The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1925-03-28

thousand men. At present this number
Side by side with the huge and grue
large textile mills and cigar factories.
employed while their husbands and ia
Starvation Wages.
Bethlehem is known as a starvation
wage city. Laborers are being paid
by the steel magnate as low a wage
as 80 cents an hour. Even expert
enced workers, who for years have
been employed in the steel mills, are
unable to make more than $3.50 a day,
and only some of the men. those
working tonnage" such as the load
ers, are able to make more than IS
a day. The low wage scale applies not
only to the numerous recently inn
ported Mexicans, or Hungarians who
compose the bulk of the working
force, but to the native workers as
well. Rumors have it that for some
reason or another the native workers
are not favored very much by the
company and in many cases are being
treated worse than foreigners" In
some factories wages are still lower
and in many cases do not exceed a
dollar day This miserable wage is
being, for example, paid to girls in
some of the shirt factories, located in
this city. The low wage scale exist
ing in this paradise of Schwab has
encouraged manufacturers of other
cities to move their factories here.
Inhuman Long Hours.
During the war the steel barons
claimed that the two shift system was
imperative because Of the then alleged
labor shortage. Less than a third of
the working force is employed at this
time. Yet, the two-shift system is still
kept in most of the departments, the
men being compelled to labor 70
hours day, seven days week. Most
of the men voluntarily choose" the
12-hour day, being otherwise unable
to make ends meet on the meagre
wages paid by the company. The II
hour day is the best means of killing
the thinking capacity of almost any
one. The company knows this very
well and will not shorten the hours
unless compelled to do so by the
awakening slaves themselves.
Worse Than Slavery.
The gruesome sight Of the factories,
the antiquated, filthy shanties, called
homes, the small signs attached to the
lamp or telephone posts bearing the
laconic inscriptions such as "speeders
arrested" "obey the laval this
speaks Of misery, starvation and cos
sack rule. 'It is worse than slavery"
is the usual remark one hears from
the workers when assured that no
company spy is around. AS rule no
labor meetings of any kind are per-
mitted, even when arranged by
purely fraternal or benefit society. So
browbeaten and inundated are the
workers that no one dares even to
murmur about the horrible conditions
under which he lives, lest he will be
overheard by a company stool pigeon.
The shops are combed with these
company spies who are prompt in re-
porting every little move made by the
workers. Any little "offense" quickly
meets with a proper punishment
transfer to lower-paid and more
dangerous job or complete discharge.
One newspaper stand ventured to or
der bundle of the DAILY WORKER
for which it found demand. It did
not take very long before the matter
was reported to the company, and the
paper was Immediately ordered stop.
ped.
Attached to Land Like Slaves.
Most of the workers employed in
the Bethlehem Steel shops are bur.
dened with large families-the single
men and those with small families as
a rule do not stay for any considerable
length Of time in this paradise of
Schwab. Poverty, family ties com.
pels the others to stick to their Jobs
no matter how hard this may be.
Most of these men are in addition tied
up with the little property they own
which they were at one time or an.
other compelled to acquire from the
company agents ION the installment
plan" Company agents boast that at
least eight per cent OF the men are
thus tied up and compelled to remain
at their jobs or lose the little prop.
erty for which they spent their last
pennies.
Recently the company discovered