
Railroads.
SHOULD RAILWAY
WAGES BE CUT?
investigation Brings to Light Start
Inn EuctS A hnnt Engineers Paw

investigation Brings to Light Start
ling Facts About Engineers Pay
The L. S. Railway Labor Board,
now sitting in Chicago, is hearing the
spokesmen for the railroads and the
various railway labor organizations
To determine whether or not working
rules should be changed and the
wages of these employees further re-
duced below the 1872 per cent out
which chopped over S37S,00O,OOO from
the railway pay rolls last July.
The question is one of vital interest
to the country Not only the passen-
ger and the shipper, but every citizen
who consumes food, wears clothing or
gets a letter through the mails has a
personal concern in an efficient, de-
pendable and economical transporta-
ton service.
The railroads contend that they will
gladly reduce rates if they can take
the difference out of the wages of
their employees. They do not promise
that this will insure greater efficiency.
On the contrary, most of them frankly
admit that it will not, since railroad
wages are already at a point where
many of the best men are leaving the
service The lawyers for the railroads
are not stressing the deflation of the
section men and unskilled mainte-
ance-of-way employees, whose wages
are only about SO a day; but they as
Sert that the higher paid railway en-
ployeS, especially the engineers and
train service men, should Immediately
suffer substantial reduction in pay.
Wages of Best Paid Rail Labor Small
In order TO secure for our readers
the unvarniShed truth about the
actual wages received by the best
paid railway employees, we have just
made a survey of the compensation
of locomotive engineers, who are
sometimes referred to as 'the aristo-
Gratis of labor" since they are among
the most highly skilled and best paid
railroad workers. Obviously, if a cut
should not be made in the wages Of
these men, then the wages of the most
poorly paid employees can not be fur
ther reduced.
In order to determine whether the
engineers are now receiving more
than their share of income, we have
taken the authoritative figures on
wages recently compiled by the U. S.
Railroad Labor Board, the data col
lected by the Interstate Commerce
Commission, and the rule for deter
mining lust and reasonable wage"
laid down in the Transportation Act
passed by Congress in 1920 and still
IN force. According to the carefully
compiled figures of the Railroad
Labor Board. the average daily earn
lngS of engineers are as follows:
Passenger engineers -. $500
Yard engineers ... .6.5l
Through freigh engineers 7.05
Local freight engineers .. .7.44
The Labor Board stresses the
fact that these are average daily
earnings, and include overtime as
well as regular pay. They represent
the total daily compensation re-
ceived by the average engineer
since July /. 1921, when Decision No.
l47 of the Labor Board imposed
9 ! per cent cut. totaling $33, SS2. Gas
per annum on engine service employ
eeS. In the same report there is also
given the average monthly wage re-
ceived by engineers, which indicates
that many of them do not work full
NOTICE TO ROAD CONTRACTORS
U. s. Department of Agriculture:
Sealed bids will be received at the of
flee of the Chief Clerk of the U. s.
Department Of Agriculture, Washing
ton, d. c., until , O'clock D. m. Tues
day, June 6, 1922, for repairing and
surface treating a gravel road in Fair
fax County, Virginia. Said road bet
gins at the public entrance to Mount
Vernon and extends in northerly di-
rection to the Alexandria-Accotink
Road, distance of approximately 81
miles Specifications. forms for bid
and detail information may be secured
at Room 500, Bureau of Public Roads.
SIS Fourteenth street. n W, Wash
ington, d. c. A certified check for
$25000 must accompany each bid.
1929