The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1930-11-25
Dressmakers Before NeWStruggles
BY l. WEISSBERG,


THE dress trade of New York today employs
about $4,000 workers who are spread through
out 1000 or more shops. Only small portion
of these shops are manufacturing establish
ments; the rest are contractors The jobbers
who are the actual employers of the contractors
carry no responsibility for the conditions of the
workers The contracting system is used by the
jobbers as a means of keeping the workers di-
vided in small units and promoting competition
amongst the contractors so that the greatest
portion of the huge profits in the dress trade
goes into the Golfers of the obbers and the chain
store owners, who are becoming more dominant
factor in the dress trade.
This system has BROUGHT about a situation
where the dressn1akers, though working in sep
arate establishments, are nevertheless being ex-
plotted by the same employer, and the trade as
such is becoming more and more monopolized by
finance capital Although competition amongst
the jobbers has not been entirely wiped out
the control Of finance capital is so great that
the trade is fast being standardized and sales
prices classified on the basis of S375, s675 S1O75
S1675, ETC. Whatever competition still exists in
the dress trade is carried on exclusively at the
expense of the workers
Youth Go Into Shops
The $4,000 workers employed in the trade are
composed Of almost an equal proportion of men
and women. The nationalities of the workers
are mostly Jewish, Spanish, Negro, Italian and
many young Americans who have been drawn
into the trade in recent years
Despite the fact that there has been verv little
Improvement in the machinery for the production
OF dresses, the productivity of the workers has
doubled nevertheless, due to the inhuman speed
up system The trade is working on a piece
work basis. Fixed prices, decided on by the Job
bers, manufacturers and contractors, are paid the
workers on garments regardless of the amount
OF work involved and the time spent in making
it up. The worker has no say on the question
OF prices with the result that the standards are
becoming lower from day to day
To temporarily pacify the workers the bosses
in many shops permit the skilled workers to en-
ploy helpers so as to increase their own earn
lngs' These helpers, many of whom are mere
cnlldren eager to learn the trade, agree to work
Tor the most pitiable wages, In many instances
the bosses exploit the learners directly In shops
OF that character the week work system prevails
A few skilled workers are engaged bv the firm
and together with herd of learners. The skilled
workers are poorly paid and the learners get
still less Section work predominates and the
workers are driven at top speed
Low Wages
The piece work system and the fixing of prices
by the bosses have created situation where the
Skilled workers earn not more than s25 to $50
per week. The earnings of the unskilIed are nro
portionately smaller
In order to make both ends meet the workers
agree to slave unlimited hours of overtime Thi,
has reached such stage that no worker dares
10 refuse to work as many hours as the boss
dictates Young workers receive $40 and SIS
per week, working at least a hours Those who
attend continuation school lost part of their
wages. The Negro workers, most of whom are
women, are equally exploited working as pressers
and finishers
Fierce Competition.
Competition amongst the workers, resulting
from the piece work system, has reached such
proportions that not only do the workers of one
shop compete with the workers of another shops
put cut-throat competition is to be found
amongst the workers within each shops This
competition takes on a character of fighting for
larger bundles and easier style garments The
intense competition resulting from piece work
gives rise to conflicts amongst the workers and
tends to further increase the speed-up and
slavery in the dress shops
In recent years the jobbers have begun oner
atlng on the basis of mass production. opening
up large cutting departments where they engage
lew skilled cutters and many learners who
receive no more than SIS per week The cut
bundles are sent out to numerous contracting
shops where they are quickly made up and rush
ed out in the hope of getting more orders
All these evils are not new in the dress trade
They existed in 1929 when the Industrial Union
began to prepare for the general strike in the
dress trade.
Inc leadership OF the union during that period
falled to correctly estimate the objective cond
lions in the trade and time foi1ad 10 asa,.. a.,
proper methods to fight these evils without
sufficient preparation, the workers were called
upon to fight for the 4o-hour week, guaranteed
minimum wage scales. higher prices provisions
which we're already part of the old agreement
and had failed to adequately meet the crying
needs Of the workers.