The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1933-08-19

National Recovery Act Dye [
and $4,000 broad silk workers.
(nostly weavers) in the two main
branches of the silk industry in and
around Patterson are dissatisfied
with the terms of the code under
which they have been working since
the end of July. The minimum wage
Of 10 dollars a week and the 9-hour
day, which is in the blanket textile
code, applies in the silk industry.
But even this small minimum wage
and the reduction of hours tells
only small part of the story of the
workers bad conditions. A worker
can buy half with his dollar what
he bought early this spring, before
the code went into effect. The silk
concerns already have their shelves
stocked with unsold goods, and
wholesale shutdowns and mass I'M
employment can be expected in the
immediate future. The few impor-
tant concessions that have been
won, have been forced out of the
silk concerns as a result of strikes.
Food Prices Way Up
''In February, a twenty-four and
a half lb. sack of flour cost me SO
cents. The same sack of Heckers
flour now costs me one dollar and
ten cents" the wife of a worker
said. eyes," the warper interjected.
81 am supposed to have received
% per cent increase in wages. But
my wages are really less than they
were before the code. In cash, l
get about $500 more pay, consider
ing the reduction in hours. The
Wrappers are the most skilled craft
in the broad silk, and average now
around 1920 dollars a week. But
my wages would have to increase
so per cent to keep up with in
creased prices.
Code Reduces Wages
These high prices work greater
hardship on the weavers who form
the bulk of the workers in broad
silk. The weavers now get around
15-16-17 dollars a week. For the
weavers and the other workers in
the broad silk industry no separate
code has been finally ratified by
the NRA. The code finally pre-
sented however by the Silk Associa-
ton of America made public on Au-
gust 8 calls for g minimum wage
for all Northern silk workers of
$500 a week, the same as the
blanket code now operating. The
competition between the small
northern mills in the association
and the large silk and rayon COM
panies caused a disagreement as to
the provisions as to who should ad-
minister the code the small shops
demanding say. But there was
no controversy among the employ
ers as to the 15 dollar a week
minimum for the weavers, quillers,
Wrappers, etc. The employers, the
government and the A. F. of l.. tex
tile unions have unanswered into
position whereby, according to the
provisions of the code now in eff
feet, they can reduce wages, now
averaging sixteen seventeen dollars
q week, to $500 a week and re-
ceive the protection of the Roose-
welt Gods. The silk manufacturers
and dye houses will again try to
make the workers bear the burdens
of the glutted market, and reduce
wages to the minimum and lay off
workers.
Dyers Preparing Strike
How the eight hour provisions in
The code now in effect works out
among the dyers, can be seen
among the Weidmann dye house
workers. "What is the use of the
eight-hour day for US when we only
work an average of five ard a half
hours a day anyhow" this worker
said. "The silk workers this spring
through their nation wide strikes
and threat of strike and organiza-
tion, forced the manufacturers to
grant increases. Now | get the code
rate of 45 cents an hour. My last
two weeks pay was S36 or 10 dol
lars a week. This is less in many
cases than we got working longer
hours at the rate of 81 cents an
hour. Often workers get below
that in the dye houses. The weld
mann Co. is a part of the United
Dye, the biggest dye works in New
Jersey, which has a dye house near
Passaic with several thousand work