The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1925-08-28
TEXTILE MILLS
ARE SLAVE PENS
FOR The WORKERS
Speeding, Bad Working
Conditions, Small Pay
BY ALBERT WEIsRoRp.


ditions in the textile mills of Rhode
Island certainly cry aloud for improve
ment. Take the case of the Aresco
Company's silk mill in Pawtucket
where l worked. Sanitation, while
better than some other places, is still
joke. No towels, paper or otherwise,
are provided for workers for washing
up. It should be kept in mind that
sometimes weavers have to twist
broken threads onto the warp, and to
do this they have to wet their fingers
with their tongues and put them on
dirty slabs of hard glue which they
carry around with them. AS the yarn
is dyed it is therefore important for
weavers to wash their hands frequent
ly. But what with the great speeding
up in the mills and the lack of ade-
quate washing facilities, this is seldom
done.
No drinking cups are provided and
most workers are forced to drink
from the same dirty glass that lies
around the water tank. The boss was
even mean enuf to charge each worker
ten cents for ice for ice water and
he picked on the better skilled work
ers, the loom fixers, to get it for him,
thus also helping to cause friction
among the different grades of workers
and further to divide them.
No Toilet Paper.
You have got to give the boss credit
for that; he knows how to divide the
workers, all right. suppose the next
thing the boss will do will be to
charge workers for toilet paper. But
as l have never seen any real toilet
paper around this may never come
about
For nine and half hours a day
forty-eight hours a week and more
girls and women must stand on their
feet as Quillers and so on for SIG a
week. This is not as bad as in the
Lonsdale Cotton Mill, where a friend
Of mine is getting $40 week as &
battery filler for four days work. Al
she is a married woman and has two
children to support, you may draw
your own conclusions. Weaving, which
pays a little more, takes long time
to learn, anywhere from two months
up. One weaver, learner who bega1
three months ago and who was jus
4 fired by the boss because he took
days vacation, was making just abou
$40 week, no more. And believe me
i he worked hard. There is no pric
list and the boss takes advantage o
this by cutting down the ignorant
The night help getting 81 cents pei
thousand picks do not know the day
help is getting 31s for the same worl
in certain cases.
No Pay for Overtime.
Business is good in the silk mills
here and the mills run night and day
Here is another difficulty in the patti
of anyone who wants to organize the
workers. The day and night worker,
never see each other and of course
are unsympathetic to each other. 1t il
a fine sight for civilized eyes to Sc,
the young girls and married women IL
the Aresco working till o'clock il
the morning.
Altho weavers are supposed to work
piece work, yet the boss compels then
to work half hour a week extra t.
clean their looms without extra pay
and in order to be sure they do thai
he locks the door. If there should be
any fire in the mill loss of life would
surely result with all doors locked
Workers of Aresco, you are not dogs
Form your mill committee and de
mand:
Seven Demands.
1. All doors be unlocked and work
ers may leave any time they please.
2. Standard pay for time used In
cleaning looms.
3. Proper sanitary facilities, santa
ry cups and towels.
4. Abolition of payment for ice fol
ice water.
5. Price list to be posted in promi
nent places in the mill.
6. Recognition of mill committee az
representative of the workers.
Z. Double time for all overtime.
This is small beginning that yor
can make. Organize and fight
1