The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1929-10-22
MARION WORKERS
IN COTTON MILLS
LIVE IN HORROR
Long Hours, Underpay
Miserable Housing

MARION, N. c., Oct. 21.-Some
sf the thi ngs the Marion workers
have to Sight about, some of the con-
ditions that the boss is willing to
kill six workers in che mornings
shooting to preserve, can be gained
from the following extract of re-
port of the Federated Press CORE
spondent in that city.
BY JESSIE LLOYD.
an Marion, garden city of the
South, as President Baldwin of the
Marion mill called it, workers live
in Ieaky, drafty houses. There is
not bathtub or a bit of running
water in the mill village, except up
on the hill, where the b ossmcn have
been careful to pipe Themselves some
city water. The workers tote their
water from wheezy, balky pumps.
There is one TO revery six or eight
houses on the hillside, with out
houses within 100000 feet in all d.
rections. This is the much Wanted
modern sanitation.
sThere is no stretch-out in
Marion-except at noon hour, when
workers have to cover for each other
for the simple reason that when
the bossmen tried to introduce 1t last
March, the workers would have none
of it. There was no union, but their
vigorous unanimity caused the man
agement to drop sretch-out after
one days trial Shortly after, how
ever, they speeded up the machinery.
Workers say they feel as if they do
almost twice as much work as be-
fore.
Wages Stay Down.
Meanwhile wages stayed at their
miserably low figure. A few skilled
wokers reported wages Of $21 or S22
but some of the men and most of the
women make below S12. 1 met sew
eral who had made So or under
even one who onl ymade Sc, and one
who made only 81 to support three
children and q sick husband,
"A girl of fifteen had to work
three months for nothing, as an APP
prentice; after that, for some
months, she made 81 for a 65-hour
week, from $40 in the morning until
six at night, five days, and till II
a. m. 0 nSaturday, with only quar-
ter of an hour off for lunch. 1t is
supposed to be a half-hour for lunch,
but the foreman tells you when to
be back, and if you come any later,
the other girl can't wait and your
stuff spoils.
"These hours are the regular
hours for the day shift-sometimes
even more-in flagr.nt violation of
the state 60-hour law.
"The night shift is on a 55-hour
basis, from 6 p. m. to 5 a. M, five
nights week, but they also often
have to come early and stay late.
Theer is no time off for supper.
Women have told me it is sometimes
two in the morning before they can
get a chance for a bite Of their bis
cult, and that the foreman refuses
to take hand for five or ten min
utes to let them eat.
Since the recent settlement, hours
have been SIS week. That is an
eight per cent decrease from the
legal 60-hour week, Is per cent from
the actual hours of the day shift.
At the same time the company an
nounced voluntary increase in the
hourly wage seal c 5 per cent.
Checking this increase against the
decrease, the maximum cut in pay
should have been 10 per cent. Ac-
tually, there have been cuts Of 20
and 80 per cent"
1t is also true that the United
Textile Workers, the union" which
came into Marion after the workers
had, without union put up good
fight against the stretch-out, sold
the strikers back, in that recent set
tlement. The agreement was so
made and the attitude of the U. l..
W. officials was such that the COM
pany felt safe in cutting wages at
liberty and also instituted the black
list. 1t was the blacklist which pro
voked the strike of night shift work
ers, resulting in the police attack
on them, and the Marion Massacre.