Evening star., 1922-03-15
HARD.COAL MINERS
( MEET OPERATORS;
i STRIKE PREDICTED
Continued from First PageD

q
the workers shall share in .i,A gan
Ge mine owners have not Indicated
khat proposition they will make. 1t
las been reported that they are not
4 unit on what percentage nf decrease
= hey shall ask.
q There have been informal confer
tnces among the representatives OF
-fhe larger coal companies in the last
ro days outlining a general policy.
End prioy to today's joint conference
Mere was meeting of the Anthracite
e large number of individual mine
owners, to talk over the situation. AS
HE larger companies produce mucn
4hore than 50 per cent OF the total
output it is expected the smaller
companies will follow the lead Of the
Big concerns.
. The miners also met in the fore
aoon, with President Lewis acting as
Chairman. At this meeting 1t was eX-
xected to map out procedure in pre-
sentins the demands and explaining
Z The present is the sixth general
&ase conference held in the hard coal
Helds since the award In 1908 OF the
anthracite coal strike commission ap-
pointed by President Roosevelt as q
result Of the long strike In 1909. In
1908 the contract miners were award
ed a 10 per cent increase In wages.
No advance was granted in the neSo-
tiaticns of 1906 or 1893, but In 1912
there was another raise of 10 per cent.
Part of this. however. was lost,
miners contend. by the abolition OF
tie sliding scale by which wages
moved up or down as the price Of
coal varied at tidewater. In 1916
the contract men were given
day had their hours reduced from
nine to eight day and were given
4 per cent advance in wages, which
Amounted to Is per cent increase
when the reduction of hours was
hgured in.
II Per Cent Increase Given.
!. The 1916 contract was made to
run ror four years. but as result
Of the war this agreement was
hanged in April, 1917. when the
Seefa,I See cent because because Of Of the Advancing g
cost of living. Day labor was given
increases of varying amounts. This
. was followed in November of the
same year by jump to IS per cent
over the NS16 basis, and in 1913 the
wages of contract men were advanced
20 40 per cent over the 1916 rate.
bay labor was proportionately in
creased. There were protracted ne
gotiations for a new agreement when
the 1916 scale expired in 1920 and re-
mission by President Wilson, which
awarded the men a II per cent in
crease and a two-year contract which
comes to an end March 81.
AS an indication of the possible
length OF the present negotiations,
former negotiations all begun about
the same time as the present one.
show that in 1906 an agreement was
signed on May II: in 1909 on April
20: in 1912 on May 60; in 1915 on
May 5, and in 1920 on September q.
There was q suspension in 1905,
when the miners were idle about five
weeks. and in 1912, when there was q
cessation Of production for six weeks;
in former years the miners remained
nt work while negotiations were in
: The principal demands of the miners
follow:
A two-year contract.
A 20 per cent increase in the con-
tract wage scale; 81 day increase
10 all labor paid by the day, and that
differentials existing between differ
INT classes of employees prior to the
1890 award be restored.
A uniform wage scale in all col
lieries for occupations of like char
Acter.
An eight-hour day for all employees.
those working underground to count
their hours from the time they enter
the mine until they leave it.
+! A standard check of provision.
, That where coal is paid for by the
car the system be changed to a ton