The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1922-07-25
A MILLION MEN ARE
ON STRIKE IN COUNTRY
LABOR TROUBLES IN UNITED
STATES AFFECT MORE PEG
PIE THAN EVER BEFORE.
$5,OoO,OoO WAGES DAILY

Railroad Walkout Accounts for AGO.
600, While $4,000 Miners Swell To-
tai. Fight Also on in New England
Textile Industries.
WASHINGTON, D. C.-More than
100000 men are out on strike in the
United States at the present time, &C
cording to advices to the department
of labor.
Never before has the number been
so large.
The daily wages OF these men, if all
were working, is conservatively esti-
mated at $5,000,000 Their weekly en-
velopeS would contain at least $780,
600 600. Not all of this sum is actual
waste, but mucn of it is so regarded.
Probably two-thirds Of the total, or
$20,000,000, represents a dead loss to
the strikers and the country at large.
The legion of strikers is divided into
three main groups. Those in the rail-
road shipments camp are estimated at
from $4,000 to 100000 Mine workers
in the anthracite and bituminous fields
are placed at from $4,000 to 100000
men. In the textile industries OF New
England approximately $4,000 more
are idle in resistance to wage cuts dat
ing back to the first of the year. About
10000 more are on strike in scattered
localities and various industries.
One in IS on Strike.
e AS the total number Of workers in
the country is estimated al. about 49,
100000 one worker out of every IS
: Ii A~.t.
the present time, and 1922 will go down
in history as the greatest strike year
ever experienced in America. The army
of strikers, if assembled in one gath
ering, would be half the size of the
army of doughboys sent across the
sea during the war.
Except for a negligible percentage
the entire number of strikers is idle
in resistance to wage cuts. The $4,000
textile workers are out because OF
cut of about 20 per cent in wages pro-
posed by certain New England mills.
The coal miners technically are out
because they have no wage agreements
with the operators. In the anthracite
fields the miners have proposed an in
crease and the operators a cut. In the
bituminous fields operators have post
ed proposed wage scales ranging from
Is to IS per cent below the 1921 level;
and the shopmen are out i'll protest
against reduction in wages ordered by
the railroad labor board.
Labor department officials do not
recall a parallel to the present situa-
ton. The nearest approach to 1T oc-
Cured in the latter part OF 1919, when
approximately 100000 bituminous min
RS went on strike. They remained
nut six weeks-the present strike OF
oal miners is about to enter its 10th
veek-and brought the total number
f men on strike throughout the coun-
ry up to about 100000. There were
20 other major strikes in progress at
hat time.
Miners Loss Temporary.
In the case of the miners, it is
ointed out. the loss in daily wages is
ot a permanent loss altogether. Many
thousands of mine workers are paid on
piece work basis and will make up
their strike losses by producing more
coal at steady employment when min
ing is resumed.
1t is possible, labor department Of
ficials say, for some OF the miners to
earn as much during 1922 as they did
in 1921 were work to be resumed at
once.
Loss of wages in the textile and
shopmen's strike, however, is regarded
as pretty nearly total and incapable
of recovery. Such, also, is the sltua
ton in the case of 100000 to 175,OO0
anthracite mine employees, work in the
anthracite industry being fairly sta
bilized.