The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1928-07-03
By CLARINA NICHOLSON

Thirty thousand textile workers in
America find it impossible to live on
their wages, and are on strike in New
Bedford, Mass. This follows the long
struggle in Passaic, N. j., where other
thousands of textile workers fought
for a union, for better working and
living conditions. What about the
textile workers in Russia? What are
their conditions?
We have just visited the city of
Serpuhov, two and half hours by
train from Moscow, where there are
three textile factories, employing
1880 workers. After a mile drive
from the station behind fat fzvosh-
tihik, in long black wooden coat,
gathered at the waist, past rows of
one-story wooden buildings, past
churches, past an old fortress, past
some peasant women washing clothes
at rivers edge, our droshky drew
up at The gates of the Krasny Tex
tilschik, the largest of the factories,
where $500 workers are employed,
two-thirds of them women.
The director, stocky blond-haired
Russian, greeted us. 1t seems he had
worked there at the age of IL, had
been in the war, was in a German
prison four years, came back to Rus
STA, was in the Red Army, went back
to work in the factory, became as
sistant director, and had recently been
given his present job. The assistant
director was also a former worker
in the factory. We went all through
the factory seeing the bales of raw
cotton, bought for the most part in
America, coming in from the station,
to the finished product, which is
turned out at the rate of 10000
meters day. Some of the machines
are new, improved models, but many
are old.
This year $3.50, 900 is being spent
to improve the machines, to install
better systems of ventilation, etc.
The factory runs on two shifts of 8
hours, although there are some ap-
prentices who work only 5 hours a
day. The 7-hour day will also be in
troduced here, as it is being done in
the majority of textile factories
throughout Russia. 81 per cent of
the workers belong to the union. at
is not 100 per cent" our Interpreter
told US" because some are new, some
are seasonal workers, and some are
behind in their dues"
Have these workers done anything
to improve their conditions?
Up a street opposite the factory
are two rows of large, red brick
houses, set in big yards, homes for
the workers, owned by the factory.
The workers receive money for rent
above their wages-if they live in
these houses they get less than if
they live elsewhere, as these rooms,
which are in great demand, are the
cheapest in the neighborhood-$3. so
month for room, with electricity,
and generally a radio thrown in for
good measure.
A short walk from the houses is a
large one-story wooden building with
two wings, in one of which is a kin
dergarten and in the other a restaur-
ant able to accommodate several
hundred people. There we had soup,
veal meat halls, rice, tea and bread
very good-for 20 cents. The work
ers now want kitchen which will
serve $4,000 2-course dinners a day.
at IL cents, for the workers of the 8
factories. This will cost $3.50, 900.
They have raised $15O,000, half from
the textile trust and half from the
Cooperative and the Soviet. They
will get long term loan from the
government but before the building
can be started they must raise $751;
600 more. This they will do by all
donating 2 days pay. 1t was so voted
at a recent meeting of representa-
tives of the workers of the three fac
tories.
There is one Cooperative in Serpu-
how with membership of 10000.
Members can get credit from the
stores through the factories, the d.
rector agreeing to deduct from their
wages The amount credited. One large
cooperative store, with a monthly
turnover Of $4,000, handling grocer
les, dry goods, shoes, sannovars, ETC.,
S directly opposite the Krasny Tex