The labor journal. [volume] (Everett, Wash.) 1909-1976, 1922-05-26
SHALL RAILWAY
WAGES BE CUT?
Investigation Brings to Light Star.
Ting Facts About Engi-
neers' Pay

The U. S. Railway Labor Board,
now sitting in Chicago, is hearing
the spokesman for the railroads and
the various railway labor organiZa-
tions to determine whether or not
working rules should be changed and
the wages of these employees further
reduced below the 1922 per cent cut
which chopped over $378,000,000
from the railway pay rolls last July.
The question is one of vital inter-
est to the country. Not only the
passenger and the shipper, but every
citizen who consumes food, wears
clothing or gets letter through the
mails has a personal concern in an
efficient, dependable and economical
transportation 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 point where many of the best
men are leaving the service. The
lawyers for the railroads are not
stressing the deflation of the sec
ton men and unskilled maintenance
of-way employees, whose wages are
only about So day; but they assert
that the higher paid railway en-
ployes, especially the engineers and
train service men, should immediate
ly suffer a substantial reduction in
pay.
Wages of Best Paid Rail Labor
In order to secure for our readers
the unvarnished truth about the &C
tual wages received by the best paid
railway employees. we have just made
a survey of the compensation of loco
motive engineers. who are sometimes
referred to as "the aristocrats of la
bor," 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
Their 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 a "iust 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 La
Dor Board. the average daily earn
ings of engineers are as follows
Passenger englneers............-S6 $500
Yard engineers ...................... 6.51
Through freight engineers 705
Local freight engineers. 7.44
The Labor Board stresses the fact
that these are average daily earn
ings, and include overtime as we'll as
regular pay. They represent the
total daily compensation received by
the average engineer since July l,
1921, when Decision No. lat of the
Labor Board imposed a ga per cent
cut. totaling $33 1872 ,645 per annum
on engine service employees. In the
same report there is also given the
average monthly wage received by
engineers, which indicates that many
of them do not work full time. In
fact, the highest average stated is
but 1888 per month. which tapers
down to $119.56 for yard and local
engineers. AS a matter of fact,
many engineers are now receiving |
less than this, because the prevalent |
industrial depression has deprived
them of steady employment to the
point where they receive but few
days work a week. often with an
average income of under 500 per
month. This is far less than the dol
lar an hour standard compensation
paid skilled artisans in practically all
of the well organized trades. 1t is
less than the U. S. Bureau
Of Labor Statistics claims that the
average American family must have
to maintain a decent standard of liv-
ing!
Rules for Just and Reasonable
Wage"
We believe that it is fair to ask
the question: What are locomotive
engineers services worth to society?
The Transportation Act lays down
seven rules by which a "just and
reasonable wage" shall be determined
by the United States Railroad Labor
Board In brief. they are:
/. Wages paid for similar work
in other industries.
2. Relation between wages and
cost of living.
3. Hazards of employment.
4. Training and skill required.
5. Degree of responsibility.
g.. Character and regularity of