The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1931-08-06
BY PEDRO MORALES.

cion Nacional Obrera de Cuba (National Work
ers Confederation). Not street car in opera
ton since early yesterday morning (Friday
July 3lst). Since yesterday noon, the shopmen
and maintenance of way men of the same COM
pany, the Havana Electric Railway Co, have
also been on strike. This Yankee tmperialst
firm employs altogether about $500 workers,
now on strike.
Great was the surprise in the city, yesterday
morning, not to hear the noise OF the street
cars-an unusual quet-punctuated only by the
whir Of the autos and the clang Of the bus
bells The strike came as q surprise, because it
was voted the night before and is the first
militant response to the many recent wage cuts
these workers have suffered. Quick action was
necessary, since the Havana Electric Railway
CO., intending to slip over q fast one did not
notify the union until July 29th about the wage
cut to take effect August 1st The present wage
cut would bring the wages down to this level,
depending on their years of service before De-
cenlber l. 1880. From 2 to 5 years, q cents an
hour Eyes, twenty-three cents an hour; to
10 years "a cents; II years or more, 20 cents;
for newcomers and those now getting rs cents,
% cents For the first three classes, it means
2, cut Of 5 cents an hour. What a reductionl
In 1924, these workers got up to so cents an
hour And nova. real starvation wage! A
sacrifice to the Cod of Dividends
One million dollars Just handed over to the
Chase National Bank by the Cuban Govern
n1ant, as interest and principal payment on q
recent twenty million dollar loan. And now a
wage cut to keep on paying dividends to para
sitical coupon clippers in the States and here,
particularly to Frank Steinhart, General Man
zager of the company Steinhart, as Consul
General of the United States in Cuba in 1906,
Brought about the second military occupation Of
Cuba by the United States (19O6 to 1909. AS
3 result of his aid TO the military occupation,
Stsinhart received from General NIagoon fran
rtise for the extension OF the lines of the
Havana Railway, Electricity and Power Co. This
company is now the most important public serv-
ice corporation in Cuba, with capital of So
million dollars In addition to street car service
in Havana and suburbs, electricity and power
fer Havana and surroundings, the company
owns two great piers in the harbor Stenhart,
who talks of protecting the investors who he
claims are almost entirely Cuban and Spanish,
IS protecting his own wealth, the reward from
his irnperialist masters for enslaving the Cuban
masses Twenty-Five cents an hour-to make
Steinhart rich-to starve the street car men and
their families The resentment and rebellious
spirit of These workers, betrayed early in the
year by their former officials, whom they then
removed from office, for preventing strike
against former wage cut, this spirit of strug-
gle and defense Of their bread and butter burst
cut in strike.
At the membership meeting of the motormen
and conductors on Thursday, July 30th it was
decided to strike Immediately Cno car left the
barn that midnight; and if the wage cut was
not withdrawn within "a hours, to prolong the
strike until victory A list Of demands was ap-
proved for presentation TO the company on
Friday, where the main demand as against the
wage cut was for: ID Equal pay for equal
Wcrk-40 cents an hour, and in addition, many
others including: % Double pay for time when
company charges double fare; 81 Full pay for
time spent in court, on accident; "a Payment
by the company Of court fines for accidents.
The shop and maintenance of way men, who
are in a union called the Havana Electric
Union" also affiliated with the National Work
ers Confederation, put forward the following
demands: ID Rejection of the proposed wage
cut % Refusal to work with, strikebreakers
If the wage cut went into effect, they would
strike The refusal of the company to with
draw the wage cut put them on strike as well
Ctflere are five hundred of them and about
1000 of the conductors and nlotornep)
Cuban Government Preparing to Break Strike.
The Secretary of the Interior zubizarreta,
announces that member Of the Central Dis
trict Council, representing the women" has Of
fered to get women scabs to run the cars and
that several Negro workers have offered to man
the cars. The government evidently plans to
make use Of women against men; and Negroes
against whites Carrera, National Police Chief
head is rumored to have said that he would
run the cars, if he had to call out all the SOL
diers OF the Republic" Steinhart has an
nounced that tomorrow morning, Sunday, Aug
End workers are to report for their shift, failure
to report implying dismissal. He expected to
bring about division in the strikers ranks, by
resembling the wage cut for all shop and main
tenance Of way men now earning from 20 to
"a cents an hour. The press reports that this
offer has been rejected and the shopmen stand
pat.
All signs point TO a sharp struggle The
company is putting up Help Wanted" signs
tonight The daily "Heraldo de Cuba" the gcv-
eminent mouthpiece weeps crocodile tears for
the workers but it pretends that it cannot de-
eide who is right, since it does not know in
tnlately the financial position of the company
or if the repeated wage cuts are in proportion
to the decreased income. But it recommends to
the strikers calm" mot to permit them
selves TO be swept into taking violent action
and not to permit their question to be mixed up
with political and social questions of another
character, as some elements pretend" 1t adds
There are many people who look to others to
grab chestnuts out of the fire for them. There
fore be warned" This warning coupled with
the government campaign against August list,
and mobilization of police for emergency use
against demonstrations, indicates that reds"
must be avoided. In another article, it opposes