New-York tribune., 1922-05-19
Hard-COal Men
Asked to Stand
21% Wage Cut
Operators Present Demands
Covering All Classes of
Workers; Rejection Fore
cast, but Without Break
Unfair, Miners Complain
Rabbi Wise Insists Workers
Are Starving; Committee
of Clergy to Visit Fields

Answer TO the long-awaited question
OF how much Of q cut in wages the an
thrscite operators would seek of the
hardcoal miners was given by the for
meE yesterday in the joint committee
negotiations for new agreement,
when the mine owners presented the
workers representatives with state
merit demanding reductions averaging
81 per cent.
The statement is in the nature of a
counter demand against one presented
by the miners railing for an inrrease of
20 per cent for contract workers and
$ a day for day men. Thus the opera
tors literally went the miners one bet
ter in the matter of bargaining per-
centages.
Basis for Settlement Seen
will reject the operators proposals, but
this does not involve likelihood of
the breaking off of the negotiations. On
the contrary, it is believed. now that
definite trading bases have been estab-
Slished, the two sides will get down to
transacting real business when next
they meet, which probably will be on
Wednesday.
Observers of the parley discern a
disposition on both sides to treat their
respective demands as admitting of
considerable elasticity, and there are
some who feel that it is not too early
TO forecast that, if an agreement is
reached. it's wage provisions will not
scale which expired April /, at least
not TO any such extent as is called for
bv either of the two sets of demands.
1t was asserted by Samuel D. Warri-
ner, the chief spokesman for the oper-
ators, that acceptance Of the mine own
ers demands would mean a saving of
approximately s60,000,000 year in the
anthraciae mine payrolls, which totaled
1884 100000 for 1921. Such saving,
the operators contend, could and should
be passed along to the public.
Despite the fact that Mr.. Warrner
cslihlated that this would mean a
Topping OF Of about eighty cents a
tor IN production cost, he was unable
to figure, at least on short notice,
Just how much of this reduction could
be distributed among the bungalow
and other family freside sizes of
anthracite. He called to mind, when
asked as to this, that the steam" or
commercial sizes are competitive with
bitumlnous coal.
and adiournment of Tho cnn,n9;.t t.a, 90
mae,;no pb;lin M,,..o, .,.il rtSs. ,ss =
or thn JTn4tad p M;n NJ ,Ny, " s!ee iesiuens
statar,a,,t a. an.Hs ~! re, issueo
ratine' v"t waee radsnt s,te ,HI. ~ III aaso,
aei'e wage ieuuctloh the operators
eoese1e ,e ne,sne' s.tsIentl otwafa with the
ersp ia 49, 81 " ene niue "orh
.an,4 ,.e e'ies tne oPeiaVo's are az
r'ps.Ie " siea'e i q slhoAe screen TO
.TS .ne ,eai .oiuit'oh oi an airs
.h .e opela'ors, ,i, 'eaos portion OF
we statei"eho, know 'hat the earnings
~, Ti tneis employees are inadequate.
"ei arg attempting to.aecelve tne pub
l'e oy creating the IMPRESSION that
[eauctlon re- IN wages would be followed
oy decline IN the price Of coal to
me consumer. The operators have so
inflated their profits that the public
has been exploited and the mine work
ers themselves have keen denied the
wage increases to which they are in
lSstlce Untitled"
Cuts Asked all Along Limo
vhe onoro.o,s, n,.o..I
Of 1a ,,or I.n nan. pioros'n caiis 1or cuts
tr,n. s,i.s ~ .e"V g, ~ oo 'ne wages OF con-
man ama 30 80. go oay as TO day
for ba,.s 'i -, hIss hn u"y IN 'he rates
n,h;.b otl pd1eu o, 'he ola scale,
Statos Anthraoit, useapiiSned S oy the united
NN" NoiiihisSloE IN