The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1929-04-09
STRIKE NEARS
ON CITY WORK
Technical Men Defy an
Intimidation Attempt

A SJrlke Oh UecnnlCdl Hlel, ell-
gineers and draughtsmen, half of
them inside workers and the other
half field workers, will tie up $780,
100000 worth of city construction,
mostly subways, unless the board of
transportation Immediately carries
out the decision of the board of esti-
mate to grant the minimum wage
already being paid in other depart
ments, was the gist of a message
sent to the mayor, president of the
board of aldermen, and director of
the budget by special committee
yesterday.
See Secretary.
The mayor was too busy celebrat-
ing the boost given his political
hopes by the misleading supreme
court decision on the seven cent fare
to see them, but his secretary, after
realizing that the situation was seri-
Gus, agreed to make an appointment
for today.
Meanwhile orders have gone out
from Commissioner De Laney to all
the petty officials to watch the work
of the men on the committee and
others prominent in the movement
for a living wage for these workers,
and try and catch them neglecting
their work of doing anything else
] he {hn of
charges against them.
Plan Strike.
The Committee Of To- represent
ing the technical men employed by
the board of transportation met
Saturday at 2 o'clock together with
the union officials.
The union pledged it's full support
to any action taken by the engineers
of the board Of transportation. The
committee worked out further plans
of action including the visit to the
mayor.
Preparations we're made at the
meeting that in case the men strike,
that all the employees of the board
would join with the 900 affected.
The committee is certain that COM
plete tie-up will be effected.
Marcel E. Scherer, organizer of
the Union of Technical Men states,
"The action of the commissioners of
the board of transportation in not
adopting the $3,120 minimum for
the Grade &c" group is discrimina-
ton. The technical men working in
all of the other city departments
who were appointed from the same
Grade &c" lists as the engineers in
the board Of transportation have al
ready been paid their 1920 min
imum and in many cases even more.
The failure of the board to pay their
Grade &C" men $500 minimum is,
in effect, demotion for these men.
They are put back into the same
rank as the beginners whose wor,,:
they supervise. Such a situation
violates the spirit and letter of the
civil service law.
Discrimination.
| "The board of estimate has adopt
ed that minimum salary for all the
technical employees. All the depart
ments and borough presidents offices
have already put that new schedule
into effect as of January 1, 1929.
The board of transportation is the
only department that has not put
it into effect.
eff the board of estimate will not
intervene and the board of transpor-
tation will continue this policy o.
violating the civil service, the tech
nical men will force action through
walkout. Such a walkout will be
100 per cent effective. The subway
engineers cannot be replaced. Their
work requires too much skill and
specialized training. The union of
technical men has it's membership
in all city departments and the en-
gineers in these other departments
will surely help the board of trans
portation engineers and in no cases
will they take on the work of these
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