The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1928-12-19
Men Who Slave for Rockefeller

NOCeS. IhlS laD0rer Is forced TO ac-
cept bride and let the officials do
the counting, Either he takes the
bride Or he is fired. The actual
counting is done by the superinten-
dent behind closed doors. The work
crs thus have never had an honest
delegate on the Works Council, as
the oil companies call these ex-
amples of democracy"
The betrayal of the Tidewa5er Oil
strike by the delegates on the Works
Council last May convinced the men
once and for all as to what the pur-
pose Of the Works Council really is.
Stool Pigeons.
The delegate to the Works Coun-
ell is usually stool pigeon. If the
men present any grievances as to
wages OR conditions, the delegate
goes to the superintendent, and, re-
turning. tells the workers of the
many advantages" of working for
such big company as the Standard
Oil or the Tidewater, whichever
Rockefeller subsidiary it may be.
He explains to the men how great
the operating expenses are, etc.
Then the matter is dropped, but a
"ringleader" is picked out and fired
as a trouble maker" These dele
gates obtain all the graft jobs in
connection with the various COM
pany schemes to blind the workers.
These company lackeys somehow
manage to be the managers of the
oil company baseball team or basket
ball team; they always manage to
run the annual summer outings for
the company. Of course, the real
purpose of these "recreational and
social activities" as the oil bosses
call them, is to keep the oil slaves
docile.
Gruesome accidents are hourly
occurrences, due to the inhuman
speed-up. The commonest of these
are acid burns and the inhalation of
poisonous fumes.
The Ethyl Death Room.
The tetra-ethyl lead used in the
new, cheap Standard gasoline,
ESQ" is one of the most deadly
of all known chemicals. Increased
sales of the poisonous fuel have re-
suited in the enlargement of the
ethyl department. In Standard
Oil laboratory plant few years
back ten workers died in horrible
agony, accompanied by violent in
sanity, through working on the
tetra-ethyl lead. Notable scientists
stated that if the ethyl fuel were
widely adopted, the result would be
slow poisoning of the public. Sew
eral workers have been killed out
right in the ethyl room of the Stand
ard; many have been incapacitated
for life. All of the workers in this
room OF death are i'll at all times,
suffering from headaches and d.zzi-
ness.
Stock Scheme.
The old scheme of allowing the
workers to purchase few shares
of stock is practiced throughout the
Bayonne oil plants. Each man is
allowed small amount of oil stock.
When any strike talk arises, the
men are kept cowed with the spiel,
joined in by the Works Council, IF
you strike, the value of your stock
will go down. The prosperity of
the Standard Oil Company is your
prosperity" This scheme was used
in the strike at the Tidewater Oil
plant last May. But the workers
are beginning to realize that the
small dividends from the stock
amount to nothing. compared to
living wage, as is evident i the
decline in the amount of stock they
now own.
Gold Service Buttons.
A little item from the Bayonne
Times, one of the local sheets de-
pending lock, stock and barrel on
the oil bosses:
Twenty Standard Oil Company
employees yesterday received their
rewards for their faithful services