Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1924-05-06
LOOM WEAvERS' PROTEST new SYSTEM
TAKES FORM OF STRIKE BUT TROUBLE IS
SMO0THED. OUT BY MAYOR TEbbETTS

OMUUinEU.UU
When 60 automatic loom weayers
OF the Wyandotte Worsted Company
mills OF this city did not go to work
yesterday morning and 60 single
loom weavers refused to go work in
sympathy 1T appeared that WateryilIe
would be the center Ola strike for
| several days but due to the efforts
of Mayor Leon o. Tebbetts who was
approached by a committee from the
strikers yesterday afternoon a recon
citation meeting was arranged and
the men plan to return to work this
morning.
The workmen claim that they did
| not go to work as protest to a new
plan arranged by the mill manage
| ment which increased the work of
the automatic loom weavers so much
that they could not perform their
work efficiently.
This plan as outlined by Y. Fl. Bar
rows head of the company in state
| ment yesterday afternoon would
change the working condition of the
automatic loom weavers SO that Is
| of the men would have charge of the
operation OF four looms each instead
of two. This new scheme would be
given months trial and the other
Is men would be given work on the
single looms with guaranteed work
for 80 days.
Mr.. Barrows stated yesterday noon
before the members of the Rotary
club that in many mills throughout
the country in the automatic loom
department each man had charge Of
four machines and was able to OPP
crate them efficiently.
or Tebbetts told the men that work at
| the present time is somewhat scarce
and they should think twice before
throwing up their jobs. At the same
from the mill forced the manage
ment to shut down throwing the en-
| tire force Of 400 men out of employ
! ment Finally Is men agreed to try
| the new plan for a month and it is
| believed that all of them, will go
back this morning to try the new
| plan.
One of the members Of the strik-
ers committee, when interviewed,
last evening to ascertain the position
of the mill men in regard to the
trouble, declared that the men did not
feel they could carry on efficiently
| the additional work imposed by the
plan of the mill management. He
stated that ordinarily one or two
machines could be handled by one
man, and that it was possible Tor a
man to care for four machines for
brief period. He further declared
that the millmen were in some cases
doing the work of two men In oper-
ating two machines and that the two
additional looms would mean that a
,, man would be obliged to do the work
of four men.
The committeeman said that the
men did not want to strike put tnaC
their absence at the mill yesterday
morning was merely q protest agalnst
the new system, because they ola
not feel that the management was
justified In the proposed change.
At n meeting of the Rotary club
Yesterday, Nat II. BarroWs, general
manager of the Wyadotte company,
explained the position of the mill
management. He read the following
statement:
"The following conditions have
prevailed at the Wyandotte Worsted
Company for the past year:
"The company has so automatic
looms which run two to Il weaver
and so ordinary looms which run one
to n weaver.
"Knowing that automatic looms of
this nature were being run four
looms to n weaver. the management
wished to try this plan out at the
mill and offered the following pro-
position:
ITO have IS men for one month
run four looms each, offering them
for pay 1900 higher than half OF the
price for two looms work and guar
anteeing them as much pay per hour
rs thew had made for the last eight
weeks. or an average of $3.50 for q
4S hour week. The Is other auto
matte loom weavers would nave no
looms to run, so they were offered
work on the single looms and guar
anteed work for 80 days.
an order to do this we would have
to make up 700 pieces of goods for
which we have no orders. The man
agement at no time stated that four
loom weaving would be enforced but
merely wanted to give it fair trial.
the decision in this matter to be LETT
to Mr., Webbendorffer, the oVerSeer
of the weaving department..
"The influence of a few men has been
sufficient not only to shut down the
automatic looms but also to cause 90
men running the single looms, who
have no grievance either real or mag
mary, to leave their work. These
weavers by their unjust actions are
willing to throw 400 people out of work.
This is the situation which exists
at the Wyandotte Worsted Co. mill to-
day, and the weavers will be given I'M
til Thursday to reconsider their ac-
lions and return to work.
Concerning automatic looms. Mr.. Bar
n nNnnfnAllV wooden
mills in the country must adopt them
to meet competition. They have been
in use in the cotton mills for some time
and now are being taken up by the
wooden mills. Under present conditions
mills equipped with automatic looms
are able to keep operating, while those
equipped only with old-fashioned looms
are forced to shut down. The new type
looms at the Wyandotte mill have
enabled the mills to keep going when
it would have been closed providing IL