Montana labor news., 1939-10-26
Sfenographers Are
verYMuth Underpaid
Union Of Office Workers Re-
quests Men and Women to
Join Organization.

related white collar groups have
hitherto been thought of as the
aristocracy of labor. They once drew
little better pay and were a little
more secure in their jobs than other
workers. When times were bad, they
were the last to have their wages
cut and the last to be let go. They
occupied higher place in the social
scale and, generally, Jared better
than other wage earners.
But all this is changed now. The
white collar workers preeminent
position in relation to other workers
is slipping away from him-is gone.
Chances of advancement have prac-
tically disappeared and here, too,
chronological unemployment has
made steady inroads. More and high
ly efficient office machinery has dis
placed hundreds of thousands of
workers. The speed-up has crept in
and the nervous strain in certain
types of office work is tremendous.
Office workers are now often the
first to feel the pinch of a recession.
In the office, rather than on the pro-
duction lines lay-offs and wage cuts
are first made Instead of being the
most secure of the working class
groups, white collar workers have
become the least secure.
Office workers, of necessity, have
highly trained and alert minds-their
work requires it. Yet we find work
ers in other trades, often calling for
much less skill and intelligence,
drawing more pay for shorter hours
and more secure in their jobs.
AS an illustration: In a certain
Butte mercantile establishment al
young lady works in the office. She
is secretary to the manager, takes
dictation from two other men, and
is often called upon to take over
part of his duties when he is absent.
In addition she audits the invoices
and keeps account of stock and per-
forms countless other tasks connect
ed with her job. She is under bond
for the faithful discharge of her re-
sponsibilities. She must often take
unfinished work home with her, so
that she can't leave her job behind
her when quitting time comes. For
all this she receives $65 monthly
On the selling floor of this estab-
lishment other girls work as clerks
They are not as highly trained as is
this young office worker and their
training did not cost them the large
amount of hard cash that hers did
Yet they get $23 dollars weekly. In
a restaurant in the same place the
dish-washer gets $3.50 week and
her board This young woman has
asked for place as a dishwasher
or clerk but cannot get either place
because girls as competent as she is
in the office are hard to find, yet
the employer will not raise her pay.
1t is peculiar that with all their
highly trained intelligence, office
workers have not been able to rea-
son things out and discover why
they are not as well paid as dish
washers They know they are in a
key position in the business world,
yet they are paid less than the most
unskilled workers. For all his or her
lack Of trained intelligence, such as
the white collar worker must have
to hold his job, the dishwasher knew
that the only way to win decent
wages, hours and working condi-
tions was to organize. How soon will
the Butte office employees use their
heads and join the awakening thou
sands of white collar workers
throughout the nation in organizing
how soon will they join Local No
80 of the United Office and Profes-
sional Workers and 60 union?
For more details, interested parties
are asked to come up to any regular
meeting of Local No 30. The union
meets every Friday night, at 1880
p M, in the Butte Miners Union hall.