Evening star., 1932-01-12
Trades Council Is Seeking
Bannett Company Removal
in Wage Dispute.
"PREVAILING RATE" CUT
CHARGED IN AFFIDAVITS
Series From Ironworkers, Brick
layers and Hosting Engineers
Made Public.

The Washington Building Trades
Council, representing union mechanics,
prepared today to wage fight to the
finish" in the case of the Charles S.
Bannett Co., Inc, of Philadelphia,
which is accused of paying it's employees
less than the prevailing wage" pre-
scribed by law in the building of the
Benjamin Stoddart School near Fortieth
and Calvert streets.
The council, through its secretary,
Charles S. Young, declared today it is
seeking to have the Bannett concern
removed as general contractor on the
local project and to be banned from
further public contracts here, ON the
basis of charges filed by its employees
that the contractor is evading the pro-
visions of the Bacon-Davis wage law.
Denial reported to have been made
by the Bannett concern that it was
paying its carpenters less than the pre-
scribed scale, published this morning,
drew a retort from the union council
that it had no information regarding
the carpenters pay and therefore had
not complained about that phase of
the work.
Affidavits Made Public.
The council, however, made pub
lie series of affidavits from
structural iron workers, brick
layers and hosting engineers, charg-
ing that they had been employed
by the Bannett concern on the school
project at wages considerably lower
than the prevailing rates" adopted by
the District Commissioners october
last in conformity with provisions of
the Bacon-Davis act.
Mr.. Young revealed also that copies
of these affldavits, in addition to being
filed with District officials, had been
placed before the conciliation officer of
the Department of Labor. Under the
wage law, the Secretary of Labor is
the final judge in controversy over
the prevailing scale of wages for build
ing mechanics.
Mr.. Young declared his organization
did not propose to let this matter be
CLOSED over" as he asserted was the
earlier case involving the w. P. Rose
Co. of Goldsborough, N. c., which was
accused by local union workers and Of
flcials of evading the wage law, but
which succeeded, however, in gaining
recently another Washington school
building contract, on the promise that
he would pay the prevailing wage scale.
| MIR. Young said he had correspondence
to show Contractor Rose had admitted
that in the past he paid less than the
s@A~S
Hits Denial on Carpenters.
Mr.. Young scored the Bannett Co.
for denying that he was underpay1ng
carpenters on the Stoddart School job,
while no mention was made OF the
charges by union representatives that
bricklayers, engineers and iron work
ers on this job were, being paid less
than the approved scale.
r-ha ilirob Gralp of wages
adopted by the District government Is
substantially the same Of the estab-
lished union scales in this section.
The affidavits filed with District and
Federal officials charge that the Ban
nett concern not only is paying less
than the legal rate of wages, but that
the contractor has had his employees
sign pay roll blanks, with the space
for the amount of wages being lett
blank, to be signed by the contractor or
an agent after the workman has signed.
Mr.. Young insisted today that since
union building mechanics are established
and reputable citizens of Washington,
and there Is no reason for any one TO
doubt the authenticity OF their sworn
statements, contained in the afldavits,
of the amounts they have been recelV-
ing for their work.
One of the afidavits, made by Ar
thur r. Cannon of 1872 Twelfth street,
charges he was employed by the Ban
nett Co. on the Stoddart School 1op
from October % to November 23 and
received 81 an hour for services as a
journeyman bricklayer, whereas the
prevailing" rate would be SITS an
hour.
Other Complaints Filed.
Horace G. Fox, another afiant, resid-
ing at 81 r street, charges he was en-
ployed as a foreman structural steel
worker by the Bannett Co. and became
Subcontractor on November IL Tor the
sum of $875; that on November 20 the
general contractor complained that the
rate of wages paid was too high; that he
took over the subcontract himself, hir-
ing all ironworkers, paying. the fore
| man (Fox) 80 cents per hour. the
| union rate for structural ironworkers Is
ST 65 an hour.
Fox charges further that Bannett re-
ouested ironworkerS on the job to sign
payroll slips which bore no amount or
rate of wages received by them. Fox
states he left the job December be-
cause of the wage scale.
Similar complaints of payment OF less
than the legal wage rate are made IN
affdavits made public by MIR. Young
and bearing the names Of Earl Smith,
ZIG G street; Marlin d. Orun, 2l6 G
street; Iinster w. Fox, 5 r street; Rus
sell H. Frazier, 1888 Second street
southwest; Leslie S. Cowan, 216 c
street; Roy Thomason, 207 c street, and
Frank Martz, 207 C street, iron workers.
o. Simpson, 1125 Seventeenth street,
hoisting engineer. was employed by the
Bannett company at the rate of rs
cents an hour, the Building Council re-
ports.