The producers news. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1918-1937, 1928-08-31
SLAVERY EXISTS In
TOBACCO FACTORY
By ART. SHIELDS. Fed. Press

BY ART. SHIELDS, Fed: fress
Winston Salem. N. C.-Tney fire
employees for "disloyalty" at the r.
]. Reynolds Tobacco Co. plant in
Winston Salem, where 12,OOO men
and women turn out Camels' Frlnce
Albert. Soud and varieties OF pug
and scrap with the aid OF automatic
machines. 1t may be that the ottend-
ing worker is highly efficient put as
the boss makes out the time cara a
company stool pigeon murmurs some
thing about "disloyalty".
"Disloyalty" takes many. forms. IL
is sometimes membership IN the for
hidden union, ferreted out by spy'
or the discovery of pack Ot cigar
cites of some rival company In the
workers pocket when the boss search
es the dressing room. All loyal en-
ployees are expected to use Camels
only. whether they like them or not.
Again, "disloyalty" may be the fall-
ure to buy company stock, or perhaps
the worker, moved by compassion
protests against everlasting a wo-
man or weak old man.
"Never say that conditions in the
r. J. Reynolds plants are verglng on
slavery" said Edward l.. Crouch, IN
ternational organizer for the Tobacco
/ Workers. in talking to the Federated
Press. "They are slavery" Crouch
knows conditions, having lived II
Winston Salem nearly all his life anC
l worked in the Reynolds factories Il
Y years.
: There is no freedom of speech IL
the big tobacco mills that press grim
ly on the streets near the city square
A young man who operates an auto
d matte cigarette machine found thi
out. He had been watching CIR
sweat and strain at new packing
machine that uses two girls where
S were formerly required. The ma
/. chine has a heavy flywheel the girl
f must turn. either with their feet, a
:. the risk of broken legs or with tn
II arms and the weight of their bodies
S as this girl was doing.
The girl paused, flushed and eX
s hausted. and asked the young ma
!. what he thought of such work.
10 "I'll tell you, / wouln't let my wifi
n or any sister of mine do it," ne re
S. piled Indignantly.
- A second girl was the only othe
2 listener. but she was a stool pigeo
&c and the young man was summoned
lie the superintendent office, asked
n repeat the remark. and was given h
20 full time.
!. :. Average pay at Reynolds is lie!
Il than $11 a week. 1t is hard enoug
ed to get flour, meal, coffee and bear
without buying company stock in a
20 dition as loyal employees are desire
to do. For the great majority it
a. impossible. This stock goes by Il
ell name of insurance" for it is su
nd posed to insure the job, though
10 does not always do this.
Indeed, loyalty is no guaranty
Oh job safety. The company's policy
to fire the high-pay workers and p
he cheaper hands in their places.
automatic cigarette machine operat
for instance may begin at rs cents
hour and in 10 days he has Learn
his job. If he survives the loya
test his wages are gradually rails
half cent an hour at time, p
vided he nags the foreman about
the in cautious way. Ten years la
or he may be getting AZ cents an no
' the maximum. Then one day the b
lay sadly tells him that business is
In and his machine must be shut do
tor but that when business is better
nod will be taken back. Day after
peu thereafter the worker haunts the
rtul ployment office in a wait for his
an job.
lon At the employment office is q
Ia leman named Mr.. Fix-and the VIZ
''ia ers, making pun on his name,
lent he fixes them good and plenty. A
AVE the operator has been waiting in
be office for days or weeks Mr..
telv pleasantly offers him job at
10y liar machine-at % cents an h
1un Dismayed, the operator protests
he is 48 cent man and an old til
Mr.. Fix is very sad: otis too
that's the best we can do now bu
Ed you don't want this job you can c
In back and when there is better O.
ing you can have it."
Quite differently the Reynolds
n IN ployee Jared from 1919 to 1921 v
saw his job was protected by an 40
ions ment between the International
bacco Workers Union and the {
oreS pany. Crouch tells of the reinst
iince ment of 1000 workers wrongti
ex- discharged.