The daily worker., 1934-10-23
Lay-Off Pay
Is Demanded
At Murray

BY An Auto Worker Correspondent
Detroit, Mich,
To the Murray Body Workers;
At the last regular meeting Of the
Murray Local of the Auto Workers
Union, the Murray workers gave the
vivid picture of conditions existing
at the Murray Body Co. Each told
his story of how lay-offs have taken
place in their respective depart
ments. They called upon the re-
manning workers, who are facing q
lay-off themselves on completion of
the old models, to join the Auto
Workers Union and make the Mur-
ray Body Local so powerful that
they will force the company to
grant them lay-off pay during the
period of the unemployment.
The Murray Body Company, prac-
tically subsidiary of the Ford
Motor Company, is about closed,
with a few workers still employed.
one or three days a week, finishing
out the old models. About next
week the whole plant will be shut
tight with the prospects of re-
opening In November or December,
The metal shops which were still
working, with a reduced force Of
workers, are finishing their work
now and will be closed down soon.
The metal shop department No, 100
was laid off already, while the No.
1875 department will be laid off next
Monday. The No. 115 department
was laid off last Monday, in one
section, while the other section was
laid off last Thursday, with the
foreman telling the workers how
sorry he was to let the workers go.
He sent them home, he said, be-
cause that was the order he re-
Ceived from the office, to cut the
force down, and said that he had
to abide by the factory orders, for
fear that he would lose his own
Job, because there wasn't enough
work for all the men and the fac
tory demands economies, to finish
the rest of the work with a few
workers, who will also be laid off.
In the sewing department, No.
1870, over SO to 10 women and girls
were laid off Friday morning. The
rest of the force are expected to be
laid off completely Monday or Tues
day. One worker gave his report
about his complete earnings re-
ceived at the Murray Body Co. For
the period of % weeks he had been
employed here he made S226.7S,
averaging a little better than $12 a
week for non-skilled work. Many
workers, when laid off, went to the
plant welfare department to re-
ceive help during the time Of un-
employment until they would be
called back to work again. If they
we're persistent they got IS pro-
viding they had family, on con-
dition that they should go to their
respective city welfare office for
further aid. A family of two re-
ceived only SO week to live on
and were told not to come back be-
cause most of the workers were new
employees. Only workers who had
long years of service in that COM
pany would be accommodated with
security till operations would be
resumed again, and they would be
called back to their respective occu-
uations. Those who received help
from the company welfare depart
ment had to sign two vouchers
pledging themselves that the money
extended to them by the welfare
office would be remitted when they
were called back to work again.
With most of the workers receiv-
ing hourly rates of so cents, work
ing six or less hours day, three
or four days : week, averaging $12
or $14 q week, the "-Torkers are ex-
pected to pay back the money to
the welfare fund. They have to
draw part of their pay in ad-
vance, because they can't exist on
$12 a week, and after few ad-
vances they have no money coming
on pay day, for they he d~awn it
out before time.
Workers, join the Murray Body
Local, Auto Workers Union, and
organize pressure to force the COM
pany to give layed-off pay until re-
hired, without a cent being paid
back. That is the responsibility Of
the company: to take care of it's
workers who worked for low wages
and were exploited and robbed at
the time of production more than
any other workers in the city. Help
build a delegated body of workers
to present these demands before
this company's welfare officials to