The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1935-01-21

Francis German, U. T. w. head,
when they agreed to return to the
mills after their strike had para
lyzed every important mill center
in the country.
The conclusion of this study,
made by statisticians of the United
States Bureau of Labor Statistics is
deadly:
As a result of the N. r. A. code
wage earners in the mills had a
smaller real income in August,
1884, than in July, 1888, just be-
fore the code went into effect.
-. When a comparison is made
between the largest average real
earnings after the code, and Au-
gust, 1884, a year later, the loss
of real income to the workers dur
ing the curtailment period is seen
to be large. In the North, the
purchasing power of the average
worker was Is per cent less than
In August, 1888. In the South, it
was at least rs per cent lower"
Thus, a little over one year of the
Roosevelt-N. R. A. blessings h a d
robbed the million textile workers
Of Is to Is per cent Of their real
wages, a wage cut equal to the wage
cuts effected by Hoover in the pre-
vious four years Of crisis
Squalid Poverty
The picture of wages in the tex
tile industry, given by the report,
is unparalleled for its degradation
and poverty.
The n. r. A. minimum" said
the Communists, was a cool lie. The
government report confirms this to
the hilt: THE feeling that the code
actually provides for a wage of $12
= week in the South and S13 in the
North is widespread, though false"
the report states. Actually these
are only the maximum possible
earnings for those working at the
prescribed minimum hourly rates of
1922 cents an hour. But in no
week since the adoption of the code
has the industry average been more
than 36.5 hours per person"
On top of this, the N. r. A. wiped
out the distinctions between skilled
and unskilled to a degree that cut
wages still further:
The code refers to the mainten-
ance of differences existing prior to
July, 1888 and then by limi-
tation of phrase defines this process
in such way as to destroy the diff
ferential between skilled and I'M
skilled workers"
Wholesale Wage Cuts
Continuing its picture of whole
sale wage cutting and exploitation,
the report states:
Under the code, even if a work
er got all the benefits promised
him, he would never have been
able to earn more than 1915 a
year.
Actually, the average textile
worker during the first year of the
code never averaged more than
$9.65 a week, or $575 a year.
Although hourly rates were in
creased, weekly earnings as re-
flected in pay envelopes dropped
sharply.
Due to the code, weekly earn
tngs in August, 1884, were 8 per
cent lower than a year before in
the North, and II per cent lower
In the South!
Real Wages SIashed
Some OF the conditions existing in
the industry are illustrated by the
following facts in the report:
In July, 1888, thousands of women
in the mills, representing at least
10 per cent of the women workers,
were getting less than $2.37 a week,
This was raised to $4.98 and was
hailed as 152 per cent wage in
crease!
Taking into account the increase
in the cost of living, the report
states, at least so per cent of the
male workers had their so-called
pay rises completely wiped out by
rising prices, and these price rises
cut the earnings Of at least 10 per
cent of the males in the North and
Is per cent in the South.
Spread Work Plan
On employment, Roosevelt and
the A. F. Of L. officials estimated
that there would be $4,000 jobs as
a minimum in the industry. Actu-
ally, the average for the twelve
month period of August, 1888, to